Family Creates An Impressive DIY Storage System For Canned Food
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When you're storing canned goods in the pantry, it can be a little tough to get the organization just right. Maybe you stack them, and you can't find the olives behind the tuna fish, or you're ready to make a pasta sauce and have to remove everything to find the canned tomatoes. However, with one simple DIY trick, you can keep everything organized, and (especially if you already have a shop in the basement or garage) you can do it with some leftover materials you may already have on hand. Even if you're not a particularly handy person, you can get everything you need at the local hardware store, and they can help you with the cuts and sizes. Just follow the steps of making an amazing system to organize your canned goods. Don't be intimidated by the nail gun; a hammer will work just fine.
The best thing about this technique is that you can design the slats or rows to be precisely the size of the can. Tuna, black beans, green beans, or whole tomatoes — you can get the row sizes to exactly what you use most. Because you're adding each new can from the top, you can be sure that you're using them in order of freshness, rather than finding a can in the back of the pantry that may have been there for years. There are some inexpensive canned goods that are always in the pantry, some of which are delicious straight from the can, so why not keep them properly ordered? And when there's a sale, you can bulk up and store them efficiently.
Other ways to store your canned goods and how to know if they're safe
If all the building is a little too much, you can use a canned food hack with Dollar Tree's soda can bins. You won't be able to customize the sizes, but they're great for standard-sized bean and soup cans. For example, at 4.5 inches in height, a 10.75-ounce Campbell's soup can will fit no problem. You can even reuse soda boxes and fill them with your cans. But if you need something that can hold differently-sized cans and don't want to do the work, Simple Houseware's Stackable Can Organizer has adjustable dividers, so you can fit just about any can you may have on hand.
How long canned goods last depends on how they're stored and what's inside. While many canned foods are perfectly safe to eat after their best-by date, they should generally be eaten within two years after purchase for optimum flavor. Canned chicken, fish, beans, and corn can be good for up to five years. However, the higher the acid content, the shorter the shelf life, so certain canned goods, like tomatoes and pineapple, won't stay safe as long. If you see any rust on the can, major dents, or bulging, you should throw it out. Heat and light will also affect the stability and quality of your canned goods, so they should be stored in a cool, dark place. And when you're using your DIY can rack, you'll go through them in the proper order, so there's nothing hidden in the back of the cupboard for too long.