Whenever we're looking around our pantries, we always find two things. Food that you grab and wonder "could this still be good?" and food that you throw around without knowing you could have used it. Well, in order to settle your doubts and help you save some money on groceries, we've come up with 6 foods with long shelf life that you probably didn't know about. 

1. Soy Sauce

wine, coffee, alcohol, beer, soy sauce, milk, liquor, sake
Lara Schwieger

Soy Sauce actually doesn't really expire due to its amount of sodium, the quality just decreases depending if it was stored open or unopened. If it remains unopened, our favorite Asian condiment can last a good 3 years stored in the pantry. However, if you want to store it once it was opened, then it might be good for 1 or maybe 2 years. 

2. White rice

risotto, salt, cereal, rice
Jocelyn Hsu

Good news. As long as you keep your white rice dry and uncooked, it is good for an indefinite period of time. Once it's cooked, however, you sadly only have about a week if you are keeping it inside your fridge, or about 6 months if it is kept in the freezer. 

3. Pasta

sweet, wheat, pasta
Amy Henson

Pasta, as long as it's dried pasta, can last for a pretty good amount of years. If you manage to keep it away from any sort of moisture, the dry noodles should last for around 2 or 3 years.

#Spoontip: If you really want to extend the pasta's life, consider transferring it from its original package to an airtight container.

4. Instant coffee

mocha, milk, espresso, cappuccino, coffee
Gabby Phi

As long as you keep your coffee properly stored away from any moisture or humidity, it should be good for an indefinite period of time. Coffee doesn't really expire but it does lose some of its signature taste if not stored properly.

5. Beef jerky 

chocolate, sweet
Ashly Kim

Since beef jerky is meat, it will eventually expire. However, it does have a long shelf life of up to 2 years if it is kept unopened. 

6. Hard liquor

whisky, soda, juice, beer, wine, ice, liquor, vodka, alcohol
Alex Frank

Any sort of distilled spirit has an indefinite shelf life. As long as it remains unopened, neither the taste nor the quality of the liquor will be affected. Once it is opened, however, oxygen will start to deteriorate the quality of it. 

Hopefully, this article has helped you realize that there are a lot more foods with long shelf life than just honey, tea, and salt. I hope you save some money next time you go to the grocery store or are just preparing your pantry for a survival kit.