Preparedness for when

[Deleted User]

cuddlymarm wrote: »

Hi

My mum used to cook on the fire when we had power cuts in the 70s.

Mine too.

She also had an old fashioned paraffin lantern ( but I'm not sure whether you can buy these any more)

You can get them, and quite easily too.

Many hardware stores stock them, as do Amazon and Ebay.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/PARAFFIN-HURRICANE-LANTERN-PARAFIN-CAMPING/dp/B00CLRQ8RE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1410340559&sr=8-1&keywords=Paraffin+Lanterns

They're quite reasonably priced too.

The ones linked to are 3 for £12-50 (that's £4-16 each), with free delivery.

maryb

I heard that discussion as well - it was an interview with the head of safety (I think) at Sizewell B nuclear power station in Suffolk and it mentioned that the gap between capacity and demand is knife thin because of EDF having to take two other nuclear power stations out of commission until December for safety checks and because of two coal fired stations having been damaged by fires (Ironbridge and Ferrybridge). This is not new news, there has been some comment about it in various newspapers.

The Grid is making contingency plans and are, for example, paying some old coal fired power stations to stay at a state where they could be fired up rapidly to bridge the gap if necessary even though they are not profitable to run in normal circumstances (Apparently such power stations are called 'peakers' in the industry - sounds deceptively cute doesn't it?).

[Deleted User]

GreyQueen wrote: »

it means you have a very neat package about 2 ft x 1.5 inches

That's an impressive package.

[Deleted User]

GreyQueen wrote: »

:question: Can anyone else recommend some seasonings that they've chosen to stock, and their reasons for their choices?

Bottles of brown and tomato sauce.

The cheap ASDA stuff (29p and 18p respectively) is, IMO, as good as the expensive stuff.

It keeps for ages, is instantly ready for use, and can be used to flavour pretty much anything savoury.

[Deleted User]

CONDIMENTS!!! I've just been to our local Lidl and visited the B&M store next door and in B&M they have jars of various curry pastes for 59p, Blue Dragon Cook in Sacues for 29p and a whole swatch of different little buckets of spice mixes and herbs for 99p each so it might be worth a look if you have a branch near you. Will certainly help liven up winter cuisine!!!

Frugalsod

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

Bottles of brown and tomato sauce.

The cheap ASDA stuff (29p and 18p respectively) is, IMO, as good as the expensive stuff.

It keeps for ages, is instantly ready for use, and can be used to flavour pretty much anything savoury.

I agree and some value own brand are actually better than the branded varieties.

Cheapskate

Besides many of the flavourings mentioned here, I also keep in garlic/onion/celery salts, probably got proper names but that's what we call them. They add a slightly different salty taste, obviously based on the veg in question, and you don't need much. I always keep a basic curry powder, always good for spicing up most things, without being for a specific type of curry. My mum used to have a few different jars of sugar for baking, each with an extra ingredient to infuse the sugar - vanilla pod, pieces of citrus peel, etc (I do the vanilla one) - and friends of mine do the same with salt, which I might try this autumn. Same premise as the sugar, but adding (completely dry) strong tasting ingredients, like garlic, herbs, etc. Also, have you tried using el cheapo stuffing in things? Much cheaper than herbs if you're strapped for cash, but you might not be able to use with everything.

For lunch today I had plain salad veg, very boring in itself, but with some smoked mackerel and a pile of pickled beetroot - so much tastier than just salad and ham/chicken! (I need to cut down on carbs, hence no sarnies or salad dressing etc.)

MrsL, thanks for naming your stove, I had forgotten which one you had, and am researching them for us. Won't be until next summer, but I've found one stockist in our town, which is good! Thanks for the B&M spices tip, too - need to stock up, so I see a trip looming tomorrow.

A xo

pumpkinlife

In one of Sharon Astyk's books (Independence Days?) she talks bout making a herb seasoning. You chop up as many different fresh green herbs as you care to; add them to a jar; and stir in an equal (I think) volume of sea salt.

Mint sauce is also very useful - lovely in cous cous, added to salad dressings and even in sandwiches. Or by the tablespoon from the jar. Ahem.

I second flavoured sugars too. I made DD's birthday cake with lavender sugar. It was really good. I will make geranium sugar just before the first frosts and see what that is like.

A sharp spice like Sumac is good in the absence of lemon juice. If you know anyone with a sumac tree, you can harvest your own. Mango powder would do a similar trick.

If you only pick one, though - the cajun should be it

[Deleted User]

CHEAPY it's worth every single penny we paid for it, hundreds of times over, it really is the very best home improvement we've ever made!!!

pumpkinlife

On the subject of appetising SHTF food:


http://www.emergencykitcookoff.org/recipes

American, but some of it looks really good. Chicken tortilla soup...hmmm.