The simplest system for pantry management

Having a well stocked pantry can be half the battle for being a healthy cook.

Knowing that you have the makings for a healthy meal at your disposal can take the stress out of planning and save you from the takeout trap’.

I’ve covered quite a bit of detail on pantry management and cooking in other classes and have included the links below.

But I wanted to break down my pantry management system into it’s simplest form to make it as easy as possible for you..

Pantry management in 3 easy steps:

1. Organise
Have a cleanout of your pantry every 6 months or so and get rid of anything that’s out of date or looks a little ‘past it’. Then group your pantry into ‘like items’. So I have my oils together, then the vinegars and sauces on another shelf, spices in my spice box, canned goods together, baking items together, sweet treats together.. you get the drift.

This makes it easy to find things but more importantly I can tell at a glance if we’re getting low on a particular type of item.

2. Stock up
Choose a time frame that works for you. It could be once a month, or every few months and have a little pantry audit. Then schedule a shopping trip to stock up on items you’re low on.

At a bare minimum, I always have at least one of each of the following items
§ salt
§ pepper
§ olive oil or other oil
§ vinegar (sherry or rice wine)
§ soy sauce
§ canned tomatoes
§ canned legumes (chickpeas / lentils / or beans)
§ canned fish (usually tuna in oil)
§ dried legumes (usually french style green lentils)
§ frozen veg (usually peas or spinach)
§ parmesan cheese

3. Top up
Then every time you’re planning a shopping trip, just take a couple of seconds to see if you’ve run out of anything or if you’re getting low and add these to your list.

Too easy.

More on pantry management:

§ Why your pantry can save your life.
§ How to stock your life-saving pantry.
§ 7 pantry management tips
§ A video tour of my pantry.

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