Food Storage, part 2--containers

Wow. How to store bulk foods. Right now, my bulk purchases consist of things like flour and sugar and tea bags. Stuff for winter baking and comfort. I have no canister set. Don't want one. Most times, they are not air tight, and foods go stale or spoil. I am using Folgers coffee canisters. They are plastic. They are airtight. They have a built in handle. They are round. Round is the only drawback to these canisters. I'd prefer the pretty blue square ones, but I don't drink Maxwell House coffee! Other than that, they are wonderful. A 4 pound bag of sugar fits in one nicely. 2 of them will hold just under 10 pounds of flour. Soo, make bread and then store the rest.......lol. I even have them labeled for cocoa mix, cappucino mixes, etc. Anything that should be airtight, but doesn't necessarily need to be in the cabinet. (since I find my cappucino mix in 2 lb bags at the dollar store, this is not as frivolous as it sounds.)

When I get around to buying bulk canned goods, I will probably buy them by the case. These can easily slide under the sofa, or stack 3 high under the bed with no problem at all. Just remember to date the top of each can and use them in order. Don't use the stuff you just bought and leave the older stuff in storage.

The secret to making food storage work is to work with it. Try new ideas and recipes regularly. Eat from your storage and shop to replace it, etc. Make meals from dehydrated items as well as canned and frozen. Learn what you do and don't like before you need it. Personally, if we wound up with nothing but chicken a'la king RME's, my husband would starve to death!

I'm also starting to research mylar bags and large buckets with O2 packets in them. There are many ways to re-package and store bulk purchases. Read up on them before you start. Get some ideas. Talk to other people who prep and find out what they like and why. THEN-try a few things yourself. See what works for you.

It's a process, like anything else. This week, look around your house and see what kinds of interesting locations you can find for food storage. Then start thinking about what you can reasonably store there. Don't forget to keep your food diary. Next week, we're going to figure out your shopping needs in order to start prepping your food storage list!