Cooking In Emergency Situations - What Equipment Will I Need?

Many people store food for emergency situations and never think about the equipment they will need to actually do the cooking.  Some storage food such as wheat requires special equipment for grinding into flour.  If an emergency is of the type that allows you to stay in your home and you have access to electrical power, you can easily do the cooking without much additional equipment.  However, if there is a loss of electrical power or if you must leave your home, special equipment and cooking methods must be employed. 

In order to use my food storage, what special equipment must I have?

§      Can opener – Non-electric for use in power outages

§      Wheat grinder or mill – Hand operated for use in power outages

What equipment will I need when cooking without power?

§      Fire-safe pots & pans 

§      Hand operated can opener

§      Wind-up clock or watch for timing

§      Knife or pocket knife

§      Aluminum foil

§      Matches, lighter or fire-starter

§      Utensils

§      Saw - Axe 

§      Leather Gloves 

§      Small Grill to put over fire - to pan fry on 

If electricity and gas are unavailable for cooking, what fuels can I safely use?

§      Wood – Fireplace, Wood burning stove, campfire

§      Propane – Outdoor Grill

§      Butane – Portable Camp Stove

§      White Gas – Back Pack Stove

§      Sterno – Can be used indoors

§      Charcoal – Grill or Hibachi

§      Buddy Burner

§      Solar Power – Solar Oven

Things I should know about storing fuel:

§      Laws concerning storage of fuels

§      Fuels should be stored outside the home in a store shed

§      Fuels should be stored in containers special designed for fuel storage

§      Keep fuels in watertight, airtight containers

§      Label fuel containers so as not to get them confused

§      Always keep a fire extinguisher near fuel tanks

§      Some fuels have longer shelf lives than others

§      Know the properties of the fuel you store and how to properly use them

Information about storing fuels has come from the following website: http://cl.publicaster.com/ViewInBrowser.aspx?pubids=7889%7C7591%7C78923%7C87998&digest=U0MibgkRYGZ2hLkaeoik%2Fg&sysid=1

I highly recommend that you read the entire article.

It is very important to study about the various ways of cooking without electrical power.  Books on outdoor cooking can be very helpful.  I recommend practicing using different recipes and cooking methods.  It will not only be fun, but you will gain confidence in cooking in different ways.  Then, if an emergency ever happens, there will be less stress and you will feel confident in handling the situation.

Sources of information for this blog article have come from the following websites:

http://www.shelfreliance.com/c/university/article/appliances-equipment-emergency-food-storage-preparation

http://midvalleystakeprovidentliving.blogspot.com/2011/09/cooking-without-power.html

Please check my Shelf Reliance website at:

 susansakurai.shelfreliance.com

For more information or to purchase Shelf Reliance Thrive Foods or Emergency Equipment.