"emergency" food...ramblings...dried eggs??

[azgirl]

Hi guys, every January I am prompted by my ongoing goals...and one of the most neglected is "emergency preparedness" One of the things on my list is having adequate food supplies. Now, I am not hardcore TF, but we eat TF enough that we don't really eat much from the pantry. I have my grass-fed meats and my seafood in the freezer or I buy meat at the grocery store along with eggs and dairy. We eat mostly fresh veggies but some frozen, I am sure my cooking habits are very similar to many people here. I am not a grain-sprouter (I haven't had any grains in a few weeks) I am more of a grain avoider but I am getting into unnecessary detail. I want to have 10 days worth of nutrition for my family in case of emergency. Having a stash of carbs/processed foods is easy. I need protein that my husband and two year old will eat!! Fat is easy, we can eat coconut oil (or yummy coconut cream concentrate) or peanut butter or whatever. I have stocked up on organic canned chicken which I could mix with jar mayo, my boys would eat that. Also, tuna, which we don't really eat, but we like and would eat in an emergency. I will eat other canned seafood so there is that. BUT...my toddler's main source of protein and good nutrition is scrambled eggs. I know dehydrated eggs are available...have any of you tried them?

I know I am smack in the middle of two schools of thought: one that would argue for traditional preservation methods or something and the other that would think I was crazy for not just feeding my family whatever in an emergency. I respect both camps, but I want to give my family good fats/protein that seem extra important during times of great stress but are also pretty mainstream. Also, I don't want foods in my pantry that I don't want us to eat, you know? I figure nobody is going to raid the dried eggs...but Velveeta mac & cheese would be a huge temptation around here.

For the most part, I want foods in my "emergency pantry" that I can make use of. I hope to use my emergency food periodically and replace it. I just cleaned out my pantry and threw away things that were 4 years past the expiration date...I would like to avoid that and rotate somewhat. Sorry for the rambling. How do you guys manage emergency food? Thoughts on dehydrated eggs?

[cristeen]

Just a random thought, but how about pickled eggs? I think nutritionally that would be preferable to dehydrated, since you make them yourself and can use pastured eggs. Obviously it's not scrambled eggs, but I know I loved pickled eggs as a kid - they were eggs and they were red! Maybe make a small batch and test it out, see if he'll eat them.

[FernG]

We have the canned fish/chicken for emergencies. I loved pickled eggs as a kid. I haven't made them, but those would probably work for my DD. I've experimented with pickled veggies and have found that my fermented veggies will last for a month or longer even in 90-100 degree weather. We have meat in our freezer, but in a real emergency, we would have no way to keep it cold. We'd probably open up the freezer to the neighbors and then move on to our canned foods.

[blueridgewoman]

I've been thinking about this a lot too.... I would say pickled eggs are probably your best bet during an emergency. I'm totally grain free (due to allergies) and I'm also sensitive to beans, so my options in an emergency are not extensive. I'm starting to keep canned fish, chicken, some sprouted nuts and seeds, and canned fruits and veggies for emergencies. I can't do peanuts, so I'm keeping almond butter. Obviously, a lot of this stuff has to be rotated more frequently than other folks' canned beans and flour, etc, but...

[velcromom]

From what I hear, you can scramble eggs and dehydrate them. Come to think of it, if you did that and ran it thru the blender you'd have your own whole egg powder. Not sure on the storage life though, probably would depend on how you keep them.