# Cleaning out the pantry!



## Queen Bee (Apr 7, 2004)

Every spring, I go into my really large pantry and do a complete cleaning. Throwing out out dated stuff, organizing dry goods, making notes of things I need or need less of! It was no an easy job because this is a 'catch all ' room, not only are my large pots, canners, large bowls for canning, holiday dishes, crystal, china, ice cream makers, turkey pots and large serving dishes, a freezer , vacuum and brooms ,etc.. there are things that need to be put away in outside buildings but dh hasn't gotten to or when the kids are here and they don't know where they go , they stick them in there. 

I am ashamed to say it has taken me 4 hours! I have wasted too much food and had a 5gal bucket full food when I emptied the jars. Most of it was jams and jellies ..that means I am wasting money on sugar .. All the fruits come from my farm but I have wasted my time and energy.. I am thinking of putting a lock on the door. .. it is the first room as you come into the house so everything gets thrown in there even tho most things have a spot ..

How do you maintain order in your pantry so waste is at a mim. ?


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## puddlejumper007 (Jan 12, 2008)

my goodness, does't jelly and jam last for years?


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## backwoods (Sep 12, 2004)

We just ate some 5 yr old strawberry jam, and it was wonderful. How old is "out dated?" We ate some of our home canned pickled beets that were about 7 yrs old and they were the best pickled beets I've ever tasted!


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## FarmChix (Mar 3, 2013)

Queen Bee, can you offer an "alternative" drop site? Hubs was using our kitchen counter as his drop site and the kitchen table as his desk. With our house being for sale, this was causing me to get a little "ouchy" about it (especially since we have a HUGE desk). I gently offered him other places to put things, so the two of us could avoid future conflict. So far.....it has worked......mostly. Every once in a while I have to let out an ominous *sigh* when he comes in and lands in my kitchen.....


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## Belfrybat (Feb 21, 2003)

Queen Bee said:


> I have wasted too much food and had a 5gal bucket full food when I emptied the jars. Most of it was jams and jellies ..that means I am wasting money on sugar .. All the fruits come from my farm but I have wasted my time and energy..
> 
> How do you maintain order in your pantry so waste is at a mim. ?


I agree with you that throwing away a 5 gal bucket of home canned jams and jellies is a big waste. Unless you used paraffin to seal them and saw active mold around the edges, I don't understand throwing them out. Even if a bit moldy, I just carefully remove the paraffin "lid" and scrape the mold from around the edges. Blue mold is not harmful, but it can affect the taste. Sugar is a preservative, and will keep food good for years -- I've eaten jam that is 10 years old, but it was water bathed canned. Vinegar is also a great preservative -- I've eaten pickles 5 - 6 years old. Sometimes they might be a bit soft, but still quite edible. The main issue with vinegar is it can eat through the lids, so I always make sure to use lids that are coated on the inside so that doesn't happen. 

As to not using the room as a dumping place, maybe a table by the door that folks can put items on? It would be easy to then clean it off weekly.


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

I also water bath my jellies and jams. They are the things I worry least about.


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## AHGoodwin (Mar 22, 2014)

*EDIT: Sorry, I wasn't paying attention to dates. I didn't mean to dig up something so old. 
*

You can easily avoid food in your pantry from going to waste by organizing it by use by date. When you bring in can of jam, Assuming it is a fresh jar, place it BEHIND the existing ones, and take from the front. 

If you have a very large pantry, it might be worth investing the time to use an inventory management software. There are a few free apps that are easy to use and software that you can purchase where you enter each item into "inventory" along with info such as its use by date and then when you remove something, you log it out. This way you can do a monthly report and see what is going to expire soon and make sure to use it before it does. There are options ranging from super simple, all the way up to printing labels with codes and using a scanner.


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## Guest (Dec 17, 2014)

What inventory apps are there? I've not found anything that seemed suitable for a family pantry.


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## okiemom (May 12, 2002)

believe it or not pantries can be too big so waste is more likely. try a smaller pantry and grow it as the management gets better. jam also makes great sauces for meats. 

can jams be used for bird feeders? some foods can be turned into dog treats. etc. rotation is one of the hardest things for me too. I even tried the first in first out can holders but they didn't work well so back to the drawing board.


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## secuono (Sep 28, 2011)

I think you need a friend with a potbelly pig!

We have two because whenever we toss anything out, the pigs get it. 
They love all the outdated stuff. Though, just because the date is old, doesn't mean the food is bad. Only the stuff that is actually about to turn or has turned, the pigs get. Zero negative side effects. 

I think people worry way too much about 'spoilage' and 'expiration' dates, many cultures purposefully spoil their food, rot it out, over cook to a burnt crisp, etc. Buy what you will actually use up. Bulking up more than you will actually use and then wasting it doesn't make sense to me. 

Try writing down how much you buy of what and keep track of how much you actually use before it needs to be tossed. Adjust how much you buy based on those numbers. Kind of like how you should have clothes hangers all face one direction. After you've worn one item, hang it in revers direction. In a year, you will know what clothes you never wear and can donate instead.


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## AHGoodwin (Mar 22, 2014)

TraciInTexas said:


> What inventory apps are there? I've not found anything that seemed suitable for a family pantry.


Prep & Pantry is great and has a free version. It is available on iOS and Andriod. 

You can also try FridgePal (works for pantry too). It is available on iOS. 

There's lots of other apps you can look into, but those are the ones I think are the best of what I have tried. 

With a little bit of initial setup time and time when adding or removing from your pantry, you can have an up to date inventory list. No more running out of things, or good food going bad.


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## Guest (Dec 18, 2014)

AHGoodwin said:


> Prep & Pantry is great and has a free version. It is available on iOS and Andriod.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thanks, hon! I will check them out!


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## mekasmom (Jan 19, 2010)

Honestly, I pretty much ignore the dates. Most things last long beyond the dates.


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## SueMc (Jan 10, 2010)

AHGoodwin said:


> Prep & Pantry is great and has a free version. It is available on iOS and Andriod.
> 
> You can also try FridgePal (works for pantry too). It is available on iOS.
> 
> ...


I could only find the $7.99 version of preps and pantry.


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## Guest (Dec 22, 2014)

SueMc said:


> I could only find the $7.99 version of preps and pantry.



There is a free version, but I dropped the $8 for the full version. It seems pretty OK so far...


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## AHGoodwin (Mar 22, 2014)

SueMc said:


> I could only find the $7.99 version of preps and pantry.



http://prepandpantry.com/try-it-first


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