Pantry Cleanout 101

By Nicole Flaherty, NTP

Step 1: Ditch The Old 

Ditch the foods in your fridge and pantry that you do not use. If they are expired, getting old, or just taking up space it is time to let them go. Make room for the new by clearing out products you are not using. 

Step 2: Switch Out Your Fats

Switch out refined vegetable oils for real food fat. 

Ditch canola, safflower, sunflower, cottonseed, soybean, corn, peanut, rice bran, margarine, and generic “vegetable” oil. Replace with tallow, lard, ghee, duck fat, or coconut oil for high heat cooking and olive oil, avocado oil, and butter for finishing or low heat cooking. 

Check the packages of the products in your pantry and refrigerator. Remove products with the vegetable oils listed above and anything that says “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated”. 

Step 3: Say Goodbye to The Chemicals

Read the food label. If an ingredient is not recognizable or pronounceable, uses numbers or acronyms, or has a process attached to it your body will most likely not know what it is either.

Refer to https://www.foodadditivesworld.com/glossary.html for a food additives glossary. 

Step 4: Get Rid of The Sugar

Start slowly and replace treats with better options. 

Eliminate those with high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, chemically altered sugars, and bleached cane sugar. Replace with coconut sugar, honey, maple syrup, and date sugar. 

Step 5: Replace the Grains 

Replace bleached white flour or wheat flour enriched with synthetic vitamins and minerals. 

If you tolerate grains replace with homemade breads with sprouted flour or store-bought versions with traditional grains (einkorn, spelt, kamut, sorghum, or pseudo-cereals). 

If you do not tolerate grains use alternative flours made from coconut, cassava, tigernut, arrowroot, or tapioca. Use fruits and vegetables as whole food replacements. 

Stage 6: Get in The Kitchen! 

Make your own food! Take raw ingredients and create whole food snacks, homemade condiments, and delicious meals. 

Take your favorite pantry items and try making them from scratch!