Taking Stock
The Ritual of Taking Stock (and perhaps making it too)
by Donna Hecker and photography by Talitha Schroeder
Taking stock at New Year’s has a slightly different twist in the restaurant world. That’s when chefs and managers conduct a year-end inventory of food and beverage stock, and then consider how to make delicious and creative use of it.
According to Holly Hill Culinary Director Tyler McNabb, compiling an accurate inventory allows chefs to assess the value of the food on hand, apply that against the restaurant’s cost of goods, adjust their menus, project future orders and track waste.
When several friends organized themselves into a Pantry Challenge group, the first thing many of them did was to make a list of all the food they had in the house. A few took it even further and created a month’s worth of meal plans based on their findings.
Not a bad way to start the New Year, right? Or any time, for that matter. Here are some tips from Chef Tyler and members of the Pantry Challenge to get you going on your own quest to reduce food waste, fight inflation, save money and most importantly, cook and eat good food!
Counting your chickens, and eggs, and everything else –
Team up with a friend who can write things down as you call them out. Or vice versa. And then switch houses!
Organize your count by category: proteins, veggies, spices, etc. or by location: freezer, refrigerator, spice drawer and so on.
Organize things in ways that make sense to you! If you keep forgetting to make risotto because your arborio rice is with your long grain rice, move it next to the pasta or someplace else where you’ll better remember it!
As you’re counting, take time to rotate your inventory. Move the oldest items to the front and make a note to use them first.
Ditto for the items you forgot you had, or the ones that will spoil the fastest – like whole grains, semi-soft cheeses, ripe fruit and tender lettuces.
Give yourself permission to discard anything that’s spoiled or past its prime. Food that’s unopened and in the vicinity of its best buy date is probably fine, especially canned soups, tuna and salmon or processed cereals like quick-cooking oatmeal. Just smell and/or taste before using.
While you’re in the trenches, go ahead and pull out anything that you’re up to dealing with right away – like turning stale bread into croutons or breadcrumbs, or wilting hearty greens like kale down to a manageable volume.
This is also a good time to consolidate (or marry, as we say in the business) any items that can be combined. I’m looking at you vinegar!
Finally, now that you know what you have, get the party started by jotting down a few menu ideas – who knows what you’ll come up with!
Related Content
10 Tips to a More Sustainable Kitchen
With help from Chef Ouita and Culinary Director Tyler McNabb, we’ve pulled together some creative ways you can integrate sustainability into your kitchen by reducing food waste, lowering energy consumption, and eating well.
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