With inflation on a high, many people are turning to meal prep in a bid to see themselves through the cost of living crisis.
One mom has been dubbed the last word meal prepper after sharing how she has 426 meals preserved to feed her family for the following eight months.
Kelsey Shaw, 30, retains her pantry stocked full of home-grown canned contemporary greens, pre-made meals, herbs, rice, and pasta.
Shaw’s story has recently left the internet stunned.
According to the Mirror, the mum-of-three started preserving the food from her five-acre farm when the family moved to Crown Point, Indiana, US, in September 2017.
Since then, she taught herself how to preserve everything – from pickles to a beef stew – and uses methods such as dehydration and water-canning to keep her cupboards stocked up.
"I'm very proud every time I walk into the pantry. I have it stocked up to feed us about two meals a day from October through to May," said Shaw.
She further added that this skill helped them during the pandemic when everyone was in a panic about running out of food as nationwide lockdowns were imposed.
"When we moved to the farm we wanted to live a slower lifestyle and wanted to know what we were eating and where it was coming from.
“I taught myself how to preserve food and learned lots of hacks like making corn cob jelly which tastes like honey. It does take a long time. I spend at least two hours a day in the garden and then the process of preserving things can take days as I go back to things in stages. It is a skill to be able to do all the preserving,” she told the news site.
Shaw started by learning from books and watching videos online to can pickles but now preserves everything she can. The family grows fresh fruit and vegetables and has chickens and dairy goats – which they later eat – on their farm.
"I preserved whole meals, so I’ll make jars of beef stew and then put them in a pressure canner, so they are then ready to keep and use whenever I need them. It means I never have to worry about making dinner if it’s been a busy day. I have tomatoes preserved in lots of different ways and try to use every part of the food we can.
“I use tomato skins and dehydrate them to make a powder that can be added to meals. I also have ready-made tomato sauce and chopped tomatoes canned in my pantry,” Shaw told the news site.
Although the family tries to eat as fresh as possible, they head to their local supermarket for items that they cannot grow such as flour and rice.
Read the latest IOL Food DigiMag here.