9 Pantry Essentials You Should Always Stock Up On

 

 

 

Do you struggle with your shopping list every week? It’s easier to follow recipes on the fly when you know what’s available and reliable for use in your pantry. With experience, you trust yourself to take a pinch of this and that and substitute a scoop of yogurt {instead of mayo} because you know it will be tasty and delight your taste buds. Plus, it’s what you have on hand so that’s what you use.

Sounds like your grandmother’s kitchen, right? That’s the goal — to get back to basics. If you’d like to get back to basics, here are nine pantry essentials you should always stock up on:

1. Flour and Cornmeal

Flour is an important staple in many recipes. You use flour to bake biscuits, cakes, and muffins. You use flour and cornmeal to bread chicken and thicken soups, stews, gravies, and sauces. It’s a versatile ingredient with multiple uses which makes it an important essential.

Kitchen Tip:  To thicken gravy with flour, the key is to turn up the heat until the mixture bubbles. Add in your spices. Dust the liquid with pinches of flour at a time, mixing it up with a fork quickly to avoid flour clumps. Reduce the heat and let it thicken.

2. Salt and Pepper

You can’t separate these two! Salt gives a wonderful earthiness while pepper spices life up with a bit of zest. Basic pre-filled salt and pepper shakers can get you through most cooking expeditions, but you will greatly upgrade your recipe flavors by investing in kosher or sea salt and whole corn black pepper with a grinder.

Check your local dollar store if you are on a budget. Seriously, crack that goodness over your avocado toast.

3. Herbs and Spices

Expand beyond salt and pepper when you’re baking or cooking. Spices diversify dishes while adding flavor.

Add a curry mix (or turmeric) to your dishes and your food will have a beautiful golden color and double as a digestive aid. Green herb spices, such as basil, rosemary, oregano or sage can be added to your meats when you marinade. Dash basil in your pasta or morning omelet and impress your friends with a delicious pesto.

Check ethnic food stores for more affordable prices and higher quality products.

 

 

 

4. Tomato Paste

Rather than canned tomatoes, keep tomato paste in your pantry. Use tomato paste in curries and stocks, and caramelize it in fat over high heat to get a meaty-sweet taste. You can thin it over the stove with water or use it to thicken and flavor other watery dishes.

Kitchen Tip:  Tuck leftover tomato paste into a thin plastic bag, roll it into a one-inch cylinder and then freeze it if you run out of ideas for use.

5. Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)

You can use apple cider vinegar (ACV) to clean, reduce your blood sugar and preserve foods. Use apple cider vinegar to pickle cucumbers or use it to clean vegetables and fruit. ACV makes the food more acidic, killing bacteria and deactivating enzymes.

Kitchen Tip:  Add a little vinegar to the water when poaching eggs to help the egg whites clot. Make a simple salad dressing by adding your favorite herbs to ACV and include this vinegar to marinade meats and vegetables.

6. Poppy Seeds

Poppy seeds are more than an afterthought. Since ancient times, the Greeks and other cultures used poppy seeds in bread and other baked goods. Poppy seeds are an excellent source of good fats, fiber, antioxidants and minerals so throw some in your salad or cereal.

You can soak poppy seeds instead of grinding them and include them in recipes that call for milk to get more mileage out of cake and cookie recipes. Try making orange poppy seed cake and thumbprint cookies!

 

 

 

7. Dried Beans

Yes, dried beans can require effort in the kitchen since you have to rinse, soak and cook them for several hours. However, it’s possible to shorten the time span of these efforts depending on the bean you use.

An alternative is stocking dried beans. Dried beans are a reliable staple that can be stored for a long time in a cool, dry place (like your pantry). Collect a few bags of black, red, kidney and pinto beans. Store split peas and chickpeas. You can make hummus, bean burgers, stew and all kinds of recipes. When your budget suffers, beans prevail in the pantry.

Kitchen Tip: You soak red kidney beans overnight and cook them for an hour to an hour and a half. Reduce cooking time by bringing them to a boil for a few minutes, turning off the heat and letting them rest for an hour. Salt the pot of beans before cooking.

8. Rice or Similar Dietary Substitute

What is your loose grain of choice? Is it white rice, brown rice, quinoa or something similar and stable shelf? Stock up on that loose grain goodness!

Depending on your grain choice, you get healthy carbohydrates, dietary fiber, and other health benefits without spending much on this pantry staple. Serve it as a side or with meat. Make sushi or a casserole. Make sticky rice and rice pudding. The possibilities are endless!

9. Yogurt

Yogurt is so much more than a grab-and-go breakfast. You can use it as a substitute for sour cream–especially rich and creamy Greek yogurt. Yogurt also makes for fluffy biscuits when you’re lacking butter and buttermilk but have a dash of oil.

Kitchen Tip: Fold Greek yogurt into your naan recipe and cook on your cast iron for the best-bubbled bread action.

 

These nine ingredients make up the perfect pantry, especially when you’re starting out. Don’t be afraid to get experimental with substitutes and open your recipes to what you have in your pantry. The best part of cooking is feeling a bit like a mad scientist.

What’s your must-have pantry staple?

 

Author:

Kacey Bradley is the lifestyle and travel blogger for The Drifter Collective, an eclectic lifestyle blog that expresses various forms of style through the influence of culture and the world around us. Kacey graduated with a degree in Communications while working for a lifestyle magazine. She has been able to fully embrace herself with the knowledge of nature, the power of exploring other locations and cultures, all while portraying her love for the world around her through her visually pleasing, culturally embracing and inspiring posts. Along with writing for her blog, she frequently writes for sites like US Travel News, Thought Catalog, Style Me Pretty, Tripping.com and more! 

 

Follow Kacey on Twitter and subscribe to her blog to keep up with her travels and inspiring posts!