7 allergy friendly pantry recipes for emergency preparedness. Meals you can make using what you have at home that don’t require a lot of ingredients or money.
With the World Health Organization declaring the coronavirus, or COVID-19, a pandemic this morning, being prepared has been on my mind. Honestly, it’s been on my mind a lot this past month. I have severe asthma and am considered a high-risk patient for the coronavirus. For the past few weeks, I’ve been slowly stocking my pantry in prep for keeping indoors for the next few weeks.
In case you are similar and want to prep, I figured it was a good time to round up some recipes to help eat out of the pantry for a few weeks. And if it doesn’t get to that level where you live, these recipes are also good for those who don’t like to do grocery shopping every day or aren’t able to get to the store as often.
If you are looking for more information on the coronavirus, read this article I wrote on asthma and COVID-19. I was able to interview top doctors and get information beyond just “wash your hands”.
What are Allergy Friendly Pantry Recipes?
While there are several ways to define it, I describe my pantry recipes as meals you can make using shelf stable ingredients, as well as frozen ingredients you either purchase frozen, or freeze yourself. This allows for more variety of ingredients (think frozen veggies and fruit!).
That said, these recipes are most useful when you still have the electricity and can power your fridge and stove/oven/microwave.
To date, no place has lost power from the coronavirus so I’m going to move forward in this post.
What Ingredients are Used in these Pantry Recipes?
For the most part, we are going to be using the same ingredients that we always cook with, just in different forms, i.e. frozen and canned items.
As always, make sure that you use items that you can safely use. Don’t purchase a bag of flour if you are allergic to wheat thinking you can just “suffer through” your allergies! That is dangerous. Please just purchase things you normally do, just in a few extra quantities.
Some sample ingredients are:
Shelf stable: pasta, rice, beans, canned veggies, canned fruits, jars of sauce, oils, flours, vinegar, salt, spices
Freezer items: meats, veggies, fruits, frozen meals (for in a pinch!), juices, dairy and/or desserts
To be Frozen items: cheese; butter; freshly chopped veggies like onion, garlic, peppers, ginger, etc.; fresh meats; breads; bakery items
Before you place anything in the freezer, wash, chop, and dry all your veggies. Place items like meats and cheese into portions and freeze. I like to freeze my cheese laying flat for easier storage.
Remember to always label and date anything you put in the freezer!
Allergy Friendly Pantry Recipes
Chickpea and Sweet Potato Sheet Pan Dinner
A few cans of chickpeas, a few sweet potatoes, and frozen veggies make this a pretty simple meal to construct. Add some rice or pasta for extra calories and to help round out the meal.
Kid Approved Chicken and Rice Soup
Use frozen chicken thighs rather than a whole roasting chicken. Replace the fresh carrots with a bag of frozen. Again, use rice or pasta to help fill up the bowls.
This is a great breakfast or lunch. Mix your oats with frozen fruit and milk of your choice. Let it soak over night or a minimum of 6 hours.
Using rice noodles and frozen veggies you can make this for a lunch or dinner. Simplify the sauce by combining soy sauce (gluten free) with brown sugar and a splash of red pepper flakes.
A classic allergy friendly pantry recipe! Using canned tomatoes, canned beans, and frozen corn, this hearty meal will feed you for several days.
Swap out the fresh veggies for frozen. Onions, carrots, corn, peas, green beans, and canned tomatoes will make a huge pot of soup. Add rice or noodles to round out the meal with extra calories.
This versatile recipe can be made as is, frozen right before baking, or used as a base for pizza crust. Top with frozen cheese and jars of sauce and you have a cozy comfort food.
How Long Will They Last?
Depending on what you are freezing and how you have stored it in the freezer, most items will last for a minimum of three months. For a more detailed breakdown of what can be frozen and for how long it remains fresh, check out this Refrigerator and Freezer Guide complied by the FDA.
Final Note
If you are not at high risk of complications with COVID-19, please reach out to your friends, family, and neighbors who are. See if they need anything and help them to prepare in a way that makes sense for you. There is no need to doomsday prep and every time you do, you are taking away more items for those who are at high risk.
Even if the things they need help with right now seem “over the top”, please realize that people are scared and if things help them feel less vulnerable, that will further help any immune response they might need to make later!
Long story short, take care of each other.
Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know how this turned out for you! Pop over to the Facebook Page to share your success or tag me over on Instagram with the hashtag #livingbeyondallergies I love to see your creations!
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