Stocking up in the kitchen
Stocking up in the kitchen ensures that you are well equipped with food in the short, medium and long term and can cook a delicious meal spontaneously without having to go shopping. While dry foods can be stored relatively easily in the pantry or kitchen cupboard, fresh foods such as vegetables, fruit and meat require special measures for long-lasting storage. We explain the best way to store fresh food in the kitchen to keep it fresh and aromatic for as long as possible and what the perfectly organized pantry should look like so that you can extend the shelf life of your food by storing it correctly.
Good reasons for a food storage unit
There are many good reasons why you should stock up on food in the kitchen or a separate room in the house. Here are the top 3:
1. young children
Young children are rarely satisfied with what's on the table. Children are still learning to eat what's on the table. To make it easier for them, you can regularly cook your children's favorite dishes and surprise them spontaneously. Whether it's pasta, rice or potatoes, with a stock of vegetables you have all the ingredients available every week. And if your children really don't like a dish at all, you still have enough alternatives for a convincing side dish in the store cupboard.
2. Sundays and public holidays
Only a few cities have supermarkets and other stores open on Sundays and public holidays. If you don't have a petrol station or kiosk nearby, shopping on these days can be particularly difficult. The only thing that helps is sufficient planning. Stocking up makes you independent of opening hours and prevents you from having to go shopping every Saturday. With simple dishes such as pasta with pesto, which are quick and easy to make from stored ingredients, you will never spend a Sunday hungry again.
3. "Wasn't on the shopping list"
Spices, sugar, mustard, etc. These things run out from time to time. It's just a shame if this happens while you're cooking and you can't make a quick trip to the supermarket. The situation of realizing while cooking that a certain ingredient is no longer enough for the dish or was used up last time can be avoided with good stockpiling. Good stockpiling also helps to prevent double shopping and therefore food waste.
Food that you should keep in stock
Of course, the right stock of the ideal products and quantities depends on your personal diet and the number of people in your household. Nevertheless, we have compiled a list of foods that you should always have a certain amount of in stock - for almost any diet:
- Dry foods: rice (e.g. basmati rice, jasmine rice or brown rice), pasta, pulses
- Canned food: strained and/or chopped tomatoes, corn, peas, beans, tuna
- Provisions in jars: pesto, olives, red cabbage, sprouts and other vegetables
- Spices: Salt, pepper, paprika spice, vegetable stock, tomato paste
- Liquids: Water, vinegar, oil, UHT milk
- Baking ingredients: Sugar, flour, baking powder, vanilla sugar, dry yeast if necessary
- Other: bread, coffee, cornflakes, jam, honey, margarine, sauce thickener
How to store correctly
Depending on the type of food, it is better to store it in the pantry or in the fridge. However, many people do not have enough space in the house for a separate pantry. This is why the tall cupboards in the kitchen, where nothing else but provisions can be stored anyway, are ideal, as the cupboards are too difficult to reach for everyday use. If you do need a can of corn, we strongly advise you not to perform acrobatic feats on the chair, table or worktop. The HAILO K70 StandardLine can be folded up into a small package and stowed anywhere next to or in the kitchen cupboard to save space, but always within easy reach. The deep steps with non-slip mats ensure that you can safely reach your tall larder unit.
Storage in the fridge
Fresh ingredients that do not keep for long are stored in the fridge. These include fresh meat and fish, cheese and dairy products, opened foods such as jam, juices and sauces. In addition, certain types of vegetables, salad and, of course, leftovers from the previous day.
With the HAILO On Top, you always have practical boxes for your refrigerator available above your waste separation system. The containers are also available individually.
Storage in the freezer
A freezer is the best purchase you can make for storage. Not only can you store your supplies perfectly here, you also save time and money. You can buy large quantities of products on special offer and freeze them for later. You can also pre-cook your favorite dish and freeze it in pre-prepared portions so that you only have to reheat it the next time. However, not all foods are suitable for freezing and frozen foods do not keep forever. Here we have listed for you what can be frozen and how long the following foods will keep when frozen:
- Fish: 2-4 months
- Pork: 4-7 months
- Poultry: 2-10 months
- Butter: 6-8 months
- Bread/rolls: 1-3 months
- Fresh fruit: 6-12 months
- Cooked food: 3-5 months
Many other foods can be frozen with appropriate preparation. Mushrooms, for example, can be cut into slices and frozen side by side on a plate (so that the slices don't stick together) before you put them in a bag and freeze them completely.
Storage in the larder
The best way to store long-life food is in larders. These foods like to be stored in dry, light-protected places where they are always to hand:
- Canned food
- Flour
- Rice and pasta
- Coffee
- Spices
- Bread
HAILO has developed thePantry Box for the temporary storage of bread and vegetables, which is installed in the kitchen base unit and provides you with your food in one go. A plastic base with draining and ventilation slots and a toughened glass sliding lid ensure maximum shelf life and hygiene.
You can also use the space above your extractor fan: The HAILO Deposito flat steam shelf offers space for your spices and keeps them always to hand. If there is still some space left over, you can also use the shelf to store tinned food or preserving jars that you use frequently.
Storage in the pantry
Then there are also foods that like to be stored in a cool, dark place. These include fruit and vegetables such as apples, pears, onions, potatoes and carrots, as well as milk. A dark, dry cellar is ideal for these foods. If you have a garden, you can even build an earth cellar. If you don't have either, you can also try a cool corner of your home.
Organize and integrate stockpiling into the household
By stocking up on different foods, you can save time, money, duplicate purchases and unnecessary trips to the supermarket. But to really reap all the benefits of stockpiling, you should organize your storage properly.
Do a regular stock check and check what you should stock up on the next time you go shopping. A tip: As soon as you have taken the penultimate tin of tomatoes, jar of beet, packet of rice or similar out of the store cupboard, write it on the shopping list immediately. This way, there will be no nasty surprises the next time you cook if something is missing. You should also check the best-before date, use up expired food first after a quick check for mold or sour taste and clean the cupboard regularly to prevent pests.
Shop consciously. Compare what is in the recipe with what you already have in stock. This will help you avoid buying twice. Tip: New food with a longer best-before date should be stored behind the old stocks so that you can use up the older food first. Keep your pantry well organized and set up themed boxes.
A well-organized pantry saves a lot of hassle. Place pasta, tinned food and baking ingredients in different boxes in the cupboard. This also makes everything easier to clean if, for example, the flour packet has a hole in it. Food that you need every day should be stored within easy reach in the kitchen, but still in reasonable quantities in the larder.
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