Preserving food

[D Hagens]

 Hey guys, my wife and I are going to the cabin for a month. We have no power there, just solar which isn't enough to run a fridge.
We need to preserve food and I was told that if you dip eggs in wax they will stay fresh for a few weeks.
Is this true and how long will they last?
Does anyone else have any tricks that will work to make food last?
Also as we have no power how am I going to have my morning coffee and keep up with the forum! I can charge the laptops in the truck but how much drain will that put on the battery?

[Norm]

On the eggs it depends on if they are eggs from your chickens or store bought. Store bought put a coating on them after washing to help seal the egg because they wash off the natural coating. With them I wouldn't bother to try keeping them waxed or not, who knows how old they are. On your eggs if you could keep them in a root cellar I'd think they'd last a month no problem. Again don't wash them as you lose the protective coating.

As for waxing I have no idea.

[Tom]

Eggs are pretty good for several days if you keep them out of the sun.  Take a laying hen with you.

Take a .22.  Squirrel is good.  Snake is OK.  Rabbit is good. most birds are good.

Make sun tea.  Take a gal. glass jug full of water, put a couple, or three,  family sized tea bags in it, put a lid on (not too tight) and set it in the sun for a few hours.

You can do the same with coffee, but it takes a little longer.  Put ice in it, or heat over a little fire when you want some.

Take stuff you don't have to cool, grits, oatmeal, flour, sugar, salt or most any can goods.  SPAM, vienna sausages and stuff like that are good out of the can or fry for breakfast.

take a fish hook and some line.  Fish are good most any time.

[jim king]

When I go into the jungle for any period of time I take live chickens and tether them to a bush or something.  Pan fried or soup both are good .  Packets of tomato paste mixed with water make tomato juice on site just like you buy in the big heavy cans.  Plenty of spagetti and tomato sauce and powdered milk.

A little rum helps also but I carry cool aid to make on the spot as coke is to heavy to carry.

[RynSmith]

Search for 'toddy coffee.'  It doesn't require heat and gives you a very good, concentrated coffee that you then 'dilute' with either milk (guess not, in your case) or water and heat.  If you can come up with a good way to filter it you won't need to pay for their setup.

[D Hagens]

Hi guys! The eggs are from the chickens out back, nice and fresh.
Never thought about bringing a few chickens with us, that's a very good idea.
Tom we have no snakes on the island nor can we have guns, no shooting at all. 8)
Darla wants to try the sun tea, she thinks it would be great with some lemon in it. Thanks!

[submarinesailor]

Take a look at this article in Mother Earth News:  http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/1977-11-01/Fresh-Eggs.aspx

If you don't want to read the whole thing, the summary starts at the end of page 3.

Bruce

[LeeB]

Lipton makes a cold brew tea now that I find to taste better than hot brew and it will last longer without spoiling. Both types will last longer if you leave the bags in the piture. Don't know why but it works. Canned bacon is available and the ready cooked bacon in plastic packs from Hormel, Armor, Tyson and others will keep unrefrigerated for a couple months. I used to take it with me when I was working in Egypt and kept it in my locker for a month at a time. Fresh laid eggs will keep for quite a long while. A hen doesn't lay a whole clutch in a day when she's setting those twenty or so.

[D Hagens]

Take a look at this article in Mother Earth News:  http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/1977-11-01/Fresh-Eggs.aspx

If you don't want to read the whole thing, the summary starts at the end of page 3.

Bruce

We found it interesting as after a few months of testing there really wasn't anything better then an unwashed egg for lasting over a period of time.

LeeB We've never seen nor heard of canned bacon, the thought of it is making Darla 

[JimMartin9999]

I have found just-add-water pancake mix about as good as the kind to which you add fresh eggs, milk, and oil.  How easy it is.  I often eat them with jam instead of syrup.

[pesaventoc]

My wife and I lived on a sailboat for three years back in the early 80's. We spent a month in the Bahamas one summer. We took along eggs fresh out of the hen and had fresh eggs the whole month. There were some degradation towards the end of the trip, mostly texture, but don't remember tossing any. That was the tropics.  At 60 degrees or less I would think you would be fine with farm fresh eggs unwashed.

[ohsoloco]

I have found just-add-water pancake mix about as good as the kind to which you add fresh eggs, milk, and oil.  How easy it is.  I often eat them with jam instead of syrup.

The wife always looks at me in disgust when I put sour cream on my pancakes.  I like to make small ones (3" diameter or so), and just eat them with my hands.  Dip them in a little maple syrup or sour cream...it's too DanG sweet to cover them in syrup.