Short-Term Food Storage Basics: Part 1 – Getting Started
December 12, 2022
3 Comments
A beginner’s guide to short-term food storage and the differences between short-term and long-term food storage.
February Thrive Life Specials: What You Need to Know
Is it just me or was January the longest month ever? I’m breathing a big sigh of relief that we’re finally on to the next month.
The February Thrive Life specials are pretty good. There are definitely a few I highly recommend. Thrive is also doing one of their case lot sales this month. Be sure to check out the 7 different foods to see if one of your favorites is included. You can snag a 6-can case of the family size.
Let’s get to it!
**This post contains affiliate links, which means if you click on a link and make a purchase, I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you.
1
Diced Beef - 30% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
This is pretty darn good! I will say, it has a bit of a reheated taste – I can definitely tell it’s not fresh meat, but the rest of my family can’t. It really depends on your sensitivity to meat.
As with all meats, I highly recommend browning this real quick in a pan (after reconstituting it, but before adding it to your recipe).
My favorite way to use this is to reconstitute it and throw it in a pot with some gravy that I make from a seasoning packet, and then I serve the gravy and meat over rice.
You can purchase diced beef to add to your food storage HERE.
2
Grilled Diced Chicken - 25% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
By now, I think I’ve made it clear that I am not a fan of anything other than freshly cooked chicken. This tastes like microwaved chicken to me when I reconstitute it. It makes sense – it’s not Thrive’s fault. It’s just the nature of cooking meat and then reheating it later. I don’t fault Thrive – just my picky taste buds.
BUT, most people think this tastes totally fine. So unless you’re a chicken snob like me, this would be a good addition to your food storage.
3
Tomato Dices - 30% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
Haven’t tried these – my family doesn’t like cooked tomatoes, so these don’t make sense for my food storage.
4
Raspberries - 25% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
These pack a punch for sure, so get ready to pucker up!
These are really tasty, but I prefer eating them WITH something else, to tone down the tartness.
But they really are what you would expect from freeze dried raspberries! Full of flavor and delicious!
Click here to order freeze dried raspberries.
5
STRAWBERRY SLICes - 25% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
If you love strawberries, you’ll love these!
They are bursting with flavor … a fan favorite, for sure!
These are also a great thing to purchase in a pantry can size to throw in a 72-hour kit for a snack. You can’t beat not having to rotate a snack food for 25 years that your kids will happily gobble up!
Click here if you’re ready to purchase Strawberry Slices!
PS – These do get soft and chewy after being open for a few weeks. So if it’s going to be a while before you get through an entire can, consider dumping the strawberries into an airtight container once you open them.
6
Instant Refried Beans - 25% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
I have tried these and they’re totally fine; it’s hard to mess up refried beans.
So the reason I don’t store these isn’t because they’re gross. It’s just because it’s not an economical way to store refried beans.
Without boring you too terribly much with all the ins and outs of short-term food storage, I will just say this: A can of refried beans from the store is about $1, maybe $2. Let’s be generous and say one pantry can of these refried beans is equivalent to 3 store-bought cans of refried beans. That’s $3-$6 worth of beans (that are ready to dump out of the can – no prep needed), and you’ll pay $11.35 for it from Thrive. That’s anywhere from double to quadruple the price.
So it all comes down to shelf life. These Instant Refried Beans do have a shelf life of 25 years, which is pretty awesome. But cans of refried beans that come from the grocery store usually have about a year-ish shelf life. So I’d rather store a year’s supply of cans from the grocery store than a year’s supply from Thrive.
The catch is, I have to rotate my store-bought cans. All the time.
With Thrive, I can set them and forget them (for 25 years).
I have a can rotator, and I am used to using this method with all the canned foods I use on a regular basis, so this is a no-brainer for me.
If you know you are not going to be good at always keeping a bunch of cans of refried beans from the grocery store in the pantry, and/or you’re going to be horrible at rotating them, then by all means, get the refried beans from Thrive!
I just wanted to be transparent about why I’m going to pass on the beans.
Click here if you want to give Thrive Life’s instant refried beans a try.
7
Mozzarella Cheese - 25% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
I actually haven’t tried the mozzarella cheese, but I have tried the freeze dried cheddar cheese, and it’s awesome.
So even though I haven’t tried the mozzarella, I am going to assume it’s pretty similar to the cheddar, in that it reconstitutes and melts the same as the cheddar. I just haven’t tried it yet!
Although, I feel a lasagna trial run coming on….so stay tuned!
Click here if you want to add freeze dried Mozzarella Cheese to your next order.
8
Strawberry Yogurt Bites - 25% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
GET! THESE!
Yogurt Bites RARELY go on sale. And these are a CROWD PLEASER.
Imagine if you will, a scenario when you would actually be needing to use your food storage. It’s not pretty, is it?
When I imagine using our food storage, I imagine stress, chaos, and a heck of a lot of things that we’re probably going without, at that point. These yogurt bites would be SUCH a welcome treat!
Also, these are in almost all of our 72-hour kits. They are a great snack, delicious, and a pantry can with a pop-top is the perfect size and convenience for a 72-hour kit situation!
9
Instant Milk - 50% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
This stuff is GREAT! I think this is one of the items that sets Thrive Life apart from other food storage companies. Their milk is really really good.
I definitely think this is one staple everyone should have in their food storage. (Well, I guess if your family is dairy-free it wouldn’t make sense. But, everyone else should have some.) Even if no one drinks it by the glass in your household, I bet you have a handful of recipes that call for milk (like mac & cheese).
This used to be the only milk I recommended storing, but now there’s a really closer runner-up. I promise honesty, so here it is: the LDS Home Storage Center has upgraded their milk and it is really good! It’s cheaper than Thrive’s milk, so I’ll link it here for ya.
The 2 biggest differences between Thrive’s and the LDS:
Thrive’s has a 25-year shelf life, where the LDS milk has a 20-year shelf life.
Thrive’s comes in #10 cans and pantry cans, where the LDS milk comes in mylar bags.
The cost per gallon of Thrive’s milk in a #10 can on this sale: $6.89
The cost per gallon of the LDS Church’s milk: $3.94
If you want to stick with Thrive’s milk, 50% off is a screamin’ deal. My kids can only tell the difference between this and fresh store bought milk if they see me mixing it up. I cannot recommend this milk enough.
If you want to know more about this milk, including cost per serving, go read this post.
If you’re ready to add this instant milk to your order, click here.
**Instant Milk has an OVERSTOCK banner on it, which means it may be 1 or 2 years into its 25-year shelf life already.
CASE LOT SALE!!!
It’s that special time of the year when Thrive Life has a CASE LOT SALE! WHOOHOO!
There are 6 items that are 30% off on the case lot sale this month, so let’s check them out!
1
Chopped Onions CASE LOT - 30% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
Have you ever given someone freeze dried food for a gift?
No? Well, I sure have. No lie – I give cases of these chopped onions as gifts. I’ve been told it’s life-changing.
These are THE NUMBER ONE THING I RECOMMEND FROM THRIVE LIFE!
Never cry over chopping onions again. I use these almost daily when cooking.
Click here to add freeze dried chopped onions to your delivery. YOU WILL NOT REGRET GETTING A CASE OF THESE!!
PS – these take a long time to get soft after opening them, just in the can they come in. So I don’t bother repackaging them once I open the can. Even if they do get a little soft (if it has taken me a few months to get through an entire can, which is rare), you can’t tell a difference in the meal, so it’s a non-issue for me.
2
Mushroom pieces CASE LOT - 30% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
YES!
Who else reaches for the mushrooms and they’re black and slimy? It feels like every time I buy fresh mushrooms, they go bad before I get the chance to use them. Because of this, I use Thrive Life’s freeze dried mushrooms in my cooking instead of fresh mushrooms. Every single time.
They are so awesome to have on hand to just toss in a sauce. You can rehydrate first or if you’re putting them in a meal with liquid in it (like soup), just toss them right in.
Super convenient for every day and an awesome option to give you some variety in your food storage meals.
Click here to add the mushroom pieces to your order.
**Freeze Dried Mushrooms have an OVERSTOCK banner on them, which means they may be 1 or 2 years into their 25-year shelf life already.
3
Sausage Crumbles CASE LOT - 30% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
This is one of my favorite meats from Thrive Life! It is DELICIOUS!
I don’t cook much with sausage, but when I do, I have no hesitation using this. Just like ground beef, I recommend browning the sausage crumbles before adding them to a meal.
Click here if you’re ready to add these sausage crumbles to your food storage.
4
Blueberries CASE LOT - 30% off
There’s one ingredient in this can: blueberries.
No additives.
No preservatives.
Just blueberries.
25 year shelf life.
I personally get the blueberries in the pantry can size, because I like them super fresh and crisp. This is one of those fruits that does get soft and chewy after being open for a few weeks, so if you’re not going to go through an entire number 10 can within a few weeks, I recommend ordering these in the pantry can size. It just depends on how quickly you’ll go through them.
To add freeze dried blueberries to your food storage, click here.
5
Chopped Spinach CASE LOT - 30% off
Shelf Life - 25 years
No clue – I literally have one recipe that uses spinach, and it’s for spinach artichoke dip, which just isn’t a priority for me, so we don’t store this. We’re just not a spinach family.
Click here if you’d like to add chopped spinach to your food storage.
6
MASHED POTATOES CASE LOT - 30% off
These are gross if you make them with water. They taste like cardboard.
However, if you make them with butter and milk, they are superb! Ha!!!
One thing to note: these have a 5-year shelf life.
I also think the potatoes from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are just as good (as long as they are prepared with milk and butter), FYI!
To add Thrive Life’s mashed potatoes to your food storage, click here.
If you have questions:
PLEASE send me an email! Don’t delay getting started on your food storage just because something is confusing. I am here to help. If something is confusing to you, or even if you have questions about a previous order, PLEASE ASK!
melanie@planforawesome.com
Quick Ordering Reminders:
Related Posts:
Long Term Food Storage Basics: What you need to Know to Get Started
November 21, 2022
6 Comments
Answers to some of your most asked questions about long-term food storage, including the difference between dehydrated and freeze dried food.
My top 12 Freeze Dried Foods from Thrive Life
August 15, 2022
19 Comments
While every family’s food storage needs are a little different, every family needs food storage. These 12 items are my top favorites – most of them I even use on a regular basis when I’m out of the grocery store version.