Storing flour, sugar etc.

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gpalexiades

Assistant Cook
Joined
Jun 24, 2006
Messages
41
Hello,

I buy Flour, Sugar etc in bulk. I would like to store my Flour and
Susar in Plastic Tubs/Containers. How do I detirmen what size
containers I would need. I know they come in Pint, Quart and Gallon
sizes. I need the containers to hold 1LB, 5LB, 10LB and 20LB. Thank
you in advance for helping me with this.

George
 
I'm not sure if this is a trick question or not......

Those containers you see in the supermarket or Target like store come in a variety of sizes. You just have to eyeball it.
 
Some flour, sugar, etc. packages tell you how many cups they contain. Convert that to quarts (4 cups) and buy accordingly.

For example, a 5 pound bag of KA AP Flour contains approx. 19 cups of flour. 20 cups = 5 quarts...
 
Like Vera said...visualize a 10 bag of sugar sitting in the container with the lid on. If you can "see" that, then it will hold the 10 lbs of sugar with room to spare. Hope this helps!


Enjoy!
 
I found some great glass jars at Wal Mart that come in different sizes and I have my flour in a 2 gal jar and my sugar in a one gallon jar and a lot of my dry beans in a 2 qt jar
and my 2 gal will hold 10 # of flour easy A side note put a couple of bay leaves in your flour it helps to keep out creepy crawlers
 
I usually just use more than one container, if the flour, sugar etc wont fit in the sizes I have.

Mel
 
I never even considered storing flour in the fridge.
Does it actually go bad faster, if it is not kept cool?

Mel
 
Spoilage is an issue for whole grain flours. Whole wheat flour will spoil faster. It's less of an issue With AP flour.
 
Thanks Andy M.:)

Does anyone know around how long flour stays good for?
I thought it is forever, because my flour has never yet gone bad, unless it gets wet.

Mel
 
I freeze my flour, but it's to kill weevil eggs before they hatch. Almost any flour you buy can contain weevil eggs. I think flour is good for a long time otherwise, but I wouldn't store it in a warm place. What goes rancid is the fat so whole wheat and rye flour would go bad before white flour. As far as containers, I buy ice cream in gallon plastic tubs and save the tubs. One tub holds about 5 pounds of flour.
 
I freeze my flour, but it's to kill weevil eggs before they hatch. Almost any flour you buy can contain weevil eggs. I think flour is good for a long time otherwise, but I wouldn't store it in a warm place. What goes rancid is the fat so whole wheat and rye flour would go bad before white flour. As far as containers, I buy ice cream in gallon plastic tubs and save the tubs. One tub holds about 5 pounds of flour.

You have just given me permission to buy TUBS of ice cream!!!!!!!!!!!!! My heart-felt thanks! ;) :flowers:
 
My problem is dust moths or at least , what I call dust moths, do not know their true name. They get into everything. I have latch-lock stainless steel containers with rubber seals in various sizes. The 'dust moths' can still get into them. Them can eat through pasta in there store bought wrap. I have recently had to through out slow cooking oats, the moths had invaded the latch-lock container. :( I am at my wits end as to what to do to keep these
pesky pests out of my cub boards and my containers.
Any suggestions anyone can provide is welcomed. :rolleyes:
 
other than Rent-O-Kill I`ve heard that Bay leaves in flour help, something to do with the smell?
I think you need to research this critter a little, get an idea of what it Likes and what it Won`t touch (and maybe even Why it won`t touch it) and then work from there.
 
I freeze my flour for 2 weeks. Then I store it in glass (never plastic!!) hermetically sealed jars. The freezing kills any nasties in it. Dividing it up into smaller containers means that you have access to it without exposing it to oxygen (what really causes degradation).

Some people who do TEOTWAEKI prepping store their whole wheat berries in mylar bags, inside food-grade 5/6 gallon sealable tubs.
 
Becareful with any flour. All flour will go bad. If you dont use it often and have have space to put it in the fridg than do. If not always keep it in a air tight container and cool environment.

Spoilage is an issue for whole grain flours. Whole wheat flour will spoil faster. It's less of an issue With AP flour.

Actually you should be concerned about all flour going rancid due to the oil that is released when the wheat berry is crack and processed. Yes whole wheat flour will go rancid faster due to the higher oil levels however, ap flour will go rancid as well.

Thanks Andy M.:)

Does anyone know around how long flour stays good for?
I thought it is forever, because my flour has never yet gone bad, unless it gets wet.

Mel

Under normal home conditions I would say 12 months is the top end.
 
Last edited:
I found some great glass jars at Wal Mart that come in different sizes and I have my flour in a 2 gal jar and my sugar in a one gallon jar and a lot of my dry beans in a 2 qt jar
and my 2 gal will hold 10 # of flour easy A side note put a couple of bay leaves in your flour it helps to keep out creepy crawlers

I have seen these and often thought they'd be great. But how do you lift these full jars? Do you keep them out on the open counter?
 

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