Crafting a Stable Bucket Pantry

I have a room filled with canned goods that I home-canned. Most of these were foods that I obtained locally, or we grew ourselves. In another location, I have buckets of staple foods, most of which will last me many months. Here is what I store in my stable dry food bucket pantry.

Oatmeal- There’s nothing like a bowl of hot oatmeal in the morning. Oatmeal is versatile. It can be used to make oatmeal cookies. You can also use it for toppings for fruit pies and crisps. It is one of the main ingredients in granola. Here’s a link to my granola recipe. Make Homemade Granola from Scratch

Cornmeal also makes a great breakfast food. It can also be used in making cornbread and hushpuppies. It can also be used when making crunchy toppings for various deep-fried vegetables.

Rice is a staple that is used as the main ingredient in numerous cultural meals. Purchase brown rice if you plan to use it within the next year. If you want to purchase rice for long-term storage, use white rice. Brown rice will likely turn rancid if not used within a year.

Dried Beans and Peas If you find yourself short on other sources of protein, then beans and peas are your go-to when you’re a vegetarian or meat is in short supply. Dried beans are used in various cuisines around the world. Whether it’s pinto, black, red, or cranberry, various colored lentils, or peas, etc., beans are a basis for many meals.

Flour-whole grain flour usually lasts only about six months, before it starts to go rancid. Unbleached flour will last longer, and bleached flour will last even longer than that. For grain that lasts indefinitely, however, whole grain that hasn’t been processed at all will last even longer than the bleached flour does and provides more nutrients as well. Another of my recipes that you will enjoy is How to Make and Store Bread in the Refrigerator

Cooking Oils-lard, tallow, butter, shortening, vegetable oil, olive oil, even bacon grease. These don’t last forever. One to two years tops so these are very important to rotate. Remember “first in, first out”. Buy just enough so that you can use up any that you purchase before the oil goes bad.

Sugar and other sweeteners-white sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, and the like are used in numerous ways like baking, cooking, candy making, and even in coffee or tea. Most types of sugar will last indefinitely if kept dry.

Salt-sea salt, pink Himalayan salt, and iodized salt are used to flavor food and used in cooking. Canning salt is used in canning, but I often use plain salt in canning instead without any problems. Salt will keep indefinitely if you keep it in a sealed plastic bucket.

Leavenings The obvious leavening that most people first think of is yeast, but many other forms of leavening exist. These include baking soda, cream of tartar, baking powder, and even vinegar. Make pancakes from scratch with this recipe Healthy Whole Wheat Buttermilk Pancakes from Scratch

Spices Whether baking or cooking, many different herbs and spices will spice up your meals and provide a variety of flavors with the other simple ingredients in the pantry.

The Last Word

Of course, some people have allergies and cannot use some of these household staples. If this is you, you’ll need to find a substitute for the items that you cannot eat.

Gourmet Weeds

Of course, you would get tired of eating just staple dry foods day in and day out, so here’s another way to get more variety into your diet. You can use the food you foraged from your backyard! We share some delicious recipes that your whole family will enjoy in our book Gourmet Weeds.

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