StatCounter

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Fresh food



Stored food is great. In an emergency situation it can make the difference between being hungry and having the calories that you need.

That's all well and good, but I sure do miss the fresh stuff after a while. My lovely wife and I recently went on a road trip just to go to a store with a decent produce section. The problem with being at the end of the supply line is that “fresh” food, isn't. Too often the produce doesn't last more than a day or two.

There's something about really fresh food that our bodies crave.

When I used to do a lot of backpacking it wasn't a problem. Sure, my backpack didn't have anything fresh at all. Everything was chosen because it could go the distance without refrigeration. However, while hiking I always munched on enough wild foods to keep me happy.

Normally I'm not the sort of guy to get excited by a salad. However, there was a time when we were sailing that we went an extra long time between resupply runs. We got stuck waiting out bad weather at very remote place. By the time we got back to civilization I was dreaming about eating salad. I was able to pick up a huge bag of salad greens at a store. That night I ate half of it and had the other half for breakfast. My diet of emergency stored foods must have been missing something my body craved.

Most of us are pretty spoiled because we are used to getting fresh food from all over the world. I do remember the tales of the old days when people grew and stored most of what they ate. Forget salads and fresh citrus. They lived on a lot of stored potatoes, squash, turnips, carrots plus picked and canned veggies. It got them through the winter. Getting an orange in your Christmas stocking was a big deal.

While I know how to survive using the old skills, I'd sure miss the fresh stuff.

-Sixbears

10 comments:

  1. I think we all miss fresh stuff. We don't have the budget to buy good food anymore. Isn't it strange how the MOST processed "foods" cost less than the unprocessed stuff. Sort of tells you something not only about supply and demand but corporate greed, as well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I miss my small garden this time of the year. It wasn't a lot of food, but it is nice to have some fresh veg to round out the meals.

      Delete
  2. I'm not a huge salad fan either, but if I can have bread sticks and/or crackers, I can make a meal out of 'rabbit food', no doubt about it. If I'm at a restaurant with salad bar, the cheese 'n bacon bins get raided too.

    What I can't figure out is why bananas which require refrigerated transport and a short life span are so much less expensive than fruits and vegetables having longer life spans and closer locations. It doesn't compute.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Our food distrubution system is complex and beyond my undersanding, but yeah, bananas? How does that work?

      Delete
    2. priced too high and one is stuck with rotten bananas

      Wildflower

      Delete
  3. I know what yo mean about the fresh veggies. I get needful of some fresh salad once in a while.

    Best to listen to Mother Nature, I reckon!

    ReplyDelete
  4. sprouting grains or beans till they are green for consumption

    using an embedded pipe tape warmer and timer grow lights did have spinach greens for two months till somebody disconnected the droplines for another purpose

    that person became meatloaf....

    Wildflower

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oranges and walnuts were always a treat at Christmas time. Roasted chestnuts were a favorite back then, too.

    ReplyDelete