Customer Reviews

Apocalypse Chow: How to Eat Well When the Power Goes Out

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Having grown up living on the coast of Georgia and Florida, I personally know that hurricanes are a fact of life. And as this hilarious and infinitely useful book points out, the real terror begins after the hurricane, after you eaten the contents of your refrigerator and freezer. Terror arrives in the form of weeks of no electricity, quite possibly no water or phone service, but most of all the terror arrives in the form of beenie weenies, spam, cold Dinty Moore chili- need I say more? A Couple of weeks of this and you start becoming a savage. In addition to approximately 50 recipes that can be put together with staples that don't require a refrigerator and can be cooked over a single butane burner, this book gives really good pointers for staying safe and what to do in all types of disasters. This book is humorous, flows well and gives you all the information you need to ride out the next disaster, whether it be a rolling blackout or a hurricane in fine cuisine style. All recipes are also structured for easy cleanup and minimal preparation. The recipes, while all vegetariian sound a whole lot better than eating Cheetos, salsa and canned meats for what could be just hours or a matter of weeks. An absolutely terrific book and something everyone should have in their home.

I originally bought this book for its clever title and cover, but after reading it, I'm happy to say it contains a lot of useful information and tips - great advice on how to be prepared for a power failure, and even ideas on how to keep busy waiting for the power to come back on. The food lists are comprehensive, but the author encourages readers to modify the lists according to their own needs and food preferences. The many recipes are intended for using after you've eaten all your fresh and frozen foods. They include some fun appetizers, snacks, and desserts that I plan to try even when the power is on. There are also soups, salads and main dishes that are made with grains, pasta, beans, vegetables, and a variety of creative seasonings. Many of these meatless recipes are easily adapted for using canned tuna or canned meats, but I'm not crazy about those products, so it's great to have healthful alternatives that sound delicious. For anyone who has gone without power for more than a couple days, this book can be a big help. It's also fun to read.

Living in Southern California's earthquake zone, I have the usual assortment of canned goods in my pantry. Some bottled water. And I think I know where the flashlight is. But after reading Apocalypse Chow, I realize I'm not prepared for an emergency in the way I thought I was. And I certainly don't have enough wine on hand to carry me through!

Apocalypse Chow is a well-organized manual for survival, with step-by-step instructions to assist you in planning for an emergency, whether it be a thunderstorm or blackout that knocks out the power for a day, or an earthquake, hurricane, or blizzard that could put your home out of commission for a week or more. This book is informative and concise - a good read that educates with a sense of humor. Jon Robertson has taken a formidable subject and has actually made it entertaining.

And speaking of entertaining, the "Pantry Cuisine" in this book will have you entertaining the neighbors during that blackout. The meal plans are creative, and the recipes are delicious. I know, because I have already tried several of them, in anticipation of putting together my 5-day Wine Box. (Now, doesn't that make you curious enough to buy this book?) Forget eating those beans out of the can. This book has an assortment of gourmet recipes that can be made in minutes, using a variety of canned goods, pasta, quick-cooking grains, condiments, and an assortment of flavor-makers. And since most are one-pot-meals, clean up is a snap.

This book is a "must-have" for everyone. Wherever you live, you never know when the power will go out, and when it does, you'll be prepared if you've followed the advice in Apocalypse Chow.

Sure wish I'd had this on hand for Hurricane Charlie last year. Five days without power means no microwave, no electric stove, no toaster oven, and no refrigerator, but you still have to eat. Trees are down across the roads so you can't go to a restaurant (and they don't have power either).
We were able to cook on our grill, but it was pretty basic cooking. This book gives 68 recipes for using pantry supplies, cooking on the grill or a camp-stove and what to stock in to keep you through the disaster.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
1. Power to the People
2. The Calm Before the Storm
3. The Well-Tempered Pantry
4. Pantry Cuisine
5. Recipes for Disaster: Bean and Vegetable Main Dishes
6. Cooking Up a Storm: Pasta and Grain Main-Dishes
7. Dining in the Dark: Salad Days
8. Full-Catastrophe Cooking: Soothing Soups
9. Survival Food Chic: Savvy Snacking
10. Just Rewards: Dessert Every Day
11. Are We Having Fun Yet?
Appendix: Food Safety During an Emergency
Resources Directory
Your Emergency Numbers Directory
Index

This witty book, co-authored by spouses Jon and Robin Robertson, provides a sense of how one might eat well "when the power goes out." "Apocalypse Chow" provides much useful information, in the event that natural disasters like hurricanes or pandemic flu knock out power, water supplies, and so on.

Concrete suggestions abound, such as the need to acquire some sort of cooking system (camping stove, gas grills, and so on), the need to stow away adequate water, check lists of kitchen tools needed in case the power goes off, what to buy for one's pantry. Neat side items: a five-day menu (pages 61-64), as a part of what they call the "five day wine box" (the authors argue that you can put a set of five days worth of meals for 4 people in a wine box).

For whom they refer to as "the truly lazy" (page 68), they note the availability of MREs (Meals Ready to Eat), and provide places where one can purchase these (akin to the military's chow for combat conditions), freeze dried meals (and, again, places where one can order these), "Supermarket Ready to Eats" (food in cardboard boxes, like macaroni and cheese, that store well and are easy to make). In addition, they encourage canned foods that last a long time.

This brief, easy to read, and witty volume is a useful resource for those concerned about disasters (whether natural or manmade) that might disrupt normal access to food and water, power, and so on.

I highly recommend this book--Wish we would've had it several years ago when we lost power for 10 days due to a hurricane. Love the recipes and especially the ideas for a 'wine box'--supplies to eat well and with variety for several days. There are many ingredients that we probably won't ever use (i.e., black olive paste--couldn't even FIND that one), but we love practicing for power outages, bird flu quarantines, etc., by trying the recipes in less-than-ideal circumstances. Easy read, sense of humor, and yummy food! Great for a 'stockpile' library...

I've been cooking from Apocalypse Chow for a few months-even without a disaster-and am amazed at how great the recipes are. The quality of these dishes surpasses other "survival" recipes I've tried, and Robin Robertson's expertise as a chef really comes though. The book provides recipes that use only pantry foods-after your fresh and frozen meats and vegetables are gone. As suggested by the book, I have fun adding canned meats and fish the way I like to some of the recipes. No other book I've seen takes pantry food to such a high gourmet level in taste, healthfulness, and presentation. I'd recommend it to anyone.

This book is immensely entertaining and funny; it had me laughing and reading sections outloud to anyone who would listen. I've bought copies as gifts for all my friends, and we're almost looking forward to future outages, just so we can use all the useful information in style! The recipes are easy to make and the various exotic options add a sense of adventure and fun in trying them out. I never thought I'd have so much fun putting together a preparedness "five day wine box" -- I think it's an excellent idea. I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone -- for the creative ways to make pantry canned and boxed goods into gourmet cuisine, eating well without electricity, the humor and personal anecdotes, the glimpse into the author's hurricane experiences, the do's and don'ts of disaster preparedness, practical lists, and great tips!

This book is exactly what it advertises itself to be. It's interesting and potentially (let's hope not) necessary. After Katrina, I think we all know we need to be better prepared to take care of ourselves and not depend on the government. This book is one tool that assists in preparedness.

Enjoyed reading, I gave 2 copies as gifts and both were well recieved and they enjoyed the recipies but the stories were just as entertaining.