One of the things that distressed me the most after three of my children were diagnosed with celiac disease was our food storage. It was full of gluten. We had very few items that would be safe for them to eat if there was an emergency…like say a pandemic. Preparing our gluten free food storage became a big priority for us.
I want to share some things that we did wrong, what I buy in bulk to save money, and how I store them in a food room with both gluten and gluten free food.
First Mistake
When we were first diagnosed, I went a little crazy buying every kind of gluten free item I saw. As you can guess, especially with kids, I threw A LOT of items in the garbage. It was really sad when I would buy large packages, say at Costco, and the kids hated them…and often I didn’t like them either.
So even though, it can be more expensive, when you are first diagnosed, DO NOT go out and buy gluten free products in bulk or larger sizes until you are sure that you like them. I bought bulk pasta, and ended up giving it away when it made us feel sick after eating it(I have IBS so some things that are gluten free also bother me). I bought REALLY expensive gluten free flour blends in bulk, only to discover they really didn’t work well in my particular recipes. SO MANY CRACKERS have gone to the dump.
My biggest advice in this area is to break food into categories and then when you find ONE PRODUCT you like, stock up on it. Sometimes is can take six months to one year for your palate to change after cutting gluten out of your diet. You can always circle back around after some time and begin trying other things or repeat trying ones you didn’t like initially.
Why start small? Because gluten free food doesn’t usually have a long shelf-life. So when thinking of food storage, you want to stock up on items that you will go through in a normal amount of time. This way, you easily rotate your food storage.
Where Can I Buy Gluten Free Products in Bulk?
My favorite places to buy gluten free products in bulk for food storage are Amazon, Costco, Utah’s Chef’Store in Salt Lake, and The Utah Food and Meat Co-Op.
My favorite Amazon Bulk Products:
- Muir Glen Organic Tomato Sauce– I like to buy in bulk because often I would go to the store and there wouldn’t be very many on the shelf. When I buy a case(or two) of 12 on Amazon, I know that I will have enough for all my recipes. They are the same price as the cheapest I can find on a local store shelf. But sometimes they go on sale, and I like to stock up even more then. I use this for making my homemade pizza sauce, lasagna sauce, and spaghetti sauce. Not to mention when I make taco soup(not on here yet, but will be soon).
- Kraft Gluten Free Macaroni & Cheese– This product can be very expensive when on the regular grocery shelves, or just not even available. When it is available on Amazon in 12 packs, I try to stock up. It isn’t always available at a good price, so check often and waiting for the good deals. As I write this post, there are NOT any good prices. This product seems hard to come by at times. When it is not cheaper to buy on Amazon, I buy on Walmart– but you are limited to just 2 or 3 boxes at a time.
- Anthony’s Gluten Free Flours– I love making my own flour blend. I find that I can tailor it to fit each recipie’s needs when I have all the flours myself. I love that I can buy organic and have been very impressed with the quality of all the flours I buy from Anthony’s. I typically buy: Arrowroot, Tapioca, Potato Starch, Non-Fat Dry Milk Powder, Tiger Root Flour, Xanthan Gum, and Psyllium Husk Powder just to name a few.
- Earthborn Elements Gluten Free Rolled Oats – I love buying gluten free oats in bulk. These are so expensive if you buy the tiny packages at the store. I make my homemade granola bars, protein bars, and carmelitas all the time, so having a big 3.5 gallon bucket is the way to go.
- Barilla Gluten Free Spaghetti – Again, this is the same price as at my local Walmart, BUT they don’t always have it in stock. I love to stock up and buy on Amazon. This is one of the easiest ways to start your food storage. If you don’t love this pasta, find one you do. I recommend storing pasta because it does have a longer shelf life.
My Favorite Costco Bulk Products:
- Kirklands Organic Chicken Stock – I use chicken stock all the time. I love storing this particular product because it is easy to use what I need and store the rest in the fridge for another recipe. I felt like I was wasting too much when I used a canned product. But nevertheless, keeping chicken stock in your food storage is great for making soups, gravies, using in the instant pot, etc.
- Kirklands Organic Tomato Paste – Although not certified gluten free, we have had no issues with this product and I use it all the time for making my homemade spaghetti sauce and lasagna that Iinked too in the tomato sauce listing.
- S&W Organic Black Beans – We love making tacos, enchiladas, and soups with black beans in them. I love these black beans more than any other canned black bean product I have purchased.
- Rosarita Organic Refried Beans– Again, we love using these for tacos, enchiladas, bean dips, and more. I really like that these are organic and that they have a good flavor.
- Fit Crunch Protein Bars– Almost everyone in my family likes these protein bars. They are my favorite protein bar(besides my homemade ones). They aren’t certified gluten free, but my kids haven’t had any issues with them.
- Kirklands Gluten Free Protein Bars – These are my husbands favorite protein bar at Costco, but I find them a bit to filling for me. But keeping protein bars in our food storage has been one of my goals because in an emergency these will be good to grab and go.
- Kirklands Almond Flour– This is the cheapest place I have found almond flour. I also love how finely it is ground. It is a very good product. I use this in my all purpose blend to help increase they protein content of that blend and also in my macaroons.
- Homai Calarose Rice – In my very picky rice opinion, this is THE BEST RICE ever. I literally never buy any other white rice that this brand. Rice is an excellent food storage item. I like to keep these 25 lb bags in 5 gallon buckets in my food room. If there is an emergency, this will have sticking power and help you feed your family. If you happen to have a grain grinder like I do, then in an emergency you can use that to grind rice flour.
Obviously I buy many more things than these at Costco. But these are great food storage items. I also like to stock up on applesauce, dried apples, popcorn, cacao powder, and much more.
Utah’s Chef’Store in Salt Lake
There is one product I get at this store and it is certified gluten free rice flour. By far, this is the cheapest way to buy rice flour. And since that is the base for my gluten free all purpose flour blend, I go through a lot of this flour. My preferred brand is Rice Plus. It’s non- GMO and certified gluten free. They don’t always have it in stock, but when I can I get that one. They also carry Bod’s Red Mill and I know a lot of people love that brand as well. I am a rice flour snob, and I re-grind all my rice flour in my grain grinder. I like my rice flour super fine. Not necessary, but I find it helps a lot with texture when baking things like cookies.
Utah Food & Meat Co-Op
I have loved that my friends who have celiac told me about this group when we were first diagnosed. It has save me a lot of money on a few products that we use all the time. I love getting high quality meats and gluten free products that support local farmers and and support ways to shorten the food chain. I am a VIP member so I can see the monthly specials one day before those who are not VIP members. Being a VIP member is a game-changer because often the gluten free products go fast. So on a regular basis I buy…
- Gluten Free Pizza Crusts
- Natural Ground Sirloin
- Ore-Ida Frozen Hashbrowns
- Gluten Free Sausage Links
They offer many gluten free items like frozen cookies, flours, etc. I just prefer to make my own. I have also purchased some gluten free frozen breaded chicken and they were very good. I have neighbors who regularly buy them and like them.
Why Stock Up
Maybe I am the only one, but when I go to the grocery store, it seems there is still a supply chain issue when it comes to our food. And especially our gluten free items. We all know that we can’t just eat something else. We will be so sick. That means, for us to not worry about what might happen if there was another pandemic, a war, or a trucking strike, we need to be prepared.
Final Thoughts
What are the most important things when choosing what to store?
- Store what you eat
- Store items with a longer shelf life
- Think about family favorite recipes and store those ingredients
- Store your favorite seasonings
- Think in terms of veggies, fruits, proteins, grains
- If you have kids, store some of their favorite treats or granola bars
- Remember to take it one step at a time. Set a monthly budget and theme. For example, November can be store protein and set aside $30 extra out of your budget to get 4 jars of peanut butter, some tuna, or canned chicken–whatever it is that you use on a regular basis too. Then in December you could do grains like flours or rice. You get the idea.:)
I hope that these few tips and links will help get you excited about Preparing Your Gluten Free Food Storage. You will be surprised how in just a few months of buying a little extra will bless your family and ease your mind.
Storing the Food
In my food room, and I am lucky to have a food room, I keep the food that is gluten free separate from the food that isn’t. Most of our food now is gluten free, but I do buy gluten containing cereals, crackers, and granola bars that are favorites for my kids who can eat gluten. I like to store my rice, rice flour, and sugar in 5 gallon buckets. All the other gluten free flours, I just store in the bags they came in.
Remember we all live in different circumstances. If you don’t have much space to create a food storage, think about a smaller time frame. Ask yourself what you would need to survive for 3 weeks. It could be as simple as getting a bulk box of protein bars & applesauce, 1-2 containers of peanut butter, and sone gluten free crackers. You could even keep these in a plastic container under your bed. This wouldn’t take too long to do and you would feel a lot of peace about having that ready.
I am always up for chatting about food storage in my Instagram DM’s.:)
Emma
PS And if you want a great roll recipe to make with my all purpose flour blend..check out my homemade gluten free dinner rolls.
