25+ Foods You Can Eat Without Refrigeration If The Grid Goes Down

One of the worst winter storms in much of the country is expected to bring freezing rain, ice, and snow to the Texarkana area this weekend. When ice accumulates on power lines and trees, the result is never good.

Texarkana, Are You Ready If The Power Goes Down?

Sure, you may have stocked up on groceries and essentials to get you through several days, but if your home is all-electric, you may find yourself unable to cook or microwave any food. And all that food you bought may spoil if not refrigerated properly.

Of course, with the bitterly cold temperatures expected, you could grab a container with a lid and set it outdoors to keep it frozen. Many folks have a gas or charcoal grill outside, which you could also use to cook, provided you have plenty of propane.

Whatever you do, DO NOT bring the grill inside. Every time during a bitterly cold winter storm, someone drags their grill indoors and winds up setting their house on fire.

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If you don't have those options, let's look at which foods you could eat without refrigeration or cooking to survive.

Essential Non-Perishable Foods and Canned Goods

• Beans
• Vegetables
• Summer Sausage
• Fruit
• Peanut Butter
• Crackers
• Trail Mix
• Nuts
• Protein Bars
• Granola Bars
• Dried Fruits
• SPAM
• Jerky
• Apples
• Bananas
• Oranges
• Dried Cereal
• Canned Corn
• Canned Chicken
• Canned Salmon
• Canned Sardines
• Canned Tuna
• Canned Vienna Sausage
• Rice Cakes
• Hazelnut Spread
• Breads
• Muffins
• Flour Tortillas
• Hard Cheese
• Soups

Helpful Tips: Keeping Food Cold in the Refrigerator In Case of a Power Outage

It's important to try to keep the door closed as much as possible to keep the food cold for up to 4 hours. Bottled water can be removed from the fridge for consumption or cooking. Discard perishable food left above 40 degrees for more than 2 hours.

READ MORE: Will This Winter Storm Be Worse Than the 2000 Texarkana Ice Storm?

Many of you may already know about some of the foods I mentioned, and I'm sure there are more you could add to the list. Being without power for days can be a real bummer and could be challenging.

This is a great video on stockpiling for a power outage.

Being prepared can keep you from panicking and make things smoother until power is restored.