Textured vegetable protein (TVP) is a substitute for ground beef that works well in recipes that use browned ground beef. It works best in highly flavored recipes like spaghetti and chili.
I buy 50 pound bags, from ADM and repackage them into 2 quart jars, so I can store them under hard vacuum.
After repacking:
Each of these containers will work for 7 to 10 meals, recipe dependent. I plan to try this on sloppy joes soon, I'll let you know how it tastes; but it should work well!
I use an off the shelf vacuum top:
Sitting right here in the picture. You can get them from amazon. There is a matching vacuum unit, but I prefer to use a refrigeration vacuum pump; for a stronger vacuum, which should allow longer safe storage! The refrigeration pump pulls 28 inches of mercury, with a 29.2 inches being a perfect vacuum. The kitchen units are supposed to pull 12 inches.
These four jars should provide 35 to 40 meals, in deep storage. This food should last for decades, packaged like this!
Cost is about a tenth of the amount it would cost on Amazon. So continue to prep, but prep smart!