Preserving Turkey (& Deals for Homesteaders and DIYers)

Tools to help you get it done!

Now that Thanksgiving is behind us, we’re all sitting on piles of leftover turkey (and everything else). That bulk case of butternut squash I picked up at 80% off needs to get to the root cellar (or into the canner), and there’s no way this leftover turkey is going to fit in the fridge with everything else.

We usually spend the day after Thanksgiving preserving food because, honestly, it takes the same amount of effort to bake a 12-pound turkey as it does a 20+ pounder…and then I can freeze dry or pressure can the leftovers for easy meals later on.

The same goes for everything else we either grew, or bought by the case when they had those “loss leader” sales at the store trying to lure you in.

Here are some resources that might be helpful to you specifically today:

• 16+ Turkey Canning Recipes

• Canning Chicken or Turkey Broth (Same recipe, but 1 turkey carcass= 2-3 chickens)

• 12+ Pumpkin and Winter Squash Canning Recipes

• 12+ Cranberry Canning Recipes

• 20+ Ways to Preserve Pumpkin

• Canning Cranberry Sauce

You can also use leftover turkey in any chicken canning recipe, be it soup, chili, or any meal-in-a-jar recipe.

Chicken and turkey can be used interchangeably in any canning recipe, including broth and stock.

(This Newsletter Contains Affiliate Links. You can find all my product recommendations here.)

Today is also what we refer to as “Black Friday” in the US, where everyone goes absolutely nuts trampling each other and wrestling over TVs at the Walmart. How that became a thing that happens every year here just boggles the mind, but so it goes.

Still, if you keep your head and stay away from the chaos, it is a great time to save money on things you actually need, or stuff you’ve been saving for all year long.

That said, there’s no reason to spend the day scrolling through page after page of “epic deals” on things no one actually needs. It seems like this day is strategically oriented around getting everyone to buy the latest nose hair trimmer (only 4 payments of $69.99).

Provided you stay focused and shop for things you need, and you’ve had your eye on all year, “Black Friday” is a day when you can actually save money on things you were going to buy anyway.

We used to go out of our way to buy nothing on Black Friday, but that’s just shooting yourself in the foot if you know you’ve been saving all year for something…and now it’s 25% off.

Keep that money in your pocket if you can, that just makes smart financial sense.

Black Friday Deals for Homesteaders

Everything below is something useful and handy, especially to the DIY and Homesteading community, that just happens to be less expensive today. I’ve put as many as I can find, all in one place, to help you stay focused.

If I missed something that you’ve had your eye on that can help equip you to live a DIY lifestyle, let me know in the comments (so everyone can benefit, too!)

Food Preservation

Harvest Right Freeze Dryers run their biggest sale of the year for the whole month of November, and if you’ve had your eye on one, soon you’ll see the best prices of the year. As they’ve gotten more efficient in manufacturing these, they’ve actually dropped their prices in the past few years, but that can’t last in the face of inflation. Right now, they’re an additional $500 off until the end of the month, and that’s probably the lowest price you’ll ever see on one of these.

Harvest Guard Reusable Canning Lids is doing their biggest sale of the year, just use code “BF25” at checkout for 35% off, and then you won’t have to worry about future canning lid shortages.

Pleasant Hill Grain sells all manner of useful tools and appliances for homesteaders, including grain grinders, apple presses, dehydrators, and more. Their sale page has quite a few good deals for today.

Similarly, Lehmans off-grid supply has pressure canners, cast iron dutch ovens, sewing machines, fermentation crocks, and much more on sale today. Here is their current sale page.

Yeti Coolers really are magic, and I know they’re expensive, but they’re worth every penny if you hunt, fish, or process your own meat on farm.  They’ll keep food cold for a full week if left closed, so you can work through a full batch of homemade sausage, getting it all packaged and put up without stressing about refrigerator space.  (You will, of course, need lots of freezer space too, as these aren’t meant for storing food forever, but they’re a great stopgap.  We run three big chest freezers, but during harvest season, we often need extra storage space while we’re getting things packed up and processed.)

Backup Power

Jackery has up to 50% off solar generators and portable power banks. Other companies like Bluetti and Anker are running similar sales. These backup power options are incredibly useful for preparedness and camping, and they can really help you get through outages due to ice storms this winter.

If you don’t know anything about backup power options, I wrote a detailed guide to portable power banks that takes you through everything you’d need to know to choose a system, be it a small one to charge your phone in an emergency, or a whole house backup option.

Preparedness

Berkey filter cartridge units have been unavailable for months, and I just learned that they’re no longer going to be made! Crazy, and sad, since there are no other water filter options anywhere near as good as a Berkey. If you have a Berkey filter, you can stock up on filters before they completely go out of stock. A filter will be fine in storage for decades, and a single one can filter thousands of gallons of water (lasting years). We have 6 boxed up in our basement, and we’re good on clean water for this decade. They are currently in stock (but not on sale) at Pleasant Hill Grain.

Nutrient Survival has 30% off build-your-own bundle kits of Emergency food (full nutrient survival review here)

Valley Food Storage has 25% off (full Valley Food Storage Review here)

Backpacker’s Pantry has 25% off all meals, and their cook-in-bag style preparation makes them perfect for either camping or emergencies.

Palmetto State Armory has up to half off, depending on what you choose for self-defense. Similarly, Optics Planet always has amazing deals this time of year, and they’re a great option for both self-defense and emergency food, and one of the best sources for MREs (You can read my guide to MRE’s here.)

Herbalism & Natural Health

Y’all know I love herbal academy courses, but sadly, they don’t really do much for Black Friday. They do usually have an epic Early December sale though, so I’ll let you know when/if it happens.

Farmhouse Teas is having a 20% off sale, and they sell high-quality herbal teas and bulk herbs, as well as DIY kits for salves, elderberry syrup and I’m particularly excited about their DIY cherry bark cough syrup kit. Coupon Code FARMHOUSE20 at check out.

Cooking & Baking

King Arthur Flour has 15 to 20% off site-wide and free shipping on appliances, so it’s a good time to invest in a KitchenAid mixer or bread machine to help you bake more bread at home. They also have new on-demand baking classes that you can take anytime, which my daughter absolutely loved.

Field Company makes some of the nicest cast iron skillets I’ve ever used, and though they're expensive, they last a lifetime (or really, several lifetimes). Everything’s 25% off.

Breeo rarely has sales, but they’re currently 15% off. They make some of the best smokeless firepits anywhere from stainless steel that will last a lifetime. We’ve been cooking outdoors on ours all summer, and though they’re expensive, I feel like we’ve saved that much in propane and electricity simply because we’re cooking outdoors and not heating up the house.

Books & Courses

Chelsea Green’s holiday sale has 35% off everything, plus free shipping. Almost half of the books on my list of best books for self-reliant living come from this publisher, and they have a lot of amazing titles.

Masterclass is one of the best online course academies anywhere, and they have quite a few courses that are really spectacular for homesteaders. I’ve taken their Wilderness Survival Course taught by Air Force SERE instructor Jessie Krebs, and I really loved how she broke everything down into short, manageable lessons.  I learned emergency signaling and practical applications for basic survival knots… along with countless other things.  Her lessons gave me hours of quality time with my husband last winter, and plenty to think about. Last year, I took their Bread Baking course with Apollonia Poilâne, and watched the lessons with my daughter.  They’re engaging enough for me as an adult, and experienced bread baker, but accessible enough that my 8-year-old loves them too. They have a 2-for-1 deal right now. 

Clothing

Darn Tough sells Vermont-made merino wool socks that are guaranteed for life. Literally, if they get a hole, you mail them back in, and they’ll mail you a new pair. We’ve been wearing them for 15+ years, and every year, we round up any pairs with holes before winter and mail them in for new ones. I can’t believe we bought a lifetime supply of socks 15 years ago, and this still works, but they’re true to their word (and so comfortable that we wear their thick socks in winter, and thin, breathable wool socks in summer, too).

Gardening

Garden Tower Container Gardens are 30% off today. We’ve been able to garden all winter long in our Garden Tower container garden, and it’s big enough to grow plenty of fresh food to supplement your stored goods, but small enough that it only takes up a few square feet of space.

Other Ideas?

What are you shopping for today? Something that’s going to help you grow more in your garden, put up more of your own food, or simply do more at home in the year to come? What have you’ve been saving for all year, that’s now finally costs just a little bit less today?

Leave me a note in the comments!

(Comments only, please. Emails tend to get lost in my inbox, and as much as I’d love to get back to each and every one, my screen time is very limited…and things fall through the cracks, and emails get buried in my inbox. If you comment here, they’re all in one place, and it’s much easier to get back to every single one.)

Until Next Time,

Ashley at Practical Self Reliance