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The modern world is all about convenience, with manufacturers coming up with ever more innovative ways to make our lives simpler. But what happens when the grocery store shelves become empty, and our favorite ready meals and snacks are no longer available? These essential kitchen survival skills will ensure you’re fully prepared to navigate the challenges of sudden food shortages!
1. Baking Bread
At its most basic, bread contains just three ingredients – flour, yeast, and water. Sounds simple, right? Well, many novice bakers make big mistakes when they start baking bread for the first time, so it’s a good idea to get some practice before food shortages occur. Then, when the grocery store shelves are empty, you can skillfully knock up a fresh loaf without wasting a scrap of your precious flour.
How to Make White Bread in a Bread Maker
2. Cooking with Dried Beans and Pulses
One of the hardest things to sustain during food shortages is a healthy source of protein. Dried beans and pulses are a great alternative to meat, but it can take some practice to get the technique right. Every type of bean and pulse has different recommended soaking and cooking times, so make sure to consult a reputable food safety authority for advice.
3. Utilizing Leftovers
During a sudden food shortage, your leftover foods become a precious commodity. Learning to make the most out of leftovers extends your limited resources and helps to stretch food stocks for as long as possible.
4. Home Gardening
Growing your own vegetables, herbs, and fruits can reduce dependency on store-bought food and provide fresh produce all year round. Even if self-sufficiency is not feasible, just a small home garden can produce enough to supplement your pantry goods and stretch food supplies for longer.
How to Start a Herb Garden from Scratch
5. Canning Food
Canning food has undergone a huge resurgence in popularity in recent years, as homesteaders look for ways to create a stable food supply. There is no better sight when food becomes scarce than your pantry shelves groaning under the weight of all your home-grown canned goods!
6. Dehydrating Foods
Dehydrating fruits, vegetables, and herbs helps to preserve them for long periods, ensuring that seasonal foods are available all year round. Dehydration was a primary method of food preservation before refrigeration was available because dried foods are lightweight and have a long shelf life.
16 Perfectly Delicious Dehydrator Snacks You Have to Try
7. Foraging Edible Wild Plants
Knowing how to identify and forage edible wild plants can supplement your food supply with fresh, nutritious options. Foraging can be dangerous for the unskilled person, so I’d strongly advise taking a foraging course with an experienced expert.
10 Reasons to Grow a Wildflower Garden
8. Cooking From Scratch
When food supplies are scarce, your favorite marinara sauce or BBQ spice rubs are likely to disappear from the grocery store shelves. Now is a great time to learn how to prepare meals from scratch, reducing your reliance on processed pre-prepared foods.
9. Making Homemade Dairy Products
When the availability of dairy products is limited, skills like making cheese, yogurt, and butter from milk are invaluable. Many dairy products can be made from fresh milk that has been stored in the freezer, so make sure to have a few cartons of milk stashed away if food shortages are looming.
How to Make Homemade Yogurt in an Instant Pot
10. Homemade Stocks and Broths
Struggling to source bouillon cubes or powder? Homemade stocks and broths can be just as tasty and add a great boost of nutrition to meals. And, best of all, they can be made from meat bones and vegetable scraps that would otherwise go to waste.
11. Growing Sprouts and Microgreens
If fresh greens are in short supply, your kitchen windowsill can be used to grow highly nutritious sprouts and microgreens. Sow a new batch every week and you’ll have a constant supply of delicious sprouts to add to your favorite recipes.
12. Cooking Without Modern Equipment
Do you tend to rely on your digital breadmaker or multi-function electric cooker to produce delicious meals and baked goods? It is a good idea to perfect alternative traditional methods, such as cooking in a Dutch oven or over an open fire, in case your modern appliances are unavailable.
13. Meal Planning
During times of food shortage, meal planning enables families to better cope with reduced food resources. This ensures that nothing goes to waste and every scrap of food is utilized in the best way possible.
14. Root Cellaring
Root cellaring, where root vegetables and other produce are stored in cool, dark conditions to prolong their freshness, is a valuable method for storing produce through the winter.
15. Energy-Efficient Cooking Methods
Highly efficient cooking methods like pressure cooking, solar cooking, or cooking on a wood stove can help households prepare meals with limited energy.
16. Efficient Freezer Use
As food shortages become imminent, make sure your freezer is being utilized to its best potential. Ensure all containers are labeled with their contents and eat-by date, and rotate foods to ensure the oldest are eaten first.
17. Making Preserves and Pickles
Homemade preserves and pickles can extend the life of fruits and vegetables, providing a way to enjoy seasonal produce year-round. Play around with different flavors and seasonings to add variety to your diet.
18. Meat Preservation
Preserving meat through methods like smoking or curing can ensure you make full use of any available resources during periods of food shortages.
19. Fermentation
Fermenting vegetables and grains can preserve food while also providing beneficial health-boosting probiotics. This method can help maintain gut health and extend the shelf life of foods during shortages.
20. Making Pasta
During food shortages, your stocks of dried pasta won’t last forever, and fresh pasta could be on the menu sooner than you think. Fresh pasta requires minimal equipment and is made from just two basic ingredients: flour mixed with eggs or water.
30 Pretty Vegetarian Pasta Recipes
How to Start Canning at Home
Canning the food you harvest is an excellent way to boost your self-reliance. Canning is one method for preserving food from the garden season to the last year-round. If you are new to canning, this article will help you learn about the methods, resources, and equipment you will need to start canning at home.
Cut Your Grocery Bill In Half With These 21 Genius Shopping Hacks
Let’s face it – the rising cost of food is putting a strain on our budgets. As inflation continues to drive up the prices of groceries and everyday goods, many of us are feeling the financial squeeze, especially when we hit the supermarket. Here are 21 effective ways to cut down on your grocery expenses.
Cut Your Grocery Bill In Half With These 21 Genius Shopping Hacks
12 Best Places to Grocery Shop on a Budget
Since groceries make up a significant portion of our budget, finding the best places to shop on a budget is more important than ever. So, here are 12 fantastic places to shop for groceries that will help you save money, whether you’re shopping for yourself or the family.
12 Best Places to Grocery Shop on a Budget
Kate Chalmers
Kate is a passionate gardener who has a keen interest in all things related to homesteading and sustainability. She resides in Portugal with her husband and menagerie of animals and has over 15 years of experience in the UK veterinary industry. In 2020, Kate and her husband took on a dilapidated Portuguese house and abandoned olive grove, turning it into an abundant food forest and home for nature.
Life on the homestead is never the same from one day to the next, and Kate has mastered many skills that she is keen to pass on to anyone with an interest in becoming more self-sufficient. Kate believes that living a sustainable lifestyle is the key to happiness and fulfillment and that everyone can make simple changes that connect us back to nature and reduce our impact on the planet.
