3 Month Supply Menu: Month 2

The beginnings of my food storage closet.

Hello again! So we've already planned out our first four dinners, it's time to move on to the next. Here are my next four dinners:

Chili

Taco Meat

Jambalaya

Enchilada Pie

And here are our ingredients lists:

Chili

1 package ground beef/turkey

1 package chili seasoning

1 8oz can tomato sauce

1 can Rotel diced tomatoes and chiles

1 can pinto beans

cheese, sour cream, green onions

Taco Meat

1 package ground beef/turkey

1 packet taco seasoning

1 can pinto beans (or baked beans)

1 can Rotel

tortillas or chips

lettuce, sour cream, cheese, salsa

Jambalaya

1 package Italian sausages

1/2 green bell pepper

1/2 onion

1 stalk celery

1 cup rice

1 can stewed tomatoes, mexican style

1 chicken bouillon cube

1/2 tsp thyme

1 bay leaf

1/4 tsp red pepper

Enchilada Pie

olive oil

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 package ground turkey/beef (1 lb)

2 tsp cumin

1 can Rotel

1 package enchilada sauce mix

1 8oz can tomato sauce

1 can green chiles, diced

1 can corn

1 can black beans

12 corn tortillas

2 cups cheddar jack cheese, shredded

sour cream, salsa, guacamole

We take out all the extras and fresh goods which are bell peppers, cheese(this can freeze so feel free to add it in), sour cream, green onions, lettuce, celery, and guacamole (feel free to add any of these into your plan, I'm just working on the basics). And now we multiply everything left by 8 (remember, I'm using a 12 meal menu, as explained here). Our shopping list should look like this:

Chili

8 - packages ground beef/turkey

8 - packages chili seasoning

8 - cans tomato sauce

8 - cans Rotel diced tomatoes and chiles

8 - cans pinto beans

Taco Meat

8 - packages ground beef/turkey

8 - packets taco seasoning

8 - cans Rotel diced tomatoes and chiles

8 - cans pinto beans or baked beans

8 - dozen corn tortillas or

8 - bags chips

Jambalaya

8 - packages Italian sausages (smoked freezes longer)

1 - container dried minced onion

8 - cups rice

8 - cans stewed tomatoes, mexican style

8 - chicken bouillon cubes (I use Knorr)

1 - container thyme

1 - container bay leaf

1 - container red pepper

Enchilada Pie

1 - bottle oil

8 - packages ground beef/turkey

1- container cumin

8 - cans Rotel diced tomatoes and chiles

8 - packages enchilada sauce mix

8 - cans tomato sauce

8 - cans green chiles

8 - cans corn

8 - cans black beans

8 - dozen corn tortillas

A few tips:

• Feel free to just buy cans of gluten free chili. I would say that one can is about 2 servings, so plan accordingly. This is much easier and I plan on doing that for half my supply. However, I personally like the homemade stuff. So the other half of my chili will be made from scratch. But I also like making things difficult, so don't listen to me.
• I have searched online and found places that sell #10 cans of dehydrated bell peppers and celery inexpensively. This might be something we add into our food storage, as we would only need 1 #10 can of each.
• For almost all of my meals, water is needed. Don't forget to store it as well. I currently have 6 gallons of bottled water per person. Each 24 case of water bottles you buy is 3 gallons, so we have 2 cases each. I know I need more, but it's a start.
• I searched online and found that you can freeze tortillas. I would place each package in a freezer bag first, to avoid freezer burn. I also bought a bag of masa harina, which is the flour needed to make corn tortillas. I haven't perfected the skill yet, but once I do I'll show you how to do it. The recipe only calls for flour and water, how easy!
• All of these recipes call for meat, but feel free to leave it out. They all have protein coming from beans, except the jambalaya. I did research on this and found that you can freeze smoked sausage for longer than fresh sausage. I will probably be buying this kind instead. Carefully wrap all meats in heavy duty aluminum foil before freezing, to prevent freezer burn. Date them as well.
• Most of my food storage recipes call for similar ingredients. I am trying to incorporate the ability to make many different types of meals out of the same ingredients. Notice all the Rotel, black beans, and corn. Am I being very inventive? Probably not. But my food storage is about feeding my family food they will eat. I know they will eat these meals. I know that if I tried to get them to eat tuna casserole, my family would run far far away from me. My point is, if your family won't eat it, don't store it.
• My taco meat recipe can be used many different ways. If you have lettuce, make a salad. If you have tortillas, make burritos or tacos. If you have chips, make beefy nachos.

I hope this is helping you understand the 3 month supply food storage system. I am not using crazy flours or difficult ingredients here. Just the basics. Except chips. I can't live without those. And Diet Dr. Pepper. How long do you suppose the shelf life is on soda?