Food Variety

Those things are easy to store and should be the foundation. Add variety as you can afford to expand your supplies.

We all read a bit about storing a good variety of food for when the SHTF but I'm just wondering how necessary it is.
I have reduced over time the variety of food we keep and now am only going to store the absolute basics like rice, pasta etc as the shelf life is good and long.
A lot of people go a bit nuts eating the same things over and over, week after week...but if we think about it, a lot of people on this planet do just that and they don't go crazy after a few weeks, months or even years.
Quite a few years ago we had a court case going against us (that was successfully defended) for three years and by the time we paid the legal costs, mortgage and household bills it left VERY LITTLE to buy food. So for about 18 months we lived almost exclusively on baked potatoes, cheese, spices, and raw goats milk, three meals a day....and you know we actually really enjoyed it and all still love spuds 😆
We remained healthy throughout this period although I think we were more likely to get sick from the stress rather than the diet.

Maybe we are a bit too used to having so much variety in our diet and that is where the real problem is...just my thoughts, feel free to add yours 🙂

No offence intended but I went 3 years eating the same foods due to jaw issues. It wasn't until the 2 year mark that the same diet started to effect me. By year 3 I had basically stopped eating. It took a threat from the doctor and an additional surgery to get me eating again. Most people can not do the same diet and I am glad you were able do it. Most "3rd world nations" do not have the same diet variety that we have but there still may come a point when you want/need a greater variety. Now being on sick leave, for me the SHTF so I am eating from my stores.

Having a garden and preserving what you grow is a good way to add variety without adding to much to the cost.

I think with some variety you can do without an extensive variety. I menu plan to some extent and we eat very simply. The ingredients are mostly the same things over and over again and are built around whole foods that store well or items we grow or raise ourselves. We still eat some processed foods but they are in ever dwindling amounts. I think most of us would survive on your spud diet for quite awhile but an optimal diet for a long term event (or just life in general) should include at least a little more variety!

I watch youtube videos on food storage sometimes and I can't help but wonder how these "well-prepared" people are going to make it. They have a basement full of junk food - canned spaghettio's and pop - all processed foods that come in a can or a box. For the very short term event that might be ok but long term it will lead to many health problems not to mention it's EXPENSIVE empty calories. But you have to admit they store a wide variety of foods - after all there's a difference between spaghettio's and ravioli! hee hee. I understand having some of those foods on hand and no offence to the spaghettio crowd...

I guess this issue also has to take into consideration what you are preparing for - a weekend power outage or a TEOTWAWKI event. I love potatoes but I'm not sure how long I would want to face them - even with cheese!!

Diet Fatigue is a genuine problem in the long term. It comes from eating the same thing over and over. "Variety" is a means to alleviate the problem. That said there are many different methods of introducing variety to our diets. People store beans, rice, pasta and perhaps wheat as their main bulk ingredients. They store well.. are inexpensive at this time and form the basis of a nutritional and calorie dense diet. A daily diet of beans... or rice.... or whatever doesn't sound enticing and honestly would become quite boring and even stressful in the long term. That said we all eat a repetitive diet right now. We eat beef, pork, chicken.... tofu.... and add sides to it. I would say that a diet of roast beef... and that alone with no variation of side dishes would become very boring quite quickly. What we do with our diet is to vary the method of cooking. We roast, braise, stew, grind, BBQ, fry, stir fry and on and on. What we do for variety is to alter the method of preparation. Also seasonings and sides. What many look for their SHTF diet is beans cooked the same way... day in day out.... same with rice. THAT would indeed get boring. What they fail to do is to research and develop recipes that will change the flavor, texture, consistency etc of the staples. The time to do that is now while you have the time and resources to do so in an easy way. One of the best resources is ethnic cooking. Indian, West Indian, African, Chinese, Vietnamese, Mexican and South American. These are the cultures that use these staples on a daily basis. Reap the rewards of their 1000's of years of trial, error and success. Just a few thoughts.

JAB

I'd agree with the ethnic cooking and I guess for us during that time that is where the variety came from in adding different spices to our spuds.

Yes those that store all processed junk would likely be in a worse position than the humble spud eaters.
I don't think we would have enjoyed our spuds as much if we hadn't been able to add spices and melted cheese, but it is still interesting that a huge variety isn't really required, a little variety is all that is needed...haha maybe it also depends how boring the person is, perhaps I am just very dull and don't mind repetition so much, I know it would kill my neighbour to eat the same thing every meal 😆
Dick Proenneke said "He ate simple food seasoned with hunger."...I guess if the SHTF bad enough we will be very thankful for anything to put in our stomachs even if it is fairly tasteless or repetitive.

The spices aren't just for taste. This is probably the stuff that keeps you healthy, not just the food. An herb garden is just as important for health as the veggies, maybe more so.
Who will argue the health benefits of onions, garlic, carrots, celery. There are probably many compounds not yet recognized and combinations of things not yet seen as beneficial that are important in keeping us strong and fit.

Parsley is a good source of antioxidants (especially luteolin), folic acid, vitamin C, and vitamin A. Proclaimed health benefits include anti-inflammatory properties and a boosted immune system.
Rosemary is high in iron, calcium and vitamin B
Sage has been recommended at one time or another for virtually every ailment by various herbals. Modern evidence shows possible uses as an antisweating agent, antibiotic, antifungal, astringent, antispasmodic, estrogenic, hypoglycemic, and tonic
Thyme
Oil of thyme, the essential oil of common thyme (Thymus vulgaris), contains 20–54% thymol.[5] Thyme essential oil also contains a range of additional compounds, such as p-Cymene, myrcene, borneol and linalool.[6] Thymol, an antiseptic, is the main active ingredient in various commercially produced mouthwashes such as Listerine.[7] Before the advent of modern antibiotics, oil of thyme was used to medicate bandages.[1] Thymol has also been shown to be effective against various fungi that commonly infect toenails.[8] Thymol can also be found as the active ingredient in some all-natural, alcohol-free hand sanitizers.
A tea made by infusing the herb in water can be used for coughs and bronchitis.[5]

Hippocrates used oregano as an antiseptic, as well as a cure for stomach and respiratory ailments. A Cretan oregano (O. dictamnus) is still used today in Greece as a palliative for sore throat.[8]

Oregano is high in antioxidant activity, due to a high content of phenolic acids and flavonoids.[9][10] In test-tube studies, it also has shown antimicrobial activity against strains of the food-borne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes.[9]

True and good point, I wasn't thinking of it from that angle so hadn't thought to mention it...we ate a lot of turmeric, ginger, cumin, coriander etc during this time, on the whole it was probably a fairly well rounded diet 😀

All those anti-inflammatory herbs and spices were probably what saved us from all the stress 😀

I'd agree with the ethnic cooking and I guess for us during that time that is where the variety came from in adding different spices to our spuds.

Yes those that store all processed junk would likely be in a worse position than the humble spud eaters.
I don't think we would have enjoyed our spuds as much if we hadn't been able to add spices and melted cheese, but it is still interesting that a huge variety isn't really required, a little variety is all that is needed...haha maybe it also depends how boring the person is, perhaps I am just very dull and don't mind repetition so much, I know it would kill my neighbour to eat the same thing every meal 😆
Dick Proenneke said "He ate simple food seasoned with hunger."...I guess if the SHTF bad enough we will be very thankful for anything to put in our stomachs even if it is fairly tasteless or repetitive.

I am dull and boring too. Another spud eater. I look at the reccomended prepper lists and can't make myself see the need for a lot of it. I don't use most of it now so that means I don't need most of it later. Its salt I wouldn't want to run short of. Any other spice is just icing on the cake. I wouldn't be too happy without onions either but it wouldn't keep me from eating.