Is Rice A Good Emergency Food?

THERE’S AN EMERGENCY HAPPENING! The kids are in a panic, the dog is frantically barking, you’re grabbing the 72-hour kits, and your spouse has snagged important documents and the food storage buckets—you’re all headed for the car and won’t be returning for who knows how long! The drama!!

Okay, not all emergencies happen at such a distressing pace, but seemingly foreseen or not, emergencies all have one thing in common: they suck.

Your body, even if you saw a dreaded disaster coming, still has a natural fight or flight response that makes it run at a different pace than you’re typical day-to-day. You need to fuel it accordingly.

Now don’t be surprised when we tell you that rice is a great way to do just that.

Is Rice A Good Food?

Truly, rice as a survival food shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone.

Those little white (or brown!) grains have several benefits that make rice a great, even integral, part of your emergency food storage.

Rice is a great survival food because of its many health benefits.

• Rice is naturally gluten-free and a great anti-inflammatory, which means that it’s gentle on pretty much everyone’s tummy—something you’ll all be extra grateful for come emergency time.
• Fiber abounds in every little grain of rice which not only helps keep you full longer but helps improve digestion.
• Rice is a great source of quick energy in the form of complex carbohydrates.
• Rice is a good source of plant-based protein.
• Because it is rich in B vitamins, rice can help improve your nervous system health, another bonus for stressful stretches.

Both brown and white rice can pack the important health benefits you’ll be seeking when it comes to using your emergency food storage. And ultimately, you’ll be glad you chose rice as survival food. Especially if it tastes as good as Hibernate’s famous chicken flavored rice. (We won’t tell if you sneak some on a non-emergency day.)

Top 5 Reasons To Add Rice To Your Emergency Food Storage

In case you didn’t catch it, we just told you the biggest reason that rice is good survival food. But the benefits don’t end there! Here are the top five reasons to add rice to your emergency food storage, STAT!

1. Rice is a good survival food because it packs a health punch! Yeah, you read that right. Rice is not just empty calories! Each serving can deliver necessary protein, fiber, and vitamins in a way that’s gentle on the digestive system and awesome for your energy levels.
2. Rice is a good survival food because it’s versatile. It doesn’t just have to be rice and butter...even in an emergency, folks! Whether you’ve stocked up on delicious freeze-dried meals that contain the magic grain or not, you can still enjoy rice in many ways—think spices from all over the world, plenty of veggies, and maybe even some brown sugar and fruit! You can even add it to soups and salads for additional nutrients and bulk.
3. Rice is a good survival food because it’s easy to prepare. Unlike many common grains that have been stored over the years in case of emergency—we’re looking at you, wheat!—rice can be cooked AS IS. No grinding or other preparation is necessary.
4. Rice is a good survival food because it’s cost-effective. Rice is CHEAP. It is produced on a very large scale with incredible efficiency, making it a great thing to keep in your emergency food supply. And because it expands as it cooks, it’s a high-yield pantry item—which could, unfortunately, become important during an emergency.
5. Rice is a good survival food because it doesn’t take up much space. Another benefit of rice expansion is that it doesn’t take up as much space pre-preparation. We don’t all have that magical food storage bunker we’ve been dreaming of, so minimally invasive food storage choices are a bonus.