Why You Should Have A Supply Of Meals In Jars (With Recipes)

I love all kinds of meals in jars! I keep them on hand for quick and easy meals, to have in the camper and in case of emergencies.

While I am not officially a prepper, if S.H.T.F (shizzle hits the fan in prepper speak) I do believe in being prepared for an emergency situation. As long as I am able to access my home, I can keep my family fed and well for several weeks at least.

Because I love to pressure can, I have a nice little stockpile of all kinds of goodies, my cupboards are always full and I have a full freezer as long as we have electricity. If not, I’ll get to canning. We do have 2 generators and plenty of fuel to last a while.

But that’s not why I love to can. I do it for convenience, when I just don’t feel like cooking from scratch.

Pin for later

It allows me to be able to take advantage of a good sale on meats and fresh veggies. I buy in bulk if there’s a savings to be had, then can it all up.

Plus we avoid using foods canned in metal cans from the store, since much of it contains BPA in the can lining, which ironically is intended to keep the food safe.

I have all kinds of heat and eat meats and meals canned like chicken, beef, pork, beef stew, spaghetti sauce, chili, soups, ham n’ beans, refrigerator pickles and so much more.

Here’s a photo of just a small section of my food storage.

Another way to prepare meals in jars it to purchase freeze dried foods or to freeze dry your own and put it in Mason jars.

Freeze dried foods are so convenient! I didn’t start using them for that reason, but they really are nice to have on hand.

The reason I started using freeze dried foods is because unless you grow your own or live where you have the advantage of fresh produce all year round you are forced to purchase them from the grocery store.

These fruits and veggies have been picked before they were ripe so they would have a long shelf life. They sit in warehouses and in transit for weeks. Many, many weeks sometimes. That means that the nutritional value of our store bought produce is nil. They weren’t given time to ripen so the flavor and nutrition just isn’t there.

My favorite freeze dried foods are picked at their best and freeze dried pretty quickly, ensuring the best nutrition and flavor.

There are several ways ways to make meals in jars. Here are a few recipes to show you how. #mealsinjars #foodpreservation #foodstorage #pressurecanning #dehydratedfoodinjars #freezedriedfoodinjars — **Left – Cheesy Cream Chicken Veggie Soup Right – Vegetable Beef Soup**

I have so much fun doing this! The meals are so pretty don’t you think?

Have you priced freeze dryers lately? Holy moly they are thousands of dollars!! That’s why I don’t do my own freeze drying. There are lots of other things I’d rather buy for myself that would be so much more fun 😉

These meals in jars work so well for a quick and easy breakfast, lunch or dinner in the RV.

We rent a lake lot in the summer just a few miles from our home, park our camper right on the water’s edge then come and go all summer long. We spend several days and nights each week there. It’s so relaxing and peaceful. It rejuvenates my soul.

Cooking a big meal in our little RV kitchen is kind of a pain if there are too many steps or ingredients to it. But with meals in jars it’s a breeze!

I try to make these meals as complete in the jar as I possibly can. Sometimes I have to add beef or chicken base, cream or butter, then add water, let simmer and viola` a super easy meal!

I have done a lot of freeze dried food research and comparisons. My favorite fruits and veggies are from Thrive Life.

They have the highest quality and most nutritious available. All of the fruits and veggies are Non-GMO, picked at the height of freshness, flash frozen then freeze dried within 24 hours of picking. That means maximum freshness and nutrition. I’m all about Non-GMO and highest nutritional value. That’s so important to me and my family.

Unfortunately that isn’t the case for the other brands I’ve found.

I wrote to several different companies and asked these 3 questions:

1. How long between when fruits and vegetables are picked to when they are freeze dried?
2. Are they non-Gmo?
3. Do your cans contain any BPA?

I’ve gotten very similar answers from them all:

Hello Celene,

Thank you for reaching out. I am happy to answer these questions for you:

1. According to our product specialist, we don’t have exact information regarding this. It is picked, then frozen, then freeze-dried though it could be a few months before it is freeze-dried.
2. None of our products are certified as non-GMO, however some of our ingredient suppliers do have a GMO statement. If you are curious about a specific product, I can try and get more information for you.
3. All of our cans are stainless steel and BPA-free.

So as you can see, not all freeze dried products are equal.

To be honest Thrive Life is a bit more expensive, but I would say it’s justified, wouldn’t you?

I am not as particular about the meats and dairy I buy this way as no company is saying the words “grass fed or free range”. They’re all about the same quality and flavor, so why not go with the least expensive? That goes for shipping too. Of course shipping is always free with Amazon Prime so that’s where I get the other freeze dried products I use.

I buy so many things from Amazon because of the free shipping and the prices can’t be beat. I honestly could just shop Amazon ❤️ and never leave the house, LOL.

Check Prime free delivery out here.

Remember, all the freeze dried veggies came from Thrive Life. You can find them here.

I’ll share where I found the other ingredients I used down below the recipes. Each one was the least expensive choice and good quality. Again, all products have been vetted by me.

Here are the recipes…

When you see FD in the ingredients list it means I’m too lazy to type out Freeze Dried every time. My Cream Of Any Soup Mix recipe is below this one.