Stocking Your Pantry

Everyone, no matter your financial situation, should have an emergency pantry stocked with some shelf stable items. This ebook will give you the basics on what to buy and how much you should have in stock on just $20 a month. Now this will take time to build up. You can use cash, food stamps (SNAP) or whatever method you choose.

Let’s start with beans. You should pick 3-5 varieties of different beans. These can include pinto, northern, lima, red kidney, split pea, etc. If you start at the beginning of a twelve month cycle, you should have 15-20 pounds at the end of the year. That is 15-20 pounds of each kind of bean. Since you can buy beans as small as one pound, this is easily measured for you. Commit to buying at least one pound of beans each month.

Let’s hear it for rice! There are as many types of rice as there are types of people. Rice is another item that comes by the pound. You should have at least two types in stock. Buy two pounds each month. One pound to use and one pound to save for later.

Dry pasta noodles are very inexpensive to buy. Generic brands can be as cheap as 84 cents a pound. Buy 4-5 boxes every month. If you do not have enough sauce, you can make your own. Mix melted butter, garlic powder, onion powder and italian seasoning together. It’s not fancy but it will work in a pinch.

Pasta sauce should be bought when on sale. Keep an eye out for manufacturer’s coupons, ibotta deals, etc. Tomato sauce and tomato paste mixed together is a very cheap alternative.

Boxes of instant potatoes are great to keep for hard times. Go for generic and you want to have 5-7 stocked up in your pantry at the end of the year.

Keep oatmeal or grits on hand. Buy 2 each month and use one to eat and one to save for your pantry. Both are very filling and come in large boxes.

Nut butters are great to have on hand. Peanut butter is often the cheapest kind. You should have 2-3 large jars.

Bread makings and crackers. Anyone can learn to make bread. Look carefully and find an easy recipe. Keep yeast packets in stock. Keep flour in stock. Bread can be made weekly and fills you up. You should also learn to make flour tortillas. They can also be purchased rather cheaply.

Canned goods can be good to have in stock. You want to catch these when they go on sale. Keep an eye on tomatoes (crushed, diced, paste), green beans, peas, corn and carrots. Take a vegetable like corn and diced tomatoes then add cooked rice. Serve it on a tortilla for a vegetarian soft taco.

Now obviously you can’t buy everything all at once. Take a look at what you have currently then make a list. One example list may include the following:

One pound pinto beans, one pound northern beans, two pounds white rice, four cans of corn, two cans of diced tomatoes, flour, yeast, 2 jars peanut butter, two boxes of crackers. That is easily bought with $20. These items are for emergency use only so they should not be part of the regular grocery shopping.

If you look for bargain deals, you can expand your emergency pantry with other items. Make use of printed and online coupons!