Dining During Disasters August 4, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Food & Drink, Nature, Vegetarian Recipes.comments closed
Wikipedia ~ Tropical Cyclone (in Public Domain)
Until this summer, I’d never given much thought to fixing real meals during a disaster.
When hurricane season blows in, we stock up on peanut butter, crackers, nuts, dried fruits, granola bars, boxed juices, and water.
Lots and lots of water.
And a little extra water . . . just in case.
If we lost electricity and running water due to a natural or man-made disaster, I expect we’d adopt a subsistence existence for the duration of the emergency.
Pass the GORP, please!
Except when camping, we’ve never been without electricity and running water for longer than a few hours. Fixing meals without running water to wash hands, rinse or wash ingredients, and clean up sticky utensils is a pain. Fixing nutritious meals without electricity is challenging.
Cooking without both for an extended period of time would get old fast.
Of course, if the electricity goes out during the sultry summer months, we’re apt to be too busy melting from lack of air conditioning to notice anything else.
This week, fueled by curiosity, we traveled over the river and through Palmetto to attend Dining During A Disaster at the Manatee County Extension Office.
After discussing what we should include in our Hurricane Disaster Kits, while a thunderstorm raged outside, Samantha fixed 3 recipes:
* Potato Salad Dijonaise: 1 can diced potatoes, 4 Tbsp. minced onion, 1 Tbsp. imitation bacon bits, 1 tsp. dried parsley, dressing (4 Tbsp. olive oil, 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar, 1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard). Add salt, pepper, and chopped chives.
* Lemony Bean Salad: green beans, kidney beans, garbanzo beans, wax beans, cannellini beans, minced onion, dressing (1/4 c. olive oil, 1/4 c. lemon juice, 1 tsp. dried oregano, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. black pepper).
* Crab Salad: 8-oz. can crab, 4 Tbsp. chopped bell pepper, 4 Tbsp. chopped onion, 1/2 cup mayonnaise.
All three dishes tasted OK but would have benefited from being chilled before serving. Something that is not apt to be an option during a power outage.
Pass the ice, please.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Curious about Disaster Meal Planning?
The Healthy Hurricane / Disaster Cookbook gave me a few ideas to try during the next power failure (assuming we haven’t melted from lack of A/C).
The nutrient dense recipes rely on canned beans (black, kidney, red, white, garbanzo), canned fruit and vegetables, and canned seafood (tuna, shrimp, salmon, mackerel, crab, sardines).
More ideas: Get Ready ~ Emergency Stockpile Recipe Contest * Apocalypse Chow! by Jon Robertson
Spirit Lights The Way 