Tips for Cleaning Out Your Pantry

I finally had time to thoroughly clean out my pantry yesterday, and boy oh boy did it feel good. There is something very satisfying about organizing your living space, isn’t there? But cleaning out your pantry can be more than just making things look pretty. It can actually save you money. The easier things are to find, the less of a chance of buying something you already have. If you know you have certain ingredients, you know you have more options to cook with. It’s a good thing all around.

Here are a few tips for making your pantry the best it can be:

Alphabetize spices.
This isn’t an anal retentive thing, it actually saves loads of time when cooking. Purchase a lazy susan and place your spices neatly along the edge in alphabetical order. When you’re looking for a particular spice, it will be easily at your fingertips.

Check expiration dates.
Spices and condiments have expiration dates. Many spices are only good for about a year, but check the bottle or tin it came in to see how long it’s good for. Get rid of anything old and out of date. (I was surprised to see an unopened package of marshmallows past the expiration date yesterday.)

Throw out old cereal.
We all love cereal in my house, which means we have several different types. Sometimes this means that certain boxes don’t get used to the very end. Toss whatever is open and has been sitting there awhile.

Organize foods by type.
Put your pastas in one place, baking goods in another, cereal in another, etc. This way you can easily see what you have available before you go to the store and buy some more.

Use baskets and plastic bins.
Small baskets and plastic containers are great to hold smaller items, such as yeast packets, extract bottles, and chocolate chips. Baskets are nice to hold pasta and rice.

Image: sxc.hu.