Taking Stock: Pantry Basics for Self Reliance

While reading Amy Dacyczyn”s Tightwad Gazette, I observed the “Pantry Principle”, in which Amy describes her family's food supply. Many of the items are simple staple items, some are homemade, others bought in bulk. As I read I began to realize that she was describing my own pantry contents. This makes perfect sense because our goal in living simply overlaps with Amy's goal of living frugally. Many items that we once purchased in the stores we now make ourselves. Basic staples are the key components to a self-sufficient pantry. Basically, my pantry contains lots of baking ingredients, some canned goods bought from the “cheap” store (Save-A-Lot), and items that I make to help with meal preparation, like flavored vinegars, liqueurs, syrups and extracts, etc.

Its about the same in my refrigerator. We have a supply of milk, butter, and eggs, leftovers, homemade yogurt and meat and cheese for meal preparation. Very simple and very frugal. While it is true that we do still buy quite a bit of the food we eat, our goal is to raise as much of it as possible in the near future. I also feel that it is worth mentioning that we also have practical hobbies, such as gardening, wine making, etc. that allow us a return for the money spent on the activities. (More on this in a future blog.)

If you look over the pantry list below, you will notice that we are working in the direction of “do-it yourself” as our lifestyle slowly moves closer to the land and the farm. Here is a breakdown of my self reliant pantry so far.

I begin with the staple goods. I only need the basics plus a couple of extras. All large quantity staples are stored in large tin popcorn canisters< (given to me at holiday).

All Purpose Flour (I buy 20lbs. at once); Whole Wheat Flour; Self Rising Flour; Bread Flour; Cake Flour (home made); Biscuit & Baking Mix (home made); Cornmeal; Granulated Sugar; Confectioner’s Sugar

Next, I think about the little extras for baking.

Vanilla (and other) Extract (home made); Cooking Oil; Shortening; Lard (homemade); Pan Spray;

Cocoa Powder; Corn Starch; Baking Soda; Baking Powder; Brown Sugar; Pancake Syrup (Homemade)

Corn Syrup (Light and Dark); Molasses; Honey (planning someday on keeping bees); Nuts (Black Walnuts and Hickory Nuts are gathered, shelled and stored); Dried Fruit (Raisins, fruitcake mix, crazins, etc.)

Next, miscellaneous cooking items:

Vinegars: Apple cider Vinegar, White Vinegar, Balsamic Vinegar, Herb Vinegars (Homemade), Berry Vinegars (Homemade), Red and/or White Wine vinegars (Homemade)

Pasta: Some purchased, Some Homemade. I bought a pasta maker at Goodwill and make fresh pasta about once a month. I form the wet pasta into little nest balls to dry then store in zipper bags.

Herbs: a wide variety, mostly home grown, I purchase what cannot be grown. This allows an extra bonus. Gardening is an excellent hobby. Even container grown herbs will move you closer to self-reliance.

Spirits: Red Wine (homemade), other assorted wines (homemade), assorted liqueurs (homemade), Rum, Vodka, Bourbon; (I should add here that we are not much for drinking our spirits. Mostly these are used for cooking and company.)

Canned Goods:

Assorted Soups (home canned), Chili (home canned), Beef and Chicken Stock (home canned), Potatoes (home canned), Carrots (home canned), White Beans (home canned), Assorted Jams and Jellies (home canned), We also have a selection of dried beans and grains, an assortment of bottled sauces and tomato based products. For now we do eat store bought, canned veggies, but we are moving in the direction of home grown, home canned and frozen veggies.

In the refrigerator we have store bought milk, at least until I can move to the farm and get either a cow or goat, or both, eggs which are purchased during the winter and farm produced during the warm season, mayonnaise (homemade), peanut butter (homemade), yogurt (homemade by the gallon), yogurt cheese (homemade), butter (store bought until I get that cow), buttermilk (homemade), cottage cheese and sour cream (store bought).

This list is considered a starting point, an assessment of sorts, not a definitive list. I am always researching recipes for future homemade projects I see many places on my list where I may strive to improve the quality of the food, and further my plans toward self reliance and Simple Living.