The dried food and MREs aren't bad. But they can be overkill, or too heavily relied upon. I guess it's a nice idea that there will always be a stockpile of food ready to go, but I figured out that I'd rather keep around some regular food that keeps well that I can slowly rotate through. Don't get me wrong, I think that ration food is great if you're going to be mobile. I keep dried ration meals inside a backpack for that purpose.
I don't want to discourage anyone from buying prepared meals if that's what would make them feel better. A hefty fee for some tubs of ready-to-go meals that last 20+ years can provide peace of mind. That said, here's a list of food that I stockpile that I think are the best value:
(Most of this will seem obvious, but I've also owned lots of survival meals, and a lot of what's described here is what's in those anyway)
- Peanut butter: One jar is more than enough fat/sugar/protein for a day's worth of calories, multi-purpose, can be eaten straight, no cooking required, portable, doesn’t require can opener. Powdered peanut butter exists but is more expensive and I don’t really care for it, but it might make sense to you. A jar at Wallmart is $1.58.)
- Canned meat: I normally don't eat canned meat, but in a crisis, having it can be a morale booster. Spam has all the advantages of peanut butter, but in meat form; A can of "Luncheon Meat" at either Wallmart is also around $1.50. Corned beef hash is very tasty and cheap. Canned tuna and pink salmon are good, too.
- Dried fruit: I prefer banana chips because they keep the best. Takes no preparation. Can be added to all sorts of things as well.
- Oatmeal: It's cheap and versatile. It requires water, but it doesn't necessarily need to be cooked. You can just use cold water and let it soak for a while. Tasty, filling, and can be made plain, sweet, or even savory. Add a boillon cube to a pot of oatmeal and you've got an easy evening meal. It's not great, but it'll fill you up.
- Pasta: Ramen noodles, mac n' cheese, etc. Stuff that's quick to make and requires the least preparation.
- Rice: A 20 lb sack of rice can be as cheap as $8, perhaps less depending on where you live.
- Honey: Very versatile, can be used in place of sugar in a lot of cases, needs no refrigeration, lasts ages.
- Ghee or shortening: Both are shelf stable at room temperature and can be used in place of butter.
- Hot sauce, salt, spices, etc. All are dirt cheap but can liven up dull food. As I mentioned before, bouillon cubes are handy.
- Coffee crystals, hot cocoa powder
- Vinegar: For cleaning and can also add flavor.
- Alcohol: We can all use a little liquid morale on occasion. Good for sanitation and can be used as fuel in desperation.
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A lot of people recommend beans. I don't because they take longer to cook than rice and they're too fibrous; have fun eating too many beans and sharting your pants while the world is dying around you! It's not like it's bad to have beans, but I've gotten rid of most of mine for that reason at this point.
If you could only buy one item, I'd definitely go with peanut butter.