Creating A Pantry





 

(Here is my ghetto pantry, a.k.a. the converted closet next to the kitchen.)

In my last post I talked a little bit about incorporating food storage into your everyday menu. The idea is great in theory, but if you have never really cooked solely out of your pantry; how do you start? What should you add to your pantry? The answer will be different for everyone.

 First, how advanced are your cooking skills? If you can barely boil water don't automatically assume you will be able to produce blue ribbon baked goods on your first attempt. Cooking skills take time to perfect. I recommend investing in a good basic cookbook. A good cookbook should include charts for cooking dried beans, legumes, rice, whole grains, meat, and vegetables. It should also include a section with step by step instructions for baking bread, muffins, etc. My Better Homes and Gardens cookbook has seen me safely through many cooking adventures over the years. I still refer to it often. You Tube also is a great resource for cooking tutorials. Gearing your food choices to those things you feel comfortable cooking, and branching out to new items as you master cooking techniques is important.

Second, ask yourself is what does your family like to eat? Gear your pantry staples to those things that appear on the menu on a regular basis. If your family are big chicken eaters or love smoothies for breakfast, stock up your freezer with those items when they go on sale.
For example, freeze strawberries or peaches when they are in season (and on sale for rock bottom prices) for use in the off season. Meat sales cycle through at loss leader prices (low prices to entice you to shop at a specific store) every three to four week. On the week that ground beef is on sale for a fabulous price, forgo buying chicken breast and buy extra hamburger, instead. Buying meat in "family packs" and repackage them into smaller portions is usually the most cost effective way to go.

Third, shopping the bulk section of your grocery store to stock up on pantry basics like pasta, beans, rice, grains, dried fruit, baking supplies and spices is usually the cheapest option, and you can buy as much as you need. Buying out of the bulk section is a great way to try new foods. It's useless to buy 25 pounds of brown lentils if your family ha never eaten them, and decides they hate them. It's better to find out if you have only bought a half of a pound to try first. Once you have established what your family eats regularly, purchasing those things in bulk amounts (and storing them in 5 gallon buckets) is the cheapest way to go. Also buying canned meat, peanut butter, soup, fruit, veggies, beans, and pasta on loss leader sales is also a great way to stockpile.

Now we come to the all important question of what actual items do you need to have on hand? Like I said, the answer is different for everyone. I cook mainly from scratch (even though I do still buy boxed macaroni and cheese, canned refried beans, cream of something soup, and cold cereal...for emergencies). For me, buying baking supplies, oatmeal, dried beans, and rice in bulk works best, because I go through it quickly. Using someone else's established list as a "cheat sheet" is a great starting off point to build your own.  I used The Prudent Homemaker's Pantry List to add to and organize my own pantry. She has a very inclusive list. Go over to her site for a list of basic items.