It's so easy to forget just how plain food storage staples can be, isn't it? If your food storage is made up of just cans of vegetables and bags of rice and beans, it might be a good idea to add a few extra things to make it more tasty!
It's so important to have food to eat in an emergency. It's a whole other story when it comes to having food you actually enjoy eating during an emergency.
There are so many little things you can do to make your food storage more enjoyable! Likewise, there might be a few little things you've missed that could make it easier for you to prepare your foodstuffs.
Yogurt
We think you'll love having freeze-dried yogurt in your food storage collection! Yogurt is a great way to add some dairy and all those lovely vitamins to your food storage! You can store it as a powder or as tiny yogurt drops—whatever works best for you! Either way, it'll be a nice change of pace for your emergency pantry!
Yogurt drops are a great snack for kids and grown-ups alike! The great thing is, you don't even have to wait until an emergency to enjoy them! Freeze-dried yogurt drops are a great addition to salty crackers in trail mix or as a tasty standalone snack! I'm sure your family will love you when they have these during an emergency!
Similarly, powdered yogurt can be helpful in emergency food storage and a regular home pantry item. During an emergency, this powder can be used as an added supplement to cream milk and provide another needed vitamin source. In everyday use, powdered yogurt adds a subtly sweet, creamy texture to everything you put it in. It works exceptionally well with desserts and cream-based meals.
Ice cream
We all love ice cream, don't we? Well, apart from providing our brave astronauts with a way to enjoy this classic dessert in space, freeze-dried ice cream is an excellent addition to home food storage.
Freeze-dried ice cream is a perfect match for freeze-dried meals! These can be a great addition to your survival pack, or you can just eat them when you're finished with a meal.
Ice cream is a true American classic! What kind of food supply would be complete without it?
Milk
We all know how important it is to get enough protein and vitamins, and powdered and freeze-dried milk is a great way to make sure you're getting what you need! Milk is a key ingredient in so many delicious soups and sauces! It would be a great addition to your food storage.
It's always a good idea to have a way to make powdered milk. It can add variety to your meal plan and make emergency food storage dinners much more enjoyable.
Powdered Drink Mix
We all know that many drinks don't last long-term without spoiling or fermenting. The great thing about water is that when stored correctly, it can last for a few years! It's likely that any food storage you have will include at least some water for drinking and hygiene. What you might not have is variety, but that's okay!
Powdered drink mixes are a great way to make your drinking water a little sweeter! Some of these powders can even contain vitamins and minerals, similar to sports drinks, that can help replenish electrolytes lost in sweat.
Candy
Who in this world would want to live their life without candy? It's a shame, but chocolates, caramels, and hard candies don't keep as well as other foods. Guess what! Freeze drying can extend the shelf life of your favorite sweets by decades!
The light, crunchy, and flavorful variation of your favorite treats will help keep mealtime and snacking enjoyable if you need to dip into your food storage. Many freeze-dried sweets are absolutely perfect with salty foods and snacks like crackers and nuts!
Honey
Honey is one of the best and healthiest natural sweeteners, and it lasts forever! I know it might sound a bit far-fetched, but I promise you it's true! Guess what! Honey can last thousands of years when stored correctly.
Oh, don't worry, you didn't read that wrong! Can you believe it? The oldest known edible honey sample is over 5,000 years old! Just picture using that to flavor your emergency stash of oatmeal!
Honey is a great sweetener to keep in every pantry, food storage, or for everyday use because it has antibacterial properties. Be sure to add this to your food stash, my friend! Honey is always a great choice!
Spices and Condiments
Last but not least, let's talk about spices! These are the perfect addition to your long-term pantry. Salt, pepper, seasonings, and condiments are your friends when it comes to keeping your food storage meals flavorful! Just a heads-up, some herbs and spices have a shelf life of only a couple of years. Other natural goodies like salt are great as long as they're kept in a sealed container and free from any contaminants.
A little spice can really make a meal more delicious! You'll be happy to know that dozens of different herbs are available in freeze-dried form, guaranteed to last at least 25 years!
EM Preparedness Items
We've put together a list of handy items that aren't food, but will really help you get the most out of your food storage. They might not seem like they're essential at first, but trust me, they're really useful! Having them on hand can save you tons of time, energy, and worry. Plus, it's always good to have them stockpiled with your other emergency food items.
Oh, you can open it with an opener!
Canned food is a great, affordable option that probably makes up most of the items in the average food storage arsenal. Canned goods are a great way to add some variety to your diet! But what good is food that you can't easily access?
And don't forget to pack a couple of can openers in your long-term pantry! Mechanical can openers are great for whipping up meals in a jiffy, but they can also be a bit finicky. It's always a good idea to have a non-mechanical option like a can punch or similar tool on hand just in case the mechanical ones break.
Water Filter and Water Purification Chemicals
If you're planning to store water long-term, you'll probably need to treat it with chemicals. Most water can be pre-treated with chlorine or bleach to prevent mold and algae from growing in your container.
But what if you're in the unlikely circumstance where there is no feasible access to fresh drinking water in the foreseeable future? In that case, you may want to pack some additional treatment chemicals and filters.