I use my food saver all the time. I buy big blocks of cheese and cut it down to small blocks and freeze the extra. I bag up rice, grits, beans and many other items with the food saver to pack into 5 gallon buckets. I just bagged up a box of Mac & Cheese with the powdered cheese bag. I don't know how well this will keep, but I do want to try it out and see. I do know that years ago I found a box of Kraft Mac&Cheese that was almost a year out of date and I said to myself,"try it to see if it's still good". So I did and it was good the cheese and the noodles were just fine. So my thinking is if I can get the air off both the bag of cheese powder and the noodles it will last way longer than the 24 month expiration date. I know that compounds or mixes of more that one item over time will break down, like Bisquick even if put into a food saver bag over time the compounds of the mix start to have a chemical reaction and break down. I have read on-line about pancake mix in food saver bags popping after a year or more because of the chemical reaction. I'm not sure about the cheese powder in the Mac&Cheese, because it comes in a foil lined package and has a shelve life of 24 months. If any of you have tried this please post a comment and let me know how it works. I am always trying new things to see if they work. So if you have an idea you want to share with me just post it and I will try it out. I have learned great tricks and tips from other survivalist. I plan to learn much more over the years to come. Keep your eye's open and your ear to the ground, because evil is just over the hill and night is coming.
I don't know if this qualifies as a clever trick or not; after losing our well this year, we discovered that we used vast more water for cleaning/hand washing than for actual drinking. So now, when I empty a bleach or vinegar bottle, I refill it with water. It won't taste good, but should be fine for hygiene purposes.
ReplyDeleteJust curious where/how you store your goods...I hear there's not a lot of basements in California. Do you have a dedicated room or try to keep them in the garage or what? If you don't want to disclose that information, I understand why!
ReplyDeleteAs I understand it, it's the baking powder and/or baking soda that cause the issues in the Bisquick-type mixes. I make up my own mixes, but put the "volatiles" in separate snack-size ziplocks (about 1/3 the size of the sandwich bags - with all of the air squeezed out before zipping). I throw everything else in together, toss in the ziplocked baking powder, then vacuum seal up the whole works.
ReplyDeleteSo far (over two years) nothing has burst on me. In March (30 months since packing), I'll be opening one of the packs and making pancakes. Plus I have a corn meal that will have been vacuum sealed for 3 years that I'll be checking at the same time.
I opened up one of them last year - after two years - and it was still pristine (and quite tasty!).
Andrea, we have a extra room that we use as a store room for all of our goods, and a little more than a year ago my mother-in-law and other family helped me put in a bunch of new kitchen cabinets so we have lots of room for supplies.
ReplyDeleteGotta love that Foodsaver buddy. I use mine all the time. Never thought about using it for Mac and Cheese though. I have a BUNCH of that, may have to give it a try.
ReplyDeleteRepackaging things in cardboard boxes, ie Mac & Cheese, helps to keep the cardboard taste away.
ReplyDeleteI opened a bag of Lipton beef noodles yesterday and all I could taste is beef flavored cardboard. Granted, its packaged in an aluminum lined pouch, it still tasted like crap.
I'm beginning to see inferior ingredients being used in packaged foods also. All inline to keep their profits up, instead of raising prices.