LIQUID CHICKEN
This is why I love reader comments. Despite the never ending stream of idiotic remarks by self styled whits, the cream does rise to the top. Thank you for the information, regarding the pellet burner. A thirty dollar charcoal burner beats a $100 specialty device. Without this kind of comment we would be wasting money. Okay, on to today's article. There is a depressing lack of panic and "happy" financial news which leaves me pondering less than stellar articles. Almost boring. But, hey, not every day can be top drawer, first rate or earth shattering.
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Last night was canned meat night. As I've already said, I shop three or four nights a week for fresh animal flesh and the rest of the week is some slop from a can. Spam, chili, tuna and cream of chicken soup. I already covered Spam, so now we move on to cream of chicken soup as a suitable survival meat. Most of us have a cupboard full of Spam. This is our storage meat. I understand that you can get much healthier and cheaper meat by canning it yourself, but I think most of us are content to shop for the meat already canned. It's just like grain. It is cheaper to buy wheat kernels from a feed and seed store, but judging from the lackluster grain grinder sales from my Amazon gadget page ( http://bisonpress.com/amazonproducts.html ) I can guess that most of you are just buying rice at Wally World. Hey, if it's easier, why not. And, honestly, if it is easier it tends to get done instead of being put off. And emergency food shopping is not something you should be putting off.
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When we first moved to the Super Deluxe Bison Survival Compound, we were eating fresh meat almost every time I went into town. But, since I elect not to have a refrigerator, I was buying the small packs around a pound and it got very expensive very quickly. Three bucks a day just for meat shot the food budget down in flames. This is why I was eating Spam and other gastronomical horrors. After a few months of Spam once a week ( or close to it ) we quickly cut that down to once or twice a month. Cream of chicken soup has replaced that more often than not. I've eaten cream of chicken soup mixed with rice ( yummy ), cream of chicken soup with mac and cheese ( gross ), and I've made my pan bread without leavening to get it hard and dense and used the soup as a dip for the bread ( most delish ). At this point I'll note that I never dilute the soup with any water even if it is condensed. I like the thickness as is straight from the can. We have yet to try it with egg noodles and as a gravy for mashed potatoes, but that will eventually happen.
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So, I asked myself, since liquid chicken tastes so much better than Spam, and since you can use it in more recipes ( I consider charring and BBQ sauce or mustard or charring with beans covering the slab the most non-revolting ways to choke down Spam ), wouldn't it be nice if I could stock up on that instead of Spam? Well, unfortunately, this is not very realistic. Cream of chicken soup tastes much better, has more varied uses, but does not stack up well with Spam in several vital departments. Buying about the same amount dollar wise ( $1.18 for Treet, or about the same for two cans of soup ) the Spam gives you a lot more calories per dollar. Spam is 720, whereas the soup is only 175. Spam has three times the protein. And eight times the fat. Plus, it does this with about half the weight. So, for more bang for each unit, Spam is far superior to chicken noodle soup. A shame, taste wise, but we are stocking up for survival, not a culinary delight.
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Also, each food has certain undesirable ingredients. Spam has nitrates in it. The chicken has less toxic additives, namely MSG and soy meal, but is still not a perfectly healthy food. And, yes, I understand some of you can cheaply can cream of chicken or cream of turkey, or cream of cows rectum. I'm talking about supermarket procurement here, thank you ( and by the way, thank you everyone for the restraint shown from the last post when I asked you not to nit pick my firearms examples-as I'm asking you here to keep in mind the limits on store bought canned meat ).
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Have fun eating that Spam.
END
You must act incredibly quickly and spend all your money at www.bisonpress.com . Honestly, I don't know why except it would confuse me. Isn't that good enough?
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30 comments:
Is there one good spam recipe out there?
Jim,
Do you use TSP, or textured veggie protein?
It is mostly tasteless, being made of soybeans, so it picks up the flavor of whatever it is cooked with. I use it to replace half the ground beef in taco mix, and in soups and chili mixes I make up myself. You can get it in any healthy food place, and it is pretty cheap, 2# for 3 bucks, when it is re hydrated it weighs 4-5 times as much, it soaks up the grease and therefore the flavor from ground beef, or make it up in bacon fat and it tastes like bacon crumbles.
As it is soy it can cause you to gain weight and I do not recommend it be served to growing boys much due to the testosterone/ estrogen conversion factor, but as a survival food meat stretcher it does wonders. Tip
Good spam recipe,
open spam can, take out small amount and place in dish,
place dish on porch,
shoot and cook any dogs or cats that arrive to eat spam.
Best way I know to serve Spam:
Slice in 1/4-inch slabs. Fry.
Fry up some scrambled eggs to go with it.
Add toast, fruit, or whatever else you want, to complete the meal.
Sorry, but I actually like the stuff.
Off topic but I thought this was worth passing on. Dillenger had a 13 1/2 out of 16 predictions for last year come about I noticed the ones he missed were political not economic though. I don't agree with everything and think he is being a bit conservative but he does have a good track record. Here is his predictions for this o year.
http://market-ticker.denninger.net/2007/12/year-in-review-and-look-ahead.html
My favorite spam recipe is to chop up the spam or put it in a food processor, add relish, chopped onion, mayo, a little mustard...instant ham (spam) salad. Makes great sandwiches...
BTW...I like spam!
Spam sandwich. Slice it, fry it up, melt cheese on top, serve between toast with lots of mayo. I don't eat it often, but I do like it.
bulgar, which is a toasted form of fine cracked whole wheat works as a meat extender/substitute...
you can make your own from wheat but it's dirt cheap and available a lot of places. but needs extra water...
frankly, meat is a drug. the physiological response is to make the gall bladder produce bile. which is another way of saying that americans are constipated and need a fix to do just about anything...
although, potatoes really take a lot of time to cook properly (turn that starch into gluclose) you can make really good fries by slicing up potatoes and using a bit of oil and salt. cook well. you'll never want fast fries again.....
i would imagine cream of mushroom and, for instance some corn or peas would be one way to make spam edible...but, i don't know, maybe it's my imagination but all that canned meat stuff tastes funny and has a erie green color.
ha! amazing what you can eat and like when you get hungry enuf.
My favorite way to fix spam(I prefer treet myself)is to slice it into 1/4 inch slices then cube those. Put some oil in the cast iron pan with the heat on medium. Start frying the cubes while this is going peal and slice potatoes and add them. Turn this mixture over repeatedly with a piece of aluminum foil over the top to hold in the heat. Salt and pepper to taste. Then add some diced peppers(bell or hot)and sliced and separated onions. cook until the potatoes are done,the meat is crispy,and the onions and peppers are soft. Eat. Enjoy. Sometimes I even put ketchup on this. Makes a great breakfast. BC in Virginia
Spam needs lots of sauce.
...hehehe...Spam is always a good poster,like a few here,i kinda like it...also,cream of 'whatever' soup is/has been a staple in my pantry for decades,probably 10 to 1 over 'specific' soups...
Hey Him:
I have an article topic for you: You can discuss how Elko and the entire region supporting the Carlin Trend gold mines are currently booming:
"A Nevada Town Escapes the Slump, Thanks to Gold"
See:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/02/us/02nevada.html?pagewanted=all
Congrats on moving to one of the few communities that may prosper in Great Depression II.
- Young Old Fart
spam and cream soups are a staple in my food stocks. I also use lentils a lot. I use them for soup and chili mostly. I have been known to sprout them for salads and stir frys as well. When shopping at wallyworld remember that wally's brand is not always the best buy. One example here at my local store 20# of GV rice is $15.34 and Imperial Dynasty Jasmine rice is 20# for $13.46 ..better rice cheaper price.
On one of the days that you are having chicken or other meat, just pour the soup over the top & bake together. Mix every once in awhile. When meat is done the 'drippings' are gravy. Very good over potatoes, noodles or rice. This was a staple when we were first married some 25+ years ago & were dirt poor.
"On one of the days that you are having chicken..."
oh god ! probably the only food more unhealthy than chicken is a donut...really, when you see those packets of chicken breasts that are the size of your forearm and tough as a piece of cardboard, but not as tasty: do you think STEROIDS ?
when you read about all those youngish atheletes mysteriously dying, do you think STEROIDS ?
so folks give your kiddies plenty of donuts, chicken and bgh-milk, there just isn't enuf social insecurity and medifraud money to go around.
if you don't believe me don't forget the government wouldn't let unhealthy foods to be sold. and don't forget, next year they'll be plenty of high paying jobs for your spawn and free government issue SUV's in the driveway of every McMansion....
Sure, just as soon as I line the biddies up and ask which of the guys is supplying the rest of the flock with 'roids. Then I'll have them scratch out a spot for that new SUV. And hey! bring that mcmansion down the gravel road cause the neighbors can all use the laugh! Just include a good mat cause nothing sticks better than chicken poo.
My family has an old favorite recipe called spamcakes. You just chop the spam up into little chunks and put it into pancake batter. The kids love it, they eat it all up.
your post on canned meat reminded me of an interview I saw with a Hawkins Yahweh member who lived in an old trailer with his wife and five kids in Texas. He had hundreds and hundreds of cans of jack mackerel in all the cupboards as his food storage program. I can't imagine the kids liked eating that very much, though...
Susie
Gee, Jim, do you ever eat peanut butter? To me, sounds better than trying to stuff spam down your throat. From personal experience, you can eat peanut butter and homemade whole wheat bread everyday for breakfast and lunch, with reconstituted dry milk. Doesn't hurt a bit and no spam needed. Peanut butter stores about 2 or more years, especially in root cellar type cool conditions (actually, I haven't kept a jar of peanut butter for more than 2 years, but I bet it would keep much longer). An 18 ounce jar contains 3040 calories and has 112 grams of quality protein. Since 70% of the calories are in the oils, the nutrition value and caloric value is very efficient for the weight. With wheat bread slices and drinking reconstituted dry milk, and taking at least one multiple vitamin pill a day, you can survive indefinitely.
wow...who'da thunk Spam would garner so many comments... (then again, it's the most popular item on my e-mail site...)
CAn tolerate the stuff, m'self, but would rather not. But good point on calories for survival...
Lotta good recipes out there, A. but add spam, and 'good' ain't an adjective i'd include anymore
A.#2-- like the beta on TSP. Thanks.
Third anan (geez, yall procreate incessantly, eh?) GREAT spam recipe, i'd say!!!
Several more anony's down the line... treet, at half the cost of Spam-- i'm with you. hey, CAN'T be any less a cut of pureed meat-like substance than the 'original' can it? Seriously???
StephInAr.. Like the (next comment) anonymous, i aint big on yardbird-- raised factory style,- but yer recipes give me a shot of nostalgia: Cream-of (!) as gravy, over some rice or papas, MAN...
theotheranotheranonymous-- spamcakes. thanks; i thought i was gettin' hungry. That comment'll save me a meal...
:)
Cygnus
SPAM: Something Posing As Meat.
Nothing like a spam burger with a little canned bacon piled on and topped off with a some freeze dried cheddar sprinkled with a little bacon salt sandwiched between some of Jims flatbread for breakfast. Don't forget some fresh instant dried milk to wash it all down
For lunch dish try above topped with cream of chicken soup straight out of can.
For dinner I might throw together a little spam and textured vegetable protein meat loaf with bbq sauce
Bottoms up!
Dakin is full of shit. Unproven drivel. Most of what he writes could be said in one paragraph, but he tries to be funny and raddles on so much about his ex-wife and other crap no one could care less about, that I tend to loss the meanning of what he is trying to say. Damn just say what you need to say and shut the fuck up.
Boy, that 12:34 is very tongue-tied, just say what you mean, don't hesitate.
Now, as to spam, I too, am one of those freaks who also like SPAM and use it interchangeably with canned ham, or even several brands of boneless ham. My favorite is still fired crispy and on a whole wheat bread sandwich with loads of horseradish mustard. As to the jack mackerel, it is pretty good if dusted with flour and fried. Point is, having gobbled many varied foods all over the Orient and North America for the last 65 years, including dog, woodchuck, muskrat, turtle, etc. I've pretty well figured a man (or woman) will eat damn near anything. BIGBil
"raddles"? Is there such a word? I enjoy reading a bunch of blogs on the topic of survival, this one included. There are days that certain ones do it for me and other days they don't. Even the poorly written ones (not Bison BTW) contain nuggets of helpful info. I'm grateful that someone's putting the time in to get the info out there. If you don't like it, don't read it. It's that easy.
Anyhoo, anyone know what the real shelf life is on Spam? I have never eaten it in my life, but I see Costco has some big packages of it. I bought a small can to try and if I like it, even remotely, I'll buy a bunch. Just want to know how long it'll keep. After reading the nutritional info on the label, I don't think it'll be a normal part of my diet, but if it's at all tasty, it'll be a good TEOTWAWKI change of pace.
Who knew spam could be so much fun? On the odd chance that someone doesn't know - there is a recipe contest every year. If you need some ideas or have a good experiment check this page out:
www.spam.com/eatspam/contest_rules.aspx
The flock isn't talking but I suspect the Sicilian - he's too small to be using his own stuff.
I like to mix cream of chicken or cream of anything with cooked rice. Another one is to add a box of stuffing cooked with a can of cream of chicken or whatever. Basic slop night is around the same here.
Hope this helps your palette some! ;)
Dear Jim,
While I sometimes have a bit of trouble getting beyond your mysogony, I still find so much of value on your site that I tune in nearly every day. I did have a couple of things I would add to your low cost preps that might add a healthy dose of vitamins and fiber as well as diversity to your meals. The first would be sprouting seeds. I buy a one lb bag of salad mix seeds for about $11.00. I only sprout a couple of tablespoons at a time so a bag lasts for quite a while. I would also consider transplanting wild edibles that will blend in without looking like a garden. I have transplanted Jerusalem artichokes, elderberries, blackberries, lots of mints and herbs, lamb's quarters, gooseberries and dozens of other edibles around the perimeter of my land. If you didn't know what you were looking for, you would walk right over most of it. I just added several pair of heavy leather work gloves and wool socks to my preps. The final thought would be one good all around book. Carla Emory's. Encyclopedia of Country Living is the best although I wish my book, Just In Case: How To Be Self-sufficient When The Unexpected Happens was on the must-have list. Alas, Carla's is more comprehensive. Best wishes. I appreciate all you have to offer.
G3Ken- I'm not absolutely certain as to the shelf life of SPAM (or its complements) but it's almost as long as a dog's life. So long as the seals are unbroken and there's no rust on the can, anyway. SPAM's mfr lists an expiration date on each can, but as we are all obvious of, expiration dates are pretty arbitrary and not to be taken too seriously.
As to trying it- Mikey sez, "Try it, you'll like it. ESPECIALLY if you're hungry for meat."
Like many, I like SPAM, but prefer the lower cost TREET derivative and cook it much the same way. Fried and on a 'sammich' with lotsa mustard (I like mustard on eggs, too!). It makes an excellent bacon replacement with eggs, BTW.
LOL at some of the comments...some people live sheltered lives!
SPAM: Something Posing As Meat is true- but it's the 'original' MRE, too.
As to cooking it: the SPAM website has hundreds of recipies for the product.
LOL- always something interesting happening when the topic of SPAM comes up!
Shy
Ok, you are going to have to trust me on this. Slice the Spam 1/4" thick. Slice each slice vertically so you get two long rectangles from each slice. Throw it in a frying pan over pretty high heat so it gets nice and brown and kinda crispy. Warm a corn tortilla (best directly on the burner if you have gas heat), now lay two or three slices in the tortilla and shake on some Tapatio (very important) hot sauce. One can of Spam will make lots of these tacos and they are delish little morsels.
Even my 16 yr old 'organic only' daughter will gobble them up...that's how tasty they are!
so we were drivin on I45 north to Dallas...saw the "haulin liquid chicken" truck...with the perty aparklin chrome tank...3 hot roadchix mirrored in the pristine tanker...wow..."yes!", we exclaimed, "it *is* the liquid chicken truck!" then we said "wtf is liquid chicken?" ...then googled it and found you all here and knew we were not alone
we are not alone
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