Menu Planning & A Well Stocked Pantry
Apr 24 '03
The Bottom Line Planning Menus from a well-stocked pantry can save you time, aggravation and money.
Menu Planning & A Well Stocked Pantry
Menu Planning from a well stocked kitchen can be an extremely effective way for
you to save money on groceries. It allows you the freedom to take advantage of
sales AND coupons, as well as bulk buying.
My advice for the beginning Menu Planner is...start small! Don't overwhelm
yourself with lists of things to buy and things to make. Sit down with your
family and decide what everyone likes and dislikes. That way you can avoid
purchasing items you know your family will not eat and you can avoid trying
recipes you know your family will not eat.
The next thing you want to do is involve your family with making an inventory
of what you have on hand in the freezer, refrigerator, cupboards and pantry.
Make separate lists for each one. Be as specific as possible. As you are making
your inventory, clean out the refrigerator, freezer, cupboards and pantry. Get
rid of expired or spoiled foods. If it's in the freezer and you don't recognize
it, it might be best to discard the item. If you have non-perisables that are
still good, yet you'll never use them, consider giving them away to a food
pantry our your Church or Synagogue Outreach Program. They may be grateful for
the bounty!
Keep in mind, flours, sugars, baking soda, etc. should be stored in plastic
bags inside plastic storage containers with airtight lids. If you need to
purchase storage containers, make sure you get the best that you can afford. If
you don't have decent storage containers with good airtight lids you'll end up
with spoiled products, or worse yet, in the case of flour, weevils. Nothing is
more disappointing than opening a new bag of container of flour only to find it
full of weevils! YECK! Sugars that are not properly packaged can get hard and
unusable. Protect your investment in your food by investing an affordable
amount in your storage devices. Consider storing flours and flour-type products
(like cornmeal and baking mixes) in the freezer. This will also help you if
your area commonly has a problem with weevils.
I recommend getting prepared slowly, so as not to overwhelm yourself or your
family. Getting organized, getting stocked up and getting your menus planned
can be a time consuming project at first. Once you have things in place,
however, it'll run like clockwork and take very little of your time. So, go
slow and easy, but stay on track!
Now that you've gotten your families food preferences down and you've got some
good storage containers and your refrigerator, freezer, cupboards and pantry
are re-organized and cleaned and you have done your inventory, you are ready to
think about what you need. Keep in mind when purchasing spices, they are
usually only good for a one year. Make sure to check expiration dates and
rotate products every time you shop.
Here's a good reference source for the beginner who is stocking their kitchen:
http://apartments.about.com/library/weekly/aa012901c.htm
There is a much more extensive list for those who are a little more advanced in
the RKG Recipe Archives. If you're a member of the RKG Family, please email me
at rkg_recipe_archives-owner@yahoogroups.com and I'll send you an invite. Make
sure your yahoogroups preference is set to receive invitations.
I recommend make three "grocery lists". One should be your weekly list that
includes all the sale and coupon items you're picking up that week. Another
should be your master list. This is the list you can go in and add and remove
from to create your weekly list. The other should be your "wish list". These
are the items you would like to add to your well stocked kitchen. Slowly but
surely add a few items per week as you can afford them. I've been doing this
for 4 months now and I am building up quite a nice spice and pasta collection,
and I am actually using them because I am starting to branch out and try new
and different recipes. I average an extra $10-$15 per week for "extras" and
it's my little treat to myself! If you need help building a "master" "weekly"
and "wish" list, you can fine mine in the RKG_Recipe_Archives, as well.
With Menu Planning, start slow. If you're not used to planning menus, you can
easily get overwhelmed and quit. Plan one dinner a week, then two, then three,
then four, then five, then six, then seven. Allow yourself days for dining out
at a restaurant or at friend or relative's home, ordering take out and
leftovers. We call leftover day C.O.R.N. (Clean Out Refrigerator Night). If we
don't have any leftovers, we have canned soup, sandwiches and salad for dinner.
This gives my family and I a break from cooking at least one night per week.
Another plan that some people find effective is assigning specific types of
meals to certain nights. For example, Monday is beef night, Tuesday is chicken
night, Wedneday is spaghetti/pasta/Italian night, Thursday is pizza night,
Friday is fish night, Saturday is take out night, Sunday is pork night. This
can be effective for you if you have a family of picky eaters who don't like to
try new things. They always know what to expect and if they don't like what's
being served they can have a sandwich and some soup and salad for dinner that
night.
Now that you've got yourself planning menus, you're on the right track! I bet
you're staring to see a reduction in your food bills. But you want more, don't
you? Sure you do! If you haven't already, start shopping sales and buying in
bulk. If bottom round is on sale for $1.19 per pound, but 3 roasts. Repackage
them to avoid freezer burn. Clearly mark the ziplocking baggie with the date
purchased and the contents. Keep in mind that most meats, poultry and fish
should be used within 6 to 9 months of purchase. Make sure to properly rotate
items as you stock your freezer, refrigerator, cupboards and pantry. Mark
non-perishable items with the date purchased (use a permanent marker and write
the date on the top of the can), if the expiration date is not clearly marked
on the item. Try to use non-perishable items within 6 to 12 months of purchase.
Make sure to update your inventories each time you go shopping! In addition,
make sure to mark off items on your inventories as you use them. One every 2 to
3 months, do a overhaul inventory just to make sure you have everything
up-to-date.
There are many other ways to help you with menu planning and saving money and
there are many good resources out there to help you. Once A Month Cooking
(OAMC) can work, as can cooking once, eating twice. Use your favorite search
engine to find resources on the internet if you are interested.
Another way to save money through menu planning is to make good use of your
leftovers. After a meal plan how to handle the leftovers:
• Freeze cooked vegetables, cooked meat, and vegetable-cooking broth
• Plan to use cooked meat the next day in sandwiches, quiches, tacos,
enchiladas, or spaghetti sauce. You may also want to reheat in microwave, or
marinate to use in salads.
• Rinse off dressing on leftover green salads and drain, cool quickly, and add
to soups or to freezer for soup makings.
• Plan to use leftover fruits as garnish, in fruit cups, or in fruit salads.
• Refrigerate cooked foods promptly.
• Store leftovers in plain sight in your refrigerator. Use clean, see-through
containers with covers.
• Label foods and mark date of storage.
• Use up leftovers within two or three days.
• Do not trim away mold on food and eat the remainder. All food with mold
(except for intentional mold such as with blue cheese) should be discarded.
• If you suspect a food is no longer safe to eat, do not taste it! Follow the
adage "When in doubt, throw it out!"
Get Leftovers on the Table the Next Day
• Use it as a garnish or relish: slice raw fruits or vegetables and place on
lettuce leaf.
• Use it in a sandwich: slice cooked meats to serve hot or cold, or add sliced
fresh vegetables, cover with cheese and broil until cheese melts.
• Put it in a salad: add strips or cubes of cooked meat and raw or cooked
vegetables to a chef salad or to a rice, macaroni, or potato salad. Marinate
cubes of cooked meat with raw or cooked vegetables in French or Italian
dressing for a few hours and spoon into lettuce cups.
• Serve it in a white sauce, tomato sauce, or brown gravy over bread, potatoes,
rice or noodles.
• Add it to a casserole, stir-fry dish or quiche, stir into an omelet, or sauté
with rice.
• Use bright-colored dishes, napkins or tablecloths that complement your food.
• Add an appetizing garnish.
• Serve with a favorite bread, salad, or dessert.
Have Some Key Recipes for Using Up Common Leftovers:
• Make a "Use-It-Up" chowder, croquettes, hash or quiche.
• Find special ways to handle your "problem" leftovers. Notice what leftovers
are the most difficult for you to use up, that you most often throw
out. Look for recipes that use your problem foods. File the recipes where you
can find them easily.
Know When to Throw Away!!!
• Throw it out if you suspect the food is no longer safe to eat.
• Throw it out when preparing the food calls for expensive ingredients or a
more time-consuming process than you feel the food is worth.
Shop to Avoid Leftovers!
• Buy only the amount of perishable food that you can use up within a few days.
• Use up the perishables in your refrigerator before going on your next
shopping trip.
One last resource for you, this website has 9 short articles on grocery budgets
and tips to save money on groceries: http://www.lilacpublishing.com/grocery.html
If you have any questions for me, feel free to email me. If I don't have an
answer for you, I'll try to find one or direct you to a source that can helpyou. You can email me at the_wednesday_stretch-owner@yahoogroups.com any time!
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