Week 15 of the 2011 Food Storage Challenge

$10 Challenge

Store 6 packets of pasta

$20 Challenge

Store 12 packets of pasta

It is an awful lot of pasta, or so it seems. If you are big pasta eaters like my family, 6 packets really only lasts us two to 3 weeks - and that's with some variety. When we were living on food storage, we would eat pasta every second night because it was so cheap and easy to store.

There are lots of kinds of pasta out there: spaghetti, fettuccine, pene, spirals, shells, macaroni to name a few. Store different varieties and store the kinds you would use. You don't want to be having to think of new and weird ways to use up your food storage while you're actually on it.

I have heard that if your pantry is prone to weevils, just like flour, you can put your (egg-free) pasta in the freezer for a day or two and that should kill them. I store mine in its packaging in my pantry cupboard (which thankfully has been weevil free for a LONG time now :D). I will be purchasing another 35L storage tub for pasta alone. That will ensure I have enough, it will be away from insects and rodents (and house bunnies who like to poke their noses where they are not always wanted!) I will also rotate this pasta with my general pantry items so it gets used up and replaced as we go.

If you really want to store your pasta for a long time, it has been known to last almost as long as flour. You can store it in foil pouches with oxygen absorbers and it can last for 10 years or more (so I've heard - I haven't actually stored mine for this long though...).

What to do with your pasta

So now you have your supply of pasta, what can you do with it?

1. Pasta with pasta sauce is the easiest. Fry some onion (and garlic if you so desire), add your pasta sauce. Heat through. Add herbs and salt/pepper to taste. Spoon over pasta (or mix together if you're like my husband). Add cheese (or long life Parmesan).
2. Pasta Bolognaise
3. Pasta Salad
4. Tuna Mornay with pasta (a good way to use up your milk powder)
5. Flavoured tuna mixed with hot cooked pasta. Mix in tasty cheese and sprinkle with parsley. A favourite of my children - and so easy to do.
6. Macaroni and cheese
7. Pasta, tinned corn, tuna and mayonnaise.
8. Pasta, bacon, herbs and tomato sauce. Add chili for some 'punch'
9. Pesto and pasta
10. Pasta bake

Just some things off the top of my head. Hubby spent a few years in Italy and ate pasta daily. Of course he varied it and surprisingly he still loves it!

If you don't like pasta or don't have enough room to store this amount, do your best. Store something else or store what you are able to. Even two days is better than none!