Food Storage: 30 lbs. of Wheat
Extra Item: 30 lbs. of Beans
If you have been following this blog, you've probably guessed by now we won't miss this opportunity to promote the Cannery! Of course the Cannery provides an excellent option for your long-term food storage needs. Here are the Cannery prices for Wheat and Beans:
Wheat (Hard Red or White) - #10 Can - 5.8 lbs. @ $2.80 (48 cents/lb.)
Beans, Black - #10 Can - 5.5 lbs. @ $3.95 (72 cents/lb.)
Beans, Pinto - #10 Can - 5.2 lbs. @ $4.65 (89 cents/lb.)
Beans, White - #10 Can - 5.3 lbs. @ $3.70 (70 cents/lb.)
The #10 cans are sealed to last 30+ years. The above items are also available in bulk if you wish to do your own canning or packaging. See the Cannery Price Sheet from Week 6 for more info.
The Kanarra Ward visits the Cannery on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 5:00 pm. Our next scheduled date is Thursday, March 10. If you haven't been to the Cannery yet, we encourage you to give it a try - it's a lot of fun!
Prepared Canned Beans are also great for short-term food storage. As usual, we poked around and came up with some great local bargains for you to take advantage of...
Lin's
Western Family (assorted) - 15 oz. @ $0.99 (6.6 cents/oz.)
Natural Directions Organic (assorted) - 15 oz. @ $1.19 (7.9 cents/oz.)
Van Camps or Western Family Pork & Beans - 15 oz. @ $.89 (5.9 cents/oz.)
Western Family Pork & Beans - 6 lb. 14 oz. (#10 can) @ $6.99 (6.4 cents/oz.)
Western Family (assorted) - 30 oz. @ $1.79 (6.0 cents/oz.)
Dollar Tree
King Cole Black or Kidney Beans - 19 oz. @ $1.00 (5.3 cents/oz.)
Hartford House Chili - 15 oz. @ $1.00 (6.7 cents/oz.)
Smiths
Kroger (assorted) - 15 oz. @ $0.68 (4.5 cents/oz.)
Private Selection Organic (assorted) - 15 oz. @ $0.99 (6.6 cents/oz.) - ***FAVORITE FIND*** (great price for organic!)
Family Dollar
Van Camps Baked Beans - 28 oz. @ $1.25 (4.5 cents/oz.)
Van Camps Pork & Beans - 15 oz. @ $0.75 (5.0 cents/oz.)
Big Lots
Teasdale Pinto Beans - 29 oz. @ $1.40 (4.8 cents/oz.)
Wal Mart
Great Values Black Beans - 15.25 oz. @ $0.56 (3.7 cents/oz.) ***BEST VALUE***
Great Values (other assorted) - 15.25 oz. @ $0.66 (4.3 cents/oz.)
S&W (assorted) - 15.25 oz. @ $.72 (4.7 cents/oz.)
Bush's (assorted) - 15 oz. prices vary from $0.83 to $1.00 (5.5 to 6.7 cents/oz.)
72 Hour Kit: Food for 72 hours - non perishable and easily prepared (refer to Essentials of Home Production and Storage Booklet for ideas).
Family Preparation: Check all windows around the house and make sure they work properly to use as an exit, in case of emergency. Teach all family members how to operate these windows and give specific permission to break their window if it will not open in a TRUE emergency.
Spiritual Preparation: Read Ephesians 6:13-18
Study what the "Whole Armour of God" stands for and ways that you can apply it in your life today. Strive to avoid the temptations that come your way.
Food For Thought:
Many people have lots of basic staple-type food storage sitting in a closet or garage that they don't use or rotate through their pantry because it's just too much extra work and they don't have the time to mess with it, or don't know what to do with it. It sits there because it would help them survive in an emergency but on a day to day basis it's just plain too inconvenient.
There is a basic tool out there that would help everyone start putting those aging supplies to work - a tool that was recommended in a recent BYU TV Preparedness Seminar as one that should be in every LDS home. That tool is a pressure cooker. Most people remember the old ones their parents (or grandparents) had that seemed to always be in danger of blowing up. I had one when my kids were little and used to go into the other room when it was on the stove hissing and steaming and watch it from a distance! But, unbeknownst to me, in the time it took for my kids to become parents themselves, pressure cookers also grew up and the new models are now considered very safe and amazingly efficient. Do you know that you can put potatoes in the bottom, meatloaf in a basket strainer in the middle, and carrots wrapped in foil on top and have a whole dinner that will cook in 5 to 10 minutes? Not only that, but my own vague memories of the old pressure cookers were that you couldn't cook things that foam like rice or beans but no, not only can you cook beans wonderfully, you don't even have to soak them! Do you have cases of dried beans in your food storage getting old because it's just so much easier to open a can of already prepared beans?
Pressure cooking is such a way of life in India that most kitchens have multiple pressure cookers in different sizes for different uses. They are also very common in Europe.
Because they cook under high pressure they also solve the problem of high-altitude cooking which means no more waiting two hours for those potatoes to get soft! The Sherpas often use them at Base Camp on climbing expeditions.
Here is a wonderful short article to introduce you to this new/old way of cooking - "Pressure Cooking: Fast, Healthy Eating". And to help you on your journey are two wonderful pressure cooking divas with their own separate websites: Lorna Sass and Miss Vickie.
Lorna Sass had a Ph.D in Medieval Literature when she got interested in pressure cooking and wrote her first cookbook. Her emphasis is on healthy ingredients as well as the basic how-tos and one of her books is specifically for vegetarian dishes.
Miss Vickie will tell you everything possibly known about the art of pressure cooking, answer questions, as well as sell products (she is connected to Amazon.com and gets a small sum from them for anything ordered on her website). She has many meat-oriented recipes and gets great reviews with the exception that she sometimes calls for the addition of prepared foods such as "add one can of cream of mushroom soup" or "one package gravy mix" instead of just using basic ingredients.
Depending on your preferences, both ladies' how-to books are considered "pressure cooker bibles" in the industry.
Here are a few things to consider when purchasing a pressure cooker:
1. Buy a bigger one than you think you will need because you cannot fill it more than 1/2 to 2/3 full to leave room at the top for the steam to build up the pressure (especially for things that foam like rice and beans) and it's great to have leftovers to freeze.
2. The most popular sizes are 4 quart, 6 quart and 8 quart. The 8 quart models say you can use them for canning but that is not terribly practical because they would only hold a few jars at a time. The extremely large models that are specifically made for canning are too large to be practical for making dinner.
3. To decide on an electric versus a stovetop model, remember that although some feel that the electric is more automatic or a "no-brainer", they cook at 9 lbs. pressure as opposed to the 13-15 lbs. pressure of a stovetop model. As a result it takes about 20% longer with an electric model. Also because more can go wrong with them (as a self-contained cooking unit) they generally have very limited warranties whereas a good quality stovetop model will have a guarantee of at least 10 years or more. Also, both the two major pressure cooking online experts (Lorna Sass and Miss Vickie) use stovetop models for the recipes in their wonderful cookbooks. And lastly, if the electricity goes out you can haul the stovetop model out to the backyard and put it on the campfire and still have dinner! And yes, you can take it camping.
4. Presto brand pressure cookers are inexpensive, readily available (Wal-Mart if I remember correctly) and have been around for years. They are made in China.
5. The Kuhn-Rikon brand seems to be considered the "Cadillac" (it's made in Switzerland) while Miss Vickie and Lorna Sass both like the Fagor line as a less-expensive and high-quality alternative. It is made in Spain.
6. Aluminum pressure cookers are less expensive than stainless steel but are not recommended because of the aluminum pitting over time, staining and/or changing the taste of the food, etc. A good quality stainless steel cooker can be inherited by your kids! Cookers with non-stick coatings are also not recommended because no matter what the manufacturers say the coating is just not going to hold up long term under high pressure cooking.
7. The magazine "Cooks Illustrated" did a test of four electric pressure cookers compared to their favorite "Fagor Duo 8-Quart Stove Top Model" and rated the Fagor Stove Top still their favorite.
Good luck and good cooking!
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