Please review my stockpile 'to buy' list.....

[Ashie06]

How much of everything should I buy? We'll be stock-piling at Aldi's.

ALSO, when buying dried pasta do I buy the smaller, cheaper boxes or the larger $1-$2 more boxes?

we live in a small apt so we're limited on space but i'm going to get creative

bags of rice
peanut butter
instant grits
instant oatmeal
regular oatmeal
crackers
dry milk
tea bags
kool-aid
instant coffee
instant potatoes
canned soups
canned veggies
canned cream
canned meats
canned beans
canned cream of soups
canned tomato paste
canned tomato sauce
canned mushrooms
canned salmon
canned chili
canned spag o's for the kids
broth
jelly
honey
ketchup
dried pasta's
sugar
flour
cornmeal
yeast
pasta sauces [canned]
frozen juices
brown sugar
vinegar
veg. oil
water [prob jugs]
mac n cheese
bisquick mix
boxed cereal's
muffin mixes
dried fruits?

I'd like to stock-pile things for the fridge/freezer but we only have one fridge and no room to put an extra freezer

[zakity]

Do you use all those things? Make sure you only stockpile things that you will use.

[Ashie06]

yeah, we use them to cook with.

[homesteadmamma]

Looks like a great list. Like Zakity said, just make sure you are going to use it all.

I'd purchase my pasta in bulk if I was you.

Also crackers - not sure how well those store. Also boxed cereals,
mac & cheese, muffin mixes. You'll have to watch the dates on those.

[halloweenfreak]

regarding keeping crackers and cereal- have you tried lock and lock brand containers? i know walmart sells some, i bought the majority of mine off of qvc. cereal, crackers, chips etc. we could never keep fresh long enough to buy in bulk, but i found these lock and lock containers and they have made the world of difference. they are air tight and waterproof. i bought some chex mix in bulk for my sons bday a month ago and they still taste as fresh as the first day i opened them. i keep everything from brown sugar, cheese, cookies... anything that could get stale, in mine and have never had to throw a thing out since i started using them.

[Ashie06]

no, but i need to get some. how long will the cereal stay good for, unopened? we're very low on $$ at the moment [we pay for the food with food stamps] but i'm sure goodwill would have sthing i could use for storage.

[dcompton]

Do you ever cook dried beans? I didn't see them on your list. They are easy to cook, cheaper, and take less space to store than canned beans.

[Ashie06]

yes-hubby cooks lentils. but i get those on wic although i haven't been able to fill my vouchers lately i'd cook pinto beans but noone but me eats them here.

[Persimmon Lace]

I would buy pasta in bulk as well, along with the rice. I do buy the smaller bags of specialty pastas when they go on a great sale, then I stock up.

Your list looks very good.

[halloweenfreak]

i bought SEVERAL boxes of cereal on sale one time and knew it would take us quite awhile to eat it all. i just kept mine in the freezer until we needed it. i dont know how much freezer space you have, but thats what i would do. i keep cake mixes and my bisquick in there as well and never had a problem, so i dont know why you couldn't do the same with your muffin mixes too.

[Ashie06]

well, i'm back. got 127 items for $146-all from Aldi's. forgot the instant grits, reg oatmeal, tea bags, koolaid, yeast, box cereal, muffin mixes and decided to just get the pb on wic.

heres what i got:
4 cans generic spag o's
6 cream of soups
2 cans beef broth
1 carton ice-cream [hey i'm pg lol]
bag of froz chicken leg quarters
2 bags frozen berries
1 huge bunch red grapes
1 can salmon
8 boxes mac n' chs
2 cans mushrooms
4 cans tomato paste
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 cans generic spam
8 cans green beans
4 cans corn
2 boxes "moo tubes" drinkable yogurts
2 big bags long grain rice
2 bags wide egg noodles
2 containers 14oz mustard
1 container ham cubes
2 containers ketchup
4 bags dried chili peppers for hubby
2 boxes generic bisquick
4 boxes dried pasta +omega3's
2 bags AP flour
2 boxes elbow mac
2 boxes 8qt dry milk
1 bag cornmeal
2 bottles white vinegar
2 boxes generic ritz crackers
2 boxes animal crackers
2 cans cream
2 jars applesauce
3 bags beef jerky for hubby
2 boxes stick butter
1 jar spag sauce
1 can cooking spray b/c we were out
1 container italian seasoning
1 container baking powder
2 bottles of honey
2 bags brown sugar
3 bottles of veg oil
3 boxes instant oatmeal
1 container bottled water
1 10lb bag russet potatoes

and 19 aldi bags hubby insisted on getting even though we had boxes.....

hooray for a mini stockpile that i can add onto! food isn't put up yet lol but hubby wants to put it in the computer rm closet and bookshelf.

[Persimmon Lace]

Great job! Great dh for putting it away for ya!

[Ashie06]

thanks!

[phoeny_moonstar]

Don't you just love aldi's?!!?!?

[Grainlady]

How much should you store? It's better to have a 3-month supply of a variety of foods than a 1-year supply of one thing (as I once read in a book). Focus on a balance of foods from all the food groups.

Crackers are great as a pantry item, but you might want to consider what types of breads you can make from ingredients you have in storage. If you have flour/fat/baking soda/salt, you can make your own tortillas (http://kansaswheat.org/general.asp?id=332 - Native American Tortillas in a Bag) or biscuits. Add yeast and you can make a loaf of bread (or with a sourdough starter made from water and flour you can make a naturally-leavened bread). Flour/milk/egg/sugar/salt/oil/baking powder and you've got muffins, pancakes, cakes and desserts - all with a handfull of ingredients.

You are storing what I call pantry foods, which are a great start and we all need them to fill the shelves for daily use. But consider having a long-term storage plan as well, that includes foods that are less processed. Try your hand at making your own convenience foods for less money from ingredients you keep in storage. You can line your pantry with Gifts-in-a-Jar recipes as your homemade source for convenience foods (cakes/cookies/soup mixes/desserts).

Instead of storing flour that only has a shelf-life of 6-12 months, I store grain and mill my own flour. Wheat has a shelf-life of 25+ years. Wheat isn't just for flour. I make my own cracked wheat, bulgur, cream of wheat, wheat sprouts, wheat grass, fake meat (aka gluten or seitan), etc... You can even make waffle batter in a blender using whole wheatberries - visit Sue Gregg's web site for all kinds of blender recipes that use the whole grain - www.suegregg.com

With ingredients I have in storage I make my own Multi-grain Baking Mix (Bisquick - but better) - the ULTIMATE convenience food (I love to use Bisquick Impossible Pie recipes for quick meals).

I make a good-for-you multi-grain version of Bisquick that includes wholegrain flour, cornmeal and oatmeal. Another favorite is a wholegrain pancake mix we call Christmas Pancakes because we make several large batchs and give it to friends and family at Christmas - other people make cookies and fudge, we make pancake mix. We also give away a huge amount of homemade granola as part of our holiday food gifts.

I never buy cereal - and consider it the ultimate rip-off food of the last 100-years. I read recently there's 17-cents worth of grain in a box of cereal. I can make my own cereals for pennies.

With only a few inexpensive ingredients I make my own pasta and noodles. I dry homemade noodles in my dehydrator and only need to make them once or twice a year and store them in vacuum-sealed canning jars (using a FoodSaver).

I also focus on storing foods with the most amount of nutrition. Empty calories never fed anyone.

It's not easy going from highly-processed commercial foods to more wholesome foods, so I'd suggest taking baby steps, like I did, to achieve it for your long-term food storage. It took us 6-months before we could give up commercial breads completely for my homemade bread (what sissys we were - LOL).

In the book, The NEW Passport To Survival 12 Steps to Self-Sufficient Living - by Rita Bingham there is a STORAGE FOODS TARGET.

In the center of the target are the most important foods: grains, legumes, seeds (for sprouting) If you can make your own sprouts at home in a quart canning jar, you have an excellent source of fresh food that is full of nutrition. You can also take those same seeds/beans/grains and you can plant them to make more. Try that with a can of refried beans or unbleached flour.

The next important: honey (or other sweeteners), oil, dry milk, salt

With the first two layers of food you are well-stocked for basic foods for survival, but you'll be makeing food from scratch.

Everything else is after that is a bonus and adds greatly to the variety and enjoyment of meals and food preparation: canned, dried, fresh & frozen vegetables and fruits, juices, pasta, meats, eggs, nuts and nut butters, seasonings/flavorings, baking supplies, supplements.