Emergency Preparedness

[heatherjane]

Hey guys,

I just made it through the big midwest winter storm, thankfully without losing electricity, but it got me thinking about what I would do if stuck in my all-electric apartment with no power. I need to have an emergency stash, but what are some "safe" foods with long shelf-lives that you wouldn't necessarily need to cook in an emergency? I know granola bars are mostly out. I did think of of tuna, and canned veggies. Just wondering if anybody had any other suggestions, since I know alot of non-perishables can be processed with contaminants. I've only been gluten-free for a few weeks and still have a lot to learn. Thanks!

[Welda Johnson]

Hi,

I'm in California, and heard recently that we should be prepared for potential earthquakes, so I am doing a mental checklist right now, as I respond to your query.

I order Genisoy protein powder over the internet, and have an extra supply of that, which just takes water and anything you want to add, like vanilla or cinnamon or sweetener. I make a cookie dough and add nuts. I also have a supply of unsweetened chocolate that I could add to it. I order corn spaghetti and Stevia herbal sweetener over the internet and keep extra packages of those in the cupboard too.

I keep quite a few bags of Doritos, the original "corn" chips, not any with cheese or anything, along with cans of Rosarita Refried Beans, and also I always have fresh fruits and vegetables in great supply, as well as bottled water (I use the 25 cent machine to refill the plastic bottles). I usually have fresh yams and potatoes here, and have stocked up my freezer with gluten free bread and waffles, so I would use those too if the power went off.

Add to the list several boxes of gluten-free granola and some rice cookies. I used to keep Soy Ice Cream in my freezer, but I haven't been eating that lately, but that reminds me that boxed mixes of gluten-free brownies, cakes, etc. might be good to have around. They would only take water if you were in a pinch.

I'll be checking back to see what others suggest. This is a great topic. Thanks for starting this thread! Welda

[RiceGuy]

Well, canned foods, and stuff in sealed glass jars would be good. They have a shelf life of around two years. Obviously, things like crackers can last a little while, but I'd think your dollar will go farther with other things. Canned beans, veggies, fruits, etc seem logical. In an all-electric home/apartment, dry goods like rice are useless.

In an all-electric home, unless you have some sort of indoor gas grill (I don't know if there is such a thing), you're basically stuck with whatever can be eaten cold. Canned foods work in another way too - easy cleanup. Just eat right out of the can, and toss the can into the recycle bin. Bottled water and juices would be essential unless you still have water pressure. For those who are fortunate enough to have a well, the downside is that you lose pressure when the electricity goes out.

It would probably be a good idea to keep a package of plastic utensils too, unless you still have water to wash dishes.

Don't forget candles and flashlights, and a battery powered or windup radio would be good to keep informed of the news/weather.

If you have one of those large ice chests used for camping and picnics, as soon as the power goes out, get to the nearest place that has ice, and stock up. A large freezer can stay somewhat cold for up to a few days if it's stocked with food (avoid opening it), but your fridge won't. So transfer the most valuable stuff to the chest, and use up whatever you can that is left.

An electric portable stove (buffet burner) that runs on 12 volts, like for a camper, and plugs in to the dash of your car, might work out if you really need it. But that means going into your car, which may not be so comfy during the winter.

[MaryJones2]

Tasty Bites makes a lot of packaged meals that would be handy for a situation like this (we use them for backpacking). They are reasonably nutritionally balanced too. Trader Joe's makes shelf stable pre-cooked rice (white and wild are gluten-free).

[Takala]

Very good topic.

First off, if there is a bad storm forecast, do your shopping before the storm hits, in case the retail sector loses power. GAS UP YOUR VEHICLE before you return home, because a gas station without power can't sell you fuel. Buy some BOTTLED WATER. Put a blanket and a warm knit cap in the car. Now you have the bare minimum to be able to keep yourself mobil, watered, and warm. If you must be in your car to stay warm, never sleep in it with the engine running, and you MUST have the tailpipe clear of snow and not run it in a garage, because of carbon monoxide fumes.

First, I keep a "go-to" bag by the door that contains gluten free, non perishable snacks, such as crackers, homemade trail mix, Lara bars, chocolate, etc, and a bottle of water, that I replenish regularly. If I am going to be running errands or out for hours, as I was last summer/fall, this bag always goes in the car with me so I have options if I need to eat. I can toss in a piece of fruit, some cheese, a chunk of homemade bread, and it's ready to go. But this is also handy for the potential of emergency evacuation.

Secondly, since we're on a well, we have a generator that we can hook into the system now to power it. An electrician can set this up for you. But obviously this does not apply to apartment dwellers. If you need to flush your toilet, and you have no running water, a bucket of outside water you've scooped up from a pond or from the downspout or pool or whatever can be poured into the toilet bowl to flush it.

3rd, you can go a long time without eating, but clean water is crucial- be sure to keep some bottled water around, enough that you can drink about 8 cups (2 quarts or a half gallon) a day minimum for a week or preferably 2. Save some of the bottled water gallon jug sized bottles to draw house tap water into before a storm hits. This can be used for washing hands, etc.

Food:

Perishable foods can be kept in an ice chest that you store in the coolest but not freezing part of the house. There are two kinds of perishables, the kind that won't spoil quickly, such as fruits and vegetables such as apples, oranges, carrots, cabbage,celery, etc, that you may be able to just keep in a bin in the garage until eaten or the power comes back on, or the other kind, such as bottled, open mayonnaise, that have to be kept at consistent cold storage or they risk going bad quickly.

Remember, When In Doubt, Throw It Out.

If you think you can't go a week without salad dressing, remember that Olive oil and apple cider vinegar do not need refrigeration.

Food categories are:

Fruits, vegetables fresh, long lasting types, or canned

Proteins:

eggs. eggs can be hard boiled easily before a storm hits, then they will keep longer and be ready to eat.

ready to eat, safe luncheon meats. Hormel and Buddig make packaged lunchmeats that are labeled gluten free. Canadian bacon is also pre- cooked. There is also hard salami, canned tuna, canned sardines, canned chicken, Spam, etc

hard cheeses if you can tolerate dairy. String cheeses are also good. If you can't eat cheese, fresh avocados keep several days and are a high fat substitute

peanut butter

canned beans, such as pinto beans

nuts, such as almonds, walnuts, pecans, peanuts, whatever is cheap locally

gluten free jerky

Other

dried fruit- raisins, dates, pineapple

chocolate can be mixed into the nuts and raisins/dried fruit to make trail mix, that and water is an ideal emergency food

Carbohydrates:

safe, gluten free Rice crackers and rice cakes will keep a very long time

safe gluten-free corn tortillas

gluten free boxed cereal

gluten free bread. You can keep a loaf(or loaves) of this in the freezer, preferably homemade and pre sliced, or of a brand you know you can tolerate the ingredients it's made of. Have fresh gluten free bread, worrying about it spoiling? Toast it and dry it out before the storm hits, or store it in a safe box out in the garage where it's cold anyway.

Gluten free quick cooking thai rice noodles

Other

Liquids such as alternate soy, nut, or rice milks in the sealed boxes that don't have to be refrigerated until opened. You can also get boxes of gluten free soup or broth this way. (Imagine and Pacific make some of these, read the labels)

votive candles Think you're out of luck because you don't have a camp stove?

Yes, you too can learn to make a cup of instant coffee or some tea with a teacup of water perched over a lit votive candle in a holder. You think you don't have one? Yes, you do, you make one out of a tin can with holes punched in the side and top, if you don't have an old chafing dish warmer. You can also heat up broth or soup this way. It's not fast but there is nothing like a warm drink when you need one. Do this only on a heat safe surface and don't leave it unattended. Heat the water and then pour it into a styrofoam cup if you're trying to save on dishes.

Dishware, etc

paper plates, bowls, styrofoam cups, plastic cutlery forks

MANUAL, hand can opener

[loxleynew]

My list would be easy.

Canned tuna

Water

I could live off these for weeks.. maybe months. Plus vitamins of course

[missy'smom]

We have an inexpensive portable butane powered burner that has a carrying case and was great when the power was out earlier this year. The canisters are small, lightweight last a while and are inexpensive. Asian markets often carry them.

[gigantor98]

I have been in the heart of this ice storm of 09 and live in the middle of the Shawnee National Forrest and no I am not a tree hugger. I have always lived in the country and have had to learn to plan ahead for things like this b/c when you live this far out of town you never know when you will get back again. But I will say that having celiac disease during this disaster has been an experience. We just got our power back Saturday and I am just now getting to enjoy the finer things in life like lights and running water. Now that I am out here in cyper space I really feel like royalty.

Anyway you have gotten some really great advice and I would stick to it. I have found so much help on this site far more than any doctor or phd could do.

Anyway this is what I did to survive this wreck. I knew it was coming so I went and stocked up on the foods that I could eat and the snacks I could have and lunch meat that I could have. I am fortunate to have gas logs to keep us warm and to have a gas stove to cook. This helped me to toast my breads when I needed a sandwich. Before we lost our power I made up soups, exp. Chilli, homemaid Chicken noodle soup, and spaggettii gluten-free of course. This helped with lunch and evening meals. I was able to get by with gluten-free cereals for Breakfast and since we had a stove I could have eggs and stuff like that. I will have to warn you this:::: We lost our water for 1 day during this storm and I tried to conserve water so we filled bath tubs for flushing and pitchers for drinking and my sink for washing dishes. Filling the sink to wash dishes was a no no. I did not have proper rinsing water to get all gluten off my pots and pans and I did not have a clean enough wash towel to help with the cleaning process when it comes to gluten. I did not want to pile up wet soured wash towels in our house b/c I knew I would not be able to wash them since I had no power. I was just trying to conserve well I got glutened. Spent a day sick with no power and no running water til later in the afternoon.

This was no fun. I got by just fine with eating gluten-free while having no power but did not do so well when it came to the clean up. I could not see well enough with the poor lighting I had and well you live and you learn. I thought I was pretty prepared when it came to roughing it and I was a year ago when we had this same ice storm come through but not as powerful as this one. I spent a many of day at the BBQ grill outside cooking for the family 3x's a day for 3 days b/c our old gas cooking stove did not work when power was off due to an electric start system. That thing was worthless. Well when this storm hit I was really freaked out b/c a year ago I had not been diagnosed with celiac than and could have anything. Now this was scary and for the first time my husband started to understand just how scary this is for me b/c he did not have a clue as to what I was going to do. Poor guy if I had to count on him to feed me, well lets just say he would really poison me.

I was so greatful for our linemen who have restored our power and our phone men for restoring our phones. For the first time I have realized just how life threating it is to go without power for people like us and even the elderly or some one on oxygen or a life saving device. We still need to pray for people in this area who are still with out power, water, and heat. We have had several deaths due to this storm and several people who have lost jobs or work has been slowed due to this. It is a mess around here but I am thankful for what we have and I am praying for those that don't.

One final note, if you do not have a gas stove but you do have a BBQ grill make sure you clean it up for the winter so that you do not have to during a storm like this. When you put your grill up for the winter store it in your garage or storage building on you property so when you need it you can pull it outdoors to use it to cook. DO NOT COOK WITH AN OUTDOOR GRILL INDOORS!!!! Don't bring it in your home, your garage, shed, extra. You can only cook with this outdoors. If don't follow this rule you could run the risk of carbon monoxide poisioning and catching your house on fire. It is not worth the risk. Just put some extra clothes on and cook outside. If you do not have a gas grill it would be a wise idea to purchase one and one with a skillet burner. You will be surpized how handy it could be. But you don't want to get caught in an ice storm with no propane to fuel it with, not clean to cook on, and can't get it open b/c it is frozen shut. Just another tip.