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The Pantry – Organizing & Stocking
Whether it’s a separate closet off the kitchen, designated cabinets or a freestanding cabinet, a pantry is simply any cool dry place to store nonperishable f ood items.
Any size kitchen can have a pantry, for example in my current kitchen cabinet space is limited so I’ve set up metal shelves in the basement to hold food and cleaning products.
Each shelving unit is designated to a particular product, extra cleaning supplies occupy one while another holds dry goods such as pasta, cereal, crackers, extra soda, juice bottles and canned goods.
Another is used for extra paper products, this system works well for those great sales you come across.
I also have a freestanding cabinet – two-door front with selves inside and two drawers underneath – were the items we are currently using are kept. As supplies dwindle they are replaced with items from the basement storage.
If a basement is not an option or your kitchen is to small for an extra piece of furniture your existing cabinets can be used as the pantry. The trick is to organize them for maximum use. Designating a cabinet to each food group works well, of course this method will depend on the number of cabinets you have.
How A Pantry Works
The general idea behind a pantry is to keep on hand items that are frequently used, this can help eliminate the following: You’ve decided to cook a meal only to discover you’re missing an ingredient. I’m sure we’ve all found ourselves in this situation more than once
Keep It Organized
The secret to a successful pantry is organization, remember the idea is to make meal time easier and stop numerous trips to the store, which by the way will also help in saving money and couldn’t we all befit from that.
Organizing your panty is actually pretty easy; the basic rule is to keep like items together. For example: Boxed items in one place, canned goods in another. Take it one step further by separating your canned goods into categories: all soups together, fruit together etc. The same can also be done with boxed items: cereal together, crackers, pasta etc.
Tip: When organizing canned goods try using stair step shelves – these can be found at any discount store and are pretty inexpensive – this will put the cans in the back rows in view allowing you to see exactly what you’ve got, it also makes great use of space.
By organizing your pantry area into separate zones you’re able to see exactly what you have and what needs to be restocked. This is also helpful when returning from a shopping trip, everyone who helps unpack the groceries will know exactly where everything belongs
Clear plastic airtight containers can be an extremely helpful organizing tool. Baking supplies are perfect for these types of containers. Different sized containers filled with flour, brown & white sugar, chocolate chips, sprinkles etc, not only keep everything together so when you’re ready to bake that special desert everything you need is right at your finger tips, Another advantage is they stack neatly and being clear they allow you to see at a glance how much of everything you have.
These containers also work well for dry goods like cereal or crackers, also during warm weather the food stays fresher than in a box, which sometimes might not get closed properly. If you use several different types of cereal or crackers at one time a label maker will help to identify each one easily.
I came across a really clever idea in the April issue of Better Homes & Gardens, which could save time and money when planning meals. The idea is to plan a weeks worth of easy meals, buy the ingredients then keep them grouped together in the pantry.They suggest keeping the ingredients stored in bins on the shelf with a label to identify each meal, keeping in mind this is only for the nonperishable items.
Example:
- Tuna Noodle Casserole - Package of Noodles, Cans of Tuna, Canned Peas
- Chili – Package or Can of Kidney Beans, Can of Tomato Sauce, Can of Diced Tomatoes
- Taco Salad – Taco Sauce, Can of Kidney or Refried Beans, Canned Corn, Tortilla Chips
To save even more time, you could also put any spices needed into the bins plus a copy of the recipe.
If using separate bins is not an option how about one bin or large decorative basket, filled the night before with the ingredients and left on the counter. This way the next day when you’re ready to start dinner everything is together in one spot ready to go.
Pantry Items
The following is a mini list of just some of the items that would go into a pantry.
Herbs and Spices
These are also considered pantry items; however one place they should not be stored is over the stove. After a year they will lose their flavor, so unless it’s something you use frequently only buy in small containers. Also writing the date on the label after they have been opened helps keep track of their age.
The following is a list of common Herbs & Spices
Stocking and organizing a pantry can be a real time and money saver, however it’s not necessary to buy everything at once, especially if you’re just starting out. Begin with a plan, first decide were your pantry will be housed then what storage tools you’ll need-stair step shelves, containers etc. Get the area set up then buy the items you think you’ll use fairly often and build up gradually.
Bon Appetite - Article information courtesy of Better Homes & Gardens Magazine
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