Emergency Food Prepping
We are writing this post during the terrible times of COVID-19. Feeling taken back and not-so-prepared ourselves, we thought we’d share all of the steps we’ve been taking to prepare our kitchens for an emergency.
Obviously we are huge promoters of healthy eating and let me tell you, it can be done during hard times! While it takes a bit more planning and patience, eating healthy during an emergency is not only crucial for your current health, but for preventing illness.
- Rolling Updates on the COVID-19 by World Health Organization
- Get Your Household Ready for COVID-19 by CDC.gov
- Harvard’s Corona Virus Resource Center by Harvard
Foods to Stock Up On
Canned Foods
When you are stocking up on canned foods, think low in sodium and high in protein. Also, take a look at the recipes you are planning to make and buy ingredients that you can use in those recipes (maybe even enough for a double batch).
Many of the meals that we recommend that you make during a crisis are meals that you can eat and freeze! Meals like chilis, soups, and casserole recipes.
- Black Beans
- Garbanzo Beans
- Pinto Beans
- Refried Beans
- Canned Hominy
- Canned Corn
- Tomato Sauce
- Diced Tomatoes
- Canned Pumpkin Puree
- Canned Sweet Potato Puree
- Canned Butternut Squash Puree
Frozen Foods
Frozen foods are also a great way to eat whole foods when you may not have access to fresh produce or want to have vegetables and fruit on hand, but don’t want them to go bad!
Here’s an idea—> You know that we love whole foods like straight-up fruit and vegetables. However, during times of need, you can totally stock up on healthier pre-packaged frozen meals like Annie’s Burritos, Trader Joe’s Orange Chicken, and even a healthier frozen pizza and dress it up with frozen veggies!
- Frozen vegetable mixes
- Frozen fruit mixes
- Frozen strawberries
- Frozen blueberries
- Frozen corn
- Frozen spinach
- Frozen peas
- Frozen broccoli
- Frozen cauliflower
- Frozen meat (chicken, salmon, beef, pork, fish)
- Frozen tortellini
- Frozen dumplings
- Frozen pizzas (you can dress these bad boys up)
- Frozen burritos
Dehydrated Food
When fresh eggs and milk run out at the grocery store, don’t forget that there are dehydrated options for many of these staples. Dehydrated ingredients may not be super appealing, but you’d be surprised how good dehydrated vegetables are in soups, chilis, and marinara sauce!
- Powdered milk
- Powdered eggs
- Dehydrated vegetables
- Dehydrated fruit (strawberries, blueberries, bananas, etc.)
Packaged Foods
There are so many amazing packaged food options that you can stock up on to make healthy meals for you, family, and friends during a crisis! Again, we recommend finding a few easy recipes before heading to the grocery store so that you can focus on ingredients for those specific recipes.
Making sure you have flour, sugar, oats, butter, eggs, and other baking ingredients is another way you can stretch food! You can make bread, cookies, and more baked goods to freeze!
- Dry pasta
- QuinoaRice (brown and white)
- Lentils
- Vegetable broth
- Chicken broth
- Marinara sauce
- Apple cider vinegar
- Shelf-stable nut milk
- Pancake mix
- Oatmeal
- Applesauce
- Dried fruit (cherries, raisins, apricots, cranberries, dates, figs, mango, etc.)
- Honey
- Maple syrup
- Oil (olive and coconut)
- Vanilla
- Sugar (coconut and brown)
- Flour (white whole wheat and gluten-free)
- Cornmeal
- Chocolate chips
- Baking soda and powder
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