A Well-Stocked Pantry

One of the blessings of having a full pantry is that I never have to run to the store to make dinner. There is always something on hand. I can buy things when they're on sale, and when I go to make dinner, I can choose by what I feel like making in the time I have. Variety is truly the spice of life; have a good variety of things on your shelf from which to choose.

The canned goods in the pictures below were bought when they went on case-lot sale, ensuring that I'll never have to pay for these items at full-price. You can frugally build up a food storage, saving money while building up a storage at the same time.

Canning what you grow in your own garden is another way to frugally build your storage.

The other blessing of storing food is that we have food. Despite 8 months of no income in 2007, and not enough to buy food most months from January 2007 to January of 2009, we have had food to eat because I filled the pantry. Here's how we have done it and more of our story.

The menus and recipes on this site come from items I have had stored and that I have grown in my garden.

Want to be prepared against rising prices, job layoffs, etc? Build up a good food storage.

Wondering what you might be missing in your food storage if you found yourself unable to go to the store? I guest posted on that subject over at

Saving and Giving.

Pantry Items:

These are the items I regularly keep on the shelf, and are the items needed to make the recipes on this site, along with those listed in the Fridge and Freezer sections. Anything else comes from my garden.

Grains

Basmati Rice

Oats*

Hard Red Wheat

Hard White Wheat

Long Grain White Rice

Oats

Pearled Barley

Popcorn

Soft Wheat

Sugars

Brown sugar
Powdered sugar

Granulated sugar*
Maple syrup
Dark corn syrup
Molasses
Honey

Oils

Vegetable or canola oil
Olive oil
PAM cooking spray

Popcorn oil

Meats 

Canned chicken*
Canned tuna fish*
Canned corn beef

Hormel Bacon Bits

Canned Fruits and Vegetables

(including Home Canned)

Applesauce

Apple juice*

Baby Food

Black Olives

Cannellini Beans

Corn*
Cranberry Sauce

Green beans*
Diced tomatoes
Tomato sauce

Mandarin oranges*
Peaches
Pears*
Pineapple*
Green chilies*

Kidney Beans

Mushrooms*

Peach nectar

Pickles
Cream of mushroom soup*

Cream of chicken soup*
Clam chowder (or canned clams)
Apple pie filling (or use dried apples)
Cherry pie filling
Canned or boxed chicken stock
Vienna sausages

Tomato soup (or make your own with canned tomatoes)*
Canned chicken noodle soup*

 

 

 

Pasta

Alphabet Letters

Egg Noodles

Farfalle

Penne

Ramen Noodles

Shells

Spaghetti or angel hair noodles

Dried Fruits and Vegetables

Raisins
Golden raisins
Dried cranberries
Dried apricots
Dried figs
Dried apples
Peanut butter
Potato pearls

Potato flakes
Dried potato slices
Dried carrots
Dried celery
Dried onions
Dried apples

Nuts

Almonds

Cashews

Peanuts

Pecans

Pine Nuts

Walnuts

Dried Beans

Alfalfa (for sprouting)

Black Beans

Great Northern Beans

Kidney Beans

Lentils (for sprouting)
Mung Beans (for sprouting)

Vinegars

Apple Cider vinegar
Balsamic Vinegar

Distilled vinegar

Red Wine vinegar

Rice vinegar

Sauces, Jams, etc.

BBQ sauce

Ketchup

Mayonnaise

Pear Butter

Pomegranate Jelly

Salsa 

Soy Sauce

Fun things to have on hand

Brownie Mix*

Chocolate

Chocolate Chips

Chocolate Syrup

Crackers
Granola (you can also make it from scratch from things on this list)

Hard Candy

Hot Chocolate

Instant chocolate pudding mix (just add water)
Instant vanilla pudding mix
Krusteaz Pancake Mix

Malt O’ Meal

Marshmallows
Macaroni and Cheese

Nutella

Tortilla chips

Herbs and Spices:

I try to always keep extra spices in my pantry, in addition to those in my spice cupboard. I buy most of my spices in bulk from Sam's Club and from Herb Products Co.

Cinnamon

Curry powder

Dill

Garlic (powdered or granulated)
Ginger

Lemongrass
Marjoram

Mustard (dry)

Nutmeg

Onion Powder

Oregano
Paprika

Parsley

Poppy seeds

Red Chile Pepper Flakes

Rosemary, ground

Sage, rubbed

Tarragon
Thyme

Other Seasonings:

Cajun Seasoning

Cinnamon and Sugar

Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix

Lemon Pepper

Powdered Chicken Bullion

Pumpkin Pie Spice

Seasoning Salt
Taco Seasoning

Canning Supplies

Ascorbic Acid (Powdered Vitamin C)

Rings

Pectin

Pickling Salt

Lemon Juice

 Meals from Pantry-only Items

Wondering what the shelf life of your food items are?

Canned goods and everyday items

Long-term storage

 (wheat, rice, beans, etc.)

I write the month and year on each item with a sharpie when I buy it, and keep the oldest items closest to the door.

Powdered Milk

If you are low on powdered milk, it could be wise to stock up sooner rather than later.

Milk prices are expected to rise in 2010:

"The price of nonfat dry milk, used in baking products and baby formula, will rise to an average of $1.275 a pound next year from 92 cents, and cheese will increase 28 percent, the USDA said on Dec. 10. Processed and fluid milk will jump 31 percent to $16.75 per 100 pounds, the USDA said. "

from Bloomberg.

I checked out prices again at the end of May 2009. I looked at Smith's (our local Kroger-owned grocery store). The Kroger brand of powdered milk (which I like) has gone down to $11.99 for a 4lb box (it was up to $15.49). As we have used up our almost all of our powdered milk while living on our food storage, I have been needing to replace it. I may not be able to make a large bulk order of powdered milk for a while, but this will work for me as well, and at least get me slowly building up a supply again.

Don't know how to use powdered milk? See here for instructions and recipes.

Buy in Bulk

Buying in bulk can save you a lot of money. You can buy bags, buckets, or #10 cans full of bulk items, such as wheat, oats, milk, dried fruits and vegetables, beans, barley, rice, etc.

For some items, I buy in bulk at Sam's Club (50lbs of long-grain rice is under $17 as of September 2009). For other things, like wheat, barley, oats, milk, etc., I order from Walton Feed. See the Grains page for links to bulk sellers.

 Buying herbs and spices in bulk really helps to cut the cost of these items.