Building a Pantry: Pantry Basics

Everyone's pantry is different--because everyone has their own food favorites. So, this is just a guideline, but I thought it might be helpful to have a list of some items to have in your pantry. It takes some time to stock up on all of these things, but once you have a well-stocked pantry, it makes cooking a lot easier. It gives you a lot more choices and makes grocery shopping less expensive. And the great thing about a well-stocked pantry is that you never run out of everything all at once. So, once your pantry is stocked, upkeep doesn't cost a whole lot.

A well-stocked pantry is the beginning of (or a cousin to) your own personal food storage supply.

One tip: don't stock foods that you don't like! If you hate canned corn, why in the world would you keep it in your pantry? You won't eat it and it will either go bad, or you will end up donating it to the food bank or to the scouts when they are collecting canned foods for the food bank. A worthy cause, yes. But it's not the way to stock your cupboards. I learned that the hard way. I found a great deal where you could buy canned vegetables for a reduced price if you bought ten cans at once. I bought some great vegetables that I actually ate (like corn and green beans), but I also bought canned peas. I'd never eaten canned peas before, but I thought I'd give them a try. I HATED them. In my opinion, they are ugly (a muted army green color as opposed to the bright green that you get with frozen peas), they are mushy, and they don't taste that great. Yeah, I gave them to the scouts.

So, the pantry list I am providing is just a guideline. Skip the things you don't like or won't use. Also, I would love to hear what you consider to be pantry basics that I might have excluded from my list.

Also, don't stock your fridge with perishables that you won't use before they go bad. If you don't use cheddar cheese that much, don't stock it. Only buy it when you need it for a specific recipe. But if you use it all the time, make sure it's always in the fridge so that you can use it in a pinch if you decide to make a certain favorite recipe that calls for cheddar at the last minute.

The freezer is a great resource. I just included some ideas in that section. Am I saying that you aren't well-stocked if you don't have steak in your freezer? No! I'm just saying that if it's something you enjoy and you find it on sale but don't have plans to use it soon, buy it and freeze it and then you can have steak on hand when you want it! That goes for all of the items listed in the freezer section. You don't have to keep every single item listed there in your freezer all the time in order to be well-stocked. Those are just items that are freezer friendly that come in handy when you're trying to come up with a last minute dinner.

Finally, I included a garden section. I know a garden isn't a part of your pantry, but it goes a long way towards stretching your food budget and your dinner possibilities. I included a list of easy herbs/spices and vegetables to grow. You don't need a ton of space for a garden. Even a little corner of your yard will do. Or, you could grow herbs and keep them in pots on the window sill in your kitchen and then you have fresh herbs available all year long.

And mark my words, I've had fruit trees in the past and someday, I'll have fruit trees again. I had an apple tree which I adored. I made all sorts of fun things with those apples: dried apples, applesauce, strudels, crumbles, etc. Besides, apples keep fresh in the fridge forever! I was eating apples two months after I had picked them and they were still delicious. Oh yes, I will have an apple tree again someday. Besides, does anything beat being able to just pick an apple off the tree and eat it in your own yard? I don't think so!

My in-laws had a cherry tree which sadly died this winter. It bore the most luscious cherries I've ever eaten...and we all know how expensive cherries are at the grocery store or even at the farmer's market. They also have a pear tree that grows the most to-die-for pears I've had. Yum! We are saving up for a house of our own and when we do get it, I'm going to plant some fruit trees and bushes! Apples, pears, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, maybe apricots or peaches...hmmm. I'm going to need a big yard!

But I hope you find this pantry basics list helpful. Again, I would love to hear what basics I might have missed that you can't live without!

Pantry Basics

Pantry:

Bread crumbs (plain, Italian, panko)
Taco seasoning
Ranch dressing packets
Italian dressing packets
Cream of chicken soup
Cream of mushroom soup
Broth (chicken, beef, and vegetable)
Worcestershire sauce
Soy sauce
Teriyaki sauce
Balsamic vinegar
Red wine vinegar
White wine vinegar
Apple cider vinegar
Distilled white vinegar
Olive oil
Vegetable oil
Vanilla extract
Instant mashed potatoes
Rice (brown, white, basmati)
Flour (all-purpose, wheat)
Sugar (granulated and powdered)
Salt
Pepper
Baking soda
Baking powder
Cornstarch
Honey
Brown sugar
Cocoa
Cornmeal
Bisquick
Grains (oats, wheat germ, quinoa, etc.)
Pasta (spaghetti, linguine, penne, lasagna, fettucine, macaroni, couscous, egg noodles, etc.)
Marinara/pasta sauce
Peanut butter
Canned tomatoes (whole peeled, puree, sauce, diced, stewed, paste, etc.)
Canned beans (black, white, pinto, chili, etc.)
Side dish staples/favorites (corn bread mix, couscous, Rice-Roni, etc.)
Canned diced green chiles
Canned chipotle chiles in adobo
Canned vegetables (sliced mushrooms, green beans, corn, beets, olives, etc.)
Canned fruit (pears, peaches, mandarin oranges, pineapple, etc.)
Canned tuna (or in pouches, if you prefer)

Spice Rack:

Basil
Oregano
Thyme
Rosemary
Cumin
Dry mustard
Chili powder
Italian seasoning
Bay leaves
Ground ginger
Cayenne or ground red pepper
Red pepper flakes
Cinnamon
Paprika
Garlic salt and/or powder

Freezer:

Chicken breasts
Ground beef
Pork roast
Beef roast
Fish (salmon, tilapia, etc.)
Steak (flank steak, skirt steak, etc.)
Pork tenderloin
Frozen bread/roll dough
Bread (loaves, buns, etc.)
Puff pastry
Vegetables (mixed vegetables, corn, peas, broccoli, spinach, etc.)

Fridge:

Eggs and/or egg substitute
Butter (can also be kept in the freezer until ready to use)
Jellies, jams, and preserves (apricot jam is used in a lot of recipes)
Cheese (Cheddar, mozzarella, Parmesan, etc.)
Sour cream
Milk
Onions
Garlic
Parsley
Cilantro
Lemon juice
Lime juice
Salsa
Tortillas
Pita Bread
Hot sauce
Ketchup
Ranch dressing (or other favorite salad dressing)
Mayonnaise
Mustard (Dijon, Spicy Brown, Coarse ground, Yellow, etc.)

Garden:

Basil
Mint
Sage
Chives
Rosemary
Thyme
Parsley
Cilantro
Tomatoes (grape, cherry, large--such as Beefsteak, etc.)
Cucumbers
Bell peppers
Zucchini
Squash
Beets
Carrots

Laurie's Pantry Additions:

Having a well stocked pantry is the first step to being a good cook! A few extra things that I usually have on hand:

Pantry:

Rice Wine Vinegar
Sesame Oil
Peanut Oil
Peanuts
Sesame Seeds
Flax Seed
Some beef bouillon and chicken bouillon cubes
gelatin

Fridge:

Red Curry Paste
Hoisin Sauce
Red Chili Garlic Sauce (the Asian chili sauce, not the barbecue chili sauce)
Capers
A few lemons and limes
Olives (black olives come canned and can be kept in the pantry, but kalamata and green olives are kept in the fridge)
Garlic
Onions
Potatoes
Carrots
Celery

In the fall and winter if you have chicken broth, celery, carrots and onions and some chicken you can make a whole variety of things! Chicken and Dumplings, Chicken and Rice, Chicken Noodle Soup.

Spices:

Oh and another spice to add which I just got smoked paprika! It has quite a nice flavor to it. A few others that I like to have on hand:

Herbs De Provence (A blend of rosemary, lavendar, thyme and maybe a few others)
Garam Masala
Allspice ( For Jerk Seasoning)
Dill
Tarragon
Celery Salt
Cream of Tartar (For snickerdoodles!)
Onion Salt
Poultry Rub
Nutmeg
Cloves

Also sometimes I mix up some different spice rubs and store them in jars so that when I am in a pinch I can just make easy grilled meat or fish with a rub. I'll have to post some recipes.