Cooking and eating habits must change to fit the situation during a power failure. You may have no heat, no refrigeration, and limited water. Health risks from contaminated or spoiled foods may increase.
Plan Ahead
You can store all canned or preserved foods for up to 1 year without loss of quality. Freeze-dried and dehydrated items, if kept dry, can be stored indefinitely. In addition to food, stock at least 10 gallons of drinking water—enough to reconstitute at least 4 quarts of dry milk per day for at least a week—and for other drinking purposes.
Save Fuel
•Consider the amount of cooking time needed for particular foods. If you have limited heat for cooking, choose foods that cook quickly. Prepare casseroles and one-dish meals, or serve no-cook foods. Here are some alternative cooking methods you can use:
• Fireplace— Many foods can be skewered and roasted over the flames. You can wrap food in foil and place it in the hot coals, cook on a wire grill over the flames, or cook over the flames in heavy cookware, such as cast iron or heavy aluminum. A Dutch oven is probably the best piece of cookware because you can use it to bake, boil, stew, or pan fry.
• Electric utensils— If gas is cut off but you still have electricity, use electric plates or coffee makers to heat food.
• Candle warmers—You can use devices with candle warmers, such as fondue pots or chaffing dishes, if no other heat sources are available.
• Outdoor grills— You can cook on outdoor grills, but use the grills outside. Do not use them in closed areas, not even in a garage.
• Fuel burning camp stoves and charcoal burners— Use these cookers outdoors only. Never use fuel-burning camp stoves or charcoal burners inside your home, even in a fireplace. Fumes from these stoves can be deadly.
Do not cook frozen foods unless you have enough heat for cooking. Some frozen foods require much more cooking time and heat than canned goods. Also, if power is off, it is best to leave the freezer door closed to keep food from thawing. You can eat commercially canned foods straight from the can. Do not use home-canned vegetables unless you can boil them for 10 minutes before eating.
Be Safe!
• Boil all water you use in food preparation for at least 10 minutes.
• If you are without refrigeration, open only enough food for one meal. (Some foods can be kept a short time without refrigeration.)
Do not leave cooked vegetables, meat, or meat dishes unrefrigerated for more than 2 hours, including preparation and serving time. Do not keep these dishes overnight without refrigeration. If there is snow, place covered f
oods in it.
• If available, packaged survival or camping foods, also called Meals Ready to Eat (MRE), are safe.
• Do not serve foods that spoil easily, such as ground meats, creamed foods, meat salads, or custards. These foods are sources of food borne illness.
• If necessary, substitute canned and powdered milk for fresh milk. Canned milk is safe for 2 hours after you open the can. If you are using canned milk to feed a baby, open a fresh can for each bottle. Use only boiled or disinfected water to mix powdered milk. Use powdered milk immediately after it is mixed.
• If safe water or water disinfectant materials are not available, use canned or bottled fruit juices instead of water.
