When food gets spoilt

What do you do with leftover food? Some people throw away leftover food in times of abundance. But the fact remains that of times of scarcity, this food can be dried or freeze dried to be used during times of adversity. In war situations, the best thing to do is to let the food ferment and then allow the food to dry in the sun in times of abundance. Whats your opinion?

 

Well, drying is a very good tactic actually. In older times when they couldn't get ahold of weat very often, and they didn't have bakeries or the time to bake bread everyday, and they had to worry about weat going spoit (tough times), what they did was to bake as much breas as possible. Then they would take those loafs and cut them into slices and either bake them some more to make rusks.
The more dried the rusk, the more it lasts. And so when they cooked, they would opt to make soups and dunk the rusk in the soup to gain moisture and be easier to chug down.

Another thing, that some people still do, is to make a pot-stewed dish, tomato sauce or anything that is a vegetable which is edible when boiled and then put it into jars, closing the jars lightly and then subject them to strong heat. That's done by placing the jars wrapped in raggs of soft cloth into a large pot which contains water, placed over a large fire. The water boils and then you close the jar lids tighly so that the air will suction the lid from the inside and make an airtight sealing.

 

I have posted in another thread about the leftover food to be buried in pits to serve as fertilizer and to avoid the camp to be infested by scavenging insects. But if the leftover is for saving for later, I guess drying or smoking or salting is the answer. For example you have a game like a deer which meat could provide you (and your group maybe) with food for 3 days. But the meat will spoil so you have to apply salt and wrap it in banana leaves for temporary preservation. When the sun is shining bright, expose the meat for drying. And when there is no sun, the alternative is to create a fire with big wood such as a log to have smoke. Hang the meat so the smoke can hit it... that would eventually dry the meat and preserve it somehow.

 

What humans can't digest, we can easily turn it into food for our livestock. If not then we can easily bury them for compost or the seeds in them might still be good. So plant them and grow more. There should be no waste in a survival situation. If you are thinking of tossing these things, then someone needs to do more studying on the cycle of life.

 

In survival situations, i doubt leftovers will be an issue. It's more likely that you'll know which food to consume first so the risk of it being spoiled will be avoided. But if you do have leftovers, if it's something that can be dried, then that should be the smart way to do so you can save it for later.

 

You should always eat non-perishables as soon as possible. If it can be dried, such as what people in the army do, it will last for years. Contrary to popular belief, food seldom expires if you keep it in good conditions. Use salt. Keep it in cool conditions away from heat and in the shade (unless you want to dry it) since moisture is a breeding ground for bacteria and germs. Milk does not expire that quickly. It is good for days after its expiration date. Freezing food is easier in the wintertime. Using the food as fertilizer is also a good idea because you are giving back to the environment and getting more vegetables and food in return.

Make sure you keep the food with essential nutrients well and that they comprise of most of your food so that you can have the essentials for future emergencies. That is why you should always plant seeds in your food if you can because then you will be able to get more nutrients. You will be able to survive longer with the proper nutrients in your diet.