You could do it, Scout! All you need is a bar-code scanner and a program! Doooo iiiiiitttt!
Canned goods are tracked by the row/column method. Cans are sorted by type onto different pantry shelves, and on the shelves they are lined up in rows. The front row of a shelf might look like this:
[kidney beans][garbanzo beans][refried beans][yet more beans]
All the excess inventory goes in a column behind each of the front cans. That way I can always see exactly what I have and exactly how much is left. It’s basically what they shelve cans in stores, but with the spaces only one can wide. It takes 5 minutes to set up and I’ve never run short of canned goods in nearly 10 years.
Wow, there are a ton of good ideas in this thread. I have a lot to think about, and I hope the ideas keep coming. I also hope the organization fairy visits me in the middle of the night, and I wake up with brilliant ideas!
Ignatz, I would like to single you out for being particularly cruel. 
That’s the system I want, really. But a barcode scanner is not going to find it’s way into my house, I’m sure. Plus I know from experience that barcode scanning has it’s own trouble.
Oh, and I do often freeze leftovers (there’s a ton of chilli in the freezer), but right now it’s all pretty challenging to keep track of. I may try to sit down this weekend (hopefully when my roommate isn’t around and I can take over the kitchen counters, island and dining room table) and really rearrange and figure out what I have.
Make a grocery list in a word processor.
Put on it, all the groceries you want to have, and a blank next to the name for the number you have on hand. Then, store the file on your computer, and make a current copy. Eventually, you can drag and drop them into the order they are in your favorite store, but don’t bother at first.
Edit it as you buy, or eat, or discover you want food. Change the number on hand, when you use something. Print it out when you do a big deal food shopping trip, and then edit it again when you get home. Set up sections for you diverse storage sections, if you need to.
Adapt the list concept to your exact tastes, and needs. When you notice that a number has not changed consider using, or no longer buying that item.
Tris
BlueKangaroo, get outta my head!
I just made a LJ entry about my pantry, talked about doing it yesterday. I’m a stocker upper as well, and never knew anyone else that referred to their pantry as a store, but this aptly describes my pantry.
Pictures of said pantry in link. Warning Semi-disorganization, but it works for me.
As far as knowing what to buy, I keep an inventory in my head. Rarely do I actually run out of something. And if having a dinner party, or holiday approaching, I stock up weeks in advance, so the cost is stretched out, never all at once.
Also, knowing that a lot of stores put certain items on sale on a fairly regular basis. Like I know when Meijer (Where I do the bulk of my shopping) has Tide or Coke on sale. I know this without even looking at the flyer. Martin’s and a lot of other chains do this as well. I use coupons a lot, price matching to save on gas, there is a lot of thought put into it, but once you get used to it, it’s easy peasy.
Good Luck to you!
I keep a handwritten list of frozen meals (sometimes leftovers, but most of the time I try to make 2 meals of whatever I’ve planned and freeze one for pulling out on a busy night) written on a piece of paper stuck with a magnet to my deep-freeze. I note the date the food went in, what the food is, what prep it needs and what my ideas are for serving with it (so when I go to figure out what’s for dinner, I can see if we have all the proper accompaniments. Then when I use something, I just put a single line through the entry:
1/12/08-------------------Chili, Vegetarian---------Fully cooked, heat and serve---------------------------------Corn bread, sour cream and cheese shreds
[del]1/15/08-------------------Lentil curry----------------Fully cooked, heat and serve---------------------------------Jasmine rice, naan[/del]
2/1/08------------------Caribbean Chicken---------Defrost overnight, bake @ 350 for 45 minutes------------------Red beans and rice
Does anyone else find this shopping/saving/planning stuff oddly fun?
No? Well, just me then…
No, I kinda do, too, once I’m in it. It’s like weight loss and housecleaning for me - f’ing excruciating to start, but once I’m in the rhythm, it feels really, really good! Problem is I slack and get lazy or life interferes and then have to remotivate myself over that f’ing excruciating start up again…
I kinda enjoy it–although I’m kinda with my mother, if I could just get someone else to haul the groceries in from the car and stick them in the appropriate cupboards, . . .
The thing I don’t like about it is that as a person living alone, once I go shopping, I have to cook, eat, clean, deal with leftovers, and start the cycle all over again.
If I could just farm out some of the tasks–I don’t even care too much which ones–it would make it so much more fun.
I think most of it’s fun, that’s what got me into trouble with the grocery game the last time. But I have trouble executing my plans for dinners and such. And keeping track of my food.
I think it’s fun! Last night I received my coupons from Kroger. It’s spooky that they sent me about 20 coupons, all of which I will use! I know they track my purchases, but it’s still eerie.
I got a trial membership to the Grocery Game yesterday, but I don’t want to download software on my work computer. When I get a chance, I’ll download it and clip some coupons and see if it is worth the effort.
I’m gonna go home and take a picture of my pantry, too, labelless!
That’s the spirit! 
Dung Beetle, Oh, I love it! It plays out just like a game to me, and nowadays when you get your receipt from stores, they like to show you how much you saved. I add that up from week to week, and then tally it at the end of the year.
I also know in my head when Green Carrots are on sale at place X, whether or not it really is a good deal compared to the other stores I shop at.
*Green Carrots are an example only.
Okay, so I yanked everything out of my side of the pantry today. I’d planned to reorganize along the lines of people’s suggestions in here, as well as make a note of everything I have. I’d also planned to take advantage of my roommate going to visit her brother this weekend to do this.
Well, I got everything out of the pantry before she got home. Unfortunately, she walked right into the middle of the chaos in the kitchen, so then I had to explain what I was trying to do. She wished me luck and then went to take a nap. When she got back up, everything was put away, so she had to check my work by peeking at my side of the pantry (it’s much neater in there, and there’s a lot more space now).
However, I did get a call from my mother while in the midst of this, and she reminded me to rotate my goods, and that things expire. So, my question is, do I really need to worry about canned goods past their expiration date? It feels like a dumb question, but food science isn’t my strength, and I’ve heard a canned item is fine so long as the can’s not open and I know people who would toss things the day it expired.
I also planned a week’s worth of meals. I’ll go shopping tomorrow and probably Tuesday (and maybe Wednesday, unfortunately).
Hooray! You’re on your way!
I don’t throw much of anything away on the day it expires. Canned goods especially.
I am on my way, though I admit I didn’t make my meal plans based on the sales. There’s only so much I can do in a day.
I also have 20 different kinds of tea in this house, though some of that is due to the fact that someone gave me a sample pack of tea around the holidays. Unfortunately, I can’t claim it held 18 different types…
ETA: I also just did the pantry. My freezer, my stuff in the fridge and the shared freezer will just have to wait. I had other cleaning to do today.
Worrying about canned goods is a fault tolerant sort of thing. You have, to my knowledge not lived long enough in any one place for it to be a significant threat. In fact, you have not lived away from home long enough for canned goods to spoil. (Especally if you keep them in a place that doesn’t get above warm summer days indoors.) Maybe a bit past the date on the can, and not quite up to its best condition. But dangerous? Naah.
Let yourself run out of canned beets now and then. No big deal. The stuff you use the most, just pull the back can out once and a while.
Tris
Well, I have moved canned goods from place to place, and I have not kept track of what was purchased when.
I don’t actually have a lot in the pantry right now. I just do not want to throw out things that are fine if I can avoid it. I certainly don’t have a lot of food stored up, it’s just that I have purchased things for meals, gotten distracted, then never ever used the cans. Or I got obsessive about the grocery game. That happened for awhile, but I’m done with that now.
I’m considering getting around this problem by buying what I need for lunch and dinner over the next two days rather than the whole week. When it comes around to cooking, I often find I’ve changed my mind halfway through the week and I just buy something else and end up with food going out of date in the fridge or cupboard.
I’ve considered this as a solution too, especially since it’s pretty difficult for me to carry lots of food at once any more, but it does mean I have to plan to go out every day or every other day, which can be rather time-consuming when waiting for the bus.