--- title: "Pantry & From Scratch" url: https://waronfood.org/pantry/ category: pantry type: hub status: stable published: 2026-10-07 last_updated: 2026-10-07 summary: "A resilient, from-scratch pantry: the staples worth keeping, how to store them well, and the kitchen skills that turn raw ingredients into food you control." description: "Build a resilient from-scratch pantry: what to stock, how to store it, and how to can tomatoes, make butter and render tallow, following tested guidance." keyword: "from scratch pantry" attribution: "War on Food (waronfood.org)" --- # Pantry & From Scratch > Build a resilient from-scratch pantry: what to stock, how to store it, and how to can tomatoes, make butter and render tallow, following tested guidance. ## Key takeaways - A from-scratch pantry is a short list of raw ingredients you can turn into many meals, not a stockpile of finished products. - Rotation (first in, first out) and good storage conditions matter more than buying in bulk. - Home canning is safe when you follow tested USDA and National Center for Home Food Preservation instructions exactly. A from-scratch pantry is a short shelf of raw ingredients that can become dozens of meals: flour, grains, beans, fats, sweeteners, acids, spices. Cook from it and you depend less on whatever the store happens to stock this week, you know what went into your food, and it usually tastes better. There are practical reasons to care. Food prices move every year, and the USDA's Economic Research Service publishes a running [food price outlook](https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-price-outlook/summary-findings) that shows how much they can shift. Supply chains are long, and a disruption far away can empty one aisle for weeks. A well-kept pantry won't fix the food system, but it puts a buffer between your kitchen and those swings. It also lets you buy in season, buy direct from farmers, and use what you buy before it spoils. Start with the [from-scratch pantry staples checklist](https://waronfood.org/pantry/staples-checklist/). It is a printable list of what to keep and how long each item lasts. Then learn [long-term food storage](https://waronfood.org/pantry/long-term-food-storage/) so your rice and beans stay good for years instead of months. From there, try a few skills: [canning tomatoes](https://waronfood.org/pantry/how-to-can-tomatoes/) the tested way, [making butter](https://waronfood.org/pantry/how-to-make-butter/) from cream, and [rendering beef tallow](https://waronfood.org/pantry/render-tallow/) from fat your butcher would otherwise throw out. The rest of the site connects to this shelf: [sourdough](https://waronfood.org/sourdough/) for bread, [seed oils](https://waronfood.org/real-food/seed-oils/) for choosing fats, [buying half a cow](https://waronfood.org/local-food/half-a-cow-cost/) for the freezer, and the [homestead](https://waronfood.org/homestead/) hub for growing and raising more of it yourself. ## Pantry & From Scratch guides - [The From-Scratch Pantry Staples Checklist](https://waronfood.org/pantry/staples-checklist/): A categorized, printable list of the pantry staples that let you cook almost anything from scratch, with shelf-life notes from university extension guidance. - [Long-Term Food Storage for Beginners](https://waronfood.org/pantry/long-term-food-storage/): How to store dry staples for years, not months: the five enemies of stored food, the right containers, what lasts and what doesn't, and how to rotate it. - [How to Can Tomatoes (Whole or Halved, Water Bath)](https://waronfood.org/pantry/how-to-can-tomatoes/): Water-bath canning for whole or halved tomatoes packed in water, following the National Center for Home Food Preservation's tested procedure step by step. - [How to Make Butter from Heavy Cream](https://waronfood.org/pantry/how-to-make-butter/): Turn a carton of heavy cream into butter and buttermilk with a mixer or a jar, then rinse, salt and store it, or culture the cream first for tangier butter. - [How to Render Beef Tallow](https://waronfood.org/pantry/render-tallow/): Turn beef suet or fat trim into clean, shelf-ready tallow: choosing fat, wet or dry rendering, straining, storage, and how to cook with it. ## FAQ **What is a from-scratch pantry?** It is a kitchen stocked with basic ingredients such as flour, grains, beans, fats, sweeteners, acids and spices, which you combine yourself instead of relying on ready-made products. **Do I need special equipment to start?** No. Airtight containers and a cool, dark cupboard cover most staples. Canning needs a canner, jars and new lids; butter needs only cream and a mixer or jar. **Is home canning safe?** Yes, when you use a tested recipe from the USDA or the National Center for Home Food Preservation and follow the jar size, processing time and altitude adjustments exactly. ## Sources 1. [Kansas State University Extension — Safe Food Storage: The Cupboard (MF3131)](https://bookstore.ksre.ksu.edu/download/safe-food-storage-the-cupboard_MF3131) 2. [USDA Economic Research Service — Food Price Outlook: Summary Findings](https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-price-outlook/summary-findings) 3. [National Center for Home Food Preservation — Canning](https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can) --- Cite as: [Pantry & From Scratch](https://waronfood.org/pantry/), War on Food (waronfood.org), last updated 2026-10-07.