How do you keep your panty?

[Aamylf]

By that I mean: I have food with "best by" dates in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. At this time I have 2011 separted by month so we make sure we use up as it comes due. Then I have the others dated with marker, but just stored by year. Near the end of 2011, I'll take all the 2012 and arrange it by month. This is moderately labor intensive and doesn't allow me to easily find a can of mushroom soup or a bottle of hot sauce -- could be hidden!

Whenever I see other people's pantries, I see all the soup together and all the beans together etc. For those of you who do it that way, do you keep the later dates in the back of the shelf with the soon to use in the front? How do you figure space? It seems like I never know how much of something I'm going to have -- today the grocery store had green beans on sale 4 for the price of 1! I bought a bunch. And have to wonder how I'd add them in to a 'bean' space?

Thanks for any input. I know have a walk in pantry lined floor to ceiling, two small closets, under the bed and a new cupboard type pantry nearly full. With 30 #10 cans showing up next week, I'm really thinking about organization!

[debidoodle]

My "panties" don't come with best by dates! Where do you find those? :)

Now in my Pantry, I try to rotate everything once a month, Admittidly I am no where near as organized about it as you are.

[bookwormom]

thanks for the not intendet laugh.

I am not as organized as you are. I thought I was organized because I kept things, Sesame street style, that belong together together.

[jhnpldng]

I don't know if anyone here has made one but some people have made storage units so you either load them from the back or load from the front and they rotate like one of those soda can rotators for the fridge. Doesn't work for anything but round items that will roll but saves time compared to rotating manually. (it could be done with boxes etc, you'd just have to push them thru) Here's a company that sells them. http://www.shelfreliance.com/food-rotation-systems
If someone's handy they can make their own. The rear load types are simply slanted shelves with lengthwise dividers to keep different sized cans in rows but require access to both ends.
As for us, we don't have all that much built up and are swapping over from canned to dehydrated since we're moving to another State in the Spring and want to keep the weight down. What we've done in the past was to buy the 8 or 12 packs of canned goods from sams and just rotate those. They stack 2-3 high well, and they were the right length to fit the depth of our pantry shelves. We also saved them so we could use them for cans bought at other stores. 12 pack soda containers will also hold veggies and soups etc. The other stuff we (I) pretty much know which is oldest due to buying at different stores, shopping the sales. We end up with different brands and/or size containers and when I load them in the pantry I rotate them also.
I probably have a few things that are nearing the exp date though and since it's a new year and we're moving in a few months, it would be a good time to check everything. Thanks for the reminder.

"How do you keep your panty?" In a wad.

[BWHLover]

I have a section of my pantry shelf for each item. When I use something I take from the front and then move the cans forward. When I purchase new they are placed in the back FIFO (First In First Out).

Now I would like to have one of these.
http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php?t=376978:D:D

[Aamylf]

I would go and edit the name of this thread, but you guys have given me as good a laugh as I gave you. I should learn to proof read! :sarcastic:

[NCLee]

Just expanded food storage into a hall closet in addition to the walk in pantry. Plan is to store newer stuff in the closet and then transfer to the pantry, as needed. May switch to simply storing some lesser used items in the closet all together to keep from having to shift things around so much. For example, a closet shelf may hold all of the #10 cans of greens, rather than having them in two places.

I like to keep things, in the pantry, grouped together, too. All the chicken broth in one place, cans of corn in another. But, it gets difficult to keep FIFO in operation. (First In, First Out). Especially with 2 "helpers" putting up groceries.

Finally hit on a plan that works for me. When we buy groceries, anything for the freezer, refrigriator, laundry, etc. gets put up immediately. Everything else stays in the bags on the counter, and in the case of cans, on the floor in the corner of the kitchen. They stay there, until I have time to put them up, so the oldest will be used first.

The "clutter" forces me to go ahead and get that done. :wink:

One thing that helps with organizing is a small table or chair beside where I'm working. What's on the shelf is already organized. For the shift, take it off, in order and set on the chair. Put the new on the back. Then, pick up in order to set in front. That speeds up the process as I don't have to read anything on the previously stored items.

For many things I don't worry about the exact "best by", "sell by" dates. As long as the seal isn't broken on canned goods, they are still safe to eat. A couple 3 or 6 months isn't a big issue. I watch the dates more closely on mayo, ketsup, and such, especially since they are packed in plastic today. Shelf life isn't as long in plastic. (sigh)

Same thing with crackers and such. However, we don't keep a lot of those types of things because shelf life is fairly short. If I can store the basic ingredients to make those type items, we only store enough for our current routine needs.

With several different storage places, I'd suggest designating (as much as possible) one or two of them for only certain types of items. Maybe only toilet paper and laundry supplies under the bed. Or only canned vegetables under the bed. The fewer places that you have to go to see how many cans of soup you have, the easier it will be to keep up with your inventory.

FWIW, it's an on-going challenge to keep everything stored in a half-way organized manner. Especially when running out of storage space. Which I'm doing right now. Without a warehouse, there isn't any way I've found to designate enough space for much of anything.

For example, I have shelf space designated for blackeyed peas. Everything along side of those fitted nicely. As of a couple days ago, I bought 25 more pounds of those peas. Yep, there's sitting on the counter in a bag waiting for me. No, when those sanitized soda bottles are filled, there's no where to put them beside the ones already on the shelf. So...............

But, look at it this way. It's a nice challenge to have! I can think of far worse ones. So, when I'm figgering out what the heck I'm going to do with those peas, I'll be thankful that this challenge may very well prevent one far more serious.

Good luck rising to yours. You'll figger out the way that works best for you.

Lee

[BonnyLake]

Great laff :D

The house I just moved into last year had several pantry closets already designed "just for me". The recessed shelves are only about 6 pint jars deep and 3 high, so that makes it easier to see what I have. To use the extra space between the door and the shelves, about 8" - I hang things on the inside of the door on hooks in bags - works for me anyway! But on the shelves I put all veggies on one shelf with the cans on the bottom row, jars I have canned on top of those and the top level is used for box mixes or ramen, etc. I have practically no air in those closets but that's the point :p

[Aamylf]

loved the munchie comment...

I don't have a problem with knowing what I have as I keep an inventory sheet that's pretty detailed, it's that I can't find what I know I have. Thanks again for all the ideas.

And, yes, fabulous problem to have!

[CVORNurse]

I like to keep mine together by variety. For soups, I have one of those can rotators like they have at the grocery store. Shoved up on my top shelf of my pantry, it is a recent addition and I don't have a photo of it.
Now for my veggies, I had hubby build me a homemade rotator shelf, and I keep extra flats on a shelf near my pantry door.
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z141/arkienurse/005.jpg

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z141/arkienurse/039.jpg

[BonnyLake]

CVORnurse - that is cool - what a great way to build a dispenser without having to use any bells & whistles... I'm gonna take a page from your book if you don't mind ! :p

[mozarkian]

Like those rotator shelving ideas from you all! Never even thought of that before- can see the "I want you to build me this" list getting longer as i read...
We separate our stuff by type, oldest to the front of the shelf, newest to the back. Don't sweat the expiration dates too much on canned goods.
We have two walk in pantries one each side of the kitchen - one is my old home office and is about 10 x 10, the other about the same size, but a combo utility room- pantry. And then we have a wall of doored, deep shelving storage in the main bath. We keep paper, light bulbs, duct tape, first aid supplies, cleaning supplies, soap making stuff in the bath storage and just rotate oldest to the front. Canned fruit, applesauces, soup, stews, meals in jars and canned meats go in the utility rm/ pantry. Oils, veggies, potatoes and onions in covered totes, pickles,dehydrated stuff and dry goods go in the biggest one. Jam, jellies and relishes are in a large hutch in the dining room.
A standard double base cabinet used to be a bar between our kitchen and dining room. My son scavenged 2 huge, heavy solid wood doors from an old church being torn down and we laid them down over the base cabinet on supporting two by fours and created a huge island that is about 8 foot square. The dining room side is used for meals when we don't use the table and the kitchen side is work space with door shelving under it-- canned milk, butter, cheese and lard go here, where it is close to the floor and stays very cool.
We map our pantry (and freezer) out each quarter (Jan, April, July, October usually) and have a basic inventory sheet of what's there, and use that to focus on what is needed most to fill the holes. When doing the quarterly check, I dust the shelving , replace the cedar chunks and bay leaves that serve as insect repellant, and look for any seals that have failed.
Love hearing how everyone else does it -- gives me one of those "now why didn't I think of that moments?"

[Dayzee]

I'm kinda embarrassed about this what with all of you organized people here. My pantry is a complete jumble, although I've pretty much got it figured out again so that I can find stuff, now, at long last. I don't move as fast as I should.

When I was in the hospital for open heart surgery, a couple of friends had a key to my house so that they could feed my pooch. He was OK at home alone with his doggie door and I imagine he was was happier in familiar surroundings than he would have been in a kennel.

These two friends, blessed ladies, decided to clean my house for me, make up my bed clean, and everything! Wonderful! And boy did I ever appreciate it.

HOWEVER, one of the gals took it upon herself to "clean" my pantry. Yeah, it looked bad, but I could reach in and pick up every single item, be it soup or a spice. I knew where all my stuff was! When I got home from the hospital, the one or two convalescent homes here in Podunk all had long waiting lists. Son from out of state delivered me from the hospital, got all my Rx's, went to the market and got me a bunch of TV dinners, etc. and then had to go home for his work, etc., and to see to his teenage son who was home alone. I was sure I'd be OK--and I was.

First morning alone, I thought that I'd cook some oatmeal as that would be easy. I went into my pantry and could not find my oatmeal. You can't imagine how betrayed I felt. So I just leaned there against the wall and cried and felt darned sorry for myself.

I'm telling this, not because I'm ungrateful for the help, but as a caveat for others whose intentions are good but thoughtlessly cause really unwelcome and disastrous results. Please never be overly "helpful" without thinking it through.

Who cares what a pantry "looks" like, if it serves the purposes of the owner!

[Laura]

I have a section of my pantry shelf for each item. When I use something I take from the front and then move the cans forward. When I purchase new they are placed in the back FIFO (First In First Out).

Now I would like to have one of these.
http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php?t=376978:D:D

You have the trellis' that I am deep envy over!!
I would love love love it if you would share how you put together your PVC trellis' for your garden. I would like to do the same thing this year for my raised beds (tomatoes in particular)!!

Impressive on the canned goods too!!

EDITED TO SAY:
Wow am I woefully lacking. I checked out some UTube videos of others food storage shelves.....Well Yikes, I stink!
I need to get things in order. I have glass up too high, my space is NOT well used.....woe is me!!

[Emerald]

I posted pics of my pantry previously. If you are interested, you can take a look here. http://www.backwoodshome.com/forum/vb/showthread.php?t=4891

[Aamylf]

WOW! Green with envy and so happy for you. I think I need to do some serious renovations! And with such great photos, I'm betting my husband can help me do it. Right now I'm basically using $10 solid wood bookshelves on two sides of my pantry. I can stack 4 deep and 3 high of store-bought canned goods. And then on the back wall I have wire shelving under which I store the superpails of wheat. It's worked well, but I definitely need more room. I have maybe 5-6 months supply of food and am working hard to get a year's supply. Really not sure where to put all that.

Thanks to everyone for the ideas and pictures.

[aprilconnett]

Just FYI on those best by dates . . . I help out at the local food pantry and here are the rules we follow there:

Canned goods are good for 5 years after the date. Yep, 5.
Condiments (ketchup, salad dressing) are good for 1 year
Boxed/bagged items are good for 1 year

HTH

april

[NCLee]

Good post, April.

IMHO, we send far too much food to the landfill because of those dates.

Some of the dates used are for grocery store shelf stocking purposes and have nothing to do with the safety and useful life of the products. There are no standardized guidelines for those dates, either. (I think baby food is the exception.) Company A has their set of rules for dating, while company B uses another set. Yet, they're both selling the same products.

I learned the hard way not to go by those dates for canned foods. Tossed too much perfectly good food before I learned some sense.

Now I use the rule --- if the seal isn't broken, can isn't bulged, hear the air rush in when opened, no unusual foaming, and the product looks/smells good, it's still OK to use.

Sure, with storage, some of the nutritional value will go down over time. There may be some flavor/color changes. (Depends on the item.) But, IMHO, it's better to have something to eat with half the original food value, than to have nothing to eat.

With some foods, my nose tells me when to toss. If it smells rancid when the box is opened, that's the time to discard. Stuffing mix is an example.

Many foods have a 30 year shelf life, if properly stored. http://providentliving.org/content/display/0,11666,7798-1-4224-1,00.html Yet, we see them with Use By/ Best By/ Sell By dates of a year or so in the future.

Personally, I think we need to go back to using Common Sense with regards to food storage. That's what my folks had to do before manufacturers started putting that confusing assortment of dates on their products.

Perhaps, better yet, there should only be ONE date on those products. The date it was packaged/processed/canned/cooked/picked, as applicable to the product. Simply tell me when the beans were canned. When the apples were picked. When the oatmeal was packaged. I want to know how old it is when I buy it. Not when someone thinks I should toss and buy more.

Lee

[BonnyLake]

IMHO, we send far too much food to the landfill because of those dates.

Many foods have a 30 year shelf life, if properly stored. http://providentliving.org/content/display/0,11666,7798-1-4224-1,00.html Yet, we see them with Use By/ Best By/ Sell By dates of a year or so in the future.

Lee

Thanks for the link - I knew there had to be something reliable, like that chart, out there somewhere.

I'm going to toss in another question that goes along with this ~ I used to hear and read that home canned green beans needed to be boiled for 20 minutes before eating because of botulism - but what about other stuff? Does anyone have any 'valid' info on that?

(By the way - I don't boil them for 20 minutes and I'm ok... I think :p)

[NCLee]

Ball Blue Book
When up-to-date tested guidelines are followed, there should be little concern about the quality and safety of your home canned foods. However, it is always best to examine each jar before it's served to ensure no changes have occurred. If you are certain the product was processed correctly using up-to-date guidelines and there is a secure vacuum seal, it may be served without additional cooking.

To prevent the risk of exposure to botulism in low-acid and tomato products, boil the food 10 minutes for altitudes at or below 1,000 feet above sea level to destroy the toxin produced by Clostridium botulinum. Extend boiling by 1 additional minute for each 1,000 foot increase in elevation.

Hope this helps.
Lee

[Nancymw]

I try to be organized but it is a challenge as no one large place for pantry.
I put use first by date one of things I use a lot in my kitchen cabinet. Then I have a small pantry that is set up by type of item. I have to go through this periodically (6 months?) and check for dates and put need to use first in front. I get lazy and sometimes just stuff new stuff on top. Then longer term in basement. I tried the date only and could not find anything I needed when I needed it!

[Healer]

I would love to know how to make these shelves.


Sheri


I like to keep mine together by variety. For soups, I have one of those can rotators like they have at the grocery store. Shoved up on my top shelf of my pantry, it is a recent addition and I don't have a photo of it.
Now for my veggies, I had hubby build me a homemade rotator shelf, and I keep extra flats on a shelf near my pantry door.
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z141/arkienurse/005.jpg

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z141/arkienurse/039.jpg

[momma_to_seven_chi]

By that I mean: I have food with "best by" dates in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. At this time I have 2011 separted by month so we make sure we use up as it comes due.

I ignore the dates. I just put new purchases in the back and use from the front. Those dates can be passed by many, many months, even years, and the food can still be good.

[Aseries]

I write the date I purchased it on the can with marker. Then I put new stuff on a different shelf even though I'm running out of shelves lol. I just put like 01/11 so I know it was bought on that month, if I grab a can thats got a recent date, I look for an older one. I also bought a cansolidator shelf, omg I love it, and want to buy another one...

Next, I'm buying another big shelf from IKEA, or if I cannot afford that I'm going to make one similar, might be bit more expensive but it will be solid pine. I already have the adjustable metal bar to insert into it.

I must say I like the pics great idea, makes me jealous lol

[NCLee]

I ignore the dates. I just put new purchases in the back and use from the front. Those dates can be passed by many, many months, even years, and the food can still be good.

Very same thing here.

When pasta has a shelf life of 30 years, if properly stored, why should I be concerned with that sell-by date that's a year or 2 in the future?

Since starting this approach for pantry storage, ears, eyes, and nose tell me when to toss, rather than a date on a package.

Lee

[I'm Hooked]

I would go and edit the name of this thread, but you guys have given me as good a laugh as I gave you. I should learn to proof read! :sarcastic:

Thank you and Debidoodle for giving me the best belly rocker I've had in a long time - I needed it! I agree, you should not correct the thread title. LOLX2