Sentry Page Protection
How to Keep your Food Pantry Organized
When you open the door of your food pantry and kitchen cabinets, what do you see? Can you locate what you need or do you have to lift and shift things first? Keep reading to find out a few valuable tips when it comes to organizing your food pantry.
“I have it all…but where?”
Have you uttered words similar to these when you open your food pantry? Boxes, bags, trays, cans and jars seem to leap out at you from every shelf but you still can’t find anything you need. Before you’re done, a dozen things have already slipped to the floor. There are even things in the pantry that were put there in the spur of the moment but don’t really belong there.
The key to a well-stocked and useful pantry is to know where everything is and easily getting to it. How many times have you reached for something only to find that it is expired? Often these items were never opened at all. This is food waste and it is costing you money. Learn how to never waste another box of food again.
Here are six simple tips for organizing your food pantry:
1. Clean it out first
Whatever you have in there, pull it all out and examine it carefully. Check for expiration dates and sealed packages. One way to avoid food waste is to rotate your stock. Keep foods that are going to expire within six months to a year in front of the rest.
Wipe over the shelves with Miracle Spray, dry them and then sprinkle some bay leaves in the dark corners (they help repel pantry moths).
Wash and dry all empty canisters. Make it a habit to always wash and dry a canister before refilling it (again, this will help to control pantry moths and weevils).
Sweep and mop the floor. Wipe down both sides of the door.
2. Invest in storage items
Plastic and glass canisters were made for stocking a pantry. Dry ingredients don’t usually come in resealable packages (i.e., sugar, flour). Store them in canisters to save on space as well as keep them fresh. Include a scoop for easy dispensing. This method works well for dry cereals, pastas and beans as well.
Canisters don't have to be new or expensive. I have a lot of Tupperware and a lot of Lock'n'Lock containers, as well as some Décor and Starmaid. I also have a few glass jars (they're great for storing beans and lentils). Some of my containers were bought new a long, long time ago (some of my Tupperware is over 30 years old), most of them have been recycled or bought from op shops and garage sales for a fraction of the new price.
3. Label everything
What’s in that plastic container and when does it expire? If you don’t know, that could spell trouble. Labelling plastic containers with item name and expiration can save a lot of bother and headache. Masking tape makes a great label and it can be easily removed when the container is empty so you can re-label it and use it for something else.
If you're a little on the OCD side there are plenty of labels you can buy but I've found they don't have all the items in my pantry so I need a few different sets to get everything labelled, and that gets expensive and messy.
You can make your own labels and I like to do this. They then match, I can choose the design to suit my kitchen and I get a label for everything in the pantry. Packets of blank labels can be bought at $2 shops.
4. Organize your shelves
Designate an area for each kind of item. For example, place baking items on one shelf. In a second, you can see the flour, sugar and dried fruit. Keep snacks together on lower shelves for kids to grab without disturbing other things. Place glass jars at eye level but out of reach of small hands. On higher shelves, place boxes sideways for ease of identification and retrieval.
The top shelf of my pantry is for bulk items that have been opened and decanted. They are easy to find when it's time to top up the smaller containers I use every day. Things like Worcestershire sauce, vanilla extract, tea bags, bulk coffee tins, bulk Vegemite and so on (unopened bulk goods are kept on the stockpile shelves) are kept on the top shelf. They're not used every day but they are used often.
The next shelf down is the baking shelf. It contains flours, dried fruits, milk powder, icing sugar, pasta and rice. These are things that are used almost every day. They're all in labelled canisters so they can be found quickly.
The bottom shelf is for condiments. Sauces, mustards, pickles, jams, peanut butter, Vegemite, honey, spices are all kept on this shelf, rather than the stockpile shelves. These are all things that store better in the dark.
The floor of the pantry holds the bulk containers of rolled oats, gluten flour, choc bits (for baking) and the potato box.
Keep much used items within reach – For foods that you use often, make sure they are within reach and not stuck behind something else. The middle shelf of my pantry is where I keep the things we use most often: sauces, spreads and cereals. They're all right there at hand and eye level, easy to get to and easy to put back.
5. Try "single serving" canisters
This works well for items that come in multiple use boxes and bags. Kids can grab a snack from the container instead of grabbing the entire box and sticking their hands in. it will also be easier to tell when you are running low and need to restock.
Of course you can make your own single serve packets and save a bundle. Buy bulk packets of crackers, popcorn, biscuits etc. and decant them into single serve containers or ziplock bags, rather than buying the more expensive already packaged single serves.
An organized pantry serves many purposes for you and your family. It will feed you and save you money, time and energy.
“I have it all…but where?”
Have you uttered words similar to these when you open your food pantry? Boxes, bags, trays, cans and jars seem to leap out at you from every shelf but you still can’t find anything you need. Before you’re done, a dozen things have already slipped to the floor. There are even things in the pantry that were put there in the spur of the moment but don’t really belong there.
The key to a well-stocked and useful pantry is to know where everything is and easily getting to it. How many times have you reached for something only to find that it is expired? Often these items were never opened at all. This is food waste and it is costing you money. Learn how to never waste another box of food again.
Here are six simple tips for organizing your food pantry:
1. Clean it out first
Whatever you have in there, pull it all out and examine it carefully. Check for expiration dates and sealed packages. One way to avoid food waste is to rotate your stock. Keep foods that are going to expire within six months to a year in front of the rest.
Wipe over the shelves with Miracle Spray, dry them and then sprinkle some bay leaves in the dark corners (they help repel pantry moths).
Wash and dry all empty canisters. Make it a habit to always wash and dry a canister before refilling it (again, this will help to control pantry moths and weevils).
Sweep and mop the floor. Wipe down both sides of the door.
2. Invest in storage items
Plastic and glass canisters were made for stocking a pantry. Dry ingredients don’t usually come in resealable packages (i.e., sugar, flour). Store them in canisters to save on space as well as keep them fresh. Include a scoop for easy dispensing. This method works well for dry cereals, pastas and beans as well.
Canisters don't have to be new or expensive. I have a lot of Tupperware and a lot of Lock'n'Lock containers, as well as some Décor and Starmaid. I also have a few glass jars (they're great for storing beans and lentils). Some of my containers were bought new a long, long time ago (some of my Tupperware is over 30 years old), most of them have been recycled or bought from op shops and garage sales for a fraction of the new price.
3. Label everything
What’s in that plastic container and when does it expire? If you don’t know, that could spell trouble. Labelling plastic containers with item name and expiration can save a lot of bother and headache. Masking tape makes a great label and it can be easily removed when the container is empty so you can re-label it and use it for something else.
If you're a little on the OCD side there are plenty of labels you can buy but I've found they don't have all the items in my pantry so I need a few different sets to get everything labelled, and that gets expensive and messy.
You can make your own labels and I like to do this. They then match, I can choose the design to suit my kitchen and I get a label for everything in the pantry. Packets of blank labels can be bought at $2 shops.
4. Organize your shelves
Designate an area for each kind of item. For example, place baking items on one shelf. In a second, you can see the flour, sugar and dried fruit. Keep snacks together on lower shelves for kids to grab without disturbing other things. Place glass jars at eye level but out of reach of small hands. On higher shelves, place boxes sideways for ease of identification and retrieval.
The top shelf of my pantry is for bulk items that have been opened and decanted. They are easy to find when it's time to top up the smaller containers I use every day. Things like Worcestershire sauce, vanilla extract, tea bags, bulk coffee tins, bulk Vegemite and so on (unopened bulk goods are kept on the stockpile shelves) are kept on the top shelf. They're not used every day but they are used often.
The next shelf down is the baking shelf. It contains flours, dried fruits, milk powder, icing sugar, pasta and rice. These are things that are used almost every day. They're all in labelled canisters so they can be found quickly.
The bottom shelf is for condiments. Sauces, mustards, pickles, jams, peanut butter, Vegemite, honey, spices are all kept on this shelf, rather than the stockpile shelves. These are all things that store better in the dark.
The floor of the pantry holds the bulk containers of rolled oats, gluten flour, choc bits (for baking) and the potato box.
Keep much used items within reach – For foods that you use often, make sure they are within reach and not stuck behind something else. The middle shelf of my pantry is where I keep the things we use most often: sauces, spreads and cereals. They're all right there at hand and eye level, easy to get to and easy to put back.
5. Try "single serving" canisters
This works well for items that come in multiple use boxes and bags. Kids can grab a snack from the container instead of grabbing the entire box and sticking their hands in. it will also be easier to tell when you are running low and need to restock.
Of course you can make your own single serve packets and save a bundle. Buy bulk packets of crackers, popcorn, biscuits etc. and decant them into single serve containers or ziplock bags, rather than buying the more expensive already packaged single serves.
An organized pantry serves many purposes for you and your family. It will feed you and save you money, time and energy.