Perfect food?

Although we would all like to have a few cases of MRE's packed away for times of need, many people (myself included) find it hard to both part with the cash, and remember to rotate them to maintain freshness. What other storage freindly foods exist? Canned goods are obvious, but many do not provide a all the nutritional content required. I've heard that peanut butter has the highest concentration of calories per weight, along with fats and vitamins, which seems to be a perfect survival food. Eggwhites are another calorie-dense food, even if they are harder to store. I guess I am looking for someting that I could concievably work into my everyday diet as an excuse to always have some on hand for emergencies. What other every-day foodstuffs would fit into this 'Perfect-food' catagory?

-Don

P.S. I do infact have 2 MRE's in the trunk of the car. This stems from getting stranded in a blizzard many years ago for a day. Trivia: Do you know how to get into your trunk without going outside? Obviously this is easy with a wagon or hatchback, but what if you drive a sedan?

About eggwhite :

AFAIK, you spend more calories digesting hardboiled eggwhites than they provide....


Alain

If you go to Kurt Saxon's site, he'll tell you how to live off of hard winter wheat for about 3-4 cents per meal. <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I read that site. Interesting stuff, although not very practical with family members (wife and kids) who want to eat something a little more appetizing. Not that it taste bad, it's just not kid-friendly food. I can't argue about the price though.

Add dry powdered milk and honey. <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

This is a topic I enjoy thinking about even though it started out of necessity. I think it is fairly easy to stock up cheaply and nutritiously. I make sure I have a lot of cereals, oatmeal, grits, cornmeal, etc. Plus tuna, sardines, smoked oysters. Canned and dried veggies and fruits. Crackers of all kinds. Dry and condensed milk. Cooking oil, and peanut butter. I have kids and a relatively picky husband, so I make sure there is something for everyone. Oh, don't forget spagettios! Incidentally, in my car I keep some candy, nuts, beef jerky (which can be pricey for the good stuff, but packs a lot of protein), and peanut butter crackers, as well as a case of bottled water. Hope this helps a little. I used to fret about it until I realized that I did have the bases covered more than I had thought.

If you have elevated cholesterol, you might want to go easy on the peanut butter, at least as part of your regular diet.

Does anyone have any experience with the survival foods like the Datrex food bars or the Mainstay emergency food?

I have heard that MRE's have a reduced shelf life if stored in a hot location (like a car's trunk). You might want to check and make sure that your MRE's are still safe to eat.

As for the trivia question, you can get into the trunk by removing the seat and back of the back seat and crawling or reaching into the trunk.

I had some of those Datrex bars (the ones in the red packaging.) They tasted kinda bad, but I wouldn't really mind if I had to eat them. By the way, what is the difference between the blue and red packaging?

I have tried the mainstay bars. I found them to be like a really hard, slightly greasy, somewhat lemon-flavored cake/cookie type food. They got really pasty once chewed. I could live on them if necessary, but I won't buy them again. I ended up throwing much away.

Just checked the Datrex website, www.datrex.com They now offer white and blue packaging. White is 2400 cal, blue is 3600. Water packets are calorie free. Hope this helps,

Ed

A few, almost traditional survival foods include; jerked meat and pemmican, dehydrated foods, with fruit being the most readily purchased and even fruit cake. One should remember that in a long term survival scenario the body is already under stress. Major dietary changes, no matter how nutritous or beneficial can negatively affect us. Foods prepared for storage( dehydrated,freeze dried etc.) have had the water content reduced to save wieght and extend shelf life. Remember, when you eat this food that water must be replaced,either in preparation or intake. Canned foods are heavy ( water content), also subject to heat and cold degradation and may have elevated sodium levels. Worldwide we are playing a big gamble with food, relying on a handfull of major crops ( rice,wheat,soy and corn) of decreasing genetic diversity. I like to play out the opposite strategy in my own reserve supplies; foods in several stored mediums of a wide variety. Think like a gourmet omnivore, nothing is worse than going on a long hike and finding everyone brought granola <img src="images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> Some foods can be a nutritional suprise also. Captain Cook introduced limes into the hardtack and salted beef rations to eliminate scurvy. His german peers never knew the malady, a common shipboard ration being easily stored saurekraut <img src="images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />