We never like to think about catastrophes, but even so, they may still happen. Small-scaled or large-scaled, these can affect how our cooking turns out. We may not have access to our favorite ingredients, the power may have been cut down, we may be stuck in the middle of nowhere with no actual access to our kitchen utensils, or we may be sent into lockdown without regular access to our favorite stores.
If the worst were to happen and we could no longer cook our usual meals, it does not mean that they have to be tasteless. If the emergency catches you while you are at home, you may get by with stocking the right ingredients in your pantry.
On the other hand, if you are camping, packing the right things and knowing the right techniques can save you from a bind.
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Stock Up on Canned Food
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When the situation is dire, you can always be thankful for having some canned food in your pantry. You don’t even need many things there: with just canned meat, some pasta, and the right spices, you can make the most delicious meat pasta out there – and it won’t even take longer than 20 minutes to prepare this meal. It’s so easy to make that you can even make everything on a makeshift stove.
Spice It Up
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You might have the most basic foods around, but if you spice them up properly, then you may turn even the blandest ingredients into something delicious. Take potatoes, for example. If you have a bunch and you boil them, or place them simply over the fire, the taste is not that spectacular.
However, if you spice it up with some salt, pepper, paprika, coriander, chili, or whatever other favorite spices you may have at hand, the taste will radically change. Each person has different tastes, so there is no “one spice fits all.”
Invest in the Right Cooking Tools
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Let’s say that you end up in the middle of a catastrophe and you have to stay home for days, maybe weeks in a row. You may have some ingredients in your home – but not the right cooking tools. Well, in order to prepare a good meal, you must have the right utensils at hand.
If it’s no longer possible for you to grill your food at the outdoor barbecue, invest in an indoor one that you need to put on your stove. Some chicken breast, some spices, and maybe some tinfoil to keep the aroma in, and you will have the most delicious meal for dinner.
Collect Easy Recipes
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If you like cooking, make sure to collect some easy recipes that you may use in the event of a disaster. Make a cookbook with meals that use basic utensils and ingredients. Sometimes, making a simple meal with the right tools and ingredients might end up tasting better than a fancy wannabe dinner that is lacking key ingredients. If the catastrophe has you stuck at home, for the time being, you can start collecting easy recipes that use ingredients you might already have in your kitchen.
Think “Heat” Rather Than “Cook”
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In the event of a catastrophe, you may not really have the option of properly cooking a meal – which is why “heating” should be your focus rather than “cooking.” For example, in case of a catastrophe, you might not be able to cook dried food and make it taste good.
However, if you take some canned beans, they won’t be requiring any extra water, and they will already have that extra bit of flavor. Plus, the beauty of canned beans is that they can work with pretty much anything. For example, a can of red kidney beans can not only adorn a salad, but you can also turn it in a perfect chili con carne – and all you need is some meat (canned or minced), canned tomatoes, onion, and spices.
Stock Up on Parmesan Cheese
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Seriously, what kind of dish is not made better with parmesan cheese? You may have only some flour and yeast around to make bread, possibly some canned food or some salami. Those things by themselves might allow you to whip up a pretty good sandwich in the meantime.
But if you also have some parmesan cheese around the house, then you’d improve the taste of the sandwich even more – or maybe even turn it into a delicious pizza. The good part about parmesan cheese is that it has quite a long shelf life, and you don’t have to keep it in the fridge – it may easily be kept on the shelf.
Have Dried Fruits Around
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In case of a disaster, dried fruits are always a good thing to have around if you are craving something sweet. Plus, considering that by weight, dried food contains up to 3.5 times the fiber of fresh food, it can keep you satiated for a longer time. All you have to do is sprinkle them over your favorite pancake or in the sweet bread that you make.
Base It On MRE
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In case of a catastrophe, you may not have access to all of your cooking utensils or anything else that may be required to cook a delicious meal. This is why every meal you make should be based on MRE (Meals Ready to Eat) packages.
Often, these meals only require you to add some hot water in the container that they come with. Moreover, if you pick them right, they might taste quite good.
Final Thoughts
It can be quite easy to make a “catastrophe meal” taste delicious. You just need to prepare a bit beforehand – perhaps with some good pots, the right canned food, and obviously some good spices. Simple meals tend to be tastier in these situations – but only if you spice them right.
Also some good options may be found on https://www.minutemanreview.com/best-mre-meals – the Internet allowing you to order everything online these days. With the 2024 coronavirus pandemic still going around, you can receive a delicious ready-to-eat meal right at your doorstep.
