Use What's In Your Pantry

Amanda Peterson

May 17, 2023  •  2 Minute Read

Money Saving Tips

CreditSoup's weekly Wise Spend tip this week involves using what's in your pantry. Why waste money buying more random things when you haven't used up the things still sitting in your pantry or cupboards.

Organization Is Key

The key to making sure your pantry is cycled through regularly is to first make sure it's organized. Keeping canned goods, condiments, bread, and baking products each on their own shelves or in their own areas will help immensely. This will give you a great view of what exactly you have on hand. For instance, if you just stash items here & there, there's no way to know that you actually have 4 bottles of ketchup already. Next thing you know, you or your partner come home with yet another bottle of ketchup.

Keeping your pantry organized will help you know what exactly you have on hand, what you do or don't need to buy, and give you an idea of what you can make with those items.

How To Keep The Pantry Organized?

I'm sure we've all experienced this at least a few times. You go to the store with a list of goods you want to stock up on, with hopes of making this or that with them. Then you have visitors stop by. Now, if you're anything like myself or my family, you feed whoever is at the house. Nobody leaves hungry. Thus, the goods you were going to use to make this meal or that meal are now being pooled into a large meal fit to feed the 5,000. And now you're left with a bunch of miscellaneous items that you're not sure what to use them in.

If this is a constant struggle, there is a solution.

1. Create a meal list.
2. Purchase only the items needed for those specific meals.
3. Store ingredients in bins with the specific meal label on it. If it's for a specific day, note that too. Then, your kids or spouse can help you get a jump start on supper if they know what you've planned for that night.

If you anticipate a last minute get together, figure out an "emergency meal" for that. Maybe having hot dogs in the freezer and some extra chips & a few cans of baked beans on hand will help alleviate the last minute pantry raid. Store those items as a "last minute meal." Whatever way you chose, having a plan and keeping your cupboards organized will save on buying a bunch of random groceries that will sit for months or years in your kitchen.

There's An App For That

Fortunately in today's techie world, there's an app for this. Several, for that matter! This article from the Meet Penny blog highlights several grocery list and pantry management apps. Many of the suggestions include a barcode scanner, which will help you track what's actually in your cupboard, freezer and fridge, as well as monitor the expiration dates.

Saving Money In The Long Run

Whatever method of madness you choose to cycle through your groceries, and utilize the items in your pantry, rest assured that you'll save money in the long run. No more throwing out expired items or having an overabundance of a certain product. CreditSoup is here to help you save money. Keep following us for more weekly tips!