pantry containers to organize your pantry

How To Organize Your Pantry On The Cheap

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I’m going to show you how to organize your pantry on the cheap. I’m often asked, “How can I store my food storage when my pantry is so small?” This is my small pantry in the kitchen area, and it’s really small. I have a small home so that’s what I got. I knew I had to do something because I could not store all the main staples I use on a weekly basis to prepare meals.

I was fortunate to know a company right here in Southern Utah who would cut shelves for me. I must say they cut several shelves for areas throughout my house. They cost about $2.00 for each shelf. They have white laminate on particle board, and that works for me!

I bought the 2-gallon buckets with Gamma lids from Pleasant Hill Grain. The 2-gallon buckets and matching Gamma lids are harder to find so I always order them from this company. Here are the matching 2-gallon Gamma lids from Pleasant Hill Grain-Gamma Lids. They sell the five-gallon buckets and Gamma lids you can see at the bottom of my pantry below.

You can also get the five-gallon buckets and lids locally sometimes. It’s the 2-gallon buckets that are harder to find. I also use the OXO containers for my Dutch unsweetened cocoa: OXO Good Grips POP Big Square 4-Quart Storage Container

Organize Your Pantry

Well, I showed you a couple of years ago how to add a few shelves to your regular kitchen cupboards. By just adding a few extra shelves to your small pantry, you gain almost 50% more cupboard space, depending on how your cabinets are built. I have the pantry shown below that used to have only five shelves. I added two more shelves to give me more space that was not useable because of the height.

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I only have a few tall items to store in the pantry. Plus you can only safely stack two cans high, depending on the size and weight. I have ten-foot ceilings, so, therefore, the pantry is taller than a house with 8-foot walls. The door alone is 8 feet tall. I want you to know those dimensions so you realize how I was able to add more shelving.

Plan Out The Shelves Of Your Pantry

Make a list of the various items you eat every day or every week. Then start measuring approximately how many shelves you can add. I measured and measured so many times then I went to a local cabinet place and had them cut the shelves. I picked up the exact size brackets that were already installed in the side walls. The holes were there so all I had to do was consider the depth of the shelves when measuring for the shelving.

There is something about having a pantry full of canned goods, honey, cocoa, canned soups, etc. I have large and small buckets with flour and sugar for everyday baking and I refill them when needed. I am lucky to have a daughter who does vinyl lettering for me to label my buckets, etc. I swear, I’m over the top in organizing but I own it. Enough said.

organize your pantry

Items For The Pantry:

Every fall it’s like a clock goes off in my head to watch for the sales on cases for food storage. All you need are a few extra cans of the food you will eat. Remember my motto, one can at a time.

1. baking stuff-flour, sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, cocoa, oils, honey, salt

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2. peanut butter, jelly, and jam, it’s crazy I find myself buying smaller and smaller jars every year because we only have two people eating it.

3. canned soups, by now, you know my favorite one is Campbell’s cream of chicken.

4. canned beans, kidney beans, white beans, refried beans, etc.

5. canned enchilada sauce, I used to make it and can it. Nope, I can buy the cans cheaper for just two people.

6, ketchup, mayonnaise, Miracle Whip, mustard. I have also started buying smaller jars of this stuff, although I buy a few regular size jars as well.

7. canned meat like tuna, chicken, and roast beef

8. canned fruits, I used to preserve jars of fruit, but I no longer have the trees and so the cost is not justifiable for me.

9. canned vegetables, I love it when my gardening starts producing so many veggies, it saves on my grocery bill.

10. Fire extinguisher

Let me know if my post today gives you some ideas to help you organize your pantry. I always learn from my readers. May God bless you for your efforts to be prepared for the unexpected.

Organize your life

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4 Comments

  1. Love your pantry, Linda! I have the same space problem in mine. How did you mount the shelves? I can’t tell in the picture. Thanks!

    1. Hi Kay, the sides of the walls inside the cabinet have drilled holes where you can place those silver brackets in four places and rest the shelves on them. If you don’t have those you can always put a 1-inch by 2-inch strip of wood all the way around on three sides and rest the shelf on it life a closet. Does that make sense? Linda

      1. We’re renting right now so I ‘ll have to look into how to install the shelves without too many nail holes. I love how your system utilizes all that wasted space! Thanks!

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