Food storage is not just tupperware and freezer bags, it is an emergency preparedness concept of putting aside some extra food in case of a natural disaster or time of economic difficulty. Many people understand the concept of storing these life-sustaining foods, but few people know how to actually use them. If you had a time where you needed to depend on your food storage to live, it would be so important to know how to use it and to have your family be used to that type of cooking.
This is the transcript of an interview I conducted with Crystal Godfrey from the blog Everyday Food Storage regarding how to start using your long term food storage in everyday ways. She is an expert at using food storage in her everyday cooking and posts numerous recipe ideas on her blog every week so she was an excellent resource to talk to about it.
Jodi: Hi Crystal, we just have a few questions for you today. To start out, what made you start using your food storage for your everyday cooking?
Crystal: Well, I got my food storage and I didn't want it to just be sitting there on my shelves all the time. So what I did was I thought, well my mom actually, when I grew up, used food storage ... so I knew the basics of it. I knew it could be gross so I was a little timid in trying it. So I just started trying a little bit at a time and I just started using it. And as I started using one thing and being successful at it then it gave me encouragement to try other things. And it just kind of snowballed until I was using it every day. And then I noticed that not only was I prepared in knowing that if there WAS an emergency that my family would eat what I made, but that I was also saving money, saving time, and making fewer messes while I was at it.
Jodi: So kind of the key is starting small? And working your way up?
Crystal: Yes, definitely. Which you guys know all about!
Jodi: Ya ... right. We're at the small part right now. Now where do you buy most of your food storage ingredients?
Crystal: Now when you say food storage ingredients your talking not the three month supply?
Jodi: Yes, like the long term food ... the wheat, stuff like that.
Crystal: I buy most of mine at the LDS cannery. Which if you don't have one just research, I'm sure there's one near you, or you can buy it online. But that's where I buy most of my items.
Jodi: Do you have a website that you would look at maybe?
Crystal: ldsprovidentliving.org
Jodi: And you can order it online from there?
Crystal: Yes, you can order some things online there.
Jodi: Excellent. What is your favorite food storage item to cook with?
Crystal: That one's hard because I have a couple. Can I give you a couple?
Jodi: Ok.
Crystal: Ok. My favorite time saving one is onions, dehydrated onions. Because I hate cutting onions.
Jodi: Are they different from the onion flakes from the store? Or is that what they are?
Crystal: No that's pretty much what they are but they're a lot cheaper because you are going to buy them in bulk. And so no longer do you have to cut them but you just stick them in your spaghetti sauce and then they hydrate in your spaghetti sauce. I mean it saves so much time and I always have onions on hand. And I've even done things where I've hydrated them and grilled them so they've been like In N Out Burger's have animal-style (California is where it's at)
Jodi: They have one in Utah now
Crystal: Yes they do! But I've even done stuff like that where I've used them as an actual onion substitute not in something and they've been delicious as well. And probably my other favorite would be powdered milk because I think that is the one that people are most surprised still taste good even though it has powdered milk in it.
Jodi: So you like to kind of trick people. I've noticed that on your site.
Crystal: I do. I like the wow factor!
Jodi: So what is your very favorite recipe of all time that you've created?
Crystal: Oh that I've created? Probably my Twinkie surprise cupcakes.
Jodi: Oh I love that one. That one was good. That was the one on the Utah's Own ... What's the contest called?
Crystal: Ya it was a runner up for the Utah's Own Downhome Cook-Off.
Jodi: We watched it on tv, she was awesome. At the Utah State Fair. So how do you come up with your recipes? Because this is hard for me, I always like to have a recipe. I can't make them up myself so I'm always impressed with you.
Crystal: Well I actually don't MAKE UP most of my recipes. The way I look at food storage is food storage is basically just basic cooking ingredients that you would use in any recipe. So all I do is I just take my favorite recipes and then start substituting out you know say milk instead of milk put in powdered milk, eggs I put in powdered eggs, and onions I put in my dehydrated onions. So I'm not really always coming up with new recipes but I feel like in my experience people are less likely to try it in their own recipes. They want to see someone who has already tried it and know that it's good.
Jodi: That's how we are.
Crystal: So I just put on the recipes that I try for my own family that I know my family already likes and switch it out for food storage ingredients and then I put it on my blog for people to see look this one DOES work. So hopefully it will builds confidence that then they can try it with their own recipes.
Jodi: That's a really good idea. That's good to know. So I'm going to have to do that with mine now.
Crystal: Ya so don't stress!
Jodi: But I like to use yours better! So how often do you cook with your food storage?
Crystal: Every day!
Jodi: Every single day? Every meal of the day? Or just you try to do something? is it conscious or is it just natural?
Crystal: Now it's natural. But i would say I mean it depends. But I would say every meal. I mean I make my own bread so at lunch we have it, breakfast if we have cereal or something then it has the powdered milk. And then dinner would have usually you know like milk or onions or something. I mean I use it all the time.
Jodi: All the time. I don't yet! So with bread, can you make good sandwiches with your bread?
Crystal: Oh yes! Oh gosh yes!
Jodi: Ok I'll have to get your bread recipe.
Crystal: You need a bread maker.
Jodi: I know! Julie has one but I don't have one yet.
Crystal: You need to look at my tips for making good bread machine bread.
Jodi: Alright we'll check it out. What aspects of food storage would you like to learn more about? Or do you just know everything?
Crystal: No I DON'T know everything! No. I think you can always be learning, so I think the next thing I'm going to try tackling is powdered milk yogurt. Because I received a recipe from one of my blog readers where you can make fat free frosting.
Jodi: Like for cakes?
Crystal: Mm hmm. I think it's supposed to taste kind of like a buttercream or something but then it's fat free.
Jodi: So it's healthy?
Crystal: Well healthier ... I won't necessarily say healthy, but healthier. If you are going to make a cookie anyway you might as well add in extra nutrition with wheat or something like that.
Jodi: This is true. And you kind of said in the beginning that it's really good to start small. But is there any other advice that you'd want to share with beginners? Because a lot of our blog readers tend to be people just getting started and kind of heading into the long term food storage is a hard step. So any other words of wisdom?
Crystal: That's really what I focus on is the beginners. So what I would say is just pick one thing that you're going to start with. And one of the things I think is easiest to start with is powdered milk. Because you don't need to have a grinder and you don't need to have all these special things to use it. You can just start cooking with it right away. And you can start putting it in desserts like sweetened condensed milk or like evaporated milk. And that way you know it's going to taste good because it has the sugar. Your family is going to want to try it because it's a dessert.
Jodi: That's always key in MY family.
Crystal: And then when they see that it's good then they'll say "Oh ok well that's good". So then I can try this and then I can try that. And the more things you try that build your confidence the more you'll be likely to try new things and to keep using what you already know. So my motto is to always start with a dessert. Because your family will try it. And as long as you don't tell them that there's food storage in it until after and get the "wow" factor, then they'll try it and then you'll see that they like it and that it's possible. Once you start seeing that it actually IS possible to cook with your food storage and that your family will eat it then that will give you the confidence you need to cook with it on a daily basis.
Jodi: My kids liked the Cookie Clay Dough.
Crystal: Oh yes.
Jodi: They thought that was fun and I wrote my name and they were eating all the letters thinking it's fun. So if you want to have a look at Crystal's recipes at Everyday Food Storage, check her out at everydayfoodstorage.net Thanks for talking with us today Crystal.
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