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Lehman's canned beef is fully cooked and ready to go. Find it in our store in Kidron, OH or at Lehmans.com[/caption]
Helpful Hint: If you are packing your pantry with canned goods from the store as part of your emergency food supply, make sure you put a can opener with it. There's nothing more frustrating than being hungry and not able to eat your food!
The Perks of Freeze-Dried Food
Before freeze-dried foods arrived at Lehman's earlier this year, I only vaguely heard of the term but I had no idea what freeze drying actually was. (Don't get it confused with freezing or dehydrating, like I did. Freeze drying is quite different.)
Freeze drying is a process that removes moisture from food, much more than dehydrating. Fresh food is placed in a freeze dryer where it is frozen. Then the dryer creates a vacuum around the food; as the food is slightly warmed, the ice becomes vapor and evaporates. Still with me?
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You can freeze dry your own foods at home. Find our freeze dryers at Lehmans.com[/caption]
As a result, this unique food preservation process gives you (and your pantry) some major perks.
1. No refrigeration
Just like canned foods, they can go straight in the pantry, brought along on camping trips and be completely fine during a power outage without refrigeration until they're opened.
2. More nutrition
This is where freeze-drying surpasses canning and other food preservation methods. Freeze-dried foods also retain nearly all their original nutrients, so you have more of the goodness in every bite. (This has to do with using freezing temperatures in the process rather than heat alone, like canning and dehydrating.)
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We carry all kinds of freeze-dried foods, from cheese to chicken. Find them all at Lehmans.com[/caption]
3. Long, LONG shelf life!
Freeze-dried foods by far have the longest shelf life compared to other food preservation methods. While Lehman's canned meats have a shelf-life of 5 years, our freeze-dried meats have a shelf-life of 25+ years. (Nope, that wasn't a typo. We're completely serious – twenty-five years or longer!) This makes them an ideal candidate if you're storing food for the long haul.
A couple things to note…
While canned food can be eaten straight out the can, freeze-dried foods require more preparation. You have to rehydrate them in water first. The amount of time varies depending on the type of food. Our freeze-dried chicken takes 20 minutes to rehydrate, while our freeze-dried salmon can take 6-8 hours to rehydrate, so there is some planning ahead involved.
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This is what our freeze-dried chicken looks like before re-hydrating. The longer you soak them in water, the more tender they get.[/caption]
Freeze-dried food can require cooking, too. It depends on whether the food was cooked or uncooked before freeze-drying. (Most of Lehman's freeze-dried meats require cooking.)
So Which One is Right for You?
It really depends on your household's needs. If you're looking for short-term storage, canned food is more than sufficient and will get you through power outages and off-grid camping trips. If you want something that will last longer with more nutritional benefits, freeze-dried food is the way to go. (Just make sure you read the labels first and determine if you need a heat source for cooking. It's better to prepare now rather than later when you need it most!)
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