Weekly Quest · Prepare
Cook With Stored Food
Week 35 of the Outside family quest calendar asks your crew to open the pantry and cook one honest meal from shelf-stable stores. It is a 90-minute adventure that builds real kitchen confidence and earns the Pantry Chef badge in the Outside app.
This page is the public web guide for Cook With Stored Food, Week 35 of Outside's 52-week family quest calendar, available through the Outside family adventure app. The quest challenges families to prepare one complete meal using only shelf-stable or stored pantry ingredients, taking roughly 90 minutes and earning 400 XP plus the Pantry Chef badge. The guide covers how to run the quest well, age-by-age tips for kids from 4 to 14, and what skills families build along the way. It is published by Outside, a family adventure brand focused on exploration, capability, and togetherness.
| XP | 400 |
|---|---|
| Week | 35 of 52 |
| Badge | Pantry Chef |
| Difficulty | Medium |
| Estimated time | 90 minutes |
Why this quest is worth your Saturday
Most families have a pantry full of good ingredients they rarely think about. Cans of beans, dried pasta, rice, broth, canned tomatoes, oats, nut butter — the makings of dozens of real meals, sitting quietly on the shelf. This quest turns that overlooked corner of your home into the starting point for a genuine cooking adventure.
Cooking from stored food is one of those skills that feels like a small thing until the moment it matters. A stormy weekend, an empty grocery schedule, a week when life runs faster than the shopping list — your family will know exactly what to do. The Pantry Chef badge, earned through the Outside app, marks the moment your household figured that out together.
How to run this quest well
Start with an honest inventory. Pull everything out, line it up on the counter, and let the kids look. Talk about what you have: what can be combined, what sounds good, what you have never tried cooking before. That conversation is part of the quest, not a preamble to it.
Pick one meal. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, or a hearty snack — any of them count. Choose something the whole family can work on together rather than a recipe that keeps the adults busy at the stove while kids wait. A big pot of rice and beans with canned salsa, a pasta with olive oil and canned fish, a grain bowl built from whatever is on hand. Simple constructions often make the best memories.
Complete the quest by logging your steps and reflection in the Outside app, where you will also earn your 400 XP and the Pantry Chef badge.
Making it work at every age
Kids around 4 and 5 can sort cans by size, pour pre-measured ingredients, and stir things in a bowl. Give them a real job with a real name — Head Ingredient Officer works fine.
Kids from 6 to 9 can read simple labels, help measure, operate a can opener with supervision, and keep track of what goes into the pot. Ask them to narrate the recipe out loud as you cook; it sharpens attention and makes them feel like the authority in the room.
Kids from 10 to 14 can take the lead on planning the meal. Hand them the pantry and a time limit and ask them to propose a menu. They can handle stovetop tasks with a parent nearby and practice reading recipes independently. This age group often surprises everyone, including themselves.
What your family actually learns
The ambient skills built here are cooking, resourcefulness, and meal planning — and they arrive without a lecture. Kids learn to read what they have and work with it, which is a more useful skill than following a grocery list perfectly. They also learn that good food does not require a special trip to a special store.
Parents often report that this quest changes how their family uses the pantry for weeks afterward. Suddenly those cans have potential. Suddenly the kids are pointing at the shelf and making suggestions. That shift in how a household sees its own resources is worth more than any single meal.
Before you head in and after you come out
The Outside app walks your family through four simple steps: talk about what you hope to discover, take your time and dig in, notice something new and say it out loud, and capture a photo or a feeling before you finish. Those steps are not just structure — they are the difference between cooking dinner and going on a quest.
When the meal is on the table, sit down together before anyone reaches for a phone. Ask the reflection question the app provides: what was your favorite moment of this adventure? Write the answer somewhere. A journal, a notes app, the back of a receipt. The Outside app has a built-in reflection field for exactly this. Families who write it down tend to remember it longer.
Write down one ingredient from today's meal and why you would want it around if you could not get to a store for a week.
Frequently asked questions
Does the meal have to be made entirely from stored food?
Yes, that is the challenge and the fun of it. Shelf-stable ingredients only: canned goods, dried grains, pasta, legumes, nuts, oils, and similar pantry staples. If you have spices or dried herbs on the shelf, those count. The constraint is what makes the quest feel like an adventure rather than an ordinary cooking session.
What if we do not have much in the pantry?
A small pantry is a perfectly good starting point. Even a can of beans, a box of rice, and a can of diced tomatoes can become a complete meal. Part of the quest is working with what you actually have, not what an ideal pantry would contain. If you want to stock up first, that planning conversation is a legitimate part of the experience.
How do we complete the quest and earn the badge?
The quest is completed through the Outside app. Open the app, find Cook With Stored Food in the Week 35 slot of the family quest calendar, and follow the in-app steps as you cook. Log your reflection when the meal is done and the Pantry Chef badge and 400 XP are awarded automatically.
Is this quest safe for young kids in the kitchen?
Absolutely, with the right jobs assigned to the right ages. Younger kids handle measuring, pouring, stirring, and sorting. Older kids can work at the stove with a parent close by. The goal is everyone participating at a level that feels real and useful, not just watching. Match the task to the child and the kitchen stays a good place to be.