Canned food.

[jansman]

By canned food, I am meaning tinned. Most preppers stock tinned food, some more than most. Reading some posts over the last day or so it is apparent that many people are not that fond of it. So given that it is a fantastic preservation method and deserves a proper place in the kitchen.

Therefore, I will share some recipes that use canned food.

[Plymtom]

I think it's a case of expecting too much from the value range, as you demonstrated with your first recipe if you start with something meaty and build from there then it's as good as any food I tried a tin of value curry with vegetables from Asda on it's own a week or two ago, in my best Aussie accent you can live on it.......

[Deeps]

I think it's a case of expecting too much from the value range, as you demonstrated with your first recipe if you start with something meaty and build from there then it's as good as any food I tried a tin of value curry with vegetables from Asda on it's own a week or two ago, in my best Aussie accent you can live on it.......

I've been trying to see 'how low can I go' with the tinned stuff and I've surprised myself, I'm a really big fan of the Aldi really cheap spaghetti hoops for 16 or 17p a can and I eat their 39p a can meatballs a couple times a week for my lunch although they are tweaked. There's no danger that my missus would 'lower herself' to these though. There are some things that I can't tell a difference with, pasata for one, I can get a half litre carton for 35p (I think) or considerably more and we do use quite a lot of pasata in everyday cooking so its a no brainer (for me anyway).
Tinned curry is one thing that I'm adjusting to, I'm a big fan of the real thing and although I say it myself I can turn out a pretty good one, I put other stuff in the tinned curries but its a good and reasonably cheap base for one of my larger lunch options.

[Plymtom]

Tinned curry is one thing that I'm adjusting to, I'm a big fan of the real thing and although I say it myself I can turn out a pretty good one, I put other stuff in the tinned curries but its a good and reasonably cheap base for one of my larger lunch options.

The value ones at Asda or Tesco suck tremendously IMO, as do the Irish Stew type things, the chunky chicken in white sauce is useful though and the meatballs yeah I/We can eat those, most of the tinned Spam, Bacon grill, Ham, etc as Jansman's recipes demonstrate can be used as a base, but I think the cheap meal in a can idea is a case of you get what you pay for I find if I pay a quid a pop or more for the all day breakfast or chilli/ curry type things, they'll get used as a lazy and high calorie option by my lad if I leave em in plain sight because they are pretty damn good, there are others in the family I'm sure who would happily eat the meat as is, screw the vegetables and carbs but we can't be having that in an emergency situation.
Asda are doing those Frey Bentos tinned pies for a quid at the moment, so long as you've still got an oven they're great

[Deeps]

Tinned curry is one thing that I'm adjusting to, I'm a big fan of the real thing and although I say it myself I can turn out a pretty good one, I put other stuff in the tinned curries but its a good and reasonably cheap base for one of my larger lunch options.

The value ones at Asda or Tesco suck tremendously IMO, as do the Irish Stew type things, the chunky chicken in white sauce is useful though and the meatballs yeah I/We can eat those, most of the tinned Spam, Bacon grill, Ham, etc as Jansman's recipes demonstrate can be used as a base, but I think the cheap meal in a can idea is a case of you get what you pay for I find if I pay a quid a pop or more for the all day breakfast or chilli/ curry type things, they'll get used as a lazy and high calorie option by my lad if I leave em in plain sight because they are pretty damn good, there are others in the family I'm sure who would happily eat the meat as is, screw the vegetables and carbs but we can't be having that in an emergency situation.
Asda are doing those Frey Bentos tinned pies for a quid at the moment, so long as you've still got an oven they're great

Check the cheapy shops, you don't get the full range but you can get chicken, mince and onion and snake and pygmy for a quid all the time. As you say, oven dependent but the calories are there, even if you can't heat the pastry, there's the rest of it and you could probably just lift the 'lid' off and heat the meat ( ) in the tin on a camping stove.

[jansman]

And the fray bentos ( benno's we call 'em) microwave steak and kidney puds are great.

[dangerman]

I've got a child's size wheelie suitcase full of tins that I've had for about a year. Maybe two actually. Need to get it used up and replaced. No idea what to do with most of it though, I bought all the wrong stuff. Tinned fruit and all that. No good at all for me.

Think that when I replace it I'll be sticking to mostly meat and beans and curry. I'll get some chocolate puddings too, of course. I love that stuff and I bet the kids would too.

Jansman, how about we do a can't cook won't cook theme - I list a few tins, and you come up with a recipe? Sound good?

[jansman]

Very interesting idea Dangerman! Cooking ( proper cooking) is a little hobby of mine. I pride myself on using stuff up out of the fridge. Waiting for swmbo to get home. Tonight it is a 10 egg omelette with sliced tomatoes and pepper with a little grated cheese. Also frying some sliced tinned spuds in olive oil and salt and black pepper, and a green salad. Got a nice bottle of Chablis too.

Go on, let's have a crack!

[ForgeCorvus]

I've read a few threads on this subject recently.
It seems the consensus of opinion is that if you want low stress 'Heat& Eat' meals in a can, then you really do get what you pay for.

However, when it comes to stuff you're going to use as an ingredient then the basic/value ranges are king.

Cheap tinned curry tends to be dire, however an equally cheap (or even cheaper) can of mince that you then curry yourself is a whole different ballgame.

[dangerman]

Very interesting idea Dangerman! Cooking ( proper cooking) is a little hobby of mine. I pride myself on using stuff up out of the fridge. Waiting for swmbo to get home. Tonight it is a 10 egg omelette with sliced tomatoes and pepper with a little grated cheese. Also frying some sliced tinned spuds in olive oil and salt and black pepper, and a green salad. Got a nice bottle of Chablis too.

Go on, let's have a crack!

Ok, here we go - the first four things I pull out of the bag... Mackrell! Just a small tin. Chick peas, tuna (tuna and mackrell? Surely not), tinned tomatoes and a tin of strawberries.