4 Tricks To Stop Pantry Items From Going Unnoticed And Expiring

The pantry, as you well know, is a place for you to store all your dried goods that don't need refrigeration: your rice, your pasta, your cereals, things of that nature. In theory, you should be able to pull some ingredients out of the pantry on any given night and whip up a serviceable meal, with the help of whatever you have in the fridge. But in practice, well, nobody's perfect. You stock up on pantry essentials fully intending to cook with them as soon as possible, but the siren call of trendy new dishes and DoorDash means you leave those ingredients neglected until you can't use them — or at least, until you shouldn't use them. (This guide to food expiration dates may help.) Sound familiar?

Well, the good news is there are plenty of ways to manage your pantry. Just because you don't open it every time you want a little snack like you might your fridge doesn't mean you can't be attentive and proactive when it comes to stocking those cupboards. We're not judging you for tossing those old spices that lost their potency after you used them to make fajitas, like, once. We're just here to help make sure it doesn't happen again.

The easiest way to keep track of what's in your pantry is to, well, keep track of what's in your pantry. It's tautological, but it's true. If you go through your pantry once a week and write down everything you find in there, you'll have a clear picture of what you'll be able to cook this week, as well as a good idea of what you'll need to replace and when.

If you're the analog type, you can accomplish this with a pen and a notebook or clipboard. But we live in a digital world these days, so you can just as easily get it done with an Excel spreadsheet. And, as there so often is, there's an app for it too — My Pantry Tracker and KitchenPal are two of the most popular ones. So long as you're diligent, whatever method you choose can be an enormous help.

Does it feel a little silly to take food out of one container and store it in another? Sure it does. But not only is it a great way to keep your pantry items organized, in some cases the packaging is practically designed to be replaced. (Flour, for instance, comes in those crummy little paper bags at least in part because most people pour it into a jar anyway.)

When you store your pasta or rice in a clear container, you're able to see exactly how much you have at any given time and keep it nice and fresh to boot. If you have a choice, you might want to use glass containers, like mason jars, for storage over plastic containers, as they're sturdier and keep food fresh for longer. But whether you use glass, plastic, metal, or Tupperware, it's an easy way to keep your pantry looking pretty and purposeful.

Of course, not every pantry essential can be stored in a cute little glass jar. (If you saw someone store a dozen cans of Andy Warhol's beloved Campbell's soup in a big Tupperware container, you'd probably think you were in the company of a serial killer.) So how do you make sure your cereals, granola bars, or other snacks don't go stale before you get the chance to eat them? Just abide by a simple acronym: FIFO, or "first in, first out."

When you're unloading groceries, you're probably just tucking bags and boxes wherever you can fit them. But when you're organizing your pantry, it's a good idea to rotate your food by putting the newest items in the back, behind other items you bought before them. That way, you're able to go through the older stuff and reduce food waste while still maintaining continuity in your pantry. 

The best laid plans of mice and men go oft awry — as do the good intentions past you doing a bit of food shopping. Sure, when you bought that jar of cumin from the supermarket two years ago for a recipe, you were certain that you'd use it to brighten up stews and chilis for months to come. But here you are today, and it's still three-quarters of the way full (and spices don't stay fresh forever). That's why it's a good idea to cook a wide range of dishes, making use of all corners of your pantry.

We understand that's easier said than done, especially with grocery prices being what they are nowadays. But if you try, even just one day a week, to expand your horizons and make use of certain ingredients you have on hand (ginger or basmati rice, for instance), you'll go through the supply in your pantry much more effectively and eat some seriously tasty new food to boot.