Cooking in a power outage

A lot of folks around these parts lately have become experts at cooking during a power outage. A listener asked Nancy and Dick to offer their own tips on making do when the juice shuts off.  

This week's Food for Thought makes sure your covered when the lights go out. 

Listen to Nancy and Dick's advice by clicking on the audio 'play' arrow above

Among their handy tips:

• Keep ground coffee ready to go 
• Pick up a butane burner to keep handy for outdoor cooking (take any open flame cooking outside, please!)
• An extra bag of charcoal and a cast iron Dutch oven will also work outdoors, as will an outdoor propane BBQ available at many drug and grocery stores
• Use the frozen leftovers from your freezer (Nancy says a quick dive into the freezer won't spoil your goods)
• Keep a big ice cooler handy for your frozen goods if the outage lasts multiple days
• A head lamp or baseball cap with an LED light make it easier to see if you're cooking in the dark

We close another year of KPLU's Food for Thought with just a few ideas to help you prepare for whatever comes in 2011. Happy New Year!

Viet World Kitchen's How to Cook and Eat Well in a Power Outage