Pantry Perfection: Improving Your Home's Store Cupboard

Sunday, May 31, 2020

Having a pantry at home isn’t just practical- it’s also trendy thanks to gorgeous photos of perfectly curated pantries on Pinterest, Instagram and blogs. A well stocked pantry will save you money, it will make life in the kitchen more convenient and it might even make you a better cook since you always have access to the herbs, spices and flavourings you need to elevate any dish. Here are some things to think about when you’re putting together your pantry.



Location

If you already have a built in pantry in your kitchen then that’s great. If not, you may need to get more creative. Do you have a boiler cupboard, a nook or even a cupboard under the stairs that you might be able to use? Any downstairs storage cupboard can fit the bill really, you could clear out an old shoe and coat cupboard and utilise that instead. Ideally it will be somewhere close to the kitchen so you dont have to walk through the house to get items you need when you’re cooking. But get creative with ideas for where it could go.

Kit it out

Fit rows of shelves right the way up to the ceiling to make the most of the space, by doing this even a tiny cupboard space gives you plenty of storage space. Measure out what you’ll need and have a timber merchant or DIY shop cut the pieces of wood for the shelves to the right size. From there, you’ll just need to fit them to the walls using brackets.

Use storage containers

The good thing about having a pantry is it’s a space to keep long life food items without them spoiling. However, if you leave things like rice, flour, pasta and other ingredients in paper or plastic bags you can find they can be targeted by pests. If you’re wondering how to prevent pests in your kitchen pantry, one way is to use glass or plastic storage containers. Decant the products into these and ensure they’re sealed tightly with lids. The ingredients will stay fresher for longer and you dont have to worry about insects or rodents getting inside.

Label everything

One issue with decanting things into other jars is not remembering exactly what you’ve put in there later down the line. It’s so easy to get things like plain, self-raising, and bread flour mixed up, and if you choose the wrong one for a recipe then it will be completely ruined. Label everything with what's inside (even if it seems obvious right now) and also any other information. These ingredients have a long shelf life but they don't last forever and so you’ll need to note the best before the date that's on the original packaging too. Other information you might is allergy information, so get everything nicely labeled to prevent mix-ups.

You Might Also Like

0 comments

Quote to Live By

"Not all those who wander are lost."
- J. R. R. Tolkien

Carpe Diem

carpe diem

Subscribe