You have many items in your cupboards right now that will last a very long time. These items are often affordable and versatile, making them great additions to a prepper’s food supply. Take an inventory of your pantry and kitchen and see if you currently have any of the items listed below on the pantry food list.
Pantry Food List
The items on this list have been organized by shelf life. For many pantry items, expiration or best before dates are more of an indication of freshness. When you store pantry items in a cool, dark space and properly sealed, they will last longer.
Indefinite
- Dried beans like white, kidney, pinto, and black beans
- Popcorn kernels
- Honey
- Maple syrup
20 – 50 years
- Hardtack
- Alcohol (e.g., vodka, gin, whiskey)
10 – 20 years
- White rice
- Instant coffee
- Instant potatoes
5 – 10 years
- Powdered milk
- Salt
3 – 5 years
- Canned meat
- Canned vegetables
- Cocoa
- Hot sauce
- Powdered drinks
- Spices
- Canned chili
1 – 2 years
- Oatmeal
- Pasta noodles
- Pasta sauce
- Dried meat (jerky)
- Canned fruit
- Peanut butter
- Apple sauce
- Baking soda
- Sugar
- Tomato sauce
- Bouillon cubes
- Protein and granola bars
- Pancake mix
- Vegetable, olive and coconut oil
Less than one year
- Brown rice
- Granola
- Jam
- Coffee grounds
- Tea
- Ketchup
- BBQ sauce
- Shortening
- Flour
If you have some of these already, you should add more to your stockpile. With a heat source and cookware, you can make several dishes like pancakes, chili, and dessert –
there’s nothing like eggless chocolate cake to soothe the soul!
Buying in bulk will save you money. Large bags of rice, dried beans, and powdered milk are great items to purchase in large quantities. You want food that will still taste good years from now and doesn’t require refrigeration. That said, there are some items you shouldn’t purchase in bulk because their shelf life isn’t as great or they require refrigeration after opening.
Mayonnaise – Mayonnaise has a decent shelf life and can be used in a lot of food preparation. However, once a jar of mayonnaise is opened, it can spoil quickly if you don’t have a refrigerator. Store small jars of mayonnaise instead of bulk-sized jars.
Crackers – The crackers in your pantry right now, like saltines or Ritz, will go stale after a couple of months. Although you can still eat them, they won’t taste very good. Instead of purchasing these crackers, you can buy or make your own hardtack. Hardtack has a much longer shelf life while still giving you the crunch and taste of a cracker.
Nuts and dried fruit – Nuts are another item you may not want to buy in bulk.
Although they make a great snack, they have a relatively short shelf life. Instead, buy fewer and smaller packages and rotate through them every 8 to 12 months. The same goes for dried fruit.
Cereals – Classic breakfast cereals like Cheerios or shredded wheat will go stale quickly. Plus, they probably won’t taste as good when paired with a can of condensed milk. Opt for steal-cut oats that you can prepare with hot water.
Pantry Food Recipes
While you still have access to the internet, look up different pantry recipes and test them out. There are phenomenal recipes that use minimal ingredients taken from your survival pantry. For example, hardtack only requires 2 cups flour, 1 cup water, and 2 tsp salt.
Or, better yet, why not make a pizza?
Commonly referred to as “prepper’s pizza,” it is super easy to make and surprisingly delicious. For the crust, all you need is 2 cups white flour, 1 -2 tbsp yeast (or beer), a bit of water, salt, and 2 tbsp oil. Although it’ll be missing the cheese, you can still top it with sauce and canned goods like mushrooms, hot peppers, pineapple, and tomatoes! If you have dried meat, chop it up and sprinkle it on top.
Another one of my favorites is Mac & Cheese. For this, you will need dry cheese powder and macaroni noodles. Kraft sells their cheese powder in a jar, and the shelf life is about two years. Alternatively, you could just buy boxes of KD in bulk. The shelf life for a box is also two years.
When you find a recipe you like, print it out, put it in a page protector and into a binder. You won’t be able to search Pinterest for meal inspiration if you are living off your food supply, so it’s best to do the leg work now.
The majority of Americans already have enough food in their cupboards to last them three days in an emergency. This is a good start, but as a prepper, you want to ensure you are fully equipped for an extended period of time and need to stock a pantry for a year.
Next time you are shopping, take a look at the expiry date of the items you are purchasing and grab extras. To rotate through your supply and keep it fresh, use from your stockpile and replace it with a newly purchased item. For example, if you run out of ketchup, use the one from your stockpile and replace the one in your food supply with the newly purchased one. It may take a bit more effort, but it’s worth it.