Emergency Cooking: How to Make Meals Without Power

Quick answer

Cook with a camp stove or grill outdoors only, away from doors, windows and vents. The CDC warns these can fill a home with deadly carbon monoxide.
Indoors, Ready.gov lists candle warmers, chafing dishes, fondue pots and a fireplace as options.
Keep the fridge closed. The USDA says it keeps food safe for about 4 hours, and a full freezer for about 48 hours.
Stock canned and dry foods you can eat cold, so cooking is a bonus, not a must.

The biggest danger in emergency cooking is carbon monoxide, so this guide starts with safety. Then it covers cooking options, fuel, fridge food and a 3-day menu.

Carbon monoxide: the main danger

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a gas you cannot see or smell. Every flame or engine makes it. In a closed space it builds up fast and can kill.

The CDC’s rules

Never use a generator, grill, camp stove, or any gas-, propane- or charcoal-burning device inside your home, garage or carport.
Never burn charcoal indoors.
Never use a portable gas camp stove indoors.
Never use a gas oven to heat your home.
Run a generator outdoors, more than 20 feet (6 m) from windows, doors and vents.
Never run a car or truck in an attached garage, even with the door open.

The Red Cross adds that opening windows or running fans does not prevent CO buildup.

Install CO alarms

The CDC advises battery-operated or battery back-up CO detectors near every sleeping area. Check the batteries when you change your clocks in spring and fall. Replace the detector on the maker’s schedule or every 5 years.

During an outage, a plug-in alarm without a battery will not work. Check yours today.

Know the warning signs

The CDC lists these CO symptoms:

Headache
Dizziness
Weakness
Upset stomach or vomiting
Chest pain
Confusion

People often mistake them for the flu. If several people in the house feel sick at once, think CO.

If the alarm sounds or someone feels sick

Get everyone out to fresh air right away, including pets.
Call 911 from outside.
Stay in fresh air until emergency crews arrive.

These steps follow Red Cross guidance.

Cooking options compared

Method	Use where	Good for	Watch out for
Propane or butane camp stove	Outdoors only	Boiling water, one-pot meals	CO; fuel supply
Gas or charcoal grill	Outdoors only, away from the house	Meat, vegetables, heating pots	CO; never in a garage or carport
Rocket stove	Outdoors only	Cooking with twigs and small wood	Open flame, smoke, CO
Solar cooker or solar oven	Outdoors in sun	Slow cooking, rice, beans, stews	Needs clear sun; slow
Chafing dish or fondue pot with canned fuel	Per label directions	Warming canned food	Open flame; never leave it alone
Candle warmer	Per label directions	Warming small portions	Very low heat; fire risk
Wood-burning fireplace	Indoors, with a working chimney	Heating water, Dutch-oven meals	Open the damper; never leave it alone
No-cook meals	Anywhere	Canned and ready-to-eat food	Needs a manual can opener

Ready.gov lists candle warmers, chafing dishes, fondue pots and a fireplace as emergency cooking sources. It says charcoal grills and camp stoves are for outdoor use only.

Camp stoves

A one- or two-burner propane stove is the simplest choice for most homes. Set it up on a stable table outside, out of the wind. Keep it away from doors, windows and vents.

Count how many canisters it takes to boil water for a family meal, then keep enough for at least a week.

Grills

Your backyard grill is a good outage stove. Put a pot or a cast-iron pan right on the grate. Keep it away from the house, and never use it in a garage, even with the door up.

Rocket stoves

A rocket stove burns small sticks in an insulated chimney. It uses little fuel and gets hot fast. Use it outdoors only, on a non-flammable surface, and keep water nearby.

Solar cookers

A solar oven traps sunlight in an insulated box. It works on clear days and cooks slowly, like a slow cooker. It makes no smoke or CO, but it won’t help at night or in storms.

Canned fuel and candle warmers

Chafing fuel cans and fondue pots can warm a can of soup or chili. They put out little heat, so don’t plan to boil large pots of water with them. Follow the label, keep them away from anything that can burn, and never leave a flame alone.

Store fuel safely

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) gives these rules for gas cans and liquid fuels:

Never store gas cans inside the house, in a basement, or near anything that can ignite them.
Store fuel containers in a cool area with good air flow.
Use child-resistant fuel containers.
Keep all fuel out of children’s reach.

For propane and butane canisters, follow the storage directions printed on the canister. Keep fuel away from the stove while it is lit.

Keep fridge and freezer food safe

During an outage, your fridge food is the first thing to use, and the first thing that can make you sick. FoodSafety.gov and the USDA give these limits.

Appliance	Safe time without power (door kept closed)
Refrigerator	About 4 hours
Full freezer	About 48 hours
Half-full freezer	About 24 hours

What to do

Keep an appliance thermometer in the fridge and the freezer now, before an outage.
Keep both doors closed as much as possible.
If the outage will last more than 4 hours, move food to a cooler with ice.
Buy dry ice or block ice if you can. The USDA says 50 pounds of dry ice should hold a full 18-cubic-foot freezer for 2 days.
Eat perishable fridge food first, while it is still cold.

What to throw out

Throw out meat, poultry, fish, eggs, leftovers and other perishables that have been above 40°F (4°C) for 2 hours or more.
Frozen food that still has ice crystals or is at 40°F or below is safe to refreeze, says the USDA.
Never taste food to decide if it’s safe.
When in doubt, throw it out.

A simple 3-day no-power menu

This menu is for one person. It uses fridge food first, then freezer food, then the pantry. Multiply it by the number of people in your home.

Most of it needs no cooking. Hot water from a camp stove just makes it more comfortable.

Day 1: use the fridge first

A closed fridge keeps food safe for about 4 hours. After that, eat only perishables you kept at 40°F (4°C) or below in a cooler with ice.

Breakfast: yogurt, milk and fruit from the fridge
Lunch: sandwiches with deli meat or cheese from the fridge
Dinner: grilled meat or fish from the fridge, outdoors, with canned green beans
Snacks: fresh fruit, crackers

Day 2: shift to the freezer and pantry

Breakfast: instant oatmeal made with hot water, dried fruit
Lunch: canned tuna or chicken, crackers, canned fruit
Dinner: thawed frozen meat that is still at 40°F or below, cooked on the grill, plus instant rice
Snacks: peanut butter, granola bars

Day 3: pantry only

Breakfast: cereal with shelf-stable or powdered milk
Lunch: canned chili or soup, warmed on the camp stove or eaten cold
Dinner: pasta with jarred sauce, or canned beans and rice
Snacks: trail mix, dried fruit

No-cook pantry list

Common mistakes

Bringing the grill into the garage “just for a minute.” CO builds up fast.
Using the gas oven to heat the house. The CDC says never do this.
Opening the freezer to check on it. Each opening lets cold out.
No CO alarm with a battery. A plug-in alarm is useless during an outage.
Not enough fuel. Test your stove and count how much fuel a meal really takes.
No can opener. Ready.gov lists a manual can opener in its basic kit.

Emergency cooking checklist

To build a deeper pantry, see long-term food storage. If your tap water is unsafe, follow our guide to purifying water in an emergency. For general fire safety at home, read our fire safety guide.

Sources

Carbon Monoxide (CO) Poisoning Basics — CDC
Avoiding Carbon Monoxide Poisoning — CDC
Generator Safety — American Red Cross
Food — Ready.gov (FEMA)
Build a Kit — Ready.gov (FEMA)
Water — Ready.gov (FEMA)
Avoid Foodborne Illness During Temporary Power Outages — FoodSafety.gov
Keeping Food Safe During an Emergency — USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service
Fuel Container, Gasoline and Other Liquid Fuel Safety — U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission