[wind_magic]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

sara-
Well, I tried tinned chicken for the first time last week. 2-for-1 sale at the supermarket so I figured if not now, when? Worked out to about $3.79 for two 12-ounce tins, beats the Costco price.

Damnest thing is that now I owe an apology to Jessica Simpson, the stuff really DOES look almost exactly like "Chicken of the Sea" TUNA. Tastes a bit like bland chicken, I suspect it flavored someone's soup before it got tinned.

Not bad, but...like tofu, I don't think I'd ever feel the urge to go out and buy it.

It makes a pretty good base for other dishes, like if you are making some curry to go over rice, or as a base for soup or stew. I use a few cans of chicken a week usually. The cans with white and dark chicken meat (instead of just white) are better tasting and also less expensive.

Babybels are nice, but pricey. I've found the larger (8oz?) waxed Gouda and Edam cheeses keep very nicely at a much lower price, of course the flavor is something entirely different.

I tried these little Babybels tonight just because Sarafinad had written about them, and they are pretty good. I agree, too expensive though. I am a big fan of parm, tastes great, very useful, not that expensive, and lasts a very long time.

Carl, you can get MREs online from many places, either "per case" or mixed meals per case. Discount Hunting Gear, Discount Hunting Boots, Discount Shoes, Discount Ammunition, Discount Ammo, Discount Boots, Military Surplus, Outdoor Gear At the Sportsman's Guide and Cheaper Than Dirt - America's Ultimate Shooting Sports Discounter are two places that have been in business a long time with satisfied customers, but I'd rather find things in the supermarket than find highly processed long lists of ingredients that have to be shipped to me.

There are still a number of pre-WW1 cookbooks available, like The New Settlement Cookbook, that were written for new housewives who had just come to the US in the days before refrigerators. They cover all sorts of things from using a coal stove, to butchering meat, and especially how to keep foods SAFE TO EAT. The USDA also has many publications about that.

Interesting about the old cookbooks, I am going to check into that, thanks hellosailor.

The USDA has become too safety conscious in my opinion, as have the various universities that publish guidelines on canning and the like. For example, you really can't find anyone who would tell you how to make pickled eggs and proclaim them safe to store at room temperature, but that is a traditional dish around where I live and people have been make them and eating them for centuries here in the U.S., mostly without ill effect. The manufacturers put "refrigerate after opening" on everything now, like a previous poster said, but some things like eggs last months without refrigeration. I think its fine that the USDA and the universities are looking out for us, but there has to be some balance between getting sick from food poisoning and dying of starvation, and they've completely discounted the starvation part of it. I guess they figure everyone in the country has refrigeration and money enough to go to the grocery store for their food.