Skills: 9 Food Skills Every Homesteader/Prepper Should Have

There are hundreds of articles that tell you all about what you should be able to do as a prepper - hunt, forage, defend, etc.  Some of the lists are ridiculous - some are redundant.  Very few are actually practical.  I'm dividing my skill lists into categories, so be sure to check them all out. (You'll notice a lot of links to products on this page.  All of these are things I personally own and use.)

1. Cook -  Yep, I know, you are asking yourself why this is first, or have actually said "Duh" out loud.  I have cooking first because it's the thing that is easiest to start with and the most important to your survival, and is one of the least utilized skills in America today.  And when I say cooking, I mean COOKING, not reheating, not putting together a box meal and certainly not anything done with a microwave.  I'm sure there are dozens of preppers out there right now scoffing at this, thinking that any idiot can heat enough water to rehydrate their supply of freeze dried MRE's, so who needs to know how to cook?  Be honest, are you planning to live your life on MRE's in the event something happens?  And what if those precious MRE's get stolen or contaminated?  Then what?  Realistically, everybody should know at least the basics of making rice, cooking beans, preparing meats and creating breads.  Do yourself a favor now and buy some books on cooking with food storage, and start learning how NOW.  Not only does learning how to cook keep your ready for whatever comes, but gets you eating better because you can control the quality of the ingredients.  And, it's good for your pocketbook!
2. Bake your own bread - You'd think this would fall under cooking, but in all honesty, mastering the art of bread baking is just that - an art all unto itself.  The easiest breads to start with are going to be flat breads, tortillas, and soda breads.  Get the hang of that and move onto the yeast breads.  Finally, but perhaps the most important, is to learn the art of making and using your own sourdough starter.
3. Grow your own vegetables -  Once you've mastered cooking with actual foods, learn to grow them. Gardening is not for the faint of heart and takes practice and effort, so the sooner you get started the sooner you can reach results.  
4. Grow your own herbs - Herbs aren't just for flavorful cooking!  Herbs are also very important in natural healing, which I hope to have a post about soon.
5. Grow your livestock-
• Eggs - Chickens are easy enough to raise, but are far from the only poultry that can be raised to get quality eggs.  You might also consider ducks, quail, pheasants or turkeys.
• Meat animals are fairly easy to grow as well, and no matter the size of your property there is always something that can be raised for food.  (The other day I read a great article about apartment dwellers raising rabbits for food in their apartment.  If I can remember where I saw it I'll post it here.)  The best meat animals for the beginner are rabbits and poultry.  If you have room you can also raise goats, sheep, cattle or hogs.
• Dairying - Not just cows!  You can raise goats and some sheep to provide milk, which you can not only drink but create your own cheeses, yogurts and more.
6. Preserve the food you grow -  Learn the different methods of food preservation and get started, even if you haven't mastered the gardening or food growing yet!  
• Water bath - I learned how to water bath can my own jams and jellies before I ever grew a garden by visiting fruit stands and farmer markets. 
• Dehydrate foods - Invest in a decent food dehydrator or build a solar one and get started!  
• Pressure can - The only safe way to can most vegetables and all meats.
• Smoke cure meats for storage.
7. Build a root cellar - This probably could have been included under number three, but every homestead or bug out location should have a good root cellar (I don't, but that's only because we are planning one at the new house).  Invest in a good book that outlines how to build and utilize your root cellar.
8. Hunt, Fish and Dress Game - I'm sure there are lots of people who think this should be higher on the list, but I think hunting should be used to supplement a food supply and not as a food supply.  That being said, in the event that someone steals your livestock, a predator eats them before you do or you just don't produce as much as you need, hunting and fishing is a must have skill to round out your food supply.
9. Forage - In all honesty, this is a skill that I am planning to work on myself.  I've recently acquired a few good books on foraging and am looking for a local class on this.

Wonderful Canning Recipes

Yesterday I took a trip to my favorite produce stand and scored a deal on some cucumbers, tomatoes, and peaches.  I even lucked up and got an entire 20# box of pears for just $5!

Naturally, I dragged my treasures home and pulled out the canning books.  I have two that are my go-to books, Ball's Complete Book of Home Preserving, and Better Homes and Gardens' You Can Can (yes, it's a silly title).

I came up with three recipes, one of which was from my mom, who has a terrific tomato relish recipe that she got from one of her sisters.  Since I love to share with those of you who read my blog, I'm posting all of them for you!

First up is Sweet Pickle Relish.  This makes the absolute best relish I've ever tasted, and is good on burgers, sausages, hot dogs, sandwiches, etc.

Ingredients

• 6 medium unwaxed cucumbers (you can use pickling cukes as well, you'll just need more of them)
• 3 green and/or red sweet bell peppers
• 6 medium onions
• 1/4 cup pickling salt
• 3 cups sugar
• 2 cups cider vinegar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons celery seeds
• 2 1/2 teaspoons mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric

Directions

1. Wash cucumbers and peppers.  Chop, discarding pepper seeds, membranes and stems.  Seed cucumber if desired (I don't).  Peel and chop onions.  Measure 6 cups of chopped cucumbers, 3 cups of chopped peppers and 3 cups of chopped onions.  Combine vegetables in a large bowl and sprinkle with pickling salt; add enough cold water to cover.  Let stand, covered, at room temperature for 2 hours.
2. Pour vegetable mixture into colander set in sink and rinse with fresh water.  Drain well.  (Depending on how fine you cut your veggies, this may take awhile.  I let mine drain for about 30 minutes).
3. In a large pot, combine sugar, vinegar, celery seeds, mustard seeds and turmeric.  Heat to boiling.  Add drained vegetable mixture and return to boiling.  Cook, uncovered, for about 10 minutes or until most of the excess liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally.
4. Ladle relish into a hot, sterilized jar, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes for half-pints or 15 for pints.

Zesty Peach Barbecue Sauce is the next recipe.  It's fantastic on chicken or pork, and tasty on burgers as well.

Ingredients

• 6 cups finely chopped pitted peaches
• 1 cup finely chopped seeded red bell pepper
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 3 tbsp finely chopped garlic
• 1 1/4 cups liquid honey
• 3/4 cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tsp hot pepper flakes
• 2 tsp dry mustard
• 2 tsp salt

Directions

1. In a large pot, combine peaches, red pepper, onion, garlic, honey, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper flakes, mustard and salt.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring frequently, until mixture is thickened to the consistency of a thin commercial barbecue sauce, about 25 minutes.
2. Ladle hot sauce into jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Process in a boiling water canner, 15 minutes for half-pints and 20 minutes for pints.

Tomato Relish is the last recipe I'll share for today.  This is my aunt's recipe and delicious on pot roast and pork chops.  This has to set overnight, so be prepared to start this a day before you plan to can it up.

Ingredients

• 4 lbs tomatoes, peeled and thinly sliced (though I've made it without peeling and it turned out fine)
• 1 1/2 lbs of onions, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup pickling or regular salt
• 6 red chili peppers, seeded and chopped (or 3 - 6 red bell peppers, seeded and chopped if you don't like spicy)
• 2 cups vinegar, divided
• 2 1/4 cups brown sugar
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• 1 tbsp flour

Directions

1. Layer tomatoes and onions in a large bowl, sprinkle with salt.  Cover and stand overnight.
2. Drain vegetables, and rinse lightly to remove excess salt.
3. Place tomatoes, onions and peppers in a large pot with 1 1/2 cups of vinegar.  Heat and boil for about 5 minutes.
4. In a separate bowl, combine 1/2 cup vinegar, brown sugar, curry and flour to form a thin paste.  Stir in to boiling vegetable mixture.
5. Turn down heat and cook for another hour.
6. Ladle hot relish into jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Process in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes for pints.

My Recommendation for the Greatest Canning Book Ever!

Late last week I went to my favortie produce stand and got a box of peaches and a box of tomatoes for $15 and $12.  These are 25# boxes, so a real deal over store prices.  Of course, they are super fresh and HUGE pieces of fruit.

Today I finally got around to canning up my peaches, and if you've never done it before be prepared for a day of work!

Before you can do anything with them, peaches have to be peeled.  You do this by immersing the peach in boiling water for about three minutes and then into ice cold water.  The peels should slip right off by then.  It's still messy and labor intensive, but so very worth it.

So you are probably wondering about the name of this post if all I'm going to talk about is peeling peaches.  Okay, okay.  No need to be pushy.

I have a few canning books, but the one I grab first for everything and anything is the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving.  This is THE book for the home preserver and covers both water bath and pressure canning.  There are over 400 recipes in the book as well. 

To use my peaches, I made Spirited Peaches, Peaches in Light Syrup and Peach Syrup, which can all be found in the book.  Last year I made an Asian Plum sauce (which is amazing in chicken stir fry), Zesty Peach BBQ Sauce, Wing Sauce, Bread and Butter Pickles, Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Filling, and Peach Pie Filling, just to name a few.  If you can or water to can, make sure you get a copy of this amazing book!

Apples on Sale? Sounds like a good time for Apple Butter!

I'll admit it, I've developed a real love of canning.

To take the raw ingredients, make something wonder, and preserve it without a lot of chemicals and sugars is a wonderful feeling.  I'm always on the lookout for a good deal on produce and when I find it the mind instantly starts looking for things to do with it!

As you may have read on last Friday's blog, I scored a good deal on celery Thursday and dehydrated two bundles of it.  I also got some big, gorgeous apples for $0.99 per pound, which is a good price for us, especially this time of year.

So Sunday morning I broke out the peeler/slicer/corer.  I'd bought this little gadget last fall for my first small batch of apple butter and to make some homemade applesauce.  If you don't have one of these and do any type of apple processing, you are just missing out.  They are really very inexpensive and make life so much easier. 

The Victorio Apple and Potato peeler. 

Here's how I make Apple Butter:
(And you're going to need a large crockpot)

1. Peel, core and slice your apples.  If you don't have a peeler/slicer, you'll get the best results if you cut thinly or into small pieces.

2. Put the apples in the crockpot.  No need for water or lemon juice as the apples will brown anyway during cooking.  Fill the crockpot to the brim and really pack them in.  You'll be surprised at how much they cook down.

3. In a bowl, mix 1-2 cups of sugar (to taste, I use the lesser amount on sweet apples and the larger amount on more sour apples), 1 tsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp of ground cloves, and 1/4 tsp of salt.  (I've also made this by omitting the cinnamon and cloves and substituting in an equal amount of apple pie spice.)

4.  Pour your mixture over the apples.  You don't have to stir it in, but if you've packed your crockpot really, really full like I do, you may have to take a spoon and work the mix in between the apples so that you can get your lid on!

5.  Cover and cook approximately 10-18 hours, stirring every couple of hours.  Eventually it will cook down enough to stir with a whisk instead of a spoon.  You want it to cook down good and long, and as it cooks it will develop a nice brown color.  It's going to make your house smell wonderful too!

6.  Let it cook to your desired consistency.  The last hour you can leave the lid off if you want your apple butter to be really really thick.

7.  Scoop your apple butter into pint or half-pint jars and water bath can for 10 minutes, following standard canning practices.

For this batch I ended up with 10 half-pints, usually a combination of Gala, Jazz and Red Delicious apples.  Any apples will work, and every combination with give you a slightly different flavor.  This batch is much sweeter than the batch I made in the fall which consisted of Granny Smith and Galas.

Happy canning!