[valkyrie10]

I consider Rolled oats to be one of the best SHTF foods. Porridge for breakfast with brown sugar and a little butter is the fuel of the gods.

The best way I can think of to store it would be in Mylar bags with oxygen absorbers. Does anyone have any first hand experience of how long this will keep the oats in condition?

 

[MikeK]

The closer to whole a grain is, the longer it lasts of course. But oats don't have a lot of oil in them and seem to last pretty well in a low O2 atmosphere. I haven't opened any of mine yet, but I'd venture a guess of about 8-10 years if not exposed to a lot of heat. And of course there's always rotation.

 

[Medieval Man]

LDS folks say number 10 cans w/ OA will have a shelf life of 30 years.

http://www.providentliving.org/pfw/...WE_HomeStoragePriceSheet_US_71140_000_pdf.pdf

I have 5 gal buckets w/mylar and OA going on four years; very fresh so far in the couple I've roatated through...

 

[Josh97526]

I have been stocking up on the oats lately, and wondering this same question myself. Since we consume a lot of jerky around here, we often find the packs of "silica gel", and re-use them in our dry goods. I am happy to hear about the 8-10 years. I was figuring on about three. I rotate my stock as well. Seems to be the best policy. Another good tip, if you can't get any of the packets, is to add one or two saltine crackers, salted. The crackers will soak up most any moisture that gets inside. This can be seen in the sugar shaker at many a local Denny's.

 

[speedofl33t]

Don't forget the cinnamon......

 

[Wombat]

I have a few foodsaver packed bags of rolled oats, and they are still as good taste wise as when i packed them 9 years ago.

 

[crazy]

I have a couple of cases from the LDS store and the cans say 30 years. After opening a can to try it out, I don't doubt it. They tasted good by the way. In case you wanted to know.:

 

[MikeK]

Since we consume a lot of jerky around here, we often find the packs of "silica gel", and re-use them in our dry goods.

I hope you dehydrate them to recharge them before reusing them. When you get them from a package of food, they're pretty much spent.

Also, just a note to folks who are new to O2 absorbers. They aren't compatible with dessicants and the two can't be used together. The O2 absorber needs the slight moisture to work properly. O2 absorbers are also not compatible with vacuum packing. They need the head space gas to work properly. In both cases, it's either one or the other.

 

[Maxed]

Moisture seems to be the biggest problem with oats, wheat etc. Stored dry and vacuumed packed will keep them tasty for quite some time. I have some that are 4 yrs old and taste like they are right off of the shelf.

 

[crazy]

I hope you dehydrate them to recharge them before reusing them. When you get them from a package of food, they're pretty much spent.

Also, just a note to folks who are new to O2 absorbers. They aren't compatible with dessicants and the two can't be used together. The O2 absorber needs the slight moisture to work properly. O2 absorbers are also not compatible with vacuum packing. They need the head space gas to work properly. In both cases, it's either one or the other.

I'm glad you pointed that out. I was going to use both in mylar bags.

 

[MIL-DOT]

During this recent 10%-off at Honeyville, I went with a couple cases of steel-cut oats over the rolled oats. I Googled the difference, and the rolled oats have been steamed,rolled and re-dried, so I figured the steel-cut would be better, and Honeyville says about as much,as well.
Still, Honeyville states that their rolled oats in #10 cans are good for 10-15 years under ideal storage conditions. Oddly, they don't post any storage time for the steel cut, but I'd assume at least as much.
Here's their spiel on the steel-cut oats.....

"Honeyville's Steel Cut Oats, also known as Pinhead Oatmeal , have been carefully selected from premium milling quality oats. Steel cut oats are really the best of the best when it come to getting the most out of a whole grain oat. Of all of the varieties of oats on the market (rolled oats, instant oats, quick oats, etc.) steel cut oats are the best choice. Steel cut oats maintain all of the nutrients from the whole grain oat as they are simply whole oat groats that have been cut into small pieces......."

Nevertheless, I'd completely forgotten that the LDS sells cases of #10 cans of oatmeal, WAY cheaper than these from Honeyville (DOH !!! ),like less than 1/2 price, so who cares which oats are inside.(shoulda,woulda,coulda)
I also have quite a few mylar bags full of regular Quaker oats put away, I'll likely bust into those first when it comes time..........

 

[crazy]

This is going to sound stupid but I only found out about steel cut oats maybe 2 years ago. They are awesome. A store that I go to sells Steel cut oats for $0.79/#. That's where I'm getting mine. I'm going to put them in mylar bags.

 

[Meat Guy]

We also like steel cut. I would think they would keep better than rolled.

 

[stephpd]

I hope you dehydrate them to recharge them before reusing them. When you get them from a package of food, they're pretty much spent.

Also, just a note to folks who are new to O2 absorbers. They aren't compatible with dessicants and the two can't be used together. The O2 absorber needs the slight moisture to work properly. O2 absorbers are also not compatible with vacuum packing. They need the head space gas to work properly. In both cases, it's either one or the other.

I found an article that indicated that it is possible to use the two together (O2 and desiccant) and achieve better results then one or the other.

http://pdfcast.org/pdf/effect-of-pa...e-stability-of-thai-style-fried-rice-crackers
http://www.thaiscience.info/Article...ability of thai-style fried rice crackers.pdf

Their summary:

The best packaging condition resulting from this study is the metallic bag with oxygen absorber and desiccant, because it showed the highest crispiness and the lowest chemical change, especially the increase of carbonyl compounds.

A couple other sites, including Sorbent say it's possible;

http://www.sorbentsystems.com/longtermfoodstorage.html

One to two individual 1 oz. packets of desiccant should be placed in the bottom of your MylarFoil™ bag prior to filling with product. The oxygen absorber is then placed on top for sealing. Note: This is the recommended procedure for the 20.0" x 30.0" bag (P/N: 20MFS30) that is designed for 5 and 6 gallon pails.

http://www.foodsave.net/questions.htm

A. As set forth by the two major manufacturers of oxygen absorbers, YES, but like everything else we do there is a technique that must be followed to insure proper results. This is very simple and will be very simple for all of us to understand. Step 1: Place the desiccant into the bottom of the empty container. Step 2: Place the food into the container directly over the desiccant. Step 3: Place the oxygen absorber on top of the food. Step 4: seal the container normally.
Here is the deal... the oxygen absorbers we are all using (dry type) are pre-loaded with a small amount of moisture to help perpetuate the oxidation process (basically rusting) if the desiccant is lying in close proximity to the oxygen absorber, it will draw the moisture from the absorber before it has a chance to work. By splitting them up and keeping food between them, you are keeping the desiccant busy far longer than necessary to allow the oxygen absorber to work. I hope this helps.

 

[MikeK]

I found an article that indicated that it is possible to use the two together (O2 and desiccant) and achieve better results then one or the other.

With Sorbent System's suggestion of placing the dessicant on the bottom and the O2 absorber on top, I can see it working. Dessicants are relatively slow to work in a situation with little air movement. So the O2 absorber would have plenty of time to utilize the humidity it needs before the dessicant removed it.

It was the O2 manufacturers themselves that originally said not to use them together. But they might have tested them both on top of the food or something. Or they may have reformulated the O2 absorbers.

 

[stephpd]

With Sorbent System's suggestion of placing the dessicant on the bottom and the O2 absorber on top, I can see it working. Dessicants are relatively slow to work in a situation with little air movement. So the O2 absorber would have plenty of time to utilize the humidity it needs before the dessicant removed it.

It was the O2 manufacturers themselves that originally said not to use them together. But they might have tested them both on top of the food or something. Or they may have reformulated the O2 absorbers.

Yeah, from what I've read they can't be near each other or the desiccant will rob the O2 absorber of moisture and the O2 absorber won't work.

 

[Tearmaker]

Don't forget the cinnamon......

Speaking of which I also packed away 2 pounds of cinnamon sticks along with about 30 pounds of diced apple bits I made in my dehydrator and those are also (mylar and OA) stored. I get smaller buckets (1 and 2 gallon size) to store the stuff I don't need 5 gallons at a time of. :
Tear

PS OP I also have maybe 5 or 6 5gal bbuckets of oats :thumb:

 

[MikeK]

Yeah, from what I've read they can't be near each other or the desiccant will rob the O2 absorber of moisture and the O2 absorber won't work.

That's exactly the reason I was told that they wouldn't work in the beginning. Your post was very valuable for those in humid areas. I appreciate the heads up.

 

[AngelsDad]

stephpd, thanks for the info! I still have a lot of things to pack and knowing I can use both is a relief. Thanks again.

 

[NormaS]

Instant Oatmeal vs Old Fasioned oats

My husband likes Old Fashioned Oatmeal. I like Quick oatmeal or Instant oatmeal. How fine the oats are ground will determine the cooking time. I put the old fashioned oats in a food processor or my ninja. pulse it a couple of times and voila, quick oats. A little longer...instant oatmeal. Now we can both have what we like by buying all the same. I'm going to assume old fashioned oats may keep longer. So now i can invest in 50# bags and seal it in mylar bags.