I come from the South Carolina coast line and every year during hurricane season we usually lose electricity. When your freezer and fridge are struggling to stay cold from lack of electric, you pretty much leave the doors closed to preserve the cold and eat out of the pantry while you wait for your power to be restored or your entire freezer full of food to thaw out while in the freezer which ever comes first. Since you've given me so many yummy non-spoiling pantry meal ideas I wanted to give you one of my favs with a so many different variations that its my go to when the electric goes out yearly. It does require some water which I keep in storage and I cook it over a propane camping stove, but sometimes you just need a nice hot, harty meal when there's a hurricane bearing down on you dumping tons of cold water in the form of rain that's attacking you LITERALLY from any angle you can imagine. I call it my ALL IN POTATOES because its such a simple and delicious pantry meal. · Pkt of (Au Gratin/Scalloped) potatoes · Can of cream of (celery/mushroom/chicken) soup to substitute water with in potatoes · Can or jar of Mushroom/asparagus · One protein. Choose from: · Canned chicken/turkey/tuna ·Or Vienna Sausages/cut summer sausage/frozen Sausage · Or beef · Cajun/Chili powder to flavor · Salt & pepper to flavor Just combine all ingredients in a boiling pan with the cooking potatoes. To save on water usage you can just pour all your fluids from the cans or jars of food in to cook the potatoes in. Add the delicate veggies at very end to heat so that you avoid serious decomposition issues with the asparagus. Stir and serve. It is cheap, pantry stable, easy to cook, super filling and so so yummy 😋 The thing I love the best about it is that you can adjust the size of the meal for the number of people by using less of the potato packet and buying individual size canned servings.
The fact that you’re human, and made some human mistakes, made me subscribe asap!!!! This video just appeared, but your personality just drew me in! Wonderful!
So I am challenging every church to put Blessings boxes out side the church and ask all parishioners to once a month donate 4 non perishable items in it. Imagine if 1/4 of the churches in America had Blessings boxes. It could almost get rid of hunger in America
Me too, and I'm 71 yrs old! These recipes are game changers for me! I would put some freeze dried peas in with the tuna casserole (and maybe the chicken casserole, too). TFS and have a blessed day!
I was going to say canned peas but freeze dried would work too. I have made the tuna one all my life but mine calls for a half can of milk per can of soup, so the evaporated milk or powdered milk would work as well.
All great ideas. I think some people are missing the point though. Yes, we may not want to eat this way everyday. If there were an emergency, this definitely comes in handy.
This is where growing up in a very low income bracket is actually handy. Stuff like this naturally becomes your comfort food because of nostalgia. Pinto beans and corn bread with a little ketchup is dirt cheap but it makes you feel good inside especially if you had it twice a week as a kid.
I think it would be better if after you cook the pasta set it aside and heat the soup, evap milk, chicken and cheese packet and then add the pasta back to the pot. This way everything mixes better and you might also save the texture of the pasta because you don’t have to mix so much in order to make sure everything is incorporated.
I ABSOLUTELY AGREE! I was just ready to cry as those poor spirals were being mutilated! lol It would DEFINITELY be much easier on everyone, pasta and preparer of the pasta if the dish was put together as you described. The pasta could just be tossed into the baking dish while heating and putting the rest of the ingredients together, so no added dirty dishes (unless you don’t plan to bake, in that case you could just put them in one or two of the bowls that your family will be eating out of, I do this frequently, it saves dishes and the same food is going right back in there anyway, no harm, no foul, right? Then just add everything back together when the “extras” are all incorporated. Pastas life is saved and the casserole would probably have a better presentation, although that really isn’t going to be terribly important if this is something you HAVE TO DEPEND ON. My only question (and I JUST STARTED watching these type of videos), is about the evaporated milk, if you’re only using a small amount what are you going to do with the remainder? If in fact there isn’t power to keep a cooling device going what would you do with it? The rest of the can would be wasted, if not used that day, wouldn’t it? I’ve never used powdered milk, but wouldn’t that be a better option in situations where you need just a tad and it’s being mixed with a number of other ingredients so the taste (hopefully) wouldn’t be overwhelming? Not putting down the process, recipe or ingredients, and of course not our beautiful hostess, just questions from a newbie 😉
For the chicken and tuna casseroles, I would mix the soup and cheese packets in the pan while the noodles are draining. That way you're not breaking up the meats or even the noodle as much with all that stirring.
If you live in apt and they don't have washer and dryers in your apt but another building, reuse your dawn or other dish soap bottles and fill them with laundry soap. Saves on the bulk when going to do laundry, even if you go to a laundry mat. It helps a lot.
We had unexpected medical expenses hit us. I shopped my shelves like you share and it saved us time and money this past month. Thank you for the wisdom and videos!
Tuna casserole was always something my momma made. We would just make mac and cheese like the box says, add two cans of tuna and one cream of mushroom soup. Add to casserole dish, add shredded cheese on top. Bake 350 covered for 20 mins and I'll uncovered for 10. Soo good and still really cheap.
I am in Australia and have followed your channel for about 1.5yrs and up until now have not been that worried about food storage up until now. Now with with all the China/Russia stuff it is getting a bit to close to my border and I getting worried. I know everything happens first in your part of the world first but I think it is best to be prepared. Thank you for everything for each vlog 🙏🇦🇺
For a hint, if you use the smaller spice bottles, save them and once used, remove the label to reuse for combinations to include in packets like these. You can write what’s included in the mix and tape it to the bottle, and either keep reusing the same bottle it you make the same recipe over and over, or just rinse and reuse for a different recipe just taping the different spice mixes on the bottle each time.
Genius! I always buy my spices in bulk 😅 but this is a great idea for when say one of my kids or husband want to make meals but don't know what seasonings!
Tictac containers. (as an example) We wash and reuse small plastic containers. Ultralight campers go as far as to seal spices inside plastic straws. Also good idea on the premixed spices; rather than packing them individually. I came across a box of very tiny ziploc bags that I suspect are more usually used for more exotic/illicit substances....but I bought it, and love them for camping. You do get funny looks sprinkling salt on your food from a tiny baggie, though. They're like an inch square. And come in colors so you can tell your spices apart!
If you only want a small amount of milk and it needs to be shelf stable use powdered milk. Powdered milk is definite food that is safe for long term storage and pantry staple.
For that macaroni dish, I would reserve some of the macaroni water to add for liquid since the starchy water will make it creamy… then no need for milk if it’s not available
If you've never had to eat food like this you're blessed. I was raised by a single mom and times were tough sometimes. These are pretty tasty for what they are!
This is brilliant!! I love this idea - right now I just have bins of random canned vegetables, chili, tuna, fruit, soup, etc. So much smarter to form them into meal kits to ensure we actually have MEAL food, not a bunch of random supplies. Thank you!!
We are finishing up our first season of having our camper on a seasonal site. These would be great to keep on hand for easy meals while camping/glamping.
100% it’s crazy how little $100 will get you these days at the store especially if you’re a family that’s feeding growing kids. Anyone who’s not believing must not handle the grocery bill/shopping or they don’t care to pay attention 🤷♀️ but believe it or not many people are struggling to survive & could find this video helpful.
Khalie, you are absolutely right. Though before the Great Reset can truly devastate the world Jesus Christ will rapture His church! 🙌 It’s time to watch and keep our lamps filled with oil! ❤️ Matthew 25
Instead of Mac and cheese boxes, my mom used to make that with cheese soup and regular pasta, a little milk, and crushed corn flakes or potato chips toppings. We also added celery or peas in them.
I really love the idea of using bags to put pantry meal kits together. I was just out of town for 2 weeks and at least once a day either my kids or husband asked what they could make out of the pantry (they tried really hard but this would simplify things much more).
True lemon and true lime packets would be a wonderful add to your food storage! I use it in about any recipe that calls for fresh juice.. it adds the perfect flavor to things like the Mexican soup, and is shelf stable!
@@Simplelifepreps I ordered mine from Amazon, they have them in a bunch of different quantities... I got a 500ct box of each: True Lime, True Lemon and True Orange... we love them!
On the turkey dinner, I would add a can of drained whole (you can cut) or diced potatoes to make the meal stretch further. My family loves gravy, so for an extra .33, I would add an additional packet of turkey gravy. Thanks for sharing the cookbooks. Debi in Vicksburg, MS. 🥰🥰
Hey Kimmy, here's a thought. Remember those little plastic containers that you bought for sour cream, salsa and green onions when you were making your pantry meals for the freezer? Well, depending on the meal that you're making, just put all of the required seasonings (sage, dried minced onion, garlic, etc) into one of those little cups. And depending on how much seasoning/spices etc that you use, you might need two containers. The point is, everything will be at your finger tips. If you need to, put a label on top indicating which seasonings are in the cup for that meal.
When all 5 of the children were at home and younger we used to get the boxed macaroni and cheese from Aldi. We would fix like package said, add cream of mushroom soup and tuna. We ate that a lot for lunch. Really got us through.
To the box macaroni, I always add atleast 2 TBsp butter and 1/4 cream or whole milk/half&half, pepper and a good handful or two of shredded cheese, & sometimes a good few shakes of Parmesan (mama francesca)
The point of these meal kits is possibly for emergency use, when milk and butter may not be available. They are also shelf stable, that is why they call for canned milk and powdered or freeze dried cheese. (Not fresh cream, milk, or butter, etc.) Also, this could be for people whose budget could not afford dairy this week, etc.
Thank you for sharing one recipe that didn’t include cream soups or other dairy. It’s definitely more of a struggle to eat shelf stable foods with food sensitivities.
Here's one of my favorite cheap recipes that might fit you. a pound of beans (if dried soak overnight and discard the water) (half pinto half kidney is best) a can of diced tomatoes one package of old el paso taco seasoning enough water to cover and just simmer until the beans are tender (beans soften way better if you wait to add the tomatoes until after they are tender) You can mix it up all sorts of ways. Usually I do about a half pound of cooked beef in it for more oomph. If you want a thicker texture you can smash some of the beans to release their starches. If you want to bulk you can easily using a place like webstaurantstore and just get like 30 pounds of beans and a big container of their generic taco seasoning. Edit: You can easily scale this recipe up to a double or triple batch with a big enough pot. It keeps for a really long time in the fridge and is just as good out of the microwave as fresh out of the pot. If you like a little heat I also recommend adding some cayenne.
Such a great idea! For "prepping" for the future, make sure you look at how long each item's shelf life is. Canned meat is 2-5 years, but boxed stuffing a year at most.
For the Chicken recipe with Mac and Cheese, keep some of the hot pasta water, DON'T rinse noodles (just cools them off too fast) with the noodles in a strainer put the chicken and soup in the bottom of the pan and heat it up before putting the noodle back in. Have made for years with just Cream of Chicken, egg noodles and shredded cheese. For the Mexican soup instead of individual ingrediencies try one pack of taco seasoning and one pack of ranch seasoning ($.33 each)
I have made my own recipe of this. Rather than using the Mac and Cheese, I use regular egg noodles and one can of cheese soup (substituting for the cheese). I heat the tuna/chicken/turkey and the can of cream of --- soup and cheese soup along with some diced carrots and frozen peas THEN add the cooked pasta to it. It is creamier without the oven.
Love your channel. I love this concept of pre-sorted meal options, so I hit the link for In The Bag. I can't wait for my copy to arrive so I can put my pantry to the test. Always looking for inspiration/motivation to up my pantry game. With 1000+ jars filled and already on the shelves, 40 5-gallon buckets loaded to the rim with every staple avaliable , 350'ish store bought cans on standby, and the dehydrator running 24/7, I need a fun menu project to help control the volume that I have faithfully added and rotated through over the last 25 years. Little steps can scale mountains.
I saw this for the first time, fell for your ideas within seconds...now I am a new subscriber.....THANK YOU ....love, love, love this. I work 12 hour shifts and this would help me tremendously...God Bless and thx for sharing.
I make tuna casserole this way. We make the mac and cheese according to box instructions then add the rest. I add sautéed mushrooms, celery and frozen peas and top with French fried onions. You could used canned peas and mushrooms and freeze dried celery for food storage kits.
Mmmmmm. These look yummy for a pantry meal. That chicken, mushroom soup and green bean on reminds me of the green bean casserole. Some of those crunchy dried onions on top would be yummy.
Thats a great idea but the spices might pose a problem. I doubt any food pantry would accept rebagged spices so try to stick to recipes where the ingredients themselves contain stuff like that (like the mac and cheese)
Those packets of 'True Lemon/Lime/etc' are a shelf stable option. I always take some with me wherever I go. Just add to water & helps w/ travel bloat, etc.
Thank you thank you for doing all of this! Looking forward to printing the recipes out! I bought a binder and sheet protectors to start my practical cookbook!
Thanks! We lived on these type of casseroles for years when money was tight. We would double the recipe and had dinner for 2 nites. Great ideas for prepper foods.
My mom used to make her tuna casserole with the box Mac and cheese, canned tuna, and more cheese. Sometimes boiled egg slices on top or cracker crumb/butter topping. She would bake it... she must have made the Mac n cheese with extra milk because it wasn't dry. Great pantry recipes 👍.
started doing pantry bag meals when we started going to our cabin for a week at a time...easier to not forget an essential. husbands all time favorite.... a dak ham dice it up, 2 cans scalloped potatoes, drained, one can corn, drained, one can cream of mushroom or chicken...layer the potatoes on the bottom of the dish, cover with the diced ham, the corn and pour the soup over all...i generally add cheese on top IF I remember to bring it...oven about 20 minutes until hot...we have made some of the others , but with plain elbow mac and a velveeta squeeze cheese packet..and the turkey bake is going to be made this week after watching ..
Great ideas. For the turkey casserole (or really any casserole) if you layer the breading, turkey chunks, then green beans, then pour the soup mixture over that, you’ll maintain the shape and texture of each layer instead of it all falling apart in the soup.
OK! Been waiting for this... I gifted out the bags I made last month. I let them know we were waiting on this video. I'll get them the cards printed out. TY🙌
The tuna casserole we add frozen peas to it also... you could use can and just drain them... we never bake it and I just leave a little water in it and strove on to heat through while mixing.. turns out everytime. Also romen and mixed veggies and a can of chicken is cheap and easy.. may not be the best health wise but in a pinch it feeds you .
Today I made the chicken/mac and cheese recipe and it was a success! Meaning my husband liked it, haha. He was fine with it as-is in the pot, but agreed that baking with crackers on top added some texture. I'm going to make it again with some variations- tuna instead of chicken, different cream soups, different seasonings, and different veggies (canned and dehydrated). I'm excited that this one "base" dish can become a variety of meals. Yay! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for both sharing and taste testing these. I don't eat seafood but would gladly give the others a try. Have been stocking up so these are some great, quick, simple and very budget friendly meal plans to have.
Having shelf stable foods for emergencies is a great idea. The best thing you can do, however, is learn to grow and preserve your own food. Knowing how to hunt and fish is also a valuable skill.
I also make the tuna casserole with Mac and cheese. I make the Mac and cheese like the box says, then add cream of mushroom, 1 can of tuna and then a little more milk so it's not so dry, then I top it with fried onion things. I do great value cuz it's way cheaper! I do double everything because there's so many of us. Oh and I do bake it!
Good morning She's in Her Apron. Happy Labor Day. I truly admire a strong self sufficient woman such as yourself. My favorite method of maintaining a sustainable pantry and stockpiling items long term for the whole family and the family dog and the family cat is what I consider to be the most practical, utilizing every type of food storage methods and technology available, both old and new. . Except for the fruits and vegetables that get canned, I keep perishable items like meat, poultry, fish, fruit, vegetables and dairy products in the refrigerator on a short term basis until I'm ready to use them for a big family meal - and for even longer term sustainable storage, a large separate freezer, which can store a half side of beef with plenty of room left over for homemade ice cream etc. . I'm considering upgrading to a walk-in freezer at some point.in the near future, if my plans to open a bed and breakfast come to fruition. Sometimes, however a nice round of cheese can do well for quite awhile on a pantry shelf at room temperature - and doesn't mind even if it has to stand there alone. Store bought canned goods get shelves.in the large pantry closet - several for canned meat like corned beef hash, spam and sandwich spread and another for canned vegetables Bread, rolls, grains, homemade pasta, cereals and the like are stored in special humidity controlled bins I order from Amazon Prime - which usually get delivered to my doorstep about an hour after I order them. . Stuff from the family garden and orchard, like onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, cauliflower, cucumber, pumpkins, carrots, corn celery,, potatoes and yams, cherries, blueberries and strawberries get canned in Mason Jars and stored in the cool, root cellar of this wonderful rambling former farmhouse (circa 1867) I share with my extended blended family and several rambunctious dogs raised on table scraps from the some of the finest food from a plethora of sources both commercial and home based. . There's even a special separate "summer kitchen" which I converted to store butter and ice cream churns, pots, pans, utensils, extra storage containers, foil, bags, cutlery, and other meal related accoutrement. Out back in the woods, just beyond the big pile of wood I maintain all year, (for use in an antique woodstove I keep on hand, in case the power goes out) there's even an old rusting vintage still where my great grandfather made some of the finest corn whiskey for miles. Next to it is the rusting hulk of the Ford Model A he used to transport that powerful hootch by the light of the moon on soft summer nights to his eager customers in a tri-county area. Further into this verdant forest of mostly sycamore, oak, pine and scrub, runs a cool stream into which I occasionally cast a rod or net to catch some Brook Trout, Bluntnose Shiners, or whatever takes the bait (just earthworms for the most part). And yes, hunting season means wild turkey, deer, and even an occasional wild boar. Next week, I'm planning on filing for a permit to 3-D print a smokehouse in order to be able to create gourmet artisan handcrafted, beef, bacon, turkey, and beef stick jerky, which interested local merchants can private label for other people to share with their families and their family dogs. Unfortunately, I had to break the bad news to my free range hens today that due to expected egg shortages regretfully numbered are their days of laying a couple of eggs and then basically taking the rest of the day off with ranging privileges' within the parameters of a few very nice rural acres - parts of which are rich with fat grubworms. There's even a short dirt road between the main barn and the farmhouse which they're free to cross to get to the other side as often as they'd like. My rooster Ben overheard me and he ain't too happy either, knowing full well that due to oncoming egg shortages, he'll be "workin' overtime to make sure there's plenty of eggs for the family and I.
With the chicken and tuna casseroles cook the smaller pasta for 3 minutes and use some of the pasta water thin the other ingredients. The pasta will finish cooking in the oven
Wow my daughter can use this video like yesterday ,we have five children that are super awesome kids and she needs help, this is going to blow her mind ,I’ll call it a helping hand for her , as for children they eat well omg , thank you so much for sharing your videos with us 🫵🏽🫶🏼✌️👍🤤👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Each of these meals looked so good! I agree with you on the elbow mac for the chicken and tuna dishes and I'd bake them as well. I would perhaps choose to add some of my freeze dried veggies (I even have cheese!!). Thank you for putting all these together so we can see them!😋
I've made the tuna casserole on the stove. I did add a dab of milk and butter to give it some moisture. It's pretty tasty. It was hot and didn't want to use the oven.
The Long grain Wild rice blend also says you can use oil and then it would make it shelf stable. I don’t buy the box stuff anymore. I keep long grain rice and wild rice on hand along with the seasoning blend that I have already prepared.
I love all these meal ideas. When I was growing up, my mom use make tuna noodle casserole. So when my children were growing up and the budget was tight I would make tuna noodle casserole. I used the boxed Mac and cheese, because back then you could get it on sale 10 boxes for a $1. You could get tuna really cheap, I don’t as well. I don’t remember that price off hand. And you could get can vegetables 4 or 5 cans for a $1. So like I said it was a long time ago. But to the Mac and cheese and tuna I would add canned green peas. I had WIC back then so we had milk. But something I have been thinking about now as I watch your videos and others, is instead of pour the pasta water and the juice from the canned goods, you can save them and use in place of milk. It would still make your dish creamy and you would not be wasting the liquid. If it is an emergency, you will want to use your water as sparingly as possible. Thank you again for the great budget and emergency ideas. I can’t wait to see more. When people live on a fixed income they need some new and fresh ideas. God bless you and thank you for all your hard work.
This is such a huge help! The biggest hurdle is knowing how to pull a meal together out of the food storage we have on hand. I’ll have to look and see if you have a printable recipe book available to keep all your great ideas together in one place, in case the grid goes down and we can’t access the computer. Thanks! 😊
On your pasta dinner remember save some pasta water it helps and on Mac and cheese I have made with pasta water when there no milk. Kids thought it was fine. If you make these for emergency bags add a couple bottles of water, you might not have running water. Great video Thanks
Omg Kimmy the first two casseroles looked so goo AND easy! Actually they all looked good. I love an easy one pot meal you throw together and boom you’re done…dinner is ready! Great video as uuual? Take care God bless. ❤️
I’ve been making this tuna casserole recipe for 50 years. It came on a box of Mac n cheese. It includes 3/4 cup of milk per 2 boxes, a drained can of peas, and buttered cracker crumbs on top. Then baked for 20 min.
Make some macaroni as directed on the box then you mix in the soup the meat and add an extra cheese if you want or vegetables or mushrooms and heat it up a little bit then turn it off and you can eat it then no baking required
Ok what I do for the macaroni and cheese is make the box as the instructions says . I do not put anything else in but the tuna. Then put in a dish and bake like you did. It is delicious and you can put the cracker crumbs on top.
For the Mac and cheese dishes, I’ve made them before but heated the soup, cheese, and meat together and then just added the noodles when they are done. I like to add peas to the tuna casseroles.
You did a great job, thank you for the tip. I use evaporation milk in many recipes, oatmeal, coffee, corn muffins an then some, the milk gives a whole different flavor..thanks.😊
The second and third recipe you can use green beans or peas , and if you mix cream of chicken instead of cream of mushroom with the tuna less tuna taste.
My mom has always made those mac and cheese meals, but prep the mac and cheese just as directed on the box with the milk and butter and then add the soup and meats. :)
👉WATCH NEXT- Recession Proof Meals- th-cam.com/video/pKA5K3Z7wXE/w-d-xo.html
I come from the South Carolina coast line and every year during hurricane season we usually lose electricity. When your freezer and fridge are struggling to stay cold from lack of electric, you pretty much leave the doors closed to preserve the cold and eat out of the pantry while you wait for your power to be restored or your entire freezer full of food to thaw out while in the freezer which ever comes first. Since you've given me so many yummy non-spoiling pantry meal ideas I wanted to give you one of my favs with a so many different variations that its my go to when the electric goes out yearly. It does require some water which I keep in storage and I cook it over a propane camping stove, but sometimes you just need a nice hot, harty meal when there's a hurricane bearing down on you dumping tons of cold water in the form of rain that's attacking you LITERALLY from any angle you can imagine. I call it my ALL IN POTATOES because its such a simple and delicious pantry meal.
· Pkt of (Au Gratin/Scalloped) potatoes
· Can of cream of (celery/mushroom/chicken) soup to substitute water with in potatoes
· Can or jar of Mushroom/asparagus
· One protein. Choose from:
· Canned chicken/turkey/tuna
·Or Vienna Sausages/cut summer sausage/frozen Sausage
· Or beef
· Cajun/Chili powder to flavor
· Salt & pepper to flavor
Just combine all ingredients in a boiling pan with the cooking potatoes. To save on water usage you can just pour all your fluids from the cans or jars of food in to cook the potatoes in. Add the delicate veggies at very end to heat so that you avoid serious decomposition issues with the asparagus. Stir and serve. It is cheap, pantry stable, easy to cook, super filling and so so yummy 😋
The thing I love the best about it is that you can adjust the size of the meal for the number of people by using less of the potato packet and buying individual size canned servings.
The fact that you’re human, and made some human mistakes, made me subscribe asap!!!! This video just appeared, but your personality just drew me in! Wonderful!
This would be a really good Idea to pack meals for a church food pantry!
Yes! Or the school food drives!
When I made gift baskets I tried to include things that could make a couple meals, plus a GC for the meat and dairy that would complete the meal.
Yep!!
So I am challenging every church to put Blessings boxes out side the church and ask all parishioners to once a month donate 4 non perishable items in it. Imagine if 1/4 of the churches in America had Blessings boxes. It could almost get rid of hunger in America
I am 63 yrs old & it never dawned on me to do meal kits. But now after seeing this, I’m going to start!🤯Thank you!😁
Me too, and I'm 71 yrs old! These recipes are game changers for me! I would put some freeze dried peas in with the tuna casserole (and maybe the chicken casserole, too). TFS and have a blessed day!
@@gingerzelidon3573 YES! Good idea! The freeze dried peas would be wonderful!
I was going to say canned peas but freeze dried would work too. I have made the tuna one all my life but mine calls for a half can of milk per can of soup, so the evaporated milk or powdered milk would work as well.
Heck yah
All great ideas. I think some people are missing the point though. Yes, we may not want to eat this way everyday. If there were an emergency, this definitely comes in handy.
This is where growing up in a very low income bracket is actually handy. Stuff like this naturally becomes your comfort food because of nostalgia. Pinto beans and corn bread with a little ketchup is dirt cheap but it makes you feel good inside especially if you had it twice a week as a kid.
Wife and I are OLD school… never thought of this. We are both disabled, so this will definitely help us!!!! I wish you knew how much. 👍🏻👍🏻💥
I think it would be better if after you cook the pasta set it aside and heat the soup, evap milk, chicken and cheese packet and then add the pasta back to the pot. This way everything mixes better and you might also save the texture of the pasta because you don’t have to mix so much in order to make sure everything is incorporated.
I ABSOLUTELY AGREE! I was just ready to cry as those poor spirals were being mutilated! lol
It would DEFINITELY be much easier on everyone, pasta and preparer of the pasta if the dish was put together as you described. The pasta could just be tossed into the baking dish while heating and putting the rest of the ingredients together, so no added dirty dishes (unless you don’t plan to bake, in that case you could just put them in one or two of the bowls that your family will be eating out of, I do this frequently, it saves dishes and the same food is going right back in there anyway, no harm, no foul, right? Then just add everything back together when the “extras” are all incorporated. Pastas life is saved and the casserole would probably have a better presentation, although that really isn’t going to be terribly important if this is something you HAVE TO DEPEND ON.
My only question (and I JUST STARTED watching these type of videos), is about the evaporated milk, if you’re only using a small amount what are you going to do with the remainder? If in fact there isn’t power to keep a cooling device going what would you do with it? The rest of the can would be wasted, if not used that day, wouldn’t it? I’ve never used powdered milk, but wouldn’t that be a better option in situations where you need just a tad and it’s being mixed with a number of other ingredients so the taste (hopefully) wouldn’t be overwhelming?
Not putting down the process, recipe or ingredients, and of course not our beautiful hostess, just questions from a newbie 😉
I dislike canned meat. Anyone have any suggestions on how to make canned meat not taste like a tin can?
Good idea!!
For the chicken and tuna casseroles, I would mix the soup and cheese packets in the pan while the noodles are draining. That way you're not breaking up the meats or even the noodle as much with all that stirring.
If you live in apt and they don't have washer and dryers in your apt but another building, reuse your dawn or other dish soap bottles and fill them with laundry soap. Saves on the bulk when going to do laundry, even if you go to a laundry mat. It helps a lot.
We had unexpected medical expenses hit us. I shopped my shelves like you share and it saved us time and money this past month. Thank you for the wisdom and videos!
🙏
The turkey dinner looks amazing but I would have to add one more ingredient to it. Turkey dinner isn't the same without cranberry sauce.
Craisins are really good!
Tuna casserole was always something my momma made. We would just make mac and cheese like the box says, add two cans of tuna and one cream of mushroom soup. Add to casserole dish, add shredded cheese on top. Bake 350 covered for 20 mins and I'll uncovered for 10. Soo good and still really cheap.
We had a similar recipe but you added can peas
@@Kittykat8386 I've been watching and reading this whole time thinking, "but why is no one adding peas??" 🤣🤣
I add peas to mine plus pimento. Gives it pop of color.
I still love tuna noodle casserole! I add mushrooms and sweet peas.
I am in Australia and have followed
your channel for about 1.5yrs and up until now have not been that worried about food storage up until now. Now with with all the China/Russia stuff it is getting a bit to close to my border and I getting worried. I know everything happens first in your part of the world first but I think it is best to be prepared.
Thank you for everything for each vlog 🙏🇦🇺
For a hint, if you use the smaller spice bottles, save them and once used, remove the label to reuse for combinations to include in packets like these. You can write what’s included in the mix and tape it to the bottle, and either keep reusing the same bottle it you make the same recipe over and over, or just rinse and reuse for a different recipe just taping the different spice mixes on the bottle each time.
Genius! I always buy my spices in bulk 😅 but this is a great idea for when say one of my kids or husband want to make meals but don't know what seasonings!
That is a genius idea Rebekah! I too buy my spices in bulk, but do have some smaller containers I could use. Thanks!
Tictac containers. (as an example) We wash and reuse small plastic containers. Ultralight campers go as far as to seal spices inside plastic straws. Also good idea on the premixed spices; rather than packing them individually. I came across a box of very tiny ziploc bags that I suspect are more usually used for more exotic/illicit substances....but I bought it, and love them for camping. You do get funny looks sprinkling salt on your food from a tiny baggie, though. They're like an inch square. And come in colors so you can tell your spices apart!
@@valkyrie1066 Great idea with the little baggies! I’d probably just order them online.👍🏻
If you only want a small amount of milk and it needs to be shelf stable use powdered milk. Powdered milk is definite food that is safe for long term storage and pantry staple.
If you're in the US and are near a Dollar Tree they have shelf stable cardboard containers of milk.
For that macaroni dish, I would reserve some of the macaroni water to add for liquid since the starchy water will make it creamy… then no need for milk if it’s not available
That's that good old school right there
Not good for diabetics 😮
Throw some peas in it
That's what I was thinking
If you've never had to eat food like this you're blessed. I was raised by a single mom and times were tough sometimes. These are pretty tasty for what they are!
This is brilliant!! I love this idea - right now I just have bins of random canned vegetables, chili, tuna, fruit, soup, etc. So much smarter to form them into meal kits to ensure we actually have MEAL food, not a bunch of random supplies. Thank you!!
We are finishing up our first season of having our camper on a seasonal site. These would be great to keep on hand for easy meals while camping/glamping.
You're right! Total glamping meals that would be really filling
I don’t think people are realizing how much we’re about to need these things.
Why?
@@RuthEveryoneMakesMusic An unprecedented food shortage has been predicted.
@@khalieshields8261 they been saying that every year for the past how many years...
100% it’s crazy how little $100 will get you these days at the store especially if you’re a family that’s feeding growing kids. Anyone who’s not believing must not handle the grocery bill/shopping or they don’t care to pay attention 🤷♀️ but believe it or not many people are struggling to survive & could find this video helpful.
Khalie, you are absolutely right. Though before the Great Reset can truly devastate the world Jesus Christ will rapture His church! 🙌 It’s time to watch and keep our lamps filled with oil! ❤️
Matthew 25
Instead of Mac and cheese boxes, my mom used to make that with cheese soup and regular pasta, a little milk, and crushed corn flakes or potato chips toppings. We also added celery or peas in them.
these are wonderful ideas. I need to set up a few for myself. GREAT for camping, road trips, quick meals when the ''don't know what i want" strikes.
I really love the idea of using bags to put pantry meal kits together. I was just out of town for 2 weeks and at least once a day either my kids or husband asked what they could make out of the pantry (they tried really hard but this would simplify things much more).
Teach your husband basic meals and then meal prep them before leaving town.
True lemon and true lime packets would be a wonderful add to your food storage! I use it in about any recipe that calls for fresh juice.. it adds the perfect flavor to things like the Mexican soup, and is shelf stable!
What a great tip, thanks!
I just discovered those about two weeks ago! Picked them up randomly at my local Tractor Supply Store. 🤣
Where do you find them?
@@Simplelifepreps I ordered mine from Amazon, they have them in a bunch of different quantities... I got a 500ct box of each: True Lime, True Lemon and True Orange... we love them!
Love my True Lime! I didn’t know they had Lemon, too.
On the turkey dinner, I would add a can of drained whole (you can cut) or diced potatoes to make the meal stretch further. My family loves gravy, so for an extra .33, I would add an additional packet of turkey gravy. Thanks for sharing the cookbooks. Debi in Vicksburg, MS. 🥰🥰
For the chicken and tuna casserole, I always add a can of peas or like you suggested some mixed veg.
Hey Kimmy, here's a thought.
Remember those little plastic containers that you bought for sour cream, salsa and green onions when you were making your pantry meals for the freezer?
Well, depending on the meal that you're making, just put all of the required seasonings (sage, dried minced onion, garlic, etc) into one of those little cups. And depending on how much seasoning/spices etc that you use, you might need two containers. The point is, everything will be at your finger tips. If you need to, put a label on top indicating which seasonings are in the cup for that meal.
The turkey casserole makes me think of Thanksgiving. Adding a can of cranberry sauce would be nice too.
OH yes!
Might have to try to find some canned turkey idk if the store will have many in November
Yes! It would be a neat idea to get the church to make Thanksgiving meal kits to give away.
Craisins!
I LOVE this idea for using up what's left in the pantry that you just haven't given a job yet. So good before running back to stock up. 😊
These are good recipes for college kids. Reasonable to buy for them too.
When all 5 of the children were at home and younger we used to get the boxed macaroni and cheese from Aldi. We would fix like package said, add cream of mushroom soup and tuna. We ate that a lot for lunch. Really got us through.
To the box macaroni, I always add atleast 2 TBsp butter and 1/4 cream or whole milk/half&half, pepper and a good handful or two of shredded cheese, & sometimes a good few shakes of Parmesan (mama francesca)
The point of these meal kits is possibly for emergency use, when milk and butter may not be available. They are also shelf stable, that is why they call for canned milk and powdered or freeze dried cheese. (Not fresh cream, milk, or butter, etc.) Also, this could be for people whose budget could not afford dairy this week, etc.
French Fried Onions would be good on the casseroles as well 😊😊
Yes! Yum!
@@shesinherapron 🥰🥰
Thank you for sharing one recipe that didn’t include cream soups or other dairy. It’s definitely more of a struggle to eat shelf stable foods with food sensitivities.
Here's one of my favorite cheap recipes that might fit you.
a pound of beans (if dried soak overnight and discard the water) (half pinto half kidney is best)
a can of diced tomatoes
one package of old el paso taco seasoning
enough water to cover and just simmer until the beans are tender (beans soften way better if you wait to add the tomatoes until after they are tender)
You can mix it up all sorts of ways. Usually I do about a half pound of cooked beef in it for more oomph. If you want a thicker texture you can smash some of the beans to release their starches.
If you want to bulk you can easily using a place like webstaurantstore and just get like 30 pounds of beans and a big container of their generic taco seasoning.
Edit: You can easily scale this recipe up to a double or triple batch with a big enough pot. It keeps for a really long time in the fridge and is just as good out of the microwave as fresh out of the pot. If you like a little heat I also recommend adding some cayenne.
Such a great idea! For "prepping" for the future, make sure you look at how long each item's shelf life is. Canned meat is 2-5 years, but boxed stuffing a year at most.
For the Chicken recipe with Mac and Cheese, keep some of the hot pasta water, DON'T rinse noodles (just cools them off too fast) with the noodles in a strainer put the chicken and soup in the bottom of the pan and heat it up before putting the noodle back in. Have made for years with just Cream of Chicken, egg noodles and shredded cheese. For the Mexican soup instead of individual ingrediencies try one pack of taco seasoning and one pack of ranch seasoning ($.33 each)
Thank you!
The Pioneer Wonan's 7 Can Soup is a great recipe for this kind of thing. It's a big hit for our family and do easy peasy!
I have made my own recipe of this. Rather than using the Mac and Cheese, I use regular egg noodles and one can of cheese soup (substituting for the cheese). I heat the tuna/chicken/turkey and the can of cream of --- soup and cheese soup along with some diced carrots and frozen peas THEN add the cooked pasta to it. It is creamier without the oven.
Love your channel. I love this concept of pre-sorted meal options, so I hit the link for In The Bag. I can't wait for my copy to arrive so I can put my pantry to the test. Always looking for inspiration/motivation to up my pantry game. With 1000+ jars filled and already on the shelves, 40 5-gallon buckets loaded to the rim with every staple avaliable , 350'ish store bought cans on standby, and the dehydrator running 24/7, I need a fun menu project to help control the volume that I have faithfully added and rotated through over the last 25 years. Little steps can scale mountains.
Holy cow, thats amazing!!
I saw this for the first time, fell for your ideas within seconds...now I am a new subscriber.....THANK YOU ....love, love, love this. I work 12 hour shifts and this would help me tremendously...God Bless and thx for sharing.
I’m so glad you found the channel!
I make tuna casserole this way. We make the mac and cheese according to box instructions then add the rest. I add sautéed mushrooms, celery and frozen peas and top with French fried onions. You could used canned peas and mushrooms and freeze dried celery for food storage kits.
That is exactly the way my college roommate made it. It was good.
Mmmmmm. These look yummy for a pantry meal. That chicken, mushroom soup and green bean on reminds me of the green bean casserole. Some of those crunchy dried onions on top would be yummy.
I wonder if food pantries would accept kits like this if they were donated? Maybe I’ll do some with my kids to donate for the holiday season.
That’s a great idea!
they would, you should also include the instructions too
Thats a great idea but the spices might pose a problem. I doubt any food pantry would accept rebagged spices so try to stick to recipes where the ingredients themselves contain stuff like that (like the mac and cheese)
Kimmy I love this video. Great ideas. I run a food pantry and these ideas are awesome to put out there. Thank you
Those packets of 'True Lemon/Lime/etc' are a shelf stable option. I always take some with me wherever I go. Just add to water & helps w/ travel bloat, etc.
These are also great for people who dont know how to cook or dont want to spend a lot of time
i think most recipes don’t allow for enough sauce. For my family I always double the amounts for the sauce!!
OH MY GOSH I love this assembling your own meal that you can put with the food stored
Thank you thank you for doing all of this! Looking forward to printing the recipes out! I bought a binder and sheet protectors to start my practical cookbook!
I have had this book for years and use for idea's. Thanks for showing stuff from it and how to's!🥰
Thanks! We lived on these type of casseroles for years when money was tight. We would double the recipe and had dinner for 2 nites.
Great ideas for prepper foods.
In the tuna and chicken casserole you could heat all the ingredients through on the stove then mix in your noodles
I love Al, of your shelf stable meal kits. Just beautiful
My mom used to make her tuna casserole with the box Mac and cheese, canned tuna, and more cheese. Sometimes boiled egg slices on top or cracker crumb/butter topping. She would bake it... she must have made the Mac n cheese with extra milk because it wasn't dry. Great pantry recipes 👍.
started doing pantry bag meals when we started going to our cabin for a week at a time...easier to not forget an essential. husbands all time favorite.... a dak ham dice it up, 2 cans scalloped potatoes, drained, one can corn, drained, one can cream of mushroom or chicken...layer the potatoes on the bottom of the dish, cover with the diced ham, the corn and pour the soup over all...i generally add cheese on top IF I remember to bring it...oven about 20 minutes until hot...we have made some of the others , but with plain elbow mac and a velveeta squeeze cheese packet..and the turkey bake is going to be made this week after watching ..
Great ideas. For the turkey casserole (or really any casserole) if you layer the breading, turkey chunks, then green beans, then pour the soup mixture over that, you’ll maintain the shape and texture of each layer instead of it all falling apart in the soup.
OK! Been waiting for this... I gifted out the bags I made last month. I let them know we were waiting on this video. I'll get them the cards printed out. TY🙌
Thank you for making these! It’s going to come in handy in the next few months!
The tuna casserole we add frozen peas to it also... you could use can and just drain them... we never bake it and I just leave a little water in it and strove on to heat through while mixing.. turns out everytime. Also romen and mixed veggies and a can of chicken is cheap and easy.. may not be the best health wise but in a pinch it feeds you .
Today I made the chicken/mac and cheese recipe and it was a success! Meaning my husband liked it, haha. He was fine with it as-is in the pot, but agreed that baking with crackers on top added some texture. I'm going to make it again with some variations- tuna instead of chicken, different cream soups, different seasonings, and different veggies (canned and dehydrated). I'm excited that this one "base" dish can become a variety of meals. Yay! Thanks for sharing!
You can buy lots of lemons squeeze and pour into ice trays to freeze too
Thank you for both sharing and taste testing these. I don't eat seafood but would gladly give the others a try. Have been stocking up so these are some great, quick, simple and very budget friendly meal plans to have.
Having shelf stable foods for emergencies is a great idea. The best thing you can do, however, is learn to grow and preserve your own food. Knowing how to hunt and fish is also a valuable skill.
I also make the tuna casserole with Mac and cheese. I make the Mac and cheese like the box says, then add cream of mushroom, 1 can of tuna and then a little more milk so it's not so dry, then I top it with fried onion things. I do great value cuz it's way cheaper! I do double everything because there's so many of us. Oh and I do bake it!
I love how organized you are!!!!
Good morning She's in Her Apron. Happy Labor Day. I truly admire a strong self sufficient woman such as yourself. My favorite method of maintaining a sustainable pantry and stockpiling items long term for the whole family and the family dog and the family cat is what I consider to be the most practical, utilizing every type of food storage methods and technology available, both old and new. . Except for the fruits and vegetables that get canned, I keep perishable items like meat, poultry, fish, fruit, vegetables and dairy products in the refrigerator on a short term basis until I'm ready to use them for a big family meal - and for even longer term sustainable storage, a large separate freezer, which can store a half side of beef with plenty of room left over for homemade ice cream etc. . I'm considering upgrading to a walk-in freezer at some point.in the near future, if my plans to open a bed and breakfast come to fruition. Sometimes, however a nice round of cheese can do well for quite awhile on a pantry shelf at room temperature - and doesn't mind even if it has to stand there alone. Store bought canned goods get shelves.in the large pantry closet - several for canned meat like corned beef hash, spam and sandwich spread and another for canned vegetables Bread, rolls, grains, homemade pasta, cereals and the like are stored in special humidity controlled bins I order from Amazon Prime - which usually get delivered to my doorstep about an hour after I order them. . Stuff from the family garden and orchard, like onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, cauliflower, cucumber, pumpkins, carrots, corn celery,, potatoes and yams, cherries, blueberries and strawberries get canned in Mason Jars and stored in the cool, root cellar of this wonderful rambling former farmhouse (circa 1867) I share with my extended blended family and several rambunctious dogs raised on table scraps from the some of the finest food from a plethora of sources both commercial and home based. . There's even a special separate "summer kitchen" which I converted to store butter and ice cream churns, pots, pans, utensils, extra storage containers, foil, bags, cutlery, and other meal related accoutrement. Out back in the woods, just beyond the big pile of wood I maintain all year, (for use in an antique woodstove I keep on hand, in case the power goes out) there's even an old rusting vintage still where my great grandfather made some of the finest corn whiskey for miles. Next to it is the rusting hulk of the Ford Model A he used to transport that powerful hootch by the light of the moon on soft summer nights to his eager customers in a tri-county area. Further into this verdant forest of mostly sycamore, oak, pine and scrub, runs a cool stream into which I occasionally cast a rod or net to catch some Brook Trout, Bluntnose Shiners, or whatever takes the bait (just earthworms for the most part). And yes, hunting season means wild turkey, deer, and even an occasional wild boar. Next week, I'm planning on filing for a permit to 3-D print a smokehouse in order to be able to create gourmet artisan handcrafted, beef, bacon, turkey, and beef stick jerky, which interested local merchants can private label for other people to share with their families and their family dogs. Unfortunately, I had to break the bad news to my free range hens today that due to expected egg shortages regretfully numbered are their days of laying a couple of eggs and then basically taking the rest of the day off with ranging privileges' within the parameters of a few very nice rural acres - parts of which are rich with fat grubworms. There's even a short dirt road between the main barn and the farmhouse which they're free to cross to get to the other side as often as they'd like. My rooster Ben overheard me and he ain't too happy either, knowing full well that due to oncoming egg shortages, he'll be "workin' overtime to make sure there's plenty of eggs for the family and I.
With the chicken and tuna casseroles cook the smaller pasta for 3 minutes and use some of the pasta water thin the other ingredients. The pasta will finish cooking in the oven
Ooh, I wanna make some of these for my grandma! What a great idea.
Those are great meal ideas, I'd love to see more!
Wow my daughter can use this video like yesterday ,we have five children that are super awesome kids and she needs help, this is going to blow her mind ,I’ll call it a helping hand for her , as for children they eat well omg , thank you so much for sharing your videos with us 🫵🏽🫶🏼✌️👍🤤👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
No worries on the extra evaporated milk, your stuffing was more than 8 oz. So glad I'm not the only one that makes those mistakes!
Each of these meals looked so good! I agree with you on the elbow mac for the chicken and tuna dishes and I'd bake them as well. I would perhaps choose to add some of my freeze dried veggies (I even have cheese!!). Thank you for putting all these together so we can see them!😋
I've made the tuna casserole on the stove. I did add a dab of milk and butter to give it some moisture. It's pretty tasty. It was hot and didn't want to use the oven.
So glad I found your videos. I like to watch Mindy Mom also, that's probably why your videos popped up. Thank you for some great ideas!
Just did the chicken and Mac one and I can vouch for it! It is gooood! I served it with a side of string beans and dinner roll. Awesome !
This is a good way to eliminate food waste. I am doing better than ever but it used to be an issue for me.
The Long grain Wild rice blend also says you can use oil and then it would make it shelf stable. I don’t buy the box stuff anymore. I keep long grain rice and wild rice on hand along with the seasoning blend that I have already prepared.
We add peas with the tuna casserole. You can also cube SPAM and pan fry it to use as the meat.
I always added sweet peas to our tuna casserole.
I was thinking that. I love the tiny canned peas.
FYi, for shelf stable lemon (or lime) juice, you could include a packet of True Lemon.
Good point! Thank you!
I like that you show everything up close also
I love all these meal ideas. When I was growing up, my mom use make tuna noodle casserole. So when my children were growing up and the budget was tight I would make tuna noodle casserole. I used the boxed Mac and cheese, because back then you could get it on sale 10 boxes for a $1. You could get tuna really cheap, I don’t as well. I don’t remember that price off hand. And you could get can vegetables 4 or 5 cans for a $1. So like I said it was a long time ago. But to the Mac and cheese and tuna I would add canned green peas. I had WIC back then so we had milk.
But something I have been thinking about now as I watch your videos and others, is instead of pour the pasta water and the juice from the canned goods, you can save them and use in place of milk. It would still make your dish creamy and you would not be wasting the liquid. If it is an emergency, you will want to use your water as sparingly as possible.
Thank you again for the great budget and emergency ideas. I can’t wait to see more. When people live on a fixed income they need some new and fresh ideas.
God bless you and thank you for all your hard work.
This is such a huge help! The biggest hurdle is knowing how to pull a meal together out of the food storage we have on hand. I’ll have to look and see if you have a printable recipe book available to keep all your great ideas together in one place, in case the grid goes down and we can’t access the computer. Thanks! 😊
On your pasta dinner remember save some pasta water it helps and on Mac and cheese I have made with pasta water when there no milk. Kids thought it was fine. If you make these for emergency bags add a couple bottles of water, you might not have running water. Great video Thanks
You have a web site now! I have been waiting for years for you to be in a season where you could make one. so excite!
Thanks Jeanette.
Omg Kimmy the first two casseroles looked so goo AND easy! Actually they all looked good. I love an easy one pot meal you throw together and boom you’re done…dinner is ready! Great video as uuual? Take care God bless. ❤️
I love these shelf stable meals videos!
I love easy, quick, throw together meals like this. My guys would love the Ritz Cracker topping. Great addition!
You could reserve some of the liquid from your cans of meat to thin the pasta dishes, if you didn't want to add a can of evaporated milk to the packs.
I’ve been making this tuna casserole recipe for 50 years. It came on a box of Mac n cheese. It includes 3/4 cup of milk per 2 boxes, a drained can of peas, and buttered cracker crumbs on top. Then baked for 20 min.
Thank you for all your hard work to bring such great information to all of us. You are so helpful and really amp up my meal planning on a budget.
Thank you
A couple of kids and I eat Mac and cheese with tuna fish often. Never made it into a casserole though.
Make some macaroni as directed on the box then you mix in the soup the meat and add an extra cheese if you want or vegetables or mushrooms and heat it up a little bit then turn it off and you can eat it then no baking required
Ok what I do for the macaroni and cheese is make the box as the instructions says . I do not put anything else in but the tuna. Then put in a dish and bake like you did. It is delicious and you can put the cracker crumbs on top.
I will make it. The Turkey and stuffing meal. Looks so darn good.
Oh it's so yummy! It was a hit.
For the Mac and cheese dishes, I’ve made them before but heated the soup, cheese, and meat together and then just added the noodles when they are done.
I like to add peas to the tuna casseroles.
Interesting idea, never thought of making meal kits
Hmm I don't know I like the concept but the chicken in a can look at unappetizing how ever I love this idea thank you
You did a great job, thank you for the tip. I use evaporation milk in many recipes, oatmeal, coffee, corn muffins an then some, the milk gives a whole different flavor..thanks.😊
The second and third recipe you can use green beans or peas , and if you mix cream of chicken instead of cream of mushroom with the tuna less tuna taste.
My mom has always made those mac and cheese meals, but prep the mac and cheese just as directed on the box with the milk and butter and then add the soup and meats. :)