Are you ready to clean up and clear out — and eat well in the process? Then join the Pantry Challenge starting January 1. We’ll be making the most of what we have so that we waste not, want not.
Shopping your kitchen is a great way to save money on food. Doing a Pantry Challenge takes that practice to the next level, spending extra effort on making most of the food you have on hand so that you can avoid food waste and save grocery money.
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Every year for awhile now, I’ve spent concentrated effort to do a pantry clean out. By doing so, I limit my grocery shopping, I use up what we have, and I’m forced to be creative. I also learn to be more thankful for what I’ve got. I realize how full my “empty” cupboards really are.
We Americans are generally blessed with full refrigerators. Yet, in her fabulous book on home cooking, The Kitchen Counter Cooking School, Kathleen Flinn states, “as a country we collectively waste about 40 percent of the food produced for consumption.” Yikes!
I can’t argue with this. I just cleaned out my fridge. Due to poor planning prior to a busy holiday, I threw away food that could have been enjoyed if it hadn’t been forgotten.
The start of January marks the start of our yearly pantry clean out. Care to join me?
Why Do This
A pantry challenge is a focused, but limited, time to “eat from the pantry.” Rather than buying groceries like I normally would, I focus on what we already have. I build my menus around the ingredients I have as well as those I’ve been avoiding.
Sometimes it’s the meal that is is cumbersome to prepare or something that I’ve been too lazy to be creative with. The pantry challenge helps me deal with those items — and teaches me not to buy it again or not to avoid it for so long.
Another fringe benefit to giving my pantry, fridge, and freezer a good clean out/overhaul is that we save money, too. And January is a fabulous month to do that, is it not?
A pantry challenge can take many different forms and serve different purposes. It is basically the idea of cutting your grocery budget by a significant amount so that you can save money and use what you have. Sometimes this can be drastic; other times, it can be a chance to trim some fat from your budget.
An “involuntary pantry challenge” happens when weather, illness, or loss of income prevents you from shopping like you normally would. You make the most of what you already have.
By practicing this on a yearly basis, I balance out my grocery spending as well as keep things in perspective in case I have to make my pantry work overtime against my wishes.
How to Prepare
There are a few things that you can do to prepare for a Pantry Clean Out:
Make a few goals.
At the start of each pantry challenge, I determine some of the things that I’d like to accomplish. This has changed over the years as my shopping habits and the appetites of my family have changed.
By establishing some goals, I’m making it clear to myself what the point of this whole endeavor is. This month I hope to do the following:
- Spend $900 or less on groceries to feed our family. In 2022, we spent an average of $1600/month on groceries to feed our family of 7. With inflation, shrinkflation, and bird flu, I’m not surprised that this number was an all-time high. The most recent USDA Food Cost Reports say that it costs $1920 to feed our family. Yikes! I’m hoping to keep January’s spending to $900 or less.
- Give my freezers and pantry a good clean out. We have two refrigerator freezers and a deep freeze. All three are pretty full right now and could use some breathing room. (Fun fact: your upright freezers need space for air to circulate.)
- Use up those things that I have too much of or kind of wish I hadn’t bought in the first place. They are a weight on me, so if we use them up, I’ll feel better. Hopefully, this will teach me to shop better, too.
Take inventory.
By taking inventory of what you have in the fridge, pantry, and freezer, you know what tools you have to work with. You also have a chance to start out with a cleaned and (sort of) organized food storage.
Cleaning the fridge on a weekly or even twice weekly basis helps keep foods front of mind so that you can use them up before it goes bad.
I’ll be doing a big fridge clean as soon as my company leaves on New Year’s Day.
Plan meals.
Write a list of all the meals you could make with what you already have. You may be surprised that the list is so long.
Now add to the list the meals that you could make with just one or two ingredients yet to be purchased. This can be the start of your grocery list.
Planning a month of meals at the start of a Pantry Challenge can be really helpful. I’ll be sharing mine on Instagram, so follow along there if you like.
Be realistic.
Don’t confuse “pantry challenge” or “pantry clean out” with a “no spend month”. They aren’t the say.
If it meant that I had to go cold turkey and not buy anything, I’d be hard pressed to feed my kids. I could probably do it, but it would be a full time job getting creative in the kitchen.
Over the years, I’ve learned what’s realistic for us to manage. Sometimes I’ve cut our spending in half; other times, I saved just a fraction of our budget, but we were good stewards with what we had.
Use it or lose it tends to guide my efforts these days.
Keep a record.
Jot down each day of the pantry challenge, what you serve for all meals, and how your family responds to those meals. We have discovered some of our favorite meals based on recipes I developed during the pantry challenge.
I’ll be posting daily here on Good Cheap Eats our log as well as posting or linking to recipes that I use. Read our Pantry Challenge Daily Logs as we go along.
Make it a family affair.
One of my renewed goals as a parent and a home cook is to include my kids more in the meal planning and execution. With two high schoolers, two college students, and a college grad, we have a very busy household!
I hope to include the kids more in meal prep and part of that will be their taking stock of what we have and getting creative.
Give yourself a break.
Don’t freak out if you don’t meet all your goals. If you fall off the wagon, just brush yourself off and climb back on. Doing something is better than nothing.
Learn.
Go beyond your comfort zone and learn to make use of the food you have. Waste not, want not, right?
Read The Kitchen Counter Cooking School if you haven’t already, paying careful attention to Chapter 12 which is all about using what you have to your best advantage.
Be a good steward.
Most important of all, be a good steward of what you have. That, really, is the point of Pantry Clean Out.
Only you can know what suits your household best. If you find a killer deal on grocery items that your family needs, go ahead and stock up — even if it is a month to spend less.
Likewise, if you are tempted toward take-out, but know you have chicken that needs to be cooked, head home and do the right thing: cook that chicken. Save the take-out for another time.
Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list so you don’t miss out on January’s Pantry Challenge.
More Tips for a Pantry Challenge
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This post was originally published on December 30, 2012. It has been updated for content and clarity.
Susie
I just found your blog last night. We (as a family) have been talking about doing something like this for a while but we haven’t yet. I am jumping on the bandwagon today and not getting off (Lord willing) until we have room in our freezers! Thanks for the motivation and good reminders to be good stewards of the resources God has given us!
Jessica
I’m almost at the end of the challenge myself. You can read the daily posts here, though, if you want some added inspiration: https://goodcheapeats.com/category/eat-from-the-pantry-challenge/
Vanessa
Just found your site today and I’m thrilled. We are doing an involuntary pantry challenge this month due to an unexpected delay for my husband’s job. He’s self-employed and was without work for 10 days in December. I usually do a pantry challenge this time of year but have never committed to a full month. I like clearing out the cupboards and starting fresh. I enjoy the creative part of using what’s on hand. Neccessity is the mother of invention! I started with a list of meals that require no purchase and added meals that require only one or two more items. I was surprised to come up with 26 meals. Woohoo! Looking forward to following along with you through the rest of the month.
Jessica
Hang in there! I know those involuntary pantry challenges are rife with other concerns, too. You can do it, though. Sounds like you have a great attitude! (My husband was self-employed for most of our marriage, so I totally get where you’re coming from.)
April
So excited! My DH said I couldn’t buy anything for the freezer until what we have is gone. (He had to rearrange to actually get it closed last week). Came across your blog on Pinterest, can’t express how excited I am to find a group of us doing the same thing! Yay!
Jessica
Yay! That’s great!
Lisa
Oh, here we go! I’ve tried this several times before without much success. This time I REALLY want to take a good stab at it!! We desperately need to defrost our chest freezer and there are tons of stuff in our pantry that is going old. I’m not sure why I can’t stick with it… easier said than done, isn’t it? Worth another try. : )
Hannah Fellows
Great idea! Wish we could join but we do clean eating so our freezer and pantry are basically empty as it is. We are cutting out processed foods. We only eat fresh veggies, fruits, and meats. We do have pasta and cheeses but many of our meals are made up and fresh every single day! I definitely would try this though!! I’ve noticed I have a lot of stuff on hand that I didn’t normally think of to use!
Annie Kate
OK, here’s my first post. http://anniekateshomeschoolreviews.com/2013/01/another-pantry-challenge/
We have a lot of food to eat, and a lot of time and money to save, so here goes! 🙂
Colleen
I am so excited to have some direction on how to use up items in my pantry and freezer to make healthy meals and pre-plan with less agony and pain. Looking forward to all the good ideas! Thank you.
Mary
I am definitely on board. For those of you with IPhones- check out the Fridge Pal App – you can scan bar codes, manually enter expiration dates, find receipes using what you have on hand, etc !!! Initially it is labor intensive but now I know exactly what I have on hand – so I don’t wind up with 17 lbs of white sugar (LOL). My goal is to use up all those things I have accumulated in my pantry, fridge and freezer. Yesterday for dinner I made leftover roast beef soup and added frozen mixed vegetables. Hubby loved it. I did not have to buy anything new to make it – it was all in my fridge and pantry.
Jessica
Yeah! And thanks for the tip on the app.
Becca S
I’m in! This is perfect timing for this… our pantry and freezer are in desperate need of organization and emptying out and our budget would certainly appreciate the help now that we are post holidays! 🙂
Heather M
I’m so in. My modification will only be that I buy what fresh things we need. I was planning to do this anyway. Time to use up what we have before the expiration dates. Plus, I too trashed perfectly good food right before leaving town, and again today when we got home. I shopped, but mainly for fresh and needed items. Off I go!
@JenBetweenDots
I’m definitely in!! I work 4 days a week at an office job and am also a full-time student so I tend to grab a lot of food on the go. I have so much food in my cupboards/freezer that I know if I put my mind to it, I can make all my meals each week – even those days when I’m out of the house from 7 am until 9 pm and literally have all 3 meals away from home!
Kim Thomas
I’m in for the challenge…I think it would be a great idea for my family!
Jada
I’m in, but getting a late start. Have my inventory. Making goals. I usually plan meals for the month, but this month, I need to clean out a bit of space in the freezer after purchasing salmon and cod from Zaycon that will be delivered Feb. 2. So, this is perfect timing.
Cathy
I just found your website a few weeks aga and find it very easy and encouraging. My first step is a Pantry Challenge….I am in……except when we eat at church on Wednesday nights which is only $4 for me and two kids.
Jessica
@Cathy, I don’t make the rules. You do. We’re still going to eat out, but hopefully, be more intentional. Sounds like that’s exactly what your Wednesdays are.
Bridget
I’m in. I’ve followed you before and it does help. I plan to buy only fresh produce, milk, and eggs. We have ALOT of neglected food sitting around. Some stuff still even from the last challenge. I’m too much of if I want to shop a little I blow the budget.
Jessica
@Bridget, oh, honey. I found stuff from two challenges ago when I inventoried the freezer. [blush]
Candice Cannon
I’m in..this should be fun. Daughter back to school Sunday, house guests left New Years and we still have a ton of food in the frig to start week 1 and extra meals I made up from leftovers in the deep freeze (such as Beef Pot Pie made of remaining pot roast and veggies..made a pie crust and froze it and many others) for week 2. Then, I can start on the pantries. Putting up food from the gardens is extra work in the summer/fall but well worth it once winter hits.
Jenny
I’m in — for the third year in a row. I look forward to starting off the new year with very few grocery expenses and a cleaned out pantry and freezer. Thanks for inspiring us again.
Jessica
@Jenny, glad to have, Old Timer. 😉
Carolyn
I’m in. I”m already nervous, but I’m in 🙂 I can’t say I’m well-stocked, but I do have food in the pantry that needs to be used. This might be the year where I really do get a handle on what I spend AND what I spend it on!
Thanks for the encouragement.
Jessica
@Carolyn, don’t be nervous. And don’t think you can’t shop. Just take inventory of what you have and focus on using that first.
Sara
I am in!!!! My goal is to cut my grocery budget in half….from 800 to 400 and save that 400 for my emergency fund. My freezers are full since there were alot of good deals on meat in November and December so now I will reap the rewards of my stockpilling. I also have alot of canned goods that I need to use up. Can’t wait to here what everyone is cooking! I started yesterday with Boston baked beans (with old northern white beans that were in the back cupboard….they were yummy!) and I made a minestrone soup with leftovers…..humm…..what is next!
Juana Guzman
I’m in!!!! Its my first time and I hope I can resist taking trips to the market. Can’t wait for any tips out there to help out 🙂