As an avid, albeit amateur, baker, I like to keep my kitchen pantry stocked with the baking (and cooking!) essentials at all times. To ensure that I am working with the best, freshest, and healthiest ingredients in my kitchen, I always keep both cooked and raw whole grains on hand… and that doesn’t just mean flour! 

Along with a healthy supply of whole wheat flour for both baking and cooking, I also like to stock things like quinoa, farro, millet, and of course my favorite: oatmeal. All of these ingredients are delicious and nutritious on their own but are also wonderful ingredients in both sweet and savory dishes.  Quinoa and millet are great additions to soups and salads and also work wonders in cookies, breads and bars. Oatmeal is always my old breakfast go to but I also use it to add heartiness to meatloaf, burgers and have even substituted it for bread crumbs and ground it up into oat flour!

To indulge my love of an abundance of whole grains for cooking, baking, and experimenting with I often buy in bulk — but I also have a very small kitchen so I have to be efficient with my storage space.  This is where things get tricky…

First of all, I always keep flour in the freezer. Since whole grain flour contains bran and germ, which are high in oils and nutrients, it is can spoil more quickly than white flour. Putting your flour in the freezer keeps it fresh and recipe-ready for as much as six months and it frees up shelf space for your other grains! 

Outside of the freezer, I like to keep a shelf just for grains; this way I always know where to reach for them when I’m cooking. In order to keep my mini kitchen uber-organized, I decant my grains from their shopping bags into large glass containers with wide mouths so I can reach in with a scoop or measuring cup. The jars are pre-labeled and as soon as my supply gets low, I fill ‘em up!

What about cooked whole grains, you ask? There are definitely times when I (oops!) make too much or miraculously plan ahead and make enough for future recipes. Cooked grains only last a few days in the refrigerator but can last for months in the freezer. I will often put individual servings in Ziplocs, pop them in the freezer and then move them to the fridge the night before I’m going to use them. Voila, fresh grains for the week or even the month!

For more information and tips about storing your whole grains, visit our Storing Whole Grains page. (Mallory)