Category — FOOD

PB and I have been living 100% off grid since December 2007, we have done most everything ourselves, mostly by hand, it’s cheaper that way. Over these last couple of years, we have discovered a few favorite items that really work well for us. These are items we actually use on a regular if not daily basis, these are things I wouldn’t want to live without.  Many of these items we salvaged (ie FREE), some we purchased and were worth every penny. (more…)

Paul Thomas, truffle expert

If you have the right kind of land, Truffle growing could pay for your off-grid lifestyle – Paul Thomas of Plantation Systems explains.

The black truffle (Tuber melanosporum) is an underground fungus which grows in association with certain trees, prized by anyone interested in food for its unique and exquisite flavour/ Prices for the best quality black winter truffle reach $1500 (£1000) per kilo. (more…)

Canning - you use a jar

I received an email ad today from one of my regulars about buying up the last stock available on their website of canned meats, cheese and butter, once it’s gone, it’s gone. That prompted a flurry of searching for the best prices on these items. In the process I ran across an article about canning your own cheese. I already knew about canning butter, but didn’t think about canning cheese too. (more…)

Dirty job, but somebody's got to

Compost is easy to make but it happens much faster and easier with a compost tumbler because you need to turn compost regularly to get oxygen into the mix.
You must tumble the contents of the bin five to 10 times every day or so, and the pile should feel warm, or about 160 degrees. (more…)

Time is slipping away...

So, just what does that mean? I can tell you from personal experience and from the responses I have received from people over the years that it definitely has different meanings to different people. From living completely without any utilities, no electricity, water or gas (think hunter’s cabin, wood stove, candles or kerosene lamps, no running water…), to generating one or more of these items on site yourself (think solar panels, wind power, methane digester…), I even had one person say that for him, living “off the grid” meant living so remotely that the government couldn’t find you, essentially hiding from the world. For some people it brings up a picture of a hermit living in a shack on a remote location, others envision a state of the art home that independently takes care of the needs of all occupants from food and water to electricity. (more…)

New veg-box scheme

The world’s first portable, containerised vegetable garden is set to be delivered in April. The scientifically developed  “vegetable factory”, from Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp. is an insulated 40-ft shipping container, equipped with water-circulation system and LED lighting.

Reacting to a scandal caused by the importation of pesticide-tainted dumplings from China, Japan is seeing a number of designs emerge for small vegetable factories in which crops are grown artificially. Many are cultivated hydroponically in tiers of shelves under energy-saving LED  lighting.

Some are so small that they can be installed in a floor space equivalent to a “tatami” mat (2 metres square). (more…)

Allegra - like a female Jaimie

Slow cooking is the best way to eat off the grid. Here is the philosophy for successful slow stews.

It’s an icy winter’s day in west London and Allegra McEvedy’s kitchen is filled with spice-fragrant steam. As she stirs a huge pan of gumbo, a richly flavoured sausage and prawn casserole, McEvedy, who recently starred in the BBC TV series Economy Gastronomy (buy the book in the US) , becomes increasingly evangelical. “The recession was the kick up the backside that people needed to eat better and waste less,” she says. (more…)

home cooking on tap

This site does not talk enough about the great new gadgets and technologies which make off-grid living ever more comfortable.  Here are two – your favorite suggestions please, readers,  in comments at end of this story.:-

The impact of the microwave oven on human grazing habits has been extreme. It can reheat frozen food or cook raw food in a fraction of the time required of a conventional oven and has brought the convenience of preparing food to new levels. The WaveBox Microwave Oven is a (more…)

No, I’m not talking about your last job… I’m talking about canning. It’s all but becoming a lost art. But it doesn’t have to be a mystery. I read a great article all about canning, this is about the basics, what you will need to get started, how to determine how many canning jars, rings and lids you will need. This is the part that most canning manuals don’t tell you about. Enjoy.

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