Most people begin prepping by buying canned food from the store for their food storage. Some people buy the freeze dried and dehydrated foods from companies that specialize in them. It is even possible to buy a year or two years supply all at once if money is not a problem. Whichever way its purchased is perfectly fine and a good way to build up a food pantry.
Eventually, there may be no stores or companies to go to and purchase our food. There may be glitches all along the way that can prevent food on the shelves for us to purchase. There could be problems with the growers, the packers, the distributors, transportation and the actual brick and mortar store. Supplies could become limited or non existent. In those scenarios we may sit back for a while secure with our food storage. Eventually if the disruption goes on long term or never recovers, we will find ourselves running out of food.
In my opinion, one of the most important skills a prepper can learn is food preservation. If we learn to preserve our own food then whenever we acquire food we can save some for the future with the knowledge it won't spoil before we need it. Whether there is a large shipment of one thing that becomes available during food shortages or whether we hunt, forage or grow our own we will be able to safely preserve the excess for eating later.
It is important to learn to preserve food now while the information and supplies are readily available. You can't expect to run out and buy all the supplies after a crisis and you sure don't want to find yourself learning to can your own under less then ideal circumstances.
The two most common ways that most people use to preserve food are canning and dehydrating. Both are acceptable and not overly difficult. They do have rules and procedures that need to be learned. They also have equipment that will be needed to get it done. It can seem expensive to get started in food preservation but if you think of the supplies as a lifetime investment its not too bad overall.
For canning food, you will need at the very least some jars, lids and a deep enough pot for a boiling water bath. A regular deep pot with a rack will work fine for fruits and pickles but if you plan on doing vegetables and meat you will need a pressure canner. If the pressure canner is tall enough it can do double duty for both processes.
There are three major brands of pressure canners and they all work well. Some cost more then others and that will be a consideration for most people. A canner whether it is a presto, mirro or All American will last for generations so even though they can be pricey, the expense is only one time and your children's children may very well still be using your canner years down the line. No kidding, they last if they're not abused. Even so, that initial purchase may be too much for some people. You can find a good used canner for a good price if you take the time and look for one. Garage sales, craigs list, eBay, your local paper or church Ladies all may have canners available for much less money.
You will also need jars and lids and lots of them. The jars and rings are reusable and will also last for many years. The flat metal lids will have to be replaced as they are single use but they are inexpensive and you can stock up on spares. Most of my jars were bought used as were most of my canners. If you find used jars for sale there is often a canner that the people will also be willing to sell.
When you are learning to can you will want to buy a new copy of the Ball Blue Book. It has directions for canning almost everything. It also includes information on dehydrating and freezing. There are directions on the Internet as well with some very reliable resources but you NEED a copy of the book for your survival library. It's cheap. Buy one. It will be your preserving bible. No the recipes are not generally gourmet or exciting but they are tried and true and guaranteed to be safe and accurate which is not true about many of the Internet recipes. Check out the link section for some safe places to get Internet help with canning.
The other way most People use to preserve food is by dehydrating. It also requires some equipment but again consider it an investment. You CAN dry food without electricity but many people buy an electric dehydrator. The electrics all work but some work better then others. There are cheaper and more expensive models. With dehydrators the more expensive ones really do put out a better product in my experience but the cheaper ones work too and may be what is in your budget at first. I have six of the cheaper models. They're not great but they get the job done and they run non-stop almost all year. All of them were bought used. I have also dehydrated in my truck and I have hung food on strings to dry. There are directions for making a small solar dehydrator in the how to section of the site. There are directions in books and on the Internet for making bigger solar dehydrators as well.
Other then the actual dehydrator and a knife there isn't much equipment needed for dehydrating. You will need to have something to store the food in when its finished. Plastic zipper bags are not good for food storage. Mylar with an oxygen absorber is fine. Jars either vacuum sealed or with an oxygen absorber are fine. You can use mason jars or jars that are repurposed from grocery store foods. Used lids are fine for vacuum sealing so if you save them from your canned foods you can use them again several times for dried foods. Friends and family can save their empty jars and lids for you as well. You can also buy a vacuum sealer and bags for your dried food.
No matter what you decide, you need to learn to preserve foods either by canning or drying. Preferably, you will learn both so that you will be ready for whatever you have to do. Whether you raise animals for meat or plant a garden for vegetables, whether you buy in bulk or a little bit extra at a time, whether you hunt for meat or forage for wild edibles, you will want to know how to safely preserve the extra of whatever you have for times when there is no garden or butchering but especially when there is no grocery store.
Southern Wood Elf
RSS Feed