What is a Pantry Challenge?
Have you ever found yourself staring into the depths of your pantry, trying to piece together a meal before payday? If so, you’ve already dabbled in a pantry challenge without even realizing it! A pantry challenge focuses on using up the items you already have on hand to save money, reduce waste, and bring forgotten ingredients back into rotation. By intentionally engaging in this challenge, you can declutter your pantry, have less food waste, create creative meals, and save on your grocery bill.
The Inspiration Behind the Pantry Challenge
While the Pantry Challenge it’s rooted in homesteading, anyone can participate and benefit from this practice. It’s about food rotation, savings, and creativity. It can help you to dig out items from the back of the pantry and remind yourself of some of your old favorite meals. When it comes to the pantry challenge, you can make your own rules. If this is your first time trying a pantry challenge, there's no wrong way to do it and you can set your own goal.
My Background and Why This Matters
I’m Amy Cross, creator of The Cross Legacy, where I teach families how to stick to a budget while maintaining a well-stocked kitchen through my blog and social media. As the author of the Zero Waste Produce Guide and a TEDx speaker on reducing food waste, I’ve seen firsthand how much food gets wasted due to poor organization. Forgotten pantry items, sale purchases left unused, or dietary changes can all contribute to this problem. By organizing your pantry and participating in a pantry challenge, you can reduce waste and create a sustainable, budget-friendly kitchen.
Why January and February are Perfect for a Pantry Challenge
For years, we’ve used January and February to reset our grocery budget and embrace slower, home-cooked meals after the holiday season. With a grocery budget of $135 per person per month, we’ve perfected our food storage and meal planning techniques. Currently, as empty nesters, our budget is $270 per month.
The Importance of Pantry Organization
Budgeting for Your Pantry
Your pantry is a reflection of your grocery habits. By sticking to a budget, you can ensure that every purchase serves a purpose. For example, we haven’t been to the grocery store in over four weeks and still have fresh fruit and fresh vegetables in our home. Proper planning and thoughtful purchases make this possible. Doing a pantry challenge helps you to prevent the little trips to the store and instead you become creative with your meal ideas.
During the challenge it's a good idea to keep a list of food items on a grocery list for when you are ready to shop, but use a little creativity to see how long you can push off the shopping trip. It's a great way to find alternative ingredients of substitutions in your recipes.
Maximizing Small Spaces
You don’t need a massive pantry to participate. For years, I relied on small cabinets and creative storage solutions. Even during our kitchen remodel, we used industrial shelves in a spare bedroom to store pantry items. Organization is key, no matter the size of your space.
What’s Inside My Pantry?
Single Ingredients
Most of my pantry staples are stored in glass jars to keep them fresh and pest-free. I label these jars with a Sharpie for easy identification. Over time, I’ve downsized from large jars to gallon and half-gallon sizes to quarts and pints as our family’s needs have changed. I prefer wide-mouth jars in all sizes, when possible.
Canned Goods
Rotating canned goods is essential. I write expiration dates on the bottom of each can to track their usability. Remember: low-acidity items like beans can last up to three years past their best-by date, while high-acidity items like tomatoes are best within 18 months.
You can learn more about how long canned goods last after their best buy date in this article.
You can learn more about canned goods in my video here.
*Always remove rings from canned foods before storing
Dehydrated Items
Dehydrated foods often have a long shelf life but shouldn’t be forgotten. During this challenge, I plan to use up items like spiced apples. I store many of my dehydrated foods in vacuum sealed jars. If you want to learn how to safely use a vacuum sealer for food storage, check out this helpful video I made on the topic.
Home-Canned Items
I prioritize a three-year rotation for home-canned goods like vegetables, beans, and salsa.
Tools for Success
Glass Storage Jars
These jars extend the shelf life of dry goods and create a visually appealing, organized pantry. While I’ve scaled back from larger jars, they remain an integral part of my pantry system.
Acrylic Storage Totes
I use acrylic storage totes to keeping random items together in categories. They are best for things like chips, snacks, breakfast items, and baking supplies. I have found that having them in clear containers prevents over-purchasing and keeps everything accessible.
Emergency Food Storage
Long-term items like freeze-dried goods are stored in temperature-controlled spaces to ensure they remain viable. I use mylar bags from Wallaby Goods for sealing my own food for long term food storage. You can also purchase already sealed goods from companies like Ready Wise. Proper storage is essential for maintaining food security
Tips for Starting Your Own Pantry Challenge
- Assess Your Inventory: First thing, begin by taking stock of what you already have on your pantry shelves. Identify items nearing their expiration date or that you’ve forgotten about to use up first. I keep track of this in my grocery planner.
- Set a Budget: Decide whether you’ll pause grocery shopping altogether or allow a small budget for minimal purchases like fresh produce.
- Plan Your Meals: Get creative with your ingredients! Use online resources or pantry challenge hashtags for new homemade meals you can try.
- Organize as You Go: Use this time to declutter and reorganize your pantry for maximum efficiency.
- Evaluate your Purchases: See if you are actually using the items that you are buying or if there is a more versatile item that you could choose. For example, I stopped buying crunchy tortillas and prefer soft tacos that we can use for a variety of meals.
Join Me on This Journey
As we work through this pantry challenge, I’ll be sharing our progress, meals, and pantry transformations on social media and in my newsletter. Whether you’re looking to save money, reduce waste, or simply get more organized, be sure to follow along.
You can subscribe to my newsletter as well as my YouTube Channel for updates and additional information!
Thank you to Jessica from the Three Rivers Homestead for sharing about her pantry challenge. The #ThreeRiversPantryChallenge has inspired families everywhere to take on this winter tradition so be sure to check out her posts if you would like more inspiration.
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