Stock Your Pantry and Make a Killing

ITEM & DESCRIPTION 

QTY IN STOCK 

Applesauce    We buy a non-sweetened brand from a warehouse club in a #10 can. Used at the end of the month to supplement our fruit intake. Must be eaten quickly or it will spoil in the refrigerator, so we schedule it two or three times in one week once opened. Smaller family units may be better off buying 32-ounce jars or smaller, to minimize spoilage.

3 or 4 cans

Asparagus, Canned    We keep this in stock to eat when asparagus is out of season. It also helps to stretch our menu at the end of the month when our fresh veggie supply is waning and adds variety to our diet.

3 to 6 cans

Baking Soda   Used in baking, as a pool chemical, in laundry and for brushing our teeth (sure it sound gross, but our dentist is amazed at how clean our teeth are). Purchased in 10-pound bags from a warehouse club.

20 pounds

Beets, Canned   Kept in stock to eat at the end of the month when our fresh veggie supply is waning. Adds variety to our diet.

3 to 6 cans

Black Olives   Used in pasta salads, green salads, tacos and relish trays for potlucks and parties.

6 to 12 cans

Bullion Cubes    We buy these in one pound containers and always keep chicken and beef on hand — 127 cubes in each box. Used for adding flavor to many recipes and gravy.

One box of each

Catsup   Best prices are found during the summer barbecue season — especially Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day. Used on hot dogs, hamburgers, meatloaf and in some salad dressings. Sometimes we buy it in gallon cans and transfer into smaller, saved squeeze bottles.

6 to 12 bottles

Cocoa Powder    We’ve found the best prices to be Kroger’s generic brand. It is expensive but used sparingly for Annette’s killer gooey brownies and no bake oatmeal cookies.

1 tin

Cold Cereal    We regularly reach our buy price of $1.50 or less per box with either a sale or by combining a sale with coupons — even for some really expensive types of cereal. We mark the box tops with the purchase month and year, then store them in the pantry. This helps us to use the oldest boxes first. We schedule cereal on our breakfast menu twice each week. It can easily be stored for eight months to one year. The rule at our house is to combine a “sweet” cereal with a “healthy” one. The kids go along with this rule and readily share it with any friends who happen to be visiting on a day when we have cold cereal. We consider cereals like Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies and Raisin Bran to be “healthy” types. And cereals like Froot Loops, Cap’n Crunch, Apple Jacks or Golden Crisp to be “sweets.” We add fresh fruit when ever possible.

10 to 20 boxes

Cream of Chicken / Mushroom Soup    We use a couple of cans of each per month in various recipes.

4 to 8 cans

Extra Virgin Olive Oil   Used regularly for making hash browns on Sunday morning, pizza dough and in salad dressings. We usually find the best deals on gallons, but you’ll sometimes find better pricing on quarts.

1 gallon

Honey   Used for cooking and baking. We usually purchase in a one-gallon bucket from a local honey distributor. Over time it can crystallize. Just set it on the stove when cooking something in the oven (like a turkey) to melt it down.

1 gallon

Hot Cereal    During the colder months we cook this up twice each week from scratch. It only takes about 20 minutes to cook eight cups’ worth. There are usually some leftovers that our “bottomless pit” teenage boys love to devour after they finish working out at night. We stock up on oatmeal and farina — sometimes purchased in bulk and stored in plastic containers. We also purchase the instant type when it is on sale for $1 per box or less. We use this when we travel or when life is hectic — although we don’t like to make it a habit.

3 to 5 pounds / Instant 1 or 2 boxes

Hot Cocoa / Hot Cider    We drink this in the winter-time and stock up when it goes on sale. We usually buy cocoa and cider in boxes with individual packets when it’s on sale. We’ve also bought hot cocoa in larger, bulk containers.

Jell-O    We always keep several boxes on hand to whip up for a quick refreshing summer dessert. Brand names don’t matter just go for price. It’s not very nutritious, but adding fruit does help — and a little whipped cream makes it a real treat!

10 to 15 boxes

Jelly or Jam   PB&J sandwiches are a staple at our house. We also use jelly on toast and in smoothies.

6 to 12 jars

Legumes    We keep several varieties on hand: Split peas, navy beans, pinto beans, chick peas and lima beans. Split peas are used in ham and split pea soup. Often when Annette makes a pot of turkey soup, she’ll add one cup of mixed beans (soaked in water to reduce gassiness) for additional protein. Legumes do get harder as they age. so older ones will have to be soaked in water longer before cooking. We like cooking them in a slow cooker.

Maple Syrup    We rarely purchase the real stuff. It’s a special treat if we find it on sale. We eat pancakes (whole grain) once or twice each week. We know syrup can be made from scratch, but we prefer to purchase one-gallon containers of Mrs. Butterworth’s or something similar at a warehouse type store.

2 gallons

Mayonnaise   Best sale time is during the summer. Don’t stock up on too much, as it can go rancid. We use it for tuna fish and cold cut sandwiches, potato salad, macaroni salad, etc.

6 jars

Mustard   We purchase this by the gallon and then transfer it into smaller squeeze bottles, or in small bottles (for pennies) using a coupon.

1 gallon

Nuts   We keep four varieties in stock: peanuts, walnuts, pecans and almonds. Lately these have become very expensive — probably due to the South Beach or Atkins diets. We use them sparingly in our baking. Steve likes to snack on walnuts — it helps him avoid sugary stuff; Annette prefers peanuts. Store in the freezer in zippered bags to avoid them going rancid.

2 pounds of each

Peanut Butter   We buy the all-natural stuff—just peanuts and salt. The oil separates from the peanuts and must be mixed in (we use our mixer to do this). All opened jars are stored in the refrigerator. We keep no more than six 32-ounce jars on hand. If stored too long they can go rancid.

6 jars (32 ounces)

Pickles   We buy spears by the gallon. Vlasic is our favorite brand. We eat them at lunch or on pizza nights. Joe loves to snack on pickles.

2 gallons

Pineapple Chunks    We buy these in #10 cans and use them to supplement our fruit intake when we run low on fresh fruit. We’ll go through one can in about two days. They can be spooned into a plastic container for school or work lunches. Be careful, they can start to ferment if stored too long in the refrigerator . . . hic!

3 cans

Pudding    We love warm chocolate pudding cooked on the stove — instant is taboo in our house. The best prices are found around Thanksgiving.

10 boxes

Relish    Mostly used in tuna fish sandwiches and on hot dogs. Bought in gallon containers and then transferred to reused peanut butter jars.

1 gallon

Rice, Brown and White   We prefer to use brown rice as a side dish for health reasons, but we always have white rice on hand for those times when dinner needs to be thrown together quickly. Brown rice cooks in 40 to 50 minutes, white in 20 minutes. Brown rice can go rancid after 6 months if stored at room temperature.

5 to 10 pounds

Salad Dressing   We make this from scratch if we have the time (Italian, oriental and honey French) or we stock up when they are on sale.

6 to 12 bottles

Sauerkraut    We use one can per month for Reuben sandwiches and sometimes on hot dogs.

3 or 4

Shortening   We know this is controversial, but pie crusts and certain cookie recipes just require it. One can lasts us two years. Used sparingly in your diet it shouldn’t be an issue.

One #10 can

Spaghetti and Other Pasta   This can be found on sale as low as 50¢ per pound. It makes a great side dish or main dish. When it hits our buy price, we stock up on 10 to 16 pounds as we go through about 1 1/2 pounds in one meal — with a little leftover for lunches.

6 to 10 pounds

Stuffing    Most of the time Annette makes this from scratch (remember we cook one turkey almost every month during the winter / cooler months). If she can pick up a box for pennies, with coupons, she’ll keep them on hand to prepare as a side dish—this can be served at times other than Thanksgiving.

1 or 3 boxes

Sugar    Since we do a lot of baking from scratch, we keep quite a bit of sugar on hand. We realize that sugar is not the best thing to eat, so if you have health issues, minimizing sugar consumption is a good idea. It stores well, so we stock up only when it’s on sale. It can be stored in plastic storage buckets to prevent moisture damage.

10 to 25 pounds

Tomato Paste   Used for making our traditional family recipe spaghetti sauce, and sloppy Joes. We buy the four-ounce cans when they hit our buy price, otherwise we purchase the large #10 can at a warehouse club and spoon it into small plastic storage containers to freeze.

20 cans

Tomato Sauce   Another ingredient in our spaghetti sauce as well as in meatloaf and in another family favorite, Tagliarini (ground beef and noodle casserole). We buy #10 cans and divide into two plastic storage containers to freeze once the can is opened.

2 cans

Tomato Soup    We know this can be made from scratch, but when it’s on sale, we stock the pantry. It’s always a great accompaniment with grilled cheese sandwiches.

6 to 10

Tomatoes, Diced   Used for spaghetti sauce and in other recipes. We buy #10 cans (approximately 6 pounds) from a warehouse club.

4 cans

Tuna    We buy 3-ounce cans of dark meat in water when they are on sale. We avoid Bumble Bee brand, no matter what the price, because the tuna is more shredded than chunked.

12 to 24 cans

Vegetable Oil   We actually prefer peanut oil or canola oil, but if we can’t find it on sale we go with vegetable oil. Used sparingly in pancakes and quick breads. Very seldom do we fry anything.

2 gallons max

White Flour   Used sparingly often mixing it with some whole wheat. Mostly used for baking cookies, brownies, cakes, pancakes, pizza dough, banana bread and sweet bread. Store in the freezer to prevent bugs.

10 to 15 pounds

Whole Wheat Flour   We keep whole grain wheat in five-gallon storage buckets. It stores well for years this way. We purchased a good-quality wheat grinder and grind up enough grain to fill two or three smaller containers at a time — which are then stored in the freezer. We mix whole wheat flour in almost everything we bake. Dessert-type recipes have more white flour than wheat in them.

Yeast   Purchased in bulk through a warehouse club in a one-pound package. Store in a glass jar in the refrigerator — this keeps the yeast from losing its potency. Two teaspoons equal one packet of yeast.

One pound