Updated: Dec 27, 2021
You step outside into your back yard, and there it is, the unmistakable odor of one of your neighbors grilling. You walk into the local store and between your car and the store, ah, the wonderful smell of - choose the food - Asian, Barbecue, Hamburger, etc. These are comforting and tempting odors during a world of normalcy and could become harbingers of danger in a dystopian post-apocalyptic society.
When you consider cooking in a post-apocalyptic society, you will have to take several factors into consideration. The broader picture says that there are two considerations which should be considered 1. What you will cook; 2. When you cook it - relative to the event; and 3. How you will cook it.
How to Cook
Let's begin with how you will cook. In order to cook, you will need some form of heat and unfortunately, most forms of heat have some telltale characteristics that you may not want others to observe.
Light - most heat sources give off some form of light. This becomes more pronounced during hours of darkness, and can be somewhat lessened by cooking during hours of daylight.
Heat - convection currents - remember the waves you see in the desert in Western Movies? The heat from your cooking source will emit the same, they may not be as visible in an urban, suburban, or even forested environment, but you do need to be aware of them and plan for them.
Odor - Charcoal, most flammable liquids, wood, etc. give off an odor when they burn. Complete combustion greatly reduces the amount of fuel odor and this can usually be accomplished in a rocket stove or a gasifier stove. Another consideration to overcome this is that there are some cooking kits with chemical reactions (add water to an agent which then produces enough heat to warm a precooked meal - like what is used in military MRE’s).
Smoke - except for some liquid fuel cooking methods and electrical heating elements, almost all forms of combustion give off some form of visible smoke. The amount of smoke generated - like odor - can be reduced by increasing the amount of combustion. Gasifier stoves, rocket stoves, Dakota Fire Pits are among the best for reducing the amount of observable smoke emissions.
Cooking Method | Advantages | Disadvantages |
Grill - charcoal
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Grill - Propane |
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Single Burner Indoor Propane or Butane Stove |
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Coleman Camp Stove |
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Solo Stove - gasifier |
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Rocket Stove |
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Dakota Fire Pit |
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Alcohol Stove / Trangia |
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Solid Fuel Stoves (e.g. Esbit) |
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Candle Cooking - i.e. tealight cooksets and UCO Candlelier |
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Chemical Reaction i.e. HydroHeat Flameless Cooker |
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Electric Options
Snowmageddon here in Central Texas (Feb 2021) taught us a lot about power, cooking, heating, etc. during an arctic vortex.
We discovered that our solar system did not generate electricity when
There is 100% overcast
Ice covers the panels
The Grid is down
Immediately after the storm we installed a battery backup system. Should another power outage occur, we will have electricity even when the grid is down, and at night after the sun goes down. We also have a portable solar system with panels which will serve as a backup to the whole house solar system.
We purchased the following small electrical appliances which we can use indoors to minimize heat, light, odor, and smoke emissions and not betray that we are cooking.
Small 2 cup rice cooker
Single burner hot plate
RV / Travel tea kettle will have to do with instant coffee & also great for the just add hot water emergency meals
6” electric skillet
Small counter top toaster oven
Air pot - during the day, we might be able to use the regular coffee pot and if so, we would immediately transfer the coffee to an air pot to keep it hot for up to 8 hours
When to Cook
What you cook is not only a function of what you will cook, but the timing of when you cook it after an event.
There is a high likelihood that for the first week or so after an event, everyone will be in the same situation, and no one will think it too unusual if you’re grilling your meat or other refrigerated / frozen foods in the back yard before they spoil. There may also be a short period after that where it won’t be too unusual for you to cook stored canned goods. But then, most likely about two to three weeks after the event, any observable cooking will do nothing but attract unwanted company to share what you have.
There are a couple of factors that may assist you in determining when to cook within the framework of “on a daily basis”.
Odors and light either are or seem to be more pronounced at night and around dawn and dusk - avoid those times for cooking.
Rain seems to wash odors and may reduce both odor and smoke depending upon the rainfall. Another advantage here is that most choose to be inside during rainstorms and most likely will not be outside to see or smell your cooking.
Windy days may spread the odor out over a larger area, but it also dissipates the odor, making it more difficult to identify the exact source.
What to Cook
Maybe, there is a logical order to cook your emergency pantry.
Begin with perishables - especially if there is no power and your refrigerated / frozen items will soon rot
Follow perishables with canned goods
Follow canned goods with “just add water” meals - an example here would be Mountain House, Back Packer Pantry, 4 Patriots or any other survival or camping food company that has just add hot water meals. If you have MRE’s, this might be the appropriate time to consider using them.
Your last option then becomes your long term freeze dried / dehydrated individual component cooking like Thrive Life, Emergency Essentials, Augason Famrs, Saratoga Farms, Harmony House, etc. This group may also include your long-term storage grains, legumes, rice, etc.
Ethical Considerations
FEMA estimates that only 3-5% of the population has planned for and can survive a 30 - 90 day emergency without outside assistance. There are some who guesstimate that this might be low because Snowmageddon in Texas (Feb 2021), supply chain issues, food shortages, etc. have made a lot more people aware and there might be more preparing for some sort of catastrophe. Current threats of either the Omicron variant of COVID forcing another lockdown or an outbreak of weaponized Smallpox also has a lot of people purchasing food and materials in order to comply with another lockdown.
The question becomes one of what do you do when someone comes to your door in desperate need of food? I can only share my plans and my plans may not be the most acceptable to a lot of the prepper community. I believe that that I should practice my religious / ethical / moral obligations to my fellow man and share what I am capable of sharing. Because I believe that this is my moral, ethical, religious obligation, it allows me to plan for what and how I will distribute it in advance.
Give Aways
I have purchased some items specifically to share with those who haven’t prepared. I buy small cans of vegetables, beans, Vienna sausage, etc. for the sole purpose of giving them away.
We also have containers of Oatmeal, Cream of Wheat, packages of Instant soups (Ramen and Cup O’ Soup) and others to give away. For the bulk materials we have plenty of zip loc bags to apportion the food into smaller portions for distribution to others.
I don’t want to give away too much at any one time, but I do want to give some away. I also want to make it appear that I am struggling and that this small gesture is something that I really can’t afford to do as there is very little left. You can help this impression along by using used ziplocs, reused cans, jars, etc so that the recipient doesn’t receive a whole can or package. Giving away portions reinforces - in their mind - that you are really scrimping to give anything and that there isn’t enough for them to consider raiding you.
I will place the item I’m giving away in an area of my yard away from the front or back door and then tell the person where I put it so that they can then retrieve it. Never let the person inside your home or allow them to even see inside your home. We also plan to have armed backup at each door whenever someone approaches one door. Keep the armed backup out of sight so that they can be used most effectively. Surprise is a powerful force multiplier.
Neighborhood Nail Pot
I put out an email to my neighborhood emphasizing that we work together and that we collaborate one meal a day for the sake of the entire neighborhood.
When I was in the Army, one Platoon Sergeant always had a 5-gallon pot on the top of the pot belly stove which he “seeded” with a couple gallons of water. When we got our C-Rations, we would empty the entrée can into the pot then retrieve a ladle of “nail soup”.
Nail soup comes from the story of a downed allied airman in Italy during WWII. The villagers found him boiling some water he told them was nail soup, a survival technique known only to US and Allied airmen. They asked to taste it, and he told them that the rule was that you had to put something into it to get something out of it. The villagers complied and everyone ate.
I have the 5 gallon pot and have told the neighbors that to participate, their entry ticket is one charcoal briquette or 12 cubic inches of wood (for the fire) and 12 ounces of clean potable water per person wanting to eat per meal. I have also given them a recommended list of items to store for the soup(s):
Pasta - angel hair - the thinner the pasta, the faster it cooks which saves on fuel
Pasta sauce
Egg Noodles
Canned vegetables (carrots, veg all, tomatoes, potatoes, etc.)
Canned beans
Canned meats (chili, SPAM, Roast Beef, Chicken, fish, ham)
Rice
Beans and legumes
Instant mashed potatoes and gravy
Instant Soup mixes - like Bear Creek
Canned condensed soups - especially creamed soups (mushroom, chicken, etc.)
Bouillon and broth / stock
Just add water cornbread mix
Meals - some of the meals we plan to cook in our community pot
Nail Soup - bring something - get something - also called Sunday Soup or American Goulash
Chili and Rice
Chicken Noodle Soup
Vegetable Soup
Spaghetti and Sauce
Chicken and Rice
Beans and Rice
Pinto Beans or Navy/White Beans
Lima Beans and Ham (SPAM)
There will be those who expect to participate without having done anything - even with forewarning - to prepare for the situation. You and your community will have to decide what you will do with them. Certainly, turning them away will only alienate them and possibly cause a divide which might lead to violence. Acquiescing to them might lead to additional expectations which you won’t be able to meet. One thing you might consider is to have them acquire more firewood and/or potable water for their contribution to the meal.
By putting the plan together, you and your co participants mark yourselves as targets for those who chose not to prepare. The best solution for that is to encourage them prior to the event to get them to prepare to the greatest extent they can even if it is not at the same level as the rest of the community.
Final Thoughts
Beware the fat man in the land of the emaciated. If your neighbors are starving to death, reconsider going among them after having just had a big meal. Another area you might want to consider is that once you’ve opened that can of beans or can of freeze-dried ground beef or shrimp, what are you going to do with the trash?
While others are starving, you don’t want piles of empty food cans in trash bags in your driveway. Flatten your cans and use the paper wrappings for cooking fuel. NEVER dispose of any excess food. If a starving person finds food in your trash, your home is subject to immediate rioting / violence from them and any of their allies.
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