Stocked pantry

[jilly_beans]

I finally have an area to stock a large pantry. I have been trying to find a basic list of what to store. Ideally, I would like 6 months plus of stuff stored.
Can anyone help me?

Thanks!

[Contrary Housewife]

Search Google for "pantry list" and you should come up with many options. Here's one;

Saving Money in the Kitchen: Basic Pantry List, Stocking a New Kitchen Pantry

Go down it and mark items you use a lot, and cross off items you don't use at all.

[Grainlady]

Great list Contrary Housewife!

I'd suggest you start out slowly, taking advantage of specials, discounts, bargains, coupons, etc., rather than stocking it all at once, and focus on foods your family already uses, and choose foods from ALL the food groups (fruit/veg./dairy/meat or meat substitutes/grains). The old - buy a few extra and put the extras in storage.

When I started home food storage, I designated $5/week to foods just for storage. It might be 8 cans of tuna when they were on sale for 59-cents a can, or the next week it might be a combination of peanut butter and jelly that was a loss-leader at the store. Just make sure you stock a variety of foods from all the food groups.

Don't forget to wait for seasonal specials to stock-up.

--Memorial Day and Labor Day is when to purchase condiments (mustard, ketchup, bbq sauce, etc.) and cans of baked beans and other grilling-season specials.

--I purchase most of the nuts I use after Christmas when I can get them 50-75% off, and vacuum-seal them and store them in the freezer.

--Baking items (flour, sugar, yeast,) are often on sale during the holidays, and that's a good time to stock-up. Keep in mind flour has a shelf-life of about 6-12 months, so if you don't do a lot of baking in the summer, wait until Oct. - Dec. to stock-up on flour, and use it by March or April. I heard there is a glut of wheat on the market, so wheat prices should be falling. When it falls at least 25% from the all time high prices of last year, I'm going to replenish my stock by at least 200-pounds of wheat.

-Keep in mind how many or how much of something you normally use.

Unless you have a large family to feed, purchasing 24 cans of tomato sauce, or green beans, etc... with all the same use-by date may not be a good choice if you can't get all 24 cans used BY the use-by date. I generally purchase no more than three of something so I can keep use-by dates as far out in the future as possible. Watch the use-by dates of loss-leaders - especially peanut butter. It's often a date that is not that far out. Store your foods by use-by date, and use it accordingly.

[jas]

thanks for the link. Grainlady thanks for the extra input on when to get the best prices and time to stock up on certain items!

[savvy_sniper]

I am with grainlady; stock up slowly. You also have to take into consideration where you will store it and HOW you will store it. Improper storage leads to food going bad and you are stockpiling to save money; not waste it.

I originally started out stockpiling for hurricane season and then it grew from there. Over timed I invested in a dehydrator, a vacuum sealer, canning jars, etc.

I also slowly got to the point where I cook totally from scratch. So as grainlady has stated I buy lots of ingredients NOT boxed/prepared food. I make my own mixes, seasoning mixes, etc.

It also helps to determine how much of something you use on a monthly basis. Someone here suggested marking the can/box/package when you open it and making note when you use it up. That will give you some idea of how much of an item you need for a 6 month supply.

Good Luck!

[happymomof4]

I use these list but take in mind what my family uses on a regular basis. Remeber to rotate your stock. I keep a list of what is in my pantry and freezers. I use these list to make my meals for the month up. I try and use up with is in the pantry and freezer before I buy more. When I do buys stuff for the panty I make sure I put it behind what I have so I use up the older stuff first.

[jilly_beans]

Thank you all for the great hints and tips! I so appreciate it!