Wildwood Survival website

SURVIVAL
Shelter
Water
Fire
Food
Clothing
Fishing
Hunting
Traps
Snares
Tools
Stone
Flintknapping
Tracker Knife
Cordage
Containers
Furniture
Lights
Hides
Pitch & Glue
Winter
Health
Lyme Disease
Vision
Native People
Emergency Prep
Navigation
Teaching
Young People
Practicing
Music
Humour
More
Wilderness Mind
Site Disclaimer
Booklist
Forums
Contributors
Sitemap
Guestbook
About this site
Use of material
Privacy Policy
HomeSurvivalFood and Cooking

Neanderthal Food Drying

by Pete Lynah

Preserving food by drying it was practiced in this country centuries before Columbus. The methods are easy, dependable, and do not require on intensive heat source. The nutrition of the food is preserved and NO chemicals are needed.

All you need are heat and a free air flow. The summer sun and woven racks of dry wood will do. The heat can be focused and intensified using flat, dry, dark materials such as slate. The food racks should be two inches above the slate.

Slice all food thinly: 1/8"-1/4". As it dries, turn it. Teas will become dry and crumbly; fruits tough and chewy. Examples:

A. Teas and Coffees
1. All mints
2. Sliced rose hips
3. New Jersey tea
4. Chicory
5. Dandelion root
6. Clover
7. Yarrow
8. Catnip
9. Spicebush
10. Goldenrod
B. Fruits
1. All domestic fruit
2. Mayapples
3. Huckle-, cran-, elder-, bramble-type berries
4. Wintergreen fruit
5. Persimmons
6. Any edible fruit, sliced thin
C. Other
1. Fish
2. Meat: jerky
a. Slice lean meat into 1/8" strips (Note: with the grain-chewy against the grain-crumbly)
b. Rub both sides slightly with salt
c. Lightly pound between two rocks
d. Dry for 1 or 2 days in sun
(Note: maintain careful guard or your jerky will be "critterized")

From The Tracker magazine, May 1982, published by the Tracker School.
For more articles from The Tracker magazine, visit the Tracker Trail website