Emergency Pantry Essentials List for Bengali and Indian Food – Disasters often come with a little or no warning. It’s challenging to prepare for emergencies. We all are aware and scared of the disaster of coronavirus and COVID-19 quarantines. There is an increasing fear of a possible shortage in the food supply.
The other day, on our social media platforms, we shared five ideas about how we can deal with this situation. I hope you have read that post and are doing mindful shopping while preparing for the lockdown if it is required at all! All we can do is to pray; we pray not to face this situation. But, If it happens sooner or later, it will affect all of us. So it is time when we need to be prepared, and at the same time, we need to practice more compassion.
We all are aware of self-isolation, and we should avoid all kinds of social gatherings for the safety of our health. But, here is a big BUT; this is not the time to be selfish. It is time to keep our empathy and humanity alive! It is our responsibility to take care of our family and think about our community and neighbours! Here I am sharing a few ideas that I follow a regular basis and I am going to follow during this time as well.
Things I included in my pantry staples essentials list for emergencies for everyday Bengali and Indian Food!
There are many opinions about pantry staples during emergencies. Let me explain to you what I consider essentials in my pantry during emergencies and foods that I consider to keep on hand for some simple, basic Bengali and Indian meals. Here is the Emergency Pantry Essentials List for Bengali and Indian food.
Download the PDF version here.
How long can one freeze meat or other protein?
Panic is contagious, too! Before stockpiling, check your pantry and storage!
I understand when we sense that the situation can go out of our control, we try to take back control. In times of uncertainty, people enter a panic zone, and most of the time, it is a trap that makes them irrational. Due to stress, people stop thinking and start looking at what others are doing!
This time, without realising it, many of us stepped into the trap of panic shopping. If you are reading this post, I urge you to respond instead of reacting to the situation!
Instead of buying anything and everything you see on the supermarket’s shelves, do some prep work to eat homecooked fresh meals! Leave the canned food for those who can’t afford time or energy to cook from scratch or didn’t get a chance to do meal prep before leaving for work!
Try to Cook meals from your pantry as much as possible!
Take a deep breath, make a cup of coffee or tea, and relax! if you are able o read this post that means you are preparing yourself for the predicted emergency, but still you are in a secure position! yeah, I am happy for you, and I am glad we share the same thought:” Do prepare, don’t panic”! Grab a pen and paper, or use your mobile if you are tech-savvy. Now, check what you already have in your pantry and make a list.
Pantry inventory system
Though I cook Bengali, Indian, and South-Asian dishes most of the time, I often stock different types of noodles, pasta, and herb blends in my pantry. I regularly follow my pantry inventory system, so I know my pantry is well stocked. But my only challenge is that sometimes I buy something that is on sale or I think, let me try this one, and I buy that particular ingredient, then I completely forget about that thing. This is the perfect time to use my pantry stock before running to supermarkets or grocery shops. A well-stocked pantry is a lifesaver!
Dried lentils and beans are a great source of low-budget, protein-enriched meals from your pantry!
Dried lentils are one of the best pantry staples, no matter which variety you prefer. Dried lentils tick all the categories that we consider during emergency meals:
They take less place to stock or store.
Budget-friendly: cheaper than canned beans, so they are budget-friendly too.
Don’t depend on season: The best part is that you don’t need to depend on any season for storing them.
Long shelf life: You can store them in a cool, dry place for up to 2-3 years.
Don’t require much active prep time: It doesn’t take much effort to soak them overnight.
Don’t require much cooking time: Boil them and let them cool the next day. It doesn’t require much active time, either. Portion and store them in the refrigerator, either in glass or metal containers.
Cooked lentils store well in the fridge: You can store boiled lentils in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days, or in the freezer, you can save them more than a month.
Preservative-free: This way, not only can you enjoy freshly home-cooked meals, but also you can help people who need to depend on pre-cooked meals.
Some Easy Healthy Meal ideas with lentils and Rice:
Ask any Indian and Bengali about their staple food, and you will be told Rice and Lentils. With the combination of some basic spices, rice and lentils, you can create hundreds of various types of nutritious meals. You can use lentils and rice for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and snacks. Various Khichuri, Appam, Idli, Dosa, Cheela, Tehari, and Khichda are a few.
Here are some quick and practical recipes that you can make with lentils and rice.
Lentils and Beans recipes:
Moong Dal quinoa chilla
2. Green Moong Dal Dosa – Pesarattu
Green Moong Dal Dosa – Pesarattu
Indian spiced green lentils poached egg
Bengali Cholar Dal
Bengali Egg Tadka Daal
6. Ghugni
Ghugni
Sobji Diye Bhaja Mung Dal
8. Rajma Kabab
Rajma Kebab
Rice recipes:
Sobji diye Khichuri
Bengali Fried Rice
Vegetable Pulao
Haser dimer bhuna khichuri
Junglee Chicken pulao
Hope you find this post helpful and you can share this post with others. I will keep posting more ideas here and on our social media platforms. Be safe and be healthy!
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