Here in South Carolina we’re preparing for Hurricane Irma.  My emergency brain is already thinking about what my family will eat if the power goes out for an extended period of time like it did during Hurricane Season two years ago.  Personally, I can only eat PB&J and beans for so many days before my stomach betrays me and wants something else.  If you’re like me and already brainstorming emergency dinners, I thought I’d help you out.

A lot of our family meals during power outages happen on the grill, but not all of us have grills.  I have options for hot meals and meals without the grill.  Off the bat, I would recommend having your cast iron skillet handy during Hurricane Season because you can stick it right on the grill to heat things up without having to worry about handles melting.  If you don’t have a skillet, you can use a 9×9 square cooking pan knowing that it won’t be usable after living on your grill.

Another tip is to make sure your freezer is full.  If it’s not, fill empty bottles or Ziplocs with water now while you have power and they’ll freeze, cooling the rest of your freezer and fridge.  A full freezer will keep cool for 48 hours and a half full freezer will keep cool for 24 hours.

Snacks:

Oranges, Apples, and other Easy Shelf-Stable Fruit
Tuna
Crackers
Nuts & Seeds
Dry Cereal or Cereal with Evaporated Milk
Beef Jerky
Packaged Fruit

No-Heat Meals:

Chickpea Avacado Tacos (drop the cheese and cilantro if you don’t have access to a cooler)

Not-So-Dumb Salad With Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Avocado & Balsamic Vinegar

Spicy Tuna Wrap

Loaded Vegetarian Nachos (skip the cheese and sour cream)

Grill-Cooked Meals:

Honestly, you can warm almost anything on a grill if you have one, it’s just a matter of whether or not you have to reach into your refrigerator for the ingredients.  Once again, I recommend having your skillet handy if you’re going to heat food up on the grill.  Another big tip I have to to brown your beef, chicken or turkey ahead of time (before the storm hits) so it will warm up easier on the grill.

Breakfast for Dinner: We always cook eggs on our skillet on the grill when the power is out.  We have backyard chickens, so our eggs are already out on the counter and not in the fridge.  Plus, we can whip up some just-add-water pancakes and cook them in the skillet.

Spaghetti with Meat Sauce: Grab your meat that’s already browned.  This could be one thing you want to sneak into the freezer for.  Heat the meat on the skillet on the grill.  Pour on your spaghetti sauce.  Grab the Barilla Ready Pasta from your store or buy it on Amazon Prime for pasta that doesn’t have to bee cooked.

Rainbow Vegetable Kabobs