Century 24 Hour Mechanical Timer – Item of the Day

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Note – Bringing this around today because I know many of you are working on various aquaponic and hydroponic projects and starting plants indoors.  Trust me 10 bucks for this timer is money well spent on any of that stuff.

Every day I bring you an item on Amazon that I personally use or has been purchased by many members of the audience and I have researched enough to recommend.

Today’s TSP Amazon Item of the day Century 24 Hour Mechanical Timer.  I use them on pumps in some of my systems that don’t need to run 24/7, they pay for themselves quickly in reduced electricity that way.  I use them on my fish tanks, especially my planted tanks.  I use them for my plant lights for seed starting and hydroponics. There are dozens and dozens of uses for these things.

Let me tell you something though, I HATE timers.  It amazes me how something that should be so simple is often so damn confusing and unreliable.  So I went on Amazon and found the Century 24 Hour Mechanical Timer. Wow, where has this thing been all my life?

Look when I say I hate timers let me be clear, my hatred of timers is only over shadowed by my hatred of network printers.  (NOTE THAT LINK IS NOT WORKPLACE SAFE) Well, that has changed I love this timer, so simple there are two steps to using it and it is pretty fool proof and very easy to see how you have it set.

Step one each hour has 4 small pins you can push down, simply push down the pins for each 15 minutes you want the power to be on.  So say you wanted your timer to run from 8AM to 10AM every morning and 7PM to 9PM every night.  Okay just push all the pins down for 8, 9 and 10AM and 7, 8 and 9PM.  Step two turn the dial so the arrow points to the current time.  That is it!

You then simply plug it in and plug in the device you want to control with it, done.  There are no other steps, no holding a button and waiting for a light to blink three times or say moving stupid little pins around.

I love this timer and its simplicity so much I am constantly trying to figure out what to automate with it.  About the only complaint I read in reviews (from thinking humans anyway) was that it is a large device and it takes up so much space as to block the second outlet.

There is a simple solution to such things, I have covered it before and it applies to any large plugs, just get some of these one foot extension cords and it keeps all outlets open.

Anyway I absolutely love the Century 24 Hour Mechanical Timer and think you will too. So check it out for any of your power automation needs.

Remember you can always find all of our reviews at TspAz.com

P.S. – Check out this quick video of how I have used this product on my homestead for a very unique need.  I don’t think any other time could do this, without having a degree in Computer Programming anyway.

Episode-2577- Nick Ferguson on Fodder Trees, Rare Plants, Permaculture and More

The Survival Podcast Posted on by 4
Episode-2577- Nick Ferguson on Fodder Trees, Rare Plants, Permaculture and More [ 1:39:07 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

I asked Nick Ferguson of Home Grown Liberty and Rare Plant Store to join me for a chat today for a few reasons.  First as announced on yesterday’s show his new business is offering four different amazing deals with some cool fruiting perennials and some awesome trees as well.  Many of the trees are not just awesome looking but great “fodder trees” as well.  Many are not familiar with the concept of fodder trees or tree hay as it has also been called but it is a great way to feed livestock.

Additionally these are only his first offerings, so we are going to talk about his plans for Rare Plant Store and how he is getting it off the ground.  I also wanted to simply talk about some other things with plants, gardening, homesteading, etc. with Nick as he is now returning to the Expert Council after almost a year or working on the road.  He will be available again to answer your questions and be doing some Permaculture Consulting both onsite and via the web as well.

I am going to try to have a lot more of the Expert Council Members on for informal chats like this in the future.

Resources for today’s show…

 

Sponsors of the Day

 

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK (866-658-4465) and you might hear yourself on the air.

Join the MSB Today

Join the MSB Today

Want Every Episode of TSP Ever Produced?

Remember in addition to discounts to over 40 vendors who supply stuff you are likely buying anyway, tons of free ebooks and video content, MSB Members also get every edition of The Survival Podcast ever produced in convenient zip files in blocks of 24. More info on the MSB can be found here.

Wild Planet Mackerel Fillets in Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil – Item of the Day

The Survival Podcast Posted on by 3

Every day I bring you an item on Amazon that I personally use or has been purchased by many members of the audience and I have researched enough to recommend.

Today’s TSP Amazon Item of the day is Wild Planet Wild Mackerel Fillets in Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  I am going to say these things are the find of the year for me!  So much to love here.  I expected something like a sardine, you guys know I love Matiz Gallego Sardines, still they are sardines.  On a whim I gave Wild Planet’s Mackerel a shot.  Holly crap, I can’t believe the bang for the buck these things are.

The issue with canned fish is always texture.  I mean the canning process for meats is long and high temperature.  Fish is usually falling apart when canned.  This isn’t, it stands up, I mean I would not but you could bread and fry these little fillets if you chose to.  They are skinless and boneless to boot.  They do not smell fishy.  I love sardines but eat less then I want to because Dorothy always complains about the smell, these smell no more then opening a can of say tuna.

On that, now that I found these I will likely NEVER EVER buy a can of tuna again.  Anything tuna can do, this can do better, by a long shot.  If you have ever had really high end jarred tuna, it is a lot like that, but I would say to me it is better, a lot better and a lot cheaper then that type of tuna.

Health wise mackerel (especially small Atlantic Mackerel which this is) is a safe fish to eat multiple times a week, as it is low in mercury because is low on the food chain, way better on this than even smaller species of canned tuna.  It is aalso an fricken Omega 3 power house with a ton more Omega 3 than you can get in even the very best grass fed beef.

Here is a salad I made with them recently, God this was good and the oil made a perfect dressing.

For the above lunch I put it on a bed of organic greens with a cubed avocado, peppers, apple wood smoked olives, feta cheese along with a bit of pecans and pine nuts and a small crumble of cheese crisps.  This made a salad I had may be 4-5 bucks into that I am sure would cost barely south of 20 at an upscale restaurant. 

On the nutrition profile, the ingredients are Atlantic Mackerel, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Sea Salt. FULL STOP nothing else. Macros are 180 Calories, 11g fat, 21g protein and 0g carbs. The fat here again is some of the best Omega 3s in the world along with extra virgin organic olive oil.  Have you bought organic EVO lately, it isn’t cheap. 

Price?  Get this.  A 12 pack case of these is 36.65, that is 3 bucks a can.  Next this audience is made up of preppers right.  Good protein and fats that store well are the hardest thing to add to your cupboard.  This is one reason we buy expensive #10 cans of freeze dried meats to extend that.  Of course we prefer eat what you store and store what you eat.  Well here you go, the expiration date on the batch that just came in on 10-10-19 is 3-18-23!  Trust me they will not last that long.  I eat these now about 1-2 times a week.

Tune in to today’s show (episode 2538) and I will give you some ideas for using them in the TSPAZ.com segment.

Is there any down side?  Only one I can see if you get them on Amazon is, they seem to be in 12 packs only.  So trying a can or two to see if you like them is out unless your local market has them.  Let me say though if you enjoy tuna at all, even a bit, you will be happy with these.  They taste better, have better texture and smell better.  They don’t taste just like tuna, but they taste like tuna the way say rabbit tastes like chicken.  Give them a shot and I don’t think you will be disappointed.  Pick up a 12 pack of Wild Planet Wild Mackerel Fillets today and add them to your prepper pantry, I just bet you will be ordering more in a month or two tops.

Remember you can always find all of our reviews at TspAz.com

P.S. When I was checking out Wild Planet I also got some of their canned anchovies.  These will soon come to tspaz as well!  I am featuring them here though for another cooking idea.  The soup below was GOOD, it would have been great with the mackerel instead of the anchovies and a better suited sausage.   Here is the soup and what I made it with along with the somewhat comical story of how it came together.

Trust me use the mackerel here instead of anchovies (which were not bad) and use a good andouille sausage or something like a habanero sausage and this thing will blow your mind.  Prep time and cook time combined was about 15 minutes and that was making up the recipe on the fly.  This is enough for a side dish for two or a meal for one.  Easy to double, etc.

Anchovy and Sausage Soup

  • 1 grass fed sausage link
  • 1 can wild planet anchovies
  • 1 cup chicken bone broth
  • 1 cup of water
  • 4 oz peppers (jalapeno, green chili and bell mixed)
  • 2 oz tomatoes
  • 2 cups spinach
  • .3 oz pine nuts (note that is POINT THREE as in 3/10s of an ounce)
  • 1 tablespoon oil from fish
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 nob ginger root
  • Splash of liquid aminos and fish sauce
  • Salt, Pepper and Old Bay Seasoning to taste

 

  • Macros – Calories 640
  • Carbs 6.5 grams
  • Protein 47 protein
  • Fat 45 grams

 

So here is how the thing started. This am when I watered the garden I grabbed a jalapeño, a hatch green chili and a green bell pepper and decided when lunch time came, they would be what I would use to make something. No idea what, just it would start there.

Okay need a protein, wife said there are some left overs. Okay shredded pork, naw just had that. Chicken, ohhhhffff, that is not a good left over, not even worthy of the dogs, into the trash. Open my Keto cabinet. Wild Planet Anchovies, have not had these, I wonder, open, hmmmm, almost exactly like really good sardines. Welp, now committed, open canned fish must be used right away.  ??Hmm more protein needed, okay we have some grass fed polish sausages from Costco weird but shrugs, grabs one and moves on.

Cut up peppers drop in 1 tbs of the oil from the fish into the pan, chop up peppers and fry them down with one clove of chopped garlic. ??Now slice sausage and add it to the pan. Fry it a bit. One cup of bone broth and one cup of water go in, bring to simmer. Open produce door in fridge, hmm, ginger, well shit we have polish sausage and anchovies, and south western peppers, screw it lets make this thing ethnically confused. In goes some sliced fresh ginger, fish sauce, liquid aminos now we got Asian going on too. Taste, salt and pepper, needs something, fuck it lets go to Maryland, grabs old bay and hits it with about a half a tsp of that.

Taste, nice, let’s get nutty and add some Italy to the mix. Small hit of pine nuts, 2 oz of half cherry tomatoes and simmer more. Drop in anchovies broken into pieces, man there are a lot of em in that can. Simmer to heat them though, kill heat and wilt in spinach. Planned some crumbled FETA but forgot it and ate it all.

Thoughts…..

1. The anchovies were better then expected, I think the mackerel from Wild Planet would be better though
2. The Feta would have rocked
3. The Sausage I used was also good but something like andouille or Chef Adel’s Green Chili Habanero would be better

Guys don’t let anything keep you from throwing shit together and seeing what happens. This was to be blunt fricken good, I can and will make it better but forcing myself to use what I have and be creative led to something really cool.

 

Episode-2576- Building a Business with Amazon’s FBA Program

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Episode-2576- Building a Business with Amazon's FBA Program [ 1:23:54 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Today we are joined by Jeff Lusczynski to hear about how he is building a business with the Amazon FBA Program.  In July 2019 Jeff began his first e-commerce business, Prymal Products, on Amazon after several months of research and product design. He’s learned much from this endeavor, learning the ropes of product research, sourcing, negotiation, supply chain, legal, marketing, customer service, social media. He currently holds a day job in finance and hopes to expand the business from part-time to full-time to allow him greater freedom through self-employment.

Jeff’s other interests are travel, martial arts and teaching others. He’s 33 years old and lives in Salem, Mass and has traveled to 43 countries across Europe, Africa & Asia. He is a practitioner of kickboxing and BJJ and has trained overseas. He began his online presence making how-to woodworking videos on Youtube. Like Jack, he is also a big fan of Gary Vaynerchuk.  Joins us today for a great discussion on building income streams through Amazon FBA and E-commerce, regardless of where you live.

Resources for today’s show…

 

Get Your Trees from Nick Ferguson, Amazing Deals

 

Sponsors of the Day

 

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK (866-658-4465) and you might hear yourself on the air.

Join the MSB Today

Join the MSB Today

Want Every Episode of TSP Ever Produced?

Remember in addition to discounts to over 40 vendors who supply stuff you are likely buying anyway, tons of free ebooks and video content, MSB Members also get every edition of The Survival Podcast ever produced in convenient zip files in blocks of 24. More info on the MSB can be found here.

Davidson’s Earl Grey Bulk Tea – Item of the Day

The Survival Podcast Posted on by 3

Every day I bring you an item on Amazon that I personally use or has been purchased by many members of the audience and I have researched enough to recommend.

Today’s TSP Item of the day Davidson’s Earl Grey Bulk Tea.  Davidson’s has some of the best deals in organic teas on the market if you buy bulk.  This tea is wonderful and can be brewed with either a french press or simple tea infuser.  If you prefer your tea in a conventional tea bag Davidson’s does make this same tea in bag form, you can find that here.

So what is Earl Grey Tea other than the favorite toddy for Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Star Trek universe.  Earl Grey tea is a tea blend which has been flavored with the addition of oil of bergamot.  Bergamot is a variety of orange.  This citrus fruit is often grown in Italy and France. The rind’s fragrant oil is added to Black tea to give Earl Grey its signature pungent punch. So you would think the favor would be orange like.

It really isn’t, to me the addition of bergamot oil creates a velvety feel and a flavor that is more like well, bee balm than anything else I can think of.  I am not sure but I think this may be why bee balm is also called “wild bergamot”.  As clearly an orange and a member of the mint family are completely unrelated, the similar property of each in tea is the only reason I can see for the commonality of the name.

Anyway I love this tea for its flavor, and I love Davidson’s for their value.  You get a full pound of 100% organic tea for about 15 bucks.  One teaspoon of tea makes a cup, so let’s just say that is a lot of cups of “Tea, Earl Grey, Hot” to go though.   Anyway I make this tea at two teaspoons to full french press batch which is two large cups.  As that is more than two 8 ounce cups I do my spoons heaped just a bit.  Pour over boiling water from my electric kettle and let steep for 3 minutes.

Now here is why I love a french press for tea.  At three minutes when you push down the plunger, you are effectively separating the tea from the water, so your tea will not become too strong or overly tannic.  I then sweeten with stevia (perhaps honey once a week) and at times enjoy a bit of lemon with it as well.

So give this stuff a try, it does have caffeine but far less than coffee.  If you want a decaf version they have that too but I don’t really care for decaffeinated teas myself.  Caffeine free is one thing, decaffeinated is another.  So check out Davidson’s Earl Grey Bulk Tea today and I think you will enjoy it even more that Captain Picard does, I mean this is the real deal not some phony baloney replicated knock off.

Remember you can always find all of our reviews at TspAz.com

Episode-2575- Thoughts on Tactics and Tech for Changing the Global Food System

The Survival Podcast Posted on by 3
Episode-2575- Thoughts on Tactics and Tech for Changing the Global Food System [ 1:34:13 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

One thing we know is the current food system works, shocked that I said that?  Okay when is the last time you had money, wanted food and could not get any?  This is true in most of the world, people that go with out food do so from poverty not scarcity.  In fact billions of tons of good food it thrown away annually.  So when I say works, I mean the main stated goal of the managed Global Food System is produce enough food to feed the world.  It does that.  We must start there or no meaningful discussion about correcting the many problems in this system can be had. Yes it works.

You know what also works?  Nuclear bombs work!  They do exactly what they are supposed to do, that doesn’t make them a good idea to drop on a whim though does it.  Our current food system has many problems, some chief among them are….

  • Ruins land, causes floods, creates deserts
  • Pollutes water ways and oceans
  • Using massive amounts of fossil fuels
  • Destroys entire eco systems
  • Treats animals with cruelty few can even imagine
  • Centralizes control of commodity crops enabling harsh use of “soft power”

 

I could go on but honestly there is no need.  No one actually involved in agriculture at a policy level denies any of this, it is seen for now as a “necessary evil” by most and a system of control by many psycopaths in high levels of power.  (In that I am including bureaucrats, politicians, tecnocrats and oligarchs alike).

Into this world of problems there is a huge movement growing of “solutions” and that is great but like many such solutions there is an almost religious like attachment to individual solutions.  Vertical farming will “save the world” is one cry while many (including me at one time) found the concept of paying for electric light when we have a sun, retarded on its face.  Yet I just listened to a presentation showing that in 10-15 years the indoor production of rice, rice for God’s sake will be economically viable.  You can see that here.

I find that to possibly be something that can be done, but likely not something we really need to do.  I mean to me rice is the one grain that can really be grown in a truly sustainable system in the right environment.  That said I can see why some nations may want to develop the ability to produce grain with such a technology for national defense reasons alone.

I can hear some of you screaming, “what about ReGen Ag Jack”?  My response is totally, we need it, but I don’t think anyone doing real ReGen Ag is now or ever will be growing lettuce at commercial scale.  The more I did into the many proposed solutions the more I am convinced as usual a decentralized holistic approach is the way to go.  I am going to cover 4 solutions today, rest assured there are more, a lot more.

Join Me Today to Discuss…

  • Solution One – Growing Food at Home
    • Back yard gardens
    • Small live stock – requires feed
    • Indoor vertical farms – 500 bucks to start and produce over 100 dollars in food a month
    • Other ideas
    • Reality – society is not ready or willing to scale this beyond may be 10% of our needs
  • Solution Two – Indoor Vertical Farming
    • Does some things very well – shot turn and low growing crops (herbs and greens)
    • Tech is now about 10 years into development, still early in the game
    • Production is 100% predictable and control is complete and total
    • Cost of start up is exceptionally high, operation cost is high, profit is solid for many
    • Barrier to entry is high, technocrats are developing systems at a high rate of progress
  • Solution Three – Greenhouse Farming
    • Can use soil, hydro or aquaponics, most operations going in today are hydro
    • Exceptional for greens and herbs, very good at crops like tomatoes, peppers, egg plants, cucumbers, etc
    • High degree of control of climate
    • Energy costs range from very high to very low
    • Start up costs range from cheap to very expensive, but large scale is very expensive
    • Barrier to entry is high but much lower than indoor farming, there are a lot of abandoned greenhouse operations
  • ReGen Agricluture
    • Does some things very well, livestock, trees, shrubs, perennials
    • Alley cropping does well producing annuals but mainly is used to fund start up and establishment costs
    • Requires large amounts of land, significant equipment for earth works
    • Requires detailed knowledge of animal husbandry and some external feed
    • In most instances can not be done near urban areas to due a combination of costs, regulations and scarcity of land
    • Cost of entry is high yet financing is more available to many
  • The Concept of Holistic Solutions
    • Home production does what it can
    • Indoor farms grow what they grow best
    • Green houses grow even more and get better at what they do
    • ReGen Ag produces perennials and meat and heals the land, rivers and streams
    • We grow less grain, surrounded by perennial and grazing systems
  • In time I think it and more will happen, why, we really don’t have a choice

 

Resources for today’s show…

 

Sponsors of the Day

 

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK (866-658-4465) and you might hear yourself on the air.

Join the MSB Today

Join the MSB Today

Want Every Episode of TSP Ever Produced?

Remember in addition to discounts to over 40 vendors who supply stuff you are likely buying anyway, tons of free ebooks and video content, MSB Members also get every edition of The Survival Podcast ever produced in convenient zip files in blocks of 24. More info on the MSB can be found here.

Lakonto Monkfruit Based Sweetener – Item of the Day

The Survival Podcast Posted on by 3

Every day I bring you an item on Amazon that I personally use or has been purchased by many members of the audience and I have researched enough to recommend.

Today’s TSP Amazon Item of the day is Lakonto Monkfruit Based Sweetener.  Specifically a two pack of the golden and white varieties.  I first learned about Lakonto from Thomas DeLauer on YouTube.  I really like Thomas and while I don’t agree 100% with him, I have leaned a ton from him.

Monkfruit has been used for centuries as a sweetener, as you might imagine often by monks.  It is a zero calorie sweetener with no effect on blood sugar.  It is very sweet, similar to stevia in that way.  To some though it has a bit of a “funny fruity aftertaste”.  Enter Erythritol which this is also made with.  Erythritol is a sugar alcohol that also has no caloric yield to the body and no impact on blood sugar. 

Now some people do not believe such claims about blood sugar, and with a logical reason for it.  This is because some things which make this claim, DO impact blood sugar.  Like say xylotil and maliditol  which is why I was very grateful when I found this video done by a couple called Keto Connect.  Since they did this video a ton of youtubers have done the same test with similar results.  Short version is xylitol (which is also highly toxic to dogs), spiked blood sugar and maltitol also did so almost as bad as pure sugar.  Erythritol and monkfruit both did absolutely nothing to blood sugar levels and that was with a quantity I can’t even imagine using in one serving (3 tablespoons).  Seriously who the hell uses 3 tablespoons of sugar on any one thing?

So why the blend?  Well all artificial sweeteners even stevia can have some level of a “funny taste” which actually really amounts to, they don’t taste exactly like cane sugar.  If you check into all the most popular low sugar products you will find that most use 2-4 sweeteners.  They don’t do this to be very sweet as some think.  No, what they do is use multiples and go for a specific level of sweetness.  If you just want really sweet you can use a lot of monkfruit or a lot of erythritol and you will have it.  But whatever odd taste is included is now magnified.  For erythritol you get almost a cooling mint like finish like say wintergreen.  Monkfruit has sort of a strong fruit taste (shocking I know). But when you use a bit of this and that, they sort of cancel each other out.

In short this stuff doesn’t taste exactly like sugar but it is the closest thing I have found.  I use a teaspoon of it and a drop of stevia in my chocolate coffee (recipe below) and it is amazing.  I also do use strait erythritol as it is cheaper and for some things it doesn’t matter.  I like the the Swerve Brand for that.

One thing I have been using the Golden Lakonto for a lot is meat rubs.  I have always used brown sugar for such things and it is great but it can add a ton of carbs.  I first tried the brown sugar version of Swerve for this, it didn’t work great.  When I tried the Lakonto Golden it was better, I eventually settled on a solution of using 1/3rd real brown sugar and 2/3rds Lakonto Golden.  It tastes amazing and the carbs are still low, I mean it is a rub not a sauce so you don’t use a massive amount of it.

The golden is my favorite, it is good in everything far as I am concerned.  I am recommending you try the small pack of one of each to get a taste for it and see if it works for you.  Once you know you like it, there are less expensive options by the ounce for sure with buying like a 3 lb bag, but you shouldn’t do so until you try it on a smaller size just in case you don’t care of it.

When I first found Lakonto they only did granulated sugar replacement and monkfruit drops.  They now seem to be using their sweetener to go into a lot of other products.  I am sure most will be awesome.  One caution though, they have like a chocolate chip pancake mix, etc.  I don’t trust products like this for keto.

My view is we need more tests with blood glucose meters like the Keto Connect people did with sweeteners to know for sure.  But when I see ____ starch, _____ starch, _____ starch, etc as the primary ingredients of  a low “net carb” product my bullshit detector goes off!  While I do subscribe to the net carb theory of subtracting fiber from whole foods, I don’t buy it with a laboratory manufactured starch and I won’t until someone proves it with a glucose meter.  For more on this and more recipes tune into today’s show, which will be episode 2540.

Otherwise though give Lakonto Monkfruit Based Sweetener a shot and check out the recipes below for using it.

Remember you can always find all of our reviews at TspAz.com

P.S. Here are two recipes for this sweetener.  You can use it in anything calling for sugar though at a 1-1 replacement.  If you want to cut sugar for your kids, do a 50-50 cut with it, they will never know unless you tell them.

Jack’s Chocolate Keto Coffee

Please note this is a keto treat type of coffee, something I make on a nice slow Sunday Morning not a daily drink. 

      • 1 TSP Pure Coco Powder (100% no sugar stuff)
      • 1 TSP Lakonto Golden Sugar
      • 1 TBS MCT Oil (totally optional for a keto fat bomb)
      • 1/4 TSP of real cinnamon (Ceylon)
      • 1-2 Drops of Stevia
      • Two Cranks of Pink Salt (pinch of any salt really)
      • 1 TBS of heavy organic cream
      • 2 TBS of Coconut Cream
      • Coffee

 

I make up a French Press of  Food Forest Farms or Holler Roast Coffee.  Pour coffee into the blender first so the powdered coco and cinnamon don’t cake.  Just put in all the other ingredients and blend, I use my Ninja Blender.  If you want to have a truly sinful experience you can add a shot of peppermint flavored whipped cream for only one more carb.

Again this is a spoil yourself indulgence but the chocolate is a no big deal.  You an back off the creams and be both low calorie and low carb.

Jack’s Coffee Chocolate Rib Rub

  • 2 TBS Ground Coffee
  • 2 TBS Coco Powder (100% no sugar stuff)
  • 2 TBS Lakonto Golden
  • 1 TBS Brown Sugar
  • 2 TBS of Chili Powder
  • 2 TBS Salt (kosher is best for this one)
  • 1 TBS of Black Pepper
  • 1/4 TSP of Red Pepper Flake
  • 1 TSP Cumin

 

This is a do anything rub but it was made for pork ribs and it is beyond amazing on them.  It also loves skin on chicken!  When I did the math using the real brown sugar cut with the Lakonto only added about .3 carbs per rib, say .4 for a big chicken leg.  To me that is worth it and the melty nature of real brown sugar is worth it.  It is good with pure Lakonto but better with 1/3rd of the sweetener being the real deal.

 

Episode-2574- Listener Feedback – The Gardening Edition

The Survival Podcast Posted on by 3
Episode-2574- Listener Feedback - The Gardening Edition [ 1:45:14 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Today on The Survival Podcast I answer your questions on everything gardening.  I am gonna toss you guys a small curve ball today.  Rather than a typical feedback show largely driven by email I posted a request for content on my facebook page and the TSP facebook page this weekend asking for gardening questions.  The response was great.  I plan to do a series of themed feedback shows in the coming months.  Likely it will be about every other week with typical email response shows in between.  But this is a great reason to join the TSP Facebook Forum Group if you have not yet done so.

Make sure if you submit content for a feedback show that you put something like “comment for jack”, “question for jack” or “article for jack” in the subject line to assure proper identification for my screening process.

Please understand I receive several hundred emails a day and can’t get them all on the air.

I also do put out a lot of information on Facebook from emails that I can’t fit on the program though so keep em coming.

Join Me Today As I Respond to Your Calls and Discuss…

  • Quote of the day – “All the world’s problems can be solved in a garden” ~ Geoff Lawton
  • Questions from the book of faces
    1. Dealing with white powdery mildew
    2. Dealing with squash bugs and growing bigger carrots
    3. Muscadine grapes dropping off the vine early
    4. A productive privacy screen “fedge” (and thorny options too)
    5. Setting up a cheap hydro system with adjustable distance lights
    6. Gnats living in container plant soils
    7. Dealing with excessive water retention in garden soil
    8. Indoor seed starting vs. winter sowing and how kratky hydro fits into this
    9. Preparing 1/4th of an acre now for gardening this spring
    10. Best seed catalogs to order from and why
    11. Control of root knot nematodes
    12. Best direct sow cold weather crops
    13. Trouble getting nasturtiums to grow
    14. Keeping cats out of the garden
    15. Best automated irrigation solution when you have to travel a lot
    16. Media for growing tomatoes with “fishless aquaponics” ie Hydro
    17. Planting a wind brake to deal with chemical overspray
    18. Growing great peppers
    19. Does a hydroponic system need to run continuously
    20. When you have mulched and tarped should you do any tilling in spring
    21. Making gardening easier for older folks or anyone with mobility issues
    22. The basics of tree planting
    23. Gardening after a fire – Thoughts on Australia
    24. Easiest set and forget garden plants
    25. How much microclimate can you really create in a garden
    26. Partial shade and potatoes
    27. Keeping voles out of your garden
    28. Gardens and electric fences in sandy soils
    29. Best material to build raised beds with
    30. How to select the right varieties for your location
    31. What is more practical to just buy local vs. grow your own
    32. Crops that do well in partial shade
    33. My top 3-5 easiest food crops
    34. DIY Greenhouses, the good, bad and ugly
    35. Best options for renters and temporary gardens
    36. Raise beds vs. growing in conventional rows
    37. Starting seeds for hydro and getting zero germination
    38. Will a permaculture background practically guarantee you a job at a gardening center
    39. Does it make sense to buy a wood chipper, especially a 2,000 dollar one
    40. How to sell customers on going organic in a garden maintence business

 

Resources for today’s show…

 

Sponsors of the Day

 

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK (866-658-4465) and you might hear yourself on the air.

Join the MSB Today

Join the MSB Today

Want Every Episode of TSP Ever Produced?

Remember in addition to discounts to over 40 vendors who supply stuff you are likely buying anyway, tons of free ebooks and video content, MSB Members also get every edition of The Survival Podcast ever produced in convenient zip files in blocks of 24. More info on the MSB can be found here.

Szechuan Peppercorns by CC-Store – Item of the Day

The Survival Podcast Posted on by 1

Every day I bring you an item on Amazon that I personally use or has been purchased by many members of the audience and I have researched enough to recommend.

Today’s TSP Amazon Item of the day is Szechuan Peppercorns by CC-Store.  They are available in different size packages and scaling up here saves a lot of money.   Your options are

 

While you may be tempted to get the bigger package and save the money, I’d say don’t do so until you know you like the experience of eating food cooked with them.  Note I said experience vs. flavor because it is more than just flavor.  That said up front these things are not super hot, they won’t make you run for gallons of water.  They do have a sort of mild heat but they also have and I kid you not a numbing effect and a sweetness too.

We are not talking a Novocaine shot numb but the experience is mildly similar.  They also give a tingly effect to the tongue and the inside of your mouth.  The flavor is really unlike anything else in the world.  This is what you make real Szechuan beef or chicken with.  99% of the time when you order that in a restaurant in the US it isn’t what you get.

These “peppercorns” are also not a pepper, they actually grow on a tree.  You can even buy one and grow it in a lot of the US, but if you do make sure you get a male and a female.  Only the female will produce peppercorns, no matter how much it offends “woke” SJWs.  You can get trees from One Green World, here are the female and the male tree options.

If however like me you don’t want to wait for two trees to grow to enjoy them, CC-Store Peppercorns have the best blend of quality and value I have found.  This stuff is expensive, but a little does go a long way as you can see from the two posted recipes.  I would bet most folks would only use 2-4 ounces a year.  The good news is it stores really well.  I buy 12 ounces at a time and store it in small vac sealed jelly jars.

So if you have never had this stuff, the question is will you like it?  I can’t know but my guess is unless you are into totally bland food, you will love it.  I made the steak skewers (thanks to our Awesome Sponsor Butcher Box) at the Fall Workshop.  Like I made 20 freaking pounds of them.  They were being grabbed off my Blackstone Griddle as fast as I could cook them.

I didn’t find one person who didn’t freaking love them.  I figured it was a bit of a gamble as the taste is so distinctive but everyone loved them, and even Dorothy loves them.  I did the same marinade with pork tenderloin last night, we liked it but agreed that with the more delicate pork you can likely cut the pepper corns in half.

The great news is it is easy to expirment with and if you feel you want more just sprinkle some on at the end like you would say black pepper.  So give this stuff a try and try out either of the recipes below.  There are also a ton of recipes online using it, but I think you will find the two below to be 100% Spirko originals.  The steak rub is really simple to make up and blows people away when you use it on a sous vide steak.  There is so much going on that the senses are both delighted and confused.

The skewer marinade is far more complex, it requires more ingredients and procedure but it is something that just triggers a feeding response in folks.  You will find friends asking you to make it all the time once they try it.

Final thought, the peppercorns are whole, they need some grinding when you get ready to use them.  Best tool for that is as always the Mr. Coffee Grinder I use for everything from dried pepper powders, to herbs and spices and of course coffee.

Remember you can always find all of our reviews at TspAz.com

Jack’s Szechuan Peppercorn, Chocolate, Coffee Steak Rub

  • 1 TBS Kosher Salt
  • 1 TBS Brown Sugar – (or Brown Lakonto for Keto)
  • 1 TBS Szechuan Peppercorn ground
  • 1 TBS Garlic Powder
  • 1 TBS Fresh Ground Coffee – (Holler Roast, Food Forest Farms and Mai Thai are all great options with MSB discounts)
  • 1 TBS 100% Coco Powder – (I use Ghirardelli just make sure it is 100% coco)
  • 1 TSP True Cinnamon – (I buy this brand by the pound)
  • 1 TSP Ground Ginger – (I buy this brand by the pound)

 

Just mix it all well and coat any meat but it was really designed for steak like rib eye, sirloin, etc.  I use this on sous vide rib eyes and bison steaks and it blows people away.  I usually put a bit of it out on the side for sprinkling as well.

Jack’s Szechuan Peppercorn Beef Skewers

  • Wet Marinade – Makes enough for 1-2 pounds of meat
    • 3 TBS of Beef or Chicken Broth
    • 3 TBS of Soy Sauce
    • 3 TBS of Saki – (best cooking brand I have found is Michiu)
    • 1 TBS of Mirin – (if you are gonna use cheap mirn just use 4 TBS of Sake, for good mirin use this)
    • 1/2 tsp of Fish Sauce – (Red Boat is best, by a long shot)
    • 1 TBS of Brown Sugar – (or Brown Lakonto for Keto)
    • 1/2 tsp ground ginger – (I buy this brand by the pound)
    • 1 TBS ground Szechuan peppercorns
    • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • Dry Rub – Makes more than you need for 2-3 batches
    • 1 TBS of ground Szechuan pepper corns
    • 1/2 tsp black pepper
    • 1 tsp dehydrated onion – (grind but don’t fully powder it)
    • 1 tsp dehydrated garlic – (grind but don’t fully powder it)
    • 1/2 tsp ground ginger – (I buy this brand by the pound)
    • 1/2 tsp true cinnamon – (I buy this brand by the pound)
    • 1 tsp ground coffee – (Holler Roast, Food Forest Farms and Mai Thai are all great options with MSB discounts)
    • 1 tsp of salt
    • 2 tsp of brown sugar – (or Brown Lakonto for Keto)

 

Cut your steak into bite sized pieces (Butcher Box Steak Tips are great for this and mostly all are already the right size).  Put them in a zip top bag and pour over the marinade and mix well.  Seal bag and put in the fridge, mix it a few times.  Marinade at least 2 hours, 24 hours is best.  This makes the meat amazingly tender.

Remove from marinade and skewer onto bamboo skewers.  I soak mine in a water bottle the day before I use them.  Set them on a drying rack and let them sit at room temp for about 30 minutes, they will get tacky, now sprinkle with the dry rub and grill or cook however you want.  The Blackstone Gridldle does wonderful things with these, awesome sear.  Serve with more dry rub and a bit of pure peppercorns ground on the side so people can adjust for themselves.

  • Side Note – I did pork tenderloin as I said last night with this.  Difference was we did the wet part only, I drained it in a colander and cooked more of a stir fry style in a pan.  The pepper corns were way upfront, I think this was due to two reasons.  One the pork is a more delicate cut of meat.  More though since it was pan cooked the marinade cooked in more than say grilled as a skewer.  Dorothy and I both still found it delicious, the peppercorns are something I am addicted to but she felt it was a little too strong, so if making this for a stir fry cut the pepper corns in the wet marinade back to say 1/2 a tablespoon, you can always add more.

 

  • Final Thought – Guys and gals, if you try these two recipes you will realize that I have actually given some pretty amazing Spirko Trade Secrets away here.  These two recipes represent a TON of work and testing.  I don’t think you will find anything quite like them so cook them for friends and family and blow them away.  Then you decide if you want to tell them how it is done, or keep this now open secret to yourself!

 

 

Episode-2573- The Expert Council Show for 1-3-20

The Survival Podcast Posted on by 1
Episode-2573- The Expert Council Show for 1-3-20 [ 1:24:38 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Today it’s time for the expert council show. To ask a question for a show like this, just send an email to me at jack at thesurvivalpodcast.com with “TSPC Expert” in the subject line.

Today on The Survival Podcast, the expert council answers questions on problem neighbors, hype in the media, heating, dengue fever, pigs, trees, social media and more.

In the body of your email first tell me the council member your question is for. Second ask your question concisely in one to two sentences maximum. Third any and all details after that. This is the formula to give you the best chance of getting on the air.

I do what I can to get as many of your questions as possible on the air but can’t always get to all of them. Our council is made of a wide variety of experts in everything from the tactical to the practical and everything in between.

To get more information on our Expert Council visit our “Meet the Expert Council Page” to learn more about them and their specific areas of expertise.

Join Me Today As Our Experts Discuss…

  • Quote of the day – “The news isn’t there to tell you what happened. It’s there to tell you what it wants you to hear or what it thinks you want to hear.” ~ Joss Whedon
  • Dealing with neighbors that are drug addicts – Steve Wise
  • Can you create under floor heating with a rocket mass heater – Paul Wheaton
  • What is the deal with dengue fever – Old Doc Bones
  • Getting started raising pigs – Darby Simpson
  • Dealing with cut down trees – Ben Falk
  • Growing a facebook page in 2020 – Jack

 

Resources for today’s show…

 

Websites of the Expert Council Members

 

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK (866-658-4465) and you might hear yourself on the air.

Join the MSB Today

Join the MSB Today

Want Every Episode of TSP Ever Produced?

Remember in addition to discounts to over 40 vendors who supply stuff you are likely buying anyway, tons of free ebooks and video content, MSB Members also get every edition of The Survival Podcast ever produced in convenient zip files in blocks of 24. More info on the MSB can be found here.