Southern Girl’s Hurricane Cooking Survival Guide

If you have decided not to evacuate from a hurricane, this blog post is for you. Everything you are going to read is based off of experience from me surviving Hurricane Katrina. My family and I didn’t evacuate but 40 miles from our home the night before Hurricane Katrina hit and then returned home the next day. Not Recommended! We were not quite prepared for what we were going to endure. Everyone in our area would probably say the same.

No one including us would have guessed that it would be weeks before we had water, electricity, fuel and telephone/internet service. So, how does one prepare for weeks without these essentials?

My family and I thankfully had a stocked pantry as well as freezer. This plus stocking up on hurricane supplies helped. My hurricane cooking survival guide shopping list may look different than the average. I think you will thank me if you find yourself in my same situation in a hurricane. Floridians, I suggest shopping at Publix because the employees are great about helping you find items. Some of the items you probably aren’t accustomed to shopping for.

My List:

 Dry-

Milk- Dry milk, Dried Buttermilk, Evaporated Milk or Canned Coconut Milk

Baking Mix- Pioneer Baking Mix (only requires water)

Pizza Dough Mix

Sugar

Canned Fruit (peaches, fruit cocktail, etc.)

Dried Fruits- apples, peaches, raisins

Oats

Bread

Crackers

Oil (lots of oil from frying oil- canola or coconut and sautéing and baking like olive oil)

Vinegar- apple cider, white vinegar

Canned Meat- tuna, chicken, and ham

Bacon Bits

Canned Beef Stew

Canned Vegetables- corn, beans (pinto, black, kidney), whole tomatoes, mixed vegetables, etc.

Canned tomato sauce

Dried Pasta

Rice or Quinoa

Self-rising cornmeal

Grits

Condiments- (Mayonnaise, mustard, etc.)

Corn or flour tortillas

Drink mixes like lemonade, etc. (drinking water can get old)

Spices- garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, cinnamon, smoked paprika, dried herbs, and vanilla

Ground Coffee (No K-CUPS)

 

Fresh eggs- unrefrigerated (can be left out at room temperature for a month)

Produce-

Potatoes- white and sweet

Onions

Garlic

 

Supplies-

Coffee Filters

Matches/Lighter

Firewood

Charcoal

Propane Tank (filled for gas grill)

Cast iron skillet

Pizza stone

Lots of aluminum foil

Lots of wipes (to wash skillet, bowls and utensils)

Lots of paper products- plates, paper towels, utensils

Gallon plastic zip top bags

 

To Do List:

Fill jugs with water

Fill all of your coolers with ice

 

Now that you have your list.

Here are some of the dishes you can make- biscuits, cornbread, pizza, chicken pot pies, beef stew, tuna and chicken salad, bread pudding, peach cobbler, spaghetti, breakfast tacos, and many more.

Look in my cookbook, Modern Hospitality and New Southern Table for recipes.

For cooking, my dad made a fire pit in our back yard by digging a pit and lined it with bricks. We used a broken wrought iron table for a cooking grate.

When my mom and I made biscuits or something needing to be baked, we created an oven effect by tinting tin foil over a cast iron skillet. If you are using a charcoal or gas grill, you can use it as an oven and stove.

Because my family and I knew what it was like to be affected by a natural disaster. When I was asked to come to Pleasant Grove, Alabama to help cook and feed volunteers and families, I said yes. If you aren’t being affected by a storm, there are so many things you can do to help people. Providing water and food is definitely a way to help.