Looks good. Are you going to mix and match your buckets? Rice, beans, oatmeal, salt, sugar and so on in each bucket?
Moose

 

Eventually. I need to buy those other things in bulk. I just got into this whole process and still a little overwhelmed but after completing that earlier today, and it only taking about 2 hours I feel better.

 

You've learned one of the problems with using 1-gallon bags and buckets. I can only ever get 4 of the 1-gallon bags in a 5-gallon bucket. That means I will need 25-percent more buckets if I store things that way.

There is some value in the small bags, and if storage space comes easy, then maybe that's not a problem. For me, I don't have that much space, so I need to maximize what I have in each bucket.

Also, I'm not familiar with "Thai" rice. If it's brown rice, it will have a less robust shelf life. Brown rice will tend to go rancid over time. The O2 absorbers will arrest some of that, but the limit is still less than with white rice.

 

Thai rice is also known as jasmine rice for those unfamiliar with the term.

I end up paying about 90 cents a pound for jasmine rice most of the time. You paid 88 cents a pound. That would have been a buy price for me.

The clothes iron was a one time buy so that will reduce your cost with your future packaging efforts, which will help. I do a mixture of one gallon and five gallon containers for most of my storage. I put the one gallons in plastic totes with snap on lids. I get more food to the square foot that way when I want to package in one gallon bags.

Congratulations on your first food packaging step!

 

I agree with this. The 1 gallon bags would store better in a sturdy plastic tote. 5 gallon buckets just make it easier to store 5 gallon bags because it's a near-perfect fit and it protects the larger less sturdy bags.

You should look into filling a few of those 5 gallon buckets with different kinds of salt. Salt doesn't need a mylar bag or O2 absorber, so what I do is keep a bucket open for salt, and every time I go shopping I grab 5 pounds of salt for about 40 cents per pound.

20 lbs of macaroni will fit in a 5 gallon mylar bag and bucket, and is as cheap as rice.

30 pounds of flour will fit in a 5 gallon bucket. That will make a lot of hardtack.

LTS is a lot of fun. :

lmao, 150 pounds of rice . i think id rather starve then eat that much rice.
I mean really, think noodles, pasta, dry food such as meat containg meals.
It might be just me, but i couldnt imagine, the world ends, chaos ensues, and at the end of the day, every day, its rice for dinner again?.....

It's a good start and rice is a good base for meals. Being hungry is way worse than eating rice.

 

This is a really handy chart of how much food fits in what size container.

https://www.usaemergencysupply.com/...acking_your_own_food_storage/how_much_food_fits_in_a_container.htm#.Uwva0M5IbXQ

This shows what 02 absorber is needed:
https://www.usaemergencysupply.com/...ply.com/emergency_supplies/oxygen_absorber_recommended_amounts.htm#.UwvbFM5IbXQ

 

That looks good!
So I just googled how many servings in 150lbs of rice and I came up with roughly 1500 1/2 cup servings! what a great foundation for a food store. I'm going to have to do this myself.

Thanks much

 

Broaden your horizons!

1 cup of rice has 190- 240 calories depending on the rice.
So in strictly caloric terms at 240 calories per cup & 4G protein. A 2,000 calorie a day diet one needs to eat 8 & 1/3 cups of rice a day or roughly 3 months of rice for one person in caloric terms.

You would actually starve on a rice alone diet, to death death due to protein deficiency. The average adult needs 56 g of protein daily in rice terms that's 14 cups of rice. At that rice doesn't provide all the critical proteins/amino acids your body needs not to mention lack of vitamins and minerals.



http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/cereal-grains-and-pasta/5813/2

You must add a viable protein source. Legumes such as Red & black beans fair better 227 calories & 15G protein per cup or 4 cups and with all the essential proteins/amino acids


http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4284/2


Sprouting grains improves the protein & vitamin content of grains.

http://sproutpeople.org/seeds/

 

I was able to find the large bags of Jasmine thai rice at a local asian super market, but where would I find mass amounts of things like beans, oats, wheat, flour, sugar, spices etc?

 

I get my oatmeal at Hillside Market, 50 pounds for $21.00 -- They have a sign on the wall behind the check out listing a bunch of bag prices. Price varies a little, last spring it was up around $24. You just ask for it at the check out, they don't have a phone that I know of. This is north of 30 on 10, they are set back a little from the road with a greenhouse in front. I haven't asked them for bag prices on beans or wheat, they might be willing to do that, but I haven't gotten up the umph to ask, they are usually pretty busy when I'm in. If you do, I'd be interested in the information. They also do flour and sugar in 50 pound bags and the prices are pretty good.

Hill Side Bulk Foods - 1403 W Kings Hwy - Gap, PA 17527

I also get flour, sugar, salt and spices at The restaurant store in Lancaster they also have locations in Reading and in Philadelphia some where. I haven't been to the Philly store but both the Reading and Lancaster ones are very similar.

http://www.therestaurantstore.com/141/store-profile.html

 

Considering it was an expensive grade of rice and you had to buy all the gear including the iron then I would say you did fairly well for the cost.

I can do a whole lot better than that, but I live in rice country and have all the supplies in bulk already. When I say that I could easily do it for less than half your cost it isn't an apples to apples comparison. But with some adjustments you could definitely get your costs down.

Later when you decide to add more rice stores look for either parboiled rice that costs almost as much as your jasmine rice, but has a lot more nutrients, or go with a domestic basmati/texmati varient long grain for half the cost. Jasmine rice is nice and all but your goal here is nutrition at a value cost. Either get more nutrition for your money or get your cost down. Money saved goes into more preps.

I'm not sure if you have Asian grocery stores in your area but they typically have better pricing. So too for restaurant supply and grocer supply companies. Researching into those will yield far more than good rice prices because they typically have a lot of bulk goods, especially a much wider variety of wet packed #10 cans at restaurant supply companies.


I guess your next step is beans for the rice. Pintos are cheap but get old fast. Red and black beans cost more but taste better. Consider lentils as your first try. Good cost and taste, plus they pack better and are more nutritious. Lentils and parboiled rice form the backbone of my stores and I like the nutritional makeup of that pair together. Beans, besides pintos, are much harder to find bulk from typical consumer outlets so it is a good time to start looking into grocer and restaurant supply houses. It would be a shame if you paired that tasty jasmine rice with something as mundane as pinto beans.

 

Great job! That is an excellent start

Make sure you label them with the item and date you put these up. You'll also want to start getting spices and such so you don't get bored with plain rice.

 

Hill Side Bulk Foods is also called Hillside Market. It's a market that sells a lot of bulk foods, but it also sells milk, eggs and pretty much everything else anyone could need. It isn't large, but it's one of the more 'English' friendly Amish markets I've been to. You aren't looked at like you took a wrong turn if you are shopping there. Just be careful in the parking lots of the horses and Amish kids.

 

lmao, 150 pounds of rice . i think id rather starve then eat that much rice.
I mean really, think noodles, pasta, dry food such as meat containg meals.
It might be just me, but i couldnt imagine, the world ends, chaos ensues, and at the end of the day, every day, its rice for dinner again?.....

 

Im doing things one step at a time, next batch will be something else

 

Id definitely eat rice everyday over pasta.

 

Jasmine rice is really tasty too... it ain't no uncle bens lol

 

What a super start to your LTS. I know jasmine is a little pricier than other rices, but there are so few splurges in LTS that come that cheap that I've made peace with the price tag because it's just...good.

As others have said, 5gal buckets can be tough to store. I naively started off by buying 20 buckets and then realized that was not going to fly as my long-term plan. Totes and #10 cans work better for my spaces. If you haven't already, consider picking real recipes that you would cook with your rice. For my first year, I just bought food without thinking through how i'd make it taste good and different from day to day. Now instead of buying 100lbs of something at once, I buy smaller amounts of a few different things that will round out nutrition or taste in my meal plan.

 

If you haven't already, consider picking real recipes that you would cook with your rice.

Ethnic recipes are a good way to expand your rice dish options. The parts of the world where rice is a daily affair have learned to be more creative about it than most Western countries.

 

Squirrel over rice, deer roast over rice, hog over rice, rice pudding, rice flower, red beans and rice, gumbo over rice, brazilian black beans and rice, etc.

I'm a Cajun. I eat LOTS of rice.

It's not stand alone, but (as the OP said) its an EXCELLENT staple.

 

Guys:


Stop peeing across each others streams and pay attention. So far no one I've seen has said to "only" stock pasta, or "only" stock rice.

Heck, no oone's even said stock one as a replacement for the other.

Sometimes, variety is good.

Stock both.


I've had rice and chicken broth, but I prefer noodles for chicken soup!:thumb:


I think everyone can agree that squirrel (over rice OR noodles) beats just squirrel!

 

I agree but the point i'm trying to get across is nutrition. One needs to store proteins and fats
not just rice or other simple carbs. This discussion pops up in a variety of ways from people grossly underestimating daily caloric needs to a lack of nutrition in preps.

Yet we all digress, the Op has a nice start with rice and now needs to round it off a good protein source (canned meat, beans) and some healthy fats oils (Coconut, Olive, avocado,)

 

It's your carb energy load, plus it has some of the amino acids necessary to form a compete protein along with beans. Vitamins? Minerals? Not really, because few starches offer those anyway in sufficient amounts.

You didn't read what I posted above about legumes where I said “Broaden your horizons!” ?
I'm not saying don't have rice I have 400# of it but overall it's a poor source of nutrition which is why it's fortified and at that it still has a poor nutritional profile relative to legumes...research it yourself.

Black beans for example has more calories, all and more vitamins & minerals than enriched or parboiled rice AND…
3X the protein
ALL the essential amino acids and 3X more of them
A much lower glycemic index
6X the omega 3 fatty acids
Double the omega 6
And the same amount of carbs.
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4284/2

Nutrition isn't magic and there is no complete single food

I agree, However some foods are better and some much better such as legumes Vs. rice.

But you do need a daily energy source and parboiled rice is one of the very best sources you can find.

I disagree, white or parboiled rice is not a very best source legumes are much better! The real advantage of rice is cost Vs. legumes although if you buy parboiled rice I question that? In which case it’s just a cry ‘in shame.

If the point you are trying to make is that he only has rice, the OP has already stated this was only his starting point and was looking for bean sources next. Nor have any of the other responders tried to say that was all he needed either. I sure didn't. So what is the point you are trying to make here? That rice isn't all he needs? He knows that and we know that.

My point is rice is less than ideal food and while better than nothing the Op need decent protein sources.
I sure wish when I started I had someone point out volume of food isn't the only thing to consider but the quality of food and prepping for a healthy diet If I was starting over I wouldn't start with rice i'd start with beans.

 

My point is rice is less than ideal food and while better than nothing the Op need decent protein sources.

Let's aim right at the heart of your argument.

You require carbs, fats, proteins, fiber, vitamins, and minerals to have a balanced diet. You don't get to cherry pick that list either. You need all of them.

Switching from rice to beans is wrong because you need the carbs from starch for energy that beans don't typically have. But I didn't say you should not have beans either. You should have BOTH!

Did you read your own link? Your cup of black beans has only 14% of your necessary carb load for the day and only 11% of your necessary calorie load.

So you would need 9 cups of cooked black beans per day to get a proper energy load. That leaves you with little room to get the rest of your nutrient base, not to mention an insane amount of black beans to store.

I suppose you could boost that with a lot of fat, but I assure you that fat will likely be the hardest thing to obtain post SHTF. And switching protein for your primary energy load will be a heavy strain on your kidneys. That is just a medical fact there. High protein low carb diets are very hard on your renal system.

You want to make this an either/or comparison. You can't. Nutritionally and economically you need both products. Nothing wrong with your black beans and there is nothing wrong with the parboiled rice either.

If you try to focus all your primary storage efforts mainly into one food type you will fail nutritionally.

[edit] That website you reference is not perfect. Discrepancies have been found over time and thus why they have a disclaimer.

Nutrition Data's Opinion, Completeness Score™, Fullness Factor™, Rating, Estimated Glycemic Load (eGL), and Better Choices Substitutions™ are editorial opinions of NutritionData.com, given without warranty, and are not intended to replace the advice of a nutritionist or health-care professional. Nutrition Data's opinions and ratings are based on weighted averages of the nutrient densities of those nutrients for which the FDA has established Daily Values, and do not consider other nutrients that may be important to your health or take into account your individual needs. Consequently, Nutrition Data's higher-rated foods may not necessarily be healthier for you than lower-rated ones. All foods, regardless of their rating, have the potential to play an important role in your diet.

Just for the record, I don't come with a disclaimer. As an IV certified pharm tech I am a nutrition certified specialist.

 

I am married to a Fillipino with every meal they eat jasmine rice.

 

A good thread gone wrong with a "whose got the biggest pee pee" match.

Kudos on the 150 lbs of rice. It can be eaten on its own,as side or as an extender to other foods.

Bouillion is good to add as it helps flavour the rice for a stand alone meal or as a side.
spices and herbs also change the flavour of mundain tasting rice.

Good Luck and keep us updated

cheers

 

A good thread gone wrong



cheers

I dont agree. These discussions show there is more than one belief out there and those who havent made up their mind can better decide for themselves.

For the 'most' part this is just a discussion, which is what forums are made for.

 

Personally,
I used portion bags and O2 in each put those in gallon bags and O2 then in bucket with O2.
I have found the things that have been stored a while still age ,and the moment you open the bag the aging process excelerates , so it need to be consumed a little sooner than opening a fresh bag of food.
Now may be that's just my own experience, but others might have more input on that.
Secondarily I portioned them so that if the container were compromised like a gun shot passing through or a simple seal failing, very little would be damaged by comparison .
Thirdly and reluctantly ,the smaller portion can be handed out ,with out compromising the whole thing .

 

You should be able to get six pounds of white rice, pinto beans or wheat into a one gallon bag. You can only get four pounds of elbow macaroni into a gallon bag.

If you pack three one gallon bags into the bottom of a five gallon bucket as soon as you seal them, they tend to fit together without air voids as the oxygen absorber sucks the air out. Imagine a very deep dish pie cut into thirds. You can pack two more bags laid horizontally on top of those three.

 

I have just recently begun Dinner in a Jar and enjoy being able to simply add the wet ingredients after deciding what to make for 'dinner'.
Has anyone else gone this route and if so, what are your thoughts on it?
TIA!

 

I make these jars up all the time, some for medium term storage, but mainly for convenience foods. To be able to dump a "jar of" in boiling water and have a quick dinner is so handy. There are several threads that might give you some ideas:

Small, portable individual meals, DIY section:
http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=111956

Some rice based meals using storage foods (I use these for jars with some small changes
http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=299235

There are some meals based on storage foods scattered in this thread that are easily used with jar dinners:
http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=326672

Those might get you started and then any questions you have, you can just post in the appropriate thread and get specific help.