The Doomsday Kitchen

36% of Americans cook at home daily. Eating meals at home is five times cheaper than eating out regularly. Roughly half of the population cooks 3-6 days a week. Because of the pandemic, interest in cooking has gone up to 57%. The art of cooking has existed for over 2 million years, with recipes dating back to 1700 BC. Here are some interesting ways to use common kitchen tools in a disaster.

Frying Pan

The frying pan is the most commonly owned pan found in every kitchen. If heavy enough, it can double as a weapon that can give an attacker a concussion or other brain injury. If the sides are long enough, you can collect water in it. Fill it with soil to be used as a planter or herb garden. Take off the handle and paint it a pretty color. Put it by the door to be a catch-all for loose changes and random bits from your pockets. Paint the bottom with chalkboard paint to write messages on it. Keep a good cast-iron skillet in your INCH (I’m Not Coming Home) bag and Bug-Out Bag to cook meals while on the go.

Cooking Pot

If you are like me, this is the staple in your kitchen. The pot can double as a large bowl. Use it to trap small-game in it for dinner. Collect berries and edible plants in it like you would with a basket. Get one assigned to melt candle wax in to make candles to barter with. Use it to carry chemicals, like rock salt, safely from one spot to another. If you use a pot for something other than food, label it so you cook nothing in it. This is because chemicals and wax residue will linger behind and contaminate your meal.

Measuring Cups and Spoons

A must-have for any beginner chef. They can help you better ration goods within a group or ensure the proper amount at a barter. Use them as a scoop in bulk bags such as flour, rice, potting soil, etc. Fill them with paint and other craft goods for the kids to be artsy. Store minor items that are prone to getting lost in them like paper clips, screws, buttons, etc. Get a couple of metal measuring spoon sets to hang on door knobs to make a cheap alarm.

Mixing Spoon

Whether rubber (silicon), metal, or wooden, you’ll definitely find this gem in your kitchen drawer. Rubber spoons are sturdy enough to dig small holes in the ground for projects such as putting up a fence. We can bend handles on the metal spoons to make a candle holder, while we can use their reflective surface as a mirror. We can paint the wooden ones to make puppets or garden markers. No matter which type you use, the handles can help you better organize your yarn or paracord. Use the wide part of the spoon to mark a notch on a tree to mark your trail with.

Spatula

From flipping burgers to pancakes, this tool is very useful in your preps. Rubber spatulas can ensure nothing goes to waste by letting you scrape buckets clean. They often build grill spatulas to be strong with sharp ridges on the side, making them useful in self-defense. We can use wooden versions the same way we use wooden spoons. Small spatulas can break up lumps in your food containers. Rubber and silicon models can be great for household repairs, like spreading spackle.

Cutting Board

What kitchen isn’t complete without a cutting board. Attach a large binder clip with a screw at the top of one to make a clipboard. Some are sturdy enough to be used in place of signs. Cutting boards can act as a serving tray at group meals. We can break the frosted glass models into pieces to be used as spearheads. Those tiny plastic cutting boards can act as traveling workstations, for craft projects, and for gun cleaning. When outside, they can double as a table when drafting plans.

Oven Mitts And Pot Holders

Cooking is hot, so hot you can burn yourself if not careful. If you cook, then you’ll need a couple of sets of oven mitts and pot holders on hand. Oven mitts are thick enough to replace your mittens during winter activities. You can practice your sewing skills on pot holders to save valuable fabric while providing a practical experience of sewing on cloth. If it’s a good quality brand like The Ov-Glove, you can use it to apply firewood directly to the embers or take out your foil dinner from the fire*. Use an oven mitt for clean-up to wax furniture and dust.

*When working around fire use caution no matter what. If uncomfortable doing something involving it, or you lack the experience for said activity, do not attempt.