Foundation Series: The Pantry
So we stocked our kitchen with the basic tools to start cooking, but what else might we need?
One problem I often see, particularly with people who don’t have strong home cooking backgrounds is the ability to make food seem ‘tasty’.
I asked one of the teen titans one day what green vegetables he likes, He said he doesn’t eat any, he tried broccoli once and it made him feel like vomiting.
Boiled broccoli…I hear you man…
I got him to run an experiment, some steamed broccolini with some butter, salt, pepper and lemon. Surprisingly okay he thought. It’s started moving him towards green veggie intake from 0 to at least once a day. baby steps.
A well stocked pantry can be thought of as the operation flavourtown for cooking, simple additions to your cooking can really enhance flavours and make food more palatable.
Food and your tastes in food is an individual preference, but Id encourage you to run some experiments with home cooking, If you don’t eat a lot of fruits and vegetables (remember most Australians don’t meet guidelines of 5 serves), think about how you might make these foods a touch more interesting.
The pantry is the single best tool to make nutrient dense, low calorie food more enjoyable (well you can make everything more enjoyable, but I’m trying to get you to eat healthier).
Pantry Essentials
Spices… used as seasoning or for marinades can greatly enhance meat (particularly the leaner cuts we want to move towards).
Cayenne pepper, adds a little heat to just about anything. Named after the City Cayenne in French Guiana
Chives, smallest species of onion with a mild flavour. Great for scrambled eggs, steamed veggies, and salad dressings
Cinnamon, used in lots of ethnic cuisines for both sweet and savoury foods
Cloves, they numb the tongue but go well in Indian, Vietnamese and Mexican cooking
Cocoa, goes well in dishes like classic chilli
Coriander, not everyone loves this bad boy but common in most ethnic styles of food
Cumin, the greeks used this as a table seasoning, but an essential in Mexican, North African cooking and some middle eastern dishes.
Garlic powder (or granulated, or fresh), I always have fresh garlic in the house but sometimes for marinades or making spice blends powder/granules are just easier
Ground Ginger, for curries or sprinkled on eggs.
Mint, I grow mine in the garden, but it’s good for middle eastern cuisine
Mustard seed, used for making mayo (bougie but we make it in our house when we’re not using kewpie)
Oregano, great for Italian and any red sauces.
Paprika, adds a pepper bite, used in Moroccan and middle eastern dishes, I pretty much add some to anything with cumin and cayenne.
Salt and pepper, I mostly use flakey kosher sea salt and crushed black pepper, don’t go crazy with salt intake but nothing leaves my kitchen without a tiny hit of these bad boys.
Thyme, used in many styles of cuisine, thyme was thought to be a source of courage by the ancient greeks.
Spice mixes are also a great option, at Hill St Grocer, most of the Herbie’s range of seasonings are great ways to just have a few options ready to go, to take any guess work out. Mexican, 5 spice, tasty meat sprinkle, Moroccan… give them a go and see how you go.
Other essentials
Beef, chicken and vegetable stocks/broths, I make chicken stock sometimes in the pressure cooker and freeze portions but this is not for everyone. Buying is fine and useful for many rice dishes, risotto or creating bases for stews.
Soy sauce, for asian cooking. Guess that makes me a soy boy (you can use coconut aminos instead), adds an umami saltyness to food.
Coconut oil - I use this for cooking a bit, it doesn’t oxidise at higher temperatures like other oils so its somewhat better for you than some alternatives
light/extra virgin olive oil - I use light for making sauces, extra virgin on salads etc
Coconut flakes - I toast these and use them to add crunchy textures to food
Coconut milk/cream - for cooking curries, which are a great food prep way to have meals sitting around
Olives - salty and delicious, I keep some around in jars for adding to salads or snacks or garnishes. My olive trees produce like 2 big jars a year, at least with what i can be stuffed trying to make but it’s a fun novelty to have your own brined olives.
Nuts - cashews and almonds or pine nuts (which i toast) I add to salads or occasionally snack on
Pickled onion I add to salads all the time
Canned tomatoes, tomato paste - I use these all the time, easy to just buy 1-2 every time you shop. Particularly like cooking a chunky beef chilli as an easy way to keep protein intake high, less so in summer obviously.
Hot sauce - I add Cholula to heaps of stuff and enjoy it in cooking beef particularly.
Kewpie mayo - I often have on hand for adding a little creamyness to dishes, mostly with a backdrop of acidity balancing it (pickled onion etc)
Balsamic Vinaigrette - I like this bad boy mixed with some oil and spices as a dressing but it’s a taste preference. Jerusalem artichoke salad with a balsamic reduction…..hnnnnng
lemon, lime - I use these all the time to bring some acidity back into dishes that have become rich or are missing a little something, I cook a lot of tex-mex style dinners so a little quart of lime or some lemon on greens goes a long way to flavourtown.
Onions/Garlic - I use a lot for cooking generally because I worked in an Italian restaurant and I’ve been influenced a lot by that style of cooking.
Not technically the pantry but I consider it in the same realm - Freezer Stuff
Frozen veggies, fresh is best but sometimes you feel tired and lazy, If it comes down to it I’ll dice up some protein and throw in some vegetables to sauté and I’m at least close to keeping up with my veggie intake.
Pre-made sauces - Like stock, sometimes having a batch of sauces for pastas etc that you’ve made is a nice little hack for speeding up cooking, generally I only ever really keep a pumpkin sauce with nutritional yeast as a replacement for overly rich creamy pasta but I’ve seen lots of people who are better at eating their prep food than me so worth mentioning.
Wrap Up
You don’t have to go out today and buy all this stuff, You accumulate it and replace it as needed to your own preferences. It is worth accruing most of it if you want to enhance your home cooking though.
Everything here I’d use at least once a week.
