There’s a reason preppers and even just people who like a well-stocked pantry purchase canned goods. They hold up for a long time, years even.
They’re generally easy to prepare, many items requiring no more preparation than a quick warming in order to make sure the food is free from harmful microorganisms. Cans also come ready to store, no extra prep needed to sock them away for long-term storage.
Plenty of staples like beans, soup, veggies, fruit, and pasta are commonly found in the average family’s pantry, and found in great quantities in preppers’ stores.
Those staples would get boring quickly, though. If you’re looking to add some unique and exotic foods to your food storage for either variety in your diet or for trading, read on for a look at the following canned goods you didn’t know existed.
⇒ How To Get 295 Pounds Of Extra Food For Just $5 A Week
Bread
Canned bread is totally a thing, and it’s available in several different varieties.
While it’s likely more practical to store ingredients to make your own bread for the long-term, canned bread could be a tasty, quick way to a full belly and to get some carbohydrates into your system.
You can find Original and Raisin Brown Bread by B & M in many stores or online.
Butter
Would you miss butter if you suddenly didn’t have access to the supermarket?
No big deal, you can get that canned, too.
There are a few brands of canned butter available, and it’s rather expensive since it’s not canned in the US.
Related: Making Butter at Home, Like Our Grandparents
However, it’d be a lovely treat in a SHTF situation, and fat is a crucial part of the diet. For a less expensive canned butter, opt for powdered butter, instead.
Pudding
Canned pudding is more often found in Europe.
But you can find it in stores in the US, too, as any buffet or cafeteria worker attest.
Whatever your favorite type of pudding, it’s likely available in a can.
Cake
A pudding in the European sense that refers more to a desert dish in general, you can get canned Spotted Dick made by Simpson’s. It’s essentially a sponge cake with spices and raisins.
This canned cake doesn’t quite fit into what we think of as a cake in everyday life.
Related: How To Make Prepper Fruit Cake That Can Last For Decades
However, I bet it’d be an incredible birthday treat in a SHTF situation.
Bacon
Very few people don’t like bacon. So it’s great that Yoder makes it in a can for long-term storage.
It’s salty, fatty, and flavorful, which makes it great for spicing up boring food made from more traditional prepper food items. You don’t need much of it to transform a pot of soup or some powdered eggs.
Cheese
Making your own cheese isn’t rocket science. However, there is a lot of actual science involved, and the raw materials needed may not be easy to come by.
So, there’s canned cheese. Check out Kraft’s Prepared Pasteurized Cheddar cheese or Heinz’s Macaroni Cheese for reasonably priced options.
While it’s not quite like what we think of as ‘real’ cheese, canned cheese has plenty of fat and flavor to be a worthwhile addition to your prepper’s pantry.
Hamburger
Generally, people think of canned hamburger being home-canned.
However, it’s available in cans from both Yoders and Keystone.
There are even pre-seasoned canned hamburger products available, like the taco meat by Yoders.
⇒ Canning Hamburger Meat For Long Term Preservation
Whole Chicken
Canned whole chicken, like those available from Sweet Sue, are good for more than just the meat.
When the entire chicken is canned, all the gelatin and fat is preserved, allowing you to make a fantastic chicken soup. This makes it a great survival food, especially in an SHTF situation.
Sandwiches
Also known as the Candwich, these canned sandwiches will be available in several different flavors.
They haven’t quite hit the open market yet, but they’re coming! They come in a can about the size of a soda can with a peel off top. They’re perfect for on-the-go eating.
Potato Salad
Who knew this traditional, delicious picnic side was available in a can?
Canned potato salad would be a good way to add a little flavor into your preps.
It can be eaten warm or chilled, making it a more versatile side dish than you’d possibly realized.
Related: How To Can Potatoes for Long Term Preservation
Tamales
Simply heat these canned tamales up, maybe add some fresh veggies or canned cheese to them, and voila! You’ve created an entire meal by simply opening the can.
These provide a ready-made meal in a solid form, which can have profound positive psychological impacts.
While canned soup is great for filling you up and providing a decent balance, it’s simply not the most satisfying food out there.
Cheeseburger
Made in Switzerland, these rather expensive canned cheeseburgers aren’t very practical.
But they’re a fun addition to your preps.
You simply boil the whole can and open for a tasty (that’s subjective, of course) cheeseburger.
Escargot
Even if you don’t care much for fancy seafood, there are plenty of canned sea food items that could be great for bartering.
Apart from escargot, you can also find crab, lobster, and other shellfish canned, that make a great addition to your prepper pantry.
Duck Confit
Popular in France, canned duck with fat doesn’t seem terribly popular in the US. However, the high fat content in this canned dish could prove to be helpful in a SHTF situation.
It’s great for soups and stews, and it adds a sumptuous touch that you won’t often find in the world of canned goods.
Whatever you prepping goals, consider adding some non-conventional canned goods to your stores. Variety, after all, is the spice of life.
We need a variety of foods to stay at our healthiest, and because of this, people generally want a bit of variety in their diet. The humor factor that many of the above items bring to the table shouldn’t be discounted, either.
Psychological health will be remarkable important if society collapses, as well, so attending to our psychological needs shouldn’t be overlooked. As is always the case with canned good storage, be sure you’re properly storing cans and rotating your stock as necessary.
You may also like:
Canning Pasta Sauce for Long Term Preservation
5 Ingenious Ways To Refrigerate Your Food Without Electricity (Video)
23 Things a Prepper Should Never Throw Away. Why?
Escargot is NOT seafood. It is land food. Properly harvested snails.
THANK YOU!!
Cate; Snails are also found in fresh water and salt water. Most are edible, but some are toxic. One thing about cooking snails…you don’t want to over cook them. They become rubbery if you do.
If you are interested in snails for food, and there is no reason why you shouldn’t eat them. Can 50 million Frenchmen be wrong? Don’t bother to answer. I know the answer.
What I have read is that the snails need to be maintained in a bed of cornmeal for a week or so in order to clean out what they have been eating in nature. They should also be cooked before eating in case they have some parasites. No slurping them raw from the shell. If you look for snails in the grocery store you will see that the shells are sold separately from the snails themselves. The shells are reusable. They are not needed to eat the snails. I like my snails in garlic butter. In fact, I would rather just have French bread and the garlic butter, hold the snails.
I have read the orange farmers in Kallyforniya supplement their income selling snails from their orchards to the folks who market them. It seems the snails like the oranges that fall to the ground. I have rather extensive orange orchards near my house, so if the EOTW arrives, I plan on not only harvesting oranges (assuming Farmer Brown isn’t around) and also any snails I find creeping around the trees. I guess I’d better lay in some canned butter so I can have garlic butter to go with the snails.
Well 50 million frenchmen probably said that escargot taste like poo but they gave up and ate it anyway…
??
Did you try the snails, yet? Make sure they’re not a toxic type. Good ones taste like clams. Please remember, keep everything as clean as possible, like you were using fish. Snails and slugs (and freshwater fish) can carry liver flukes, which cooking should kill. Donno about them eating oranges. Food affects flavor. Best bet to canned butter, make ghee, clarified butter. The should keep for months, of not years. We soften unsalted butter and whip in raw yogurt, then let it ‘age’ in the back of a fridge a few days. It then tastes like farm butter, not fancy lard. Clarified, it should keep a year or longer. Manga, good eating! niio
Mother Earth News had a good article about eating ants, crickets, snails and slugs, etc. the cornmeal thing is a purge so they poop out the bad stuff the snails have been eating and eat grain. Slugs are more problematic. They often carry a parasite called the rat lungworm from eating rodent feces. It can give you meningitis. Need to cook thoroughly. Also can gut them and squeeze out poop, but get very slimy. I was interested because there are many snails in my yard and slugs in the nearby park. So they are nutritious and available, but will probably take a pass unless desperate and then would clean them big time.
The French gave us the Statute of Liberty because it only had one arm raised, so yes 40 million Frenchies can be wrong.
Just curious…why would anyone buy empty snail shells ? Let a lone re-use them? Is it just for looks, or does it add something to the dish, taste wise? (‘never ate snails, before.)
I sort of like Brown Bread. It is good with creme fraiche on it or soft whipped cream cheese. It tastes better if it is slightly warmed. It is quite rich and filling.
I tried the canned bacon. While it had rave reviews on the website where I purchased it, I did not add it to my stored food. I guess I will just have to shoot one of the wild hogs that infest the central coast of Kallyforniya if I want bacon after the EOTW. Of course, if food is scarce, I might be thrilled to have a can of bacon or can of anything. It is interesting how one’s perspective changes during crises.
Try this bacon. Pretty good. Used to be one of my customers
https://www.werlingandsons.com/
Didn’t see bacon on the site.
keep can openers on each keychain
Definitely grab a couple hundred P-38 military can openers
My wife forgot to open the can of brown bread one time, and blew the door off of the oven when the can exploded. Open both ends when heating it up please. Lol
Canned duck? Oh my.
I’ve had the canned duck. It is delicious. My sister brought it from France for Christmas.
Fantastic that you can keep providing the information that you do. It is wonderful that you are providing both the young and uninformed about Survival. Something not readily available in the past. Kurt Saxon was my Hero in the Seventies and Eighties, and I possess much of his literature. Keep up the good work. One last thing; Escargot is a Snail not Seafood. “BUT, Who Cares”?
Snails are found in the ocean as well as on land.
Has any one tried the candwiches?
Where can you buy this
You have the brand name, just use the search feature of your internet connection. Or just go straight to Amazon and search for it.
great info i had not thought of.
Some of the items were known to me. B&M brown bread made canned pork and beans a true treat when mom made them, Hormel tamales have provided some quick lunches for many years. Others worth a try if found are the canned chicken, turkey, salmon, and corned beef as well as the small peeled potatoes for a rushed lunch. A bit pricey for everyday, but not bad for a special meal once in a while. (If it was canned for the old C-rations, it probably is available somewhere in its civvies.)
You forgot caviar.
Yes indeed for what would survival be without Caviar? ROTFLMAO Some of you people just make me laugh!!
Yeah, that was funny, but a lot of people make their own. Most Native Americans on the coast save all fish eggs, even salmon. Caviar is nothing but that, preserved fish eggs. If you like fish, why not?
Don’t forget the great lakes, and the inland fresh water in the surrounding states. Sturgeon, salmon.
Absolutely, Rick,
Walmart has an Icelandic caviar, Season brand black capelin for not much more than a quality tin of sardines. It is fabulous, much better than Napoleon and not salty. I buy several every December because they don’t always carry it. Prepping doesn’t always have to be a 25 year shelf life bag of pasta that a chicken once walked past.
I m 55 years old been through a lot. Not really all that religious but I would guess spritual. I find these emails and websites fascinating. I actually check these emails out before my portfolio. I print a lot off and catalog them because I can’t remember all this stuff. I have the lost ways book. I plan on bugging in. Thanks guys I would hope we never have to use stuff but I try a lot out just in case.
I am 58 and not a prepper but like you I find this information fascinating! Who would have thought? A canned hamburger?
I didn’t become a prepper til OVOMMIT got into orfice– Then then I said OH, SHIT
Noticed that a lot of the foods presented had pull tops. Read a couple of articles claiming that they could be a problem with long term storage
Yeah, those pull tops can be a problem, they are prone to leakage and its not good to stack them either.
The pull tops can fail in the short term. After Hurricane Irma, a can of food I pulled from the pantry had a convex, not concave, lid. It was raised up about a quarter of an inch in the middle. When the barometric pressure settled back down, I observed the lid gradually flattening down to about where it was when I purchased it. That happened over several days. It was weird to watch! I marked the top with a big black ‘x’, and returned it to the store for a refund. I marked it for two reasons. One, since the lid was back to the normal position, I did not want to accidentally open the can, eat it and get sick. The second was to prevent a store employee from reshelving the can. I had purchased that can about 3 weeks before Irma. Since then, I have had two more cans with moving lids. I return them, marked. I have another can to return when I go back to the store. So, having had these moving lids on food I use on a regular basis, I pay more attention to food purchased for a longer storage time to make sure it has solid lids which require a can opener. Oddly enough, I just realized I have never noticed that issue on rectangular cans, such as for smoked oysters, only the round cans. The edges of the pull-tops are engineered differently, I see.
Yes, the pop top cans can’t be stored unless in VERY COLD 100% of the time storage!! I had some in room that is very cold in winter, but summers are a bit warm….popped cans everywhere! NOT GOOD! I would NOT trust them at all over a couple of months at best.
I have always wondered how hungry was the first guy who sucked a snail out of its shell. Did he say, “Hmm. This wouldn’t be too bad with some garlic butter”?
I buy the canned chicken and canned beef from Costco for my stockpile. Both of those can be added to canned soup to make it more nourishing and used to make other dishes as well. Makes easy to make burritos. Makes nice creamed chicken with cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup. Add either one to vegetables and stir fry for Chinese style stir fry. Unlike the canned beef sold by Safeway and other grocery stores, Costco’s is canned in the USofA. Don’t know if that makes a difference in the food value and safety of the product but I figure it is a little fresher at Costco due to turnover and no ocean voyage from Argentina or Australia.
lol on the snail comment…. that’s what I say about oysters
Lol, he probably did it on a dare.
It’s amazing the things that happen after someone says, “Here, hold my beer.”
But wouldn’t it be better, cost wise and knowing the ingredients to can most of these things yourself?
I can fish, poultry, beef and beans…also soups in jars. With all these I open a jar and have a meal in minutes. I know what’s in my canned jars and more importantly, what’s NOT in my canned goods.
Can you tell me how you can fish? I have wanted to try it, but haven’t found good instructions. Thanks!
I actually can hamburger patties in wide mouth Mason jars. Learned how from my grandma who had been a bush pilot in Alaska in the 30s. She knew how to do everything!
For those of you who do not have duck confit as a regular menu item in your house — and I am certainly one of those — duck confit is duck meat preserved in fat. Now this is the result of a quick on-line search, not that I am any kind of expert in preparing duck confit. But, according to my research duck confit predates the days of refrigeration in France. The duck meat, after it is is cooked to extract all the fat is then packed in the fat which acts as a preservative. You add a bunch of spices to disguise the flavor, I guess or enhance the flavor depending on your point of view. Might be well to jot down the following website which describes how to make duck confit: Republicfood.com/whatisduckconfit. While Republic Food strongly recommends storing your duck confit in the fridge, the French just stored it in some cool place prior to refrigeration becoming commonplace. Apparently ducks have sufficient body fat to make confit. Don’t know if chickens have enough fat. Handy to know that you can store meat in fat to preserve it. Could you do the same with pork? Beef?
Claude: If you know someone who knows how to preserve meat by packing it in fat, it might make the subject of an interesting topic for this site.
They have a post on this web site for canning meat with pressure canning, maybe duck or chicken could be used instead?
I can ham, turkey and rabbit, even ground beef. It isn’t hard but is time consuming.
left coast chuck’
read laura ingalls wilder. i think it is ‘farmer boy’. her husband’s mom preserved pork in bowls of rendered lard in a cellar.
Laura Ingalls Wilder has been identified as a racist and misogynist. Her books have been banned and her name removed from a literary award because of her “stereotypical and insensitive portrayals of African-Americans and women” in her books. And here I just thought she wrote interestingly about how things actually were at that time in history in the Little House. Now the PC police say we’re not allowed to read her.
all the more reason to read her books. There are those who would like to erase history also…seems like this is a form of history erasing. I would love it if people would simply re-access their own brains and think things through before falling in line with “popular foolishness.” Then they would see all this pandering for what it really is…a small group of people who believe that how they see the world is how everybody should see it. I have eyes and a brain…and I really enjoy using both of them!
I bought the set as a young twenty out on my own. Am still proud to own them. That’s a set of books, my grandsons will need to stay at Gr’ma’s library to read.
AMEN Jennifer
She wrote bout a time when that was just how it was. Ignorant people today give her a bad rap and that quite frankly is bullshit
eek – I downgraded your post as I thought you were being serious – and I can’t fix it. I just wanted to note here that Laura Ingalls Wilder is amazing – and I agree with you that she wrote very interestingly about her time, and I’m not afraid of being accused of thought crime! I’ll think what I want – thanks – and usually my thoughts come after long periods of thorough research. Endeavor to be intellectually honest – and who cares what anyone thinks about you if they don’t have good evidence to back up their own assertions. In-group preference exists and peoples are different – that is a solid fact evidenced by the Tibetans, the Aborigine, the fast-twitch muscle fibers of West Ghanans, and more.
At the least, most if not all preserved food was topped with fat or lard as early as the 1400s, probably earlier. My grandmother still used this method in the 1950s.
Balls formed of dairy kefir cheese (made by straining kefir until near the consistency of cream cheese) can be stored for many months when submerged in olive oil. This has live probiotic organisms in the cheese which also helps prevent it from spoiling.
During the depression, when people had to pack everything on their vehicle and head west to the orange groves, those who had a hog would butcher it, render the fat down, and pack the cooked meat into a large crock covered by the rendered fat. At mealtime they would remove the appropriate amount of meat and have fat to season broth or veggies as well.
LCC, it’s a good way to preserve eggs too. Mike
Amish store meats under fats much as we used to do jams under melted wax.
Oops! I got the website wrong. It is Foodrepublic.com, not republicfood.com. Sorry about that.
I have had the exact brand of canned butter shown in the article, and was not impressed. I prefer and use ghee regularly. It has a better ‘butter’ taste to it. It is clarified butter.
middle eastern people i know clarify butter and keep in in large glass jars, no refrigeration.
One of my projects this year, learn to make ghee. Shelf safe, and lactose free. Thanks for the info
Lisa, it is very simple to make ghee…heat pure butter until the fat falls to the bottom of the pan and leaves a clear liquid. If you brown the solids slightly that influences the flavor of the clarified part.
it is not the fat that falls to the bottom of the pan but the milk solids. the clear liquid is the butterfat or ghee.
We keep canned tuna, chicken, corned beef hash, beef stew. and the requisite italian stuff in our regular rotation…vienna sausages, spam…outliers are clams, shrimp, crab meat for a treat….there is also canned roast beef, hams, corned beef, and so on…important to have protein sources available…
how long, just in general terms, would you all say a canned food is edible after the expiration date…. not including tomato products ( due to acidity)?
Leo, there is no single answer. The correct answer is: “It depends.”
It depends on how it was stored. It depends upon the extremes of temperature although low temperature won’t have as much effect as high temperature.
I have read that canned food was found in a shed near the arctic circle that had been left many years before by an arctic explorer. When opened it was still edible. It was not contaminated. It still contained food value albeit not as much as probably when originally canned.
If you live in El Centro, CA and you store your canned goods in your uninsulated garage all year round, probably about three days after the use by date. If you live in Pacifica, CA where the temperature rarely gets above 70 and you store your canned goods in insulated boxes, they will probably last until after you are long gone.
When I buy canned goods for storage I always check the can very carefully for damage. I do not buy any can that shows the slightest indication of damage. I always check the use by date on the can and buy the youngest can of what I am buying. I mark the use by date on the can with a felt marker and always use the oldest can when I am using my supplies. I had some cream of mushroom soup that was four years past its use by date. I used it to make other dishes such as creamed chicken or creamed string beans. I am still here, writing this post and I couldn’t tell if there was a taste shift. I suspect I would have had to take a sip of fresh cream of mushroom against the out of date stuff in order to be able to detect a difference in taste. If I hadn’t eaten in three days, I can tell you I would have scarfed that stuff down unless I couldn’t stand the smell it was so rotten.
If, when you go to use a can that is out of date, look at the can. Is it swollen? Toss it. When you open it do you feel like you have just visited the landfill? Toss it. Does the odor make you gag? Toss it. That’s really the best you can do. If you are really worried, just eat a tiny bit, perhaps a teaspoon full. Wait 24 hours. Are you okay or are you bent over worshipping the porcelain god? If you are okay, it probably is good to eat. If it is option 2 or 3 which is the other end, I would toss it.
If you think you might be raided for your food stash, leave the really out of date stuff out where it is fairly easy to find. If it is bad, you might have made the world a better place. It should also keep those particular folks from coming back for seconds. I would never just throw out of date cans out merely because they were out of date, even if they were ten or fifteen years out of date. You can always feed it to animals. You can leave it out for raiders as I suggested. You can give it to really shiftless beggars who come to your door demanding that you do something for them.
Worst case, if it really reeks when you open the can, it can be used in your compost heap.
Instead of tasting right out of the can, bring to a boil, let boil for 10 mins. This will kill most germs. It’s still not 100% that you won’t get sick but odds are ever more in your favor, lol.
Been prepping since Y2K. Have spent so far, $20,000+ on my food stash. Regularly eat supermarket canned food from 2005 with absolutely NO PROBLEMS! Canning really works! Canned food from 1910 has been found in the Antarctic from early expeditions and is totally edible. A steamboat in Idaho (?) buried since 1848 is full of canned goods and all is edible. If it smells OK, eat it! You won’t go wrong!
The Wiseman
You can buy real cheese, in about 1″ balls, packed in olive oil in glass jars at Middle Eastern markets. What I have is called “Labneh.” (Maybe all cheese is called “labneh in Arabic.”) One company that makes the cheese I have is Ziyad, the other is Sahadi. They come plain, with mint, or spicy — whatever that includes! It looks like hot red pepper. I have found labneh made of cow’s, goat’s, and sheep’s milk.
I don’t know what the optimal shelf life is. I have used them for years. Beats having to milk the animals!
I looked up labneh. It is a kind of cream cheese in a jar according to the website I consulted. I couldn’t find any to buy on line. There was one website that specialized in Middle Eastern food but their website was a bear to navigate and I gave up after perusing 20 some pages of a 72 page list of products. It didn’t have a search function you had to go line by line with maybe 50 products on a page. I felt my eyes rolling up into my head after 20 pages.
BEGA Cheese! Awesome, just like ‘Red Feather’ Butter..
During the 1970s and 80s some food banks were giving out WWII military rations. Most didn’t want them. I always took them. My boys thought the cans were cool. :). I found and threw away one bulged can. I though the canned cakes were the best. Daughter liked the beans and franks.
When Government provided commodity meats were available.. most were good. Few liked the lunch meat. I’d blend it eith a bag of powdered eggs equal to a dozen eggs 1/2-2/3 cup of water and a raw onion. Pour it in a baking pan that would hold It all. Bake at 350° 45-60 minutes till firmly set. Everyone liked that. The egg and onion cut the excess saltiness and changed the flavor.
If you’re not crazy about spam throw it in the blender with 3 or 4 eggs and 1/4 of an onion. Blend for 60 seconds then bake or fry as desired. My picky eater likes that. The rest of us like Spam fried till lightly browned.
One item that is not canned, but is put up in jars is Cheez Whiz. There are varying urban legends about the shelf life of Cheez Whiz (I’m not sure of the spelling as it has been a long time since I have had any) Some of the urban legends are that it has a shelf life of 10,000 years due to the fact that everything in the jar is chemical. That might be a slight overstatement. The other is that you can throw it in the trunk of your car to bake and freeze and it will still be edible (assuming it ever is) whenever you take it out. I thought I would mention it to go with the other items on this list. It is at least as palatable as the canned bacon. That must be how the bacon is preserved in the can. I didn’t have that much grease on the wheel bearings on my boat trailer after I had just repacked them. It was bacon confit.
Bacon Confit! Thanks for the laugh! Might even try it, because of that. 😉
Left Coast Chuck,
I really appreciate your comments! Keeeeeeeep it up!
Thanks,
Mike
Thanks, Mike.
The Brown Bread and Hormel tamales were items with which I was very familiar. Some of the canned items I would put up myself, Seeing the canned butter did get me to thinking that is should be capable of being canned at home. If the glass jars were secured to a rotisserie spit and kept turning at a slow rpm like meat roasting while the jars cooled, the solids should remain fairly homogenized when it is fully cooled. It may require some experimentation to discern the correct RPM for best results. I am not currently set up for such experimentation but maybe someone out there is and can field test.
softballumpire,
a good site is ‘ask jackie’ at backwoods home magazine [which is going out of print].
she covers butter canning, and one of her readers said she keeps the butter creamy, as opposed to ghee, by disturbing the jars every so often when they are cooling after canning [under pressure, of course]. the main thing apparently is to keep all grease away from the jar lip so as to get a firm seal.
jackie clay atkinson also has written a couple of canning
books.
well worth the money.
her last name may be ‘atkisson’, not sure of spelling. my books have ‘clay’ because it was before she married.
I did a search on ‘Jackie Clay’. Atkinson came up as a related search at the end of the results list. I would say this after perusing the results. 1) She still writes her blog and that maybe it was a mailed newsletter that ended. 2) She may use her maiden name as her nom de plume. 3) One listing showed ‘Starting over’. So, did she get divorced or did she take her newsletter online or why is starting over a thing?
Yes, butter and cheese can be “canned” at home. Also Meat,fish, etc. Learn how, needs practice to know how it’s done. You can also recan many things. I’ll take my own canned butter on my next business trip, cheaper.
There are several videos on You Tube about canning butter. I’ve done it and the end result is the shaking to combine ingredients until it cools. The rotisserie idea is a good one.
People living on sailboats mark all their cans with a black permanent marker. Labels come loose, come off, and in their case make a wet paper mess that plugs the bilge pump so they take them off deliberately. Guessing games make some strange meals. Mice ate the labels of some of my canned goods. Wash the can well, food is still fine.
Two cans of Chef Boyardee spaghetti and meatballs mixed with one can kidney beans, add some parm and you have a tasty goulash! Good enough to crave on any regular day.
Cheers!
Been prepping since Y2K and this is the best article I’ve ever read!
Keep it up OP – you’re saving lives – thousands of preppers are following your expert advice!
I’ve tried the B&M Brown Bread. A tasty addition to my pantry for sure. Discovered it about two years ago. Did a bit of research, and found out that it is well known on the East Coast. Being a Midwesterner, I asked a guy I knew from New York if he’d ever heard about it. Told me yes, and elaborated on eating it quite often along with their canned baked beans.
I also know someone that worked with him that had one of the 10 oz. cans of the Spotted Dick from Simpson’s sitting on his desk at work. Found it rather interesting, and thought that I might see about it. He’s since quit work there, but I did a search and found that it can be purchased on Amazon. Think I’ll order a can after the Holidays, and if it’s worth it as far as the taste, then I may order some of the 3-packs they sell.
Spotted Dick can be purchased on Jet dot come as well. Heinz makes a good Spotted Dick and can be found in international food stores as well as Jet. Simpson’s also makes a great “Syrup Sponge”.
I always thought a “Syrup Sponge” was a fluffy pancake or maybe a waffle that hasn’t had all of the dimples filled in with butter.
Nope. Syrup sponge is a pudding.
Look around and you will see that all most all animals prep. I found that a big rat that was in my barn was prepping with some of my crap. Watch out for the ghost prep. lost a lot. LOL… Let me know what you lost while prepping.
I watch Blue Jays cache unshelled nuts. They sometimes hide them in trees but usually tuck them into the roots of the lawn.
Jays wedge them in holes in trees, and crevasses till winter. I’ve seen the whole tops of dead trees loaded with acorns. Ravens do it, too. The ones with worms in them are favored for caching because of higher protein. Any they hide in lawns will stay till the tannin is gone and the acorn starts to sprout. Then, it’s like eating candy.
Alpen Germans used to bury acorns in underground silos till spring, then eat them. There a nutbutter made of Black Forest acorns. I can’t rind the recipe, sorry, but it’s good. Very sweet and no sugar added. The acorns have to be watched at winter’s end. When they begin to sprout (the shells will be blackened and damp), process all at once. Shell and cook or leaves appear and the sprout gets loaded with tannin. The sprouts are roasted and ground with anything you like added (it being a German recipe, chocolate, of course 🙂 niio
why do you show a advertisement telling how to have a 5 year stock pile of food. that says watch video then it takes you to a totally different web site that has nothing to do with food
Who makes canned ham? All I see is ham in plastic tubs.
Dak, Dubuque, Swift and Hormel all make canned hams. Dak seems to a favorite among preppers. Plus there are a number of foreign made hams that are pretty good.
For canned hams and other meats, check out Dollar General, The Dollar Store, and others. I’ve been buying for years at less than grocery store. Mike.
I cut up ham and can it in jars. I have 2, 1lb canned hams. Don’t remember brands but they are from Wal-Mart. I like my home canned ham.
Brown bread has been around for ages. Brown bread with franks and beans was one of its most popular items in the ‘60s. In my market it’s still stocked with the baked beans.
Canned tamales are awesome. I’ve been eating those since childhood. Tastes great with some salsa, or even some mustard squirted on top.
I am 82 years old. we lived in the country without electricy until I was 12 years old. No refrigeration. When aPig was killed, my mother would make sausage into patties, fry the patties to about sixty percent co0ked. We used a crock or any large class container, two or three gallons or more. After frying, the patties were placed in the container or Jar, grease from frying was poured over as more were added. That would totally keep fresh and upon using, they are then dug out of grease and fried until done. They were always delicious, just like fresh store bought. Hamburgers can be done the same. Salted fish in a wooden container was also a favorite to us. That was purchased in a store then.
I would suggest to ALL preppers to have a good supply of Canning jars and tops stored for canning food. Also all self reliant people should also have a Hot Water canning pot,for vegetable canning and a Pressure cooker for canning meats. All should purchase a GOOD Canning book. This was a MUST for Country folks. We never went without food. Books on gardening also.Book on how to preserve foods with refrigeration,
On this same note. Learn to use them. Consider the reusable lids, get extra rubber rings. do it in small amounts as you can afford, so the stocking isn’t obvious.The Pressure Canner to get is an AA. they do not have rubber gaskets, and can go on an open fire outside. Also learn to use it. Real books are always valuable.
You one thing that I have never seen is that you should always buy more lids for your canning jars. So you can build up a stock of them for when the shft and you will be able to continue canning for years down the road.
If you make butter, use yogurt to age the cream a night or two before churning. Yogurt helps preserve butter and makes it taste like old-fashioned butter, no salt required. Then, of course, clarify by melting out the milk in it, ghee. It can be kept for months, even years, and is good to eat.
I make rice bread by fermenting leftover rice for a few days, then make it like regular bread. It’s a sourdough, and keeps well in the fridge. For a sweet, brown sugar (one cup regular sugar, one teaspoon molasses), vanilla and raisins presoaked, some ground hot peppers (I live in Arizona, we like hot pepper ice cream, too). The rice can be ‘ground’ in a food processor if you don’t like whole rice.
Rednig; The bread sounds yummy.
Lived on a sailboat in the Caribbean for 9 yrs. Found bacon in the 80’s-90’s in KMart for $.77 a pound. Great taste and would love to find it again. Maybe the brand was Dak. Need some for when SHTF. Any ideas?
If you are looking for canned meats with a 25 year shelf life you should look into these. I’ve bought a case of the Pork and the Chicken so far. I made Chicken and Noodles with a can of this chicken and it’s the same as any store bought chicken you ever had.
https://www.amazon.com/Survivalcavefood-Canned-Ground-Beef-Case/dp/B00AFCDERO/ref=pd_rhf_ee_p_img_10?_encoding=UTF8&refRID=TCRSP5XXG7FV3Y1KS8A7&th=1
Canned corn beef hash is easy to find. I have eaten canned C rations from 1945 and was okay until the mre’s was issued.
The question that comes to mind is how long will these canned products be good for, if we buy them for our SHTF scenario? I bought canned vegetables and stored thenm in my bedroom under the frame bed and opened them a year after buying and they were rancid, had to throw them away. Just don’t have the money to throw stuff away after a year storage at room temp.
Ouch. Same here, so I don’t keep stuff more than 6 months, rotating stock. Butter is easy to store. Soften, mix with plain yogurt and let it sit for a few days, then clarify for ghee. Ghee will keep, canned or refrigerated for months. If you have access to a sunny window, you can build a dehydrator. Make a shallow box to attach to the window, full length, and use the top to dehydrate. To discourage bugs, keep in jars with a tight lid. If you can, add a little dry ice. Living in Arizona, dehydrated is as natural as the sun that fries our brains 🙂 Niio
Additions, to this list, for me, anyway, are tuna, Hormel Corned Beef Hash, Chili con Carne, with beans, nut butters. I, also, keep a stock of soups and stews – Progresso, Campbells Chunky style, and Dinty Moore. Good to see B&M Brown Bread, on the list. Good stuff.
Oh, cheese – dip an unopened brick of cheese in melted paraffin wax. It’ll be good, for years.
It should be noted that stock piling any food stuff that when buying foods not normally eaten that there’s a possibility they can end up being a waste unless you’re in starve mode in which you may even eat a few worms. Barring that if you do buy foods not favored by family they can be traded if you are around other people which, personally, I probably wouldn’t be considering the possible dangers. Having people know what you have can make you a target. However, if prepping, prep what your family eats and drinks it not only off sets waste it also helps with remaining calm and a bit less stressed and it also ensures that everyone is getting the nutrients, protein,fats, and sugars that will definitely be needed if the situation is dire and extended over a long period of time. Giving serious thought to buying on a budget to stock pile for your family that fits your families needs isn’t all that hard to do and it needn’t be expensive either unless your family has expensive tastes. I would also caution against monotony. Eating the same thing over and over again will become a thorn in everyone’s side. Be creative. Stock pile water too which is quite doable simply by using water preserving pills or drops which can keep water viable for 5 years. I mention this because rice, etc can’t be cooked without it.
I honestly found none of it appealing to m taste buds.
Moving so pared down my can stocks, eating 12 yr old cans of veg, chix, pb, jelly, soup, boxed rice, pkt instant potatoes, etc. Only had a few foods out of 1000s that were bad – especially salad dressing and mayo, and any box that came w/ a pkt of powered cheese. Cake and brownie mixes when old, needs a bit of Bakewell and then sit for 15 min to rise properly.
During the 1970s and 80s some food banks were giving out WWII military rations. Most didn’t want them. I always took them. My boys thought the cans were cool. :). I found and threw away one bulged can. I though the canned cakes were the best. Daughter liked the beans and franks.
When Government provided commodity meats were available.. most were good. Few liked the lunch meat. I’d blend it eith a bag of powdered eggs equal to a dozen eggs 1/2-2/3 cup of water and a raw onion. Pour it in a baking pan that would hold It all. Bake at 350° 45-60 minutes till firmly set. Everyone liked that. The egg and onion cut the excess saltiness and changed the flavor.
If you’re not crazy about spam throw it in the blender with 3 or 4 eggs and 1/4 of an onion. Blend for 60 seconds then bake or fry as desired. My picky eater likes that. The rest of us like Spam fried till lightly browned.
I had no idea these canned items were available. I will start searching the shelves at the grocery.
It’s easy enough to make ghee from fresh butter. Ghee is shelf-stable for years. Some people also can butter at home.
At the price of Ghee, I prefer making my own.. Yes, the shelf life is wonderful. I have also tried my hand at canning butter. It need constant attention, turning the jar to keep the contents mixed, then again, if you have home made, it is worth it.
if you live close to the ocean there is a lot more food to choose from shell fish water fowl different types of fish and kelp its easy to catch.
Interesting. I have used the pull tab containers ever since they started being used – probably in the tens of thousands by now. I have never had one that leaked.
Almost all preserved foods are in coated steel cans containing a vacuum. I think the only aluminum exceptions I have run across are Spam, Dutch Colony Ham and Vienna Sausages. There may be others, but the sardines and kippers are in steel.
The metal cans of bacon and butter are very expensive. What you should do is Pressure can them in jars. Organize a group of people. One of them should be an experienced canner.
The whole group watches for butter and bacon to go on sale at their grocery store. When the price’s low enough; make a large purchase. Then can them
It’s possible to SAFELY pressure can bacon: ground beef, and butter yourself. Just wait until either item goes on sale . If you pressure can your own bacon; you can have a butcher wrap it in 1 LB. packets. Be sure to give him a 16 Oz. canning jar. Ask him to slice the bacon so each packet will fit your jar’s head space. That way; your bacon won’t loor like the bacon photo in this article.
It would be interesting to see how much preservatives and chemicals are in these canned food products.
This is for people that hunt and fish.
I was at a flee market and found a book called.
THE UNOFFICIAL HUNGGER GAMES COOK BOOK.
BY EMILY ANSARA BAINES.
This is a book of a wealth of recipes using wild game,
19.95, I pick it up for two bucks, Hard cover,
241 pages
When buying food to store for keeping long term
They should say on the bottom of a can or the side of a package
Best used by this date on any thing you buy.
I try to find any thing that will last up to a year.
There for , Rotating will be easy and you will not waste
what your buying, Most of what I have found is a bout 6 moths.
To “S”. We bought our reuseable shells in the 60′, and I gave them away a year or two after my wife Passed on in 2022. No telling how many times they were reused.