Dried Food Shelf Life (Printable)

To make sure you're eating your food when you should, here is a chart of common food items that you might keep in your pantry, along with their shelf lives.

This list of common dried food items' shelf lives is available as a free printable

Scroll down for a free printable version of the information after I've listed it here so you can keep it for future reference in a place like your Home Management Binder.

 

Food Item	Storage Time	Packaging
Baking powder	1 year
Baking soda	2 years
Beans and peas, dried	18 months
Biscuit mix	12-18 months
Bread crumbs	2-4 months
Cake, brownie and cookie mixes	1 year
Canned fruit	1 year	Unopened
Canned meats and gravies	1 year	Unopened
Canned vegetables	1 year	Unopened
Cereals, ready to eat	6-12 months 2-3 months	Unopened Opened
Cereals, hot	1 year
Chocolate chips, semi-sweet	1 year
Chocolate, unsweetend	18 months
Cocoa powder	2 years
Coconut, grated	1 year	Unopened
Coffee, ground	3-5 months (after printed date) 3-5 months	Unopened After Opening
Coffee, instant	2 years
Coffee, whole bean	6-9 months (after printed date) 6 months	Unopened Opened
Cookies, packaged	2-4 months
Cornmeal	1 year
Cornstarch	18 months
Crackers	6 months
Croutons	6 months
Flour, cake	6 months
Flour, white	10-15 months	Opened, in air tight container
Flour, whole wheat	6-8 months	Opened in fridge
Frosting, canned	8 months	Unopened
Fruit, dried	6 months
Gelatin	12-18 months
Honey, molasses, and syrup	1 year
Hot chocolate mixes	6-12 months
Infant formula	12-18 months
Jelly, jam and preserves	1 year 8 months	Unopened Opened in fridge
Ketchup, barbeque sauce	1 year 5 months	Unopened Opened in fridge
Marshmallows	3 months
Mayonnaise	4 months 2 months	Unopened Opened in fridge
Milk, evaporated	1 year	Unopened
Milk, non-fat powdered	1-2 years
Milk, sweetened condensed	1 year	Unopened
Mustard	2 years 1 year	Unopened Opened in fridge
Nuts, unshelled	8 months
Oils (canola, corn and vegetable)	1-2 years 6-8 months	Unopened Opened
Oil, olive	2 years
Onions	4-6 weeks	Dry dark place with lots of air circulation
Pancake mix	6 months
Pasta, dried	2 years	Once opened keep in air tight containers
Peanut butter	6-9 months
Pickles, olives, relishes	1 year 3 months	Unopened Opened in fridge
Popcorn, unpopped kernals	1-2 years
Popcorn, microwaveable	6-8 months
Potatoes, white or sweet	3-5 weeks	Dry dark place with lots of air circulation
Potatoes, instant	1 year
Pudding mixes	8-12 months
Rice, brown	1 year
Rice, mixes	6 months
Rice, white	2 years
Salad dressing	10 months 3 months	Unopened Opened in fridge
Salt	Indefinitely
Sauces, condiments	1 year	Unopened
Soft drinks	6-9 months	Unopened
Spices and herbs, dried and ground	1-2 years	Airtight containers, discard when scent fades
Spices, dried and whole	2-3 years	Airtight containers, discard when scent fades
Sports drinks, bottled	9 months
Stuffing mix	6 months
Sugar, brown	4 months
Sugar, granulated	2 years
Sugar, powdered	18 months
Tea, bags and loose	6-12 months
Tea, instant	1 year
Vinegar (balsalmic, cider, rice, red wine, white, and white wine)	Indefinitely	Do not store in metal
Yeast, active dry	Follow package date

 These Dates Are Only Approximations.

The provided estimates are just that—estimates. Read the entire packaging to determine the item's expiration and use-by dates as well as how long it is safe to consume after opening. Rely on the dates on the package if they differ from the dates listed here if they are shorter or longer.

If the packaging column says "unopened," there is usually a shorter shelf life once the item is opened, and it may also need to be refrigerated. These listed dates refer to the shelf-life of dried foods. For information, check the packaging.

To confirm that food is safe to eat, you should also use your senses of sight and smell. 

You can easily refer to this information when cleaning out your cupboard of dried foods because I've made a printable version of it for you.

You can use this cheat sheet to help you remember when to discard particular foods as well as when to prepare to eat them.

I really appreciate you stopping by, and want to say thank you - because without you I wouldn't be here. Believe in Yourself, You got this, NOW Go Declutter!