Prepping for Brexit thread

Primrose

DryTheRain wrote: »

Hey Primrose, interesting thought about the onions - I mean they are the basis for many if not most dishes, and even if you have a veg patch or allotment I reckon it'd be difficult to grow enough in the event of shortages.

So has anyone tried cooking with dried onions (I think I have a small packet lurking), are they any good, and how would the MSE experts recommend preparing them?

Similarly I've been eyeing up things like dried leeks, powdered egg and tomatoes, again would be really interested to hear about experiences using these or other dried ingredients x

I tried cooking with dried onions many years ago in the days when you also used to be able to buy those packets of dehydrated peas which you cooked in water and they instantly plumped up. Were they branded "Surprise?." Perhaps you can still buy them for camping and outdoor easy catering.

I recall that the dried onions were Ok but they didn't have the same strength of flavour as fresh ones because you lose all the liquid in them which obviously enhances the flavour. Also, compared to fresh onions they were more expensive so you would probably tend to use fewer. I grow them some years when I tend to use them generously.

I suspect the dried ones would be used more parsimoniously but having some in stock is a no brainier in my book because having to cook without them would make many recipes miserably flavourless.

I recall that you just used them dry in recipes which had liquids added such as tomato juice is spaghetti Bol or stock cubes and water in casseroles and they slow resydrated as the food cooked. Probably worth investing in a packet now and having a trial run. They may not be widely available in supermarkets but I imagine Amazon would probably locate some.

[Deleted User]

Sainsburys do a herb sized jar of onion granules for £1 and also garlic granules also for £1 which you just add in straight from the jar to a dish before cooking it and they both are good flavour and store well.

[Deleted User]

Amazon do varying weight packs of onion granules up to 1kilo which is Old India Onion Granules and that will cost you £12.99 and is available on Amazon Prime by tomorrow.

DigForVictory

Amazon also do the OvaEasy dried eggs - but in seriously large amounts. Read about here and also here so it would appear crystallised egg is held in higher esteem than merely dried eggs...

<says she with onion granules definitely on the list & planning to ask a boating buddy as to what eggs they prefer/use. With my luck they'll have live chickens. Or just ducks.>

C_J

I wonder how difficult it would be to dehydrate onions at home - probably quite simple (although I tried putting chillis in my dehydrator once and the fumes were eye watering!)

Primrose

C_J wrote: »

I wonder how difficult it would be to dehydrate onions at home - probably quite simple (although I tried putting chillis in my dehydrator once and the fumes were eye watering!)

You could possibly also slow oven dry them but you would have to get every last drop of moisture out otherwise they would very quickly go mouldy in whatever container you stored them in. I dried chillies in an airing cupboard once but it was quite dusty in there with pipework holes with small gaps in them going up to the loft which is full of cavity wall insulation and loose fibres. . If you've already got a dehydrator it,s worth having a trial run. I,m sure your instruction book or Google will provide some timing guidelines.

They are useful gadgets to own if you have a mixed fruit orchard and a kitchen the size of Westminster Abbey in which to store it but alas not practical for the average pocket sized British kitchen. If stored onions start looking as if they're on the turn or sprouting green tips the best thing to do to avoid wasting them is probably to slice and freeze them.

SunMoonStars

Thanks Cuddlymarm and Suffolksue for pointing me in the right direction for the rosehip syrup. Thinking about it I never knew what “having a cold” was until I was 16 or thereabouts, probably because of rosehip syrup. My mother reminded me that she used to give it to my brother and I every day but I don’t remember that bit, only the association with grandma’s house!

Primrose - Onions.

I know there will be a load of people who may well flame me for suggesting this, so I will duck for cover now! For medical reasons I have to follow a low FODMAP diet, which must avoid eating all alliums. It did seem a little odd not to be cooking with onions as a base when I first started, but I soon realised that they don’t actually make a huge amount of difference to the final dish, it was more the texture / bite they gave more than anything else. I do use a little garlic as I can tolerate small amounts, and that helps flavour, I find garlic is much easier to grow too.

SmS

cuddlymarm

Hi guys
When I started this thread it was to give ideas for stocking up ready in case Brexit gets to be bad. I personally hope things don’t get so bad as having to eat very basic foods. Saying that with recent news about people having to leave their homes in 15 mins due to a threat of a bursting dam it’s is probably a good idea to have a list of things to grab. When you need to think fast and panic is setting in you can always remember things you should have packed later on. I would be hysterical if I forgot medication or couldn’t bring pets with me. My heart goes out to the people patiently waiting to see whether Mother Nature is going to leave then without homes.
This just shows how real life can throw a spanner into the works and you need to be ready.
This puts the fact that we have idiots in charge of Brexit in a different category and the fact that as preppers we will manage. OK prices may go up and we may not have as much choice in the SMs. Please don’t think I am belittling the fact that jobs may go and there may be unrest but this will eventually settle down and we will manage.
All we can do is look after ours and be charitable to others where we can and we will cope.
Cuddles

DryTheRain

Thanks for the thoughts on dried onions and wotnot, I'm thinking of reviving the Friday night brexit dinner so will report back in due course . I imagine the main issue will be the lack of juiciness, different mouth feel, but it'll be interesting to see how they perform in terms of flavour.

The ones I have were from the local wholefoods place, £1.25 for 250g, the leeks etc were amazon/ebay. Pretty sure I saw tubs of dried fried onions on one of the supermarket websites, maybe the caribbean section, will have a look later.

I'm just concerned as hallowe'en B-day means a really long hungry gap, potentially much worse than it would've been had we exited in March. Five or six months rather than just a couple. Still, there's ten weeks or so to go, looks like tinopolis will continue to grow..

Rosie78

I’ve been following this thread with interest - thank you for starting it! I was looking for a little advice on what more I can do to prepare as I’m very worried.

Essentially without outing myself, my DP works in an industry that could be affected and if certain things come to pass, his job could be very much at risk. A sibling also works in another industry that could possibly see a downturn.

I can’t really prep as you guys have as my DP thinks not much will happen, so I may need to do anything on the downlow to avoid the ear ache.

I’ve paid off all my debts and am saving as much as I can, growing lots in the garden, and have started collecting Sainbos or ASDA gift cards to store just in case..... but what else could I do?

I don’t want to buy any other retail gift vouchers as I think that would be a risk, but I want to be in a position to help us or my sibling if needed, I.e recession.

There must be more I can do? Anyone have any suggestions? This stuff literally keeps my up at night!