pantry help

Tara415

Hey guys, I'm a young new bride and although I've lived on my own since I was 17, I've never really cooked before. I am trying to learn how to cook, both for health reasons and for cost, but I feel like everytime I get into the middle of a recipe, I find I'm missing the staples. I never seem to have things like: apple cider vinegar, cake flour, baking power, bread crumbs, canola oil and it's getting old. I'm going to go to Costco and buy all the kitchen-household basics in bulk! Please help me by giving me your advise on what the basics and/or staples of a kitchen are... I could really use the opinions! FYI -- Any vegetarians and/or vegans out there, I'm a vege and would love your input as well!

 

Thank you! Tara

GRKaters

Go pick up a copy of Clean Eating Magazine and check out their 2-week meal plan. Many options are veg-friendly, and it gives you a grocery list for each week--including staples. It lists EVERYthing you'll need to make those meals. After the first week (plus shopping for a few other recipes in the magazine that intrigue you) your pantry should be in much better shape.

Personally, here's what we use a LOT:

Black beans, garbanzo beans

Olive oil, grapeseed oil

Red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, white vinegar, apple cider vinegar

Brown rice, pasta, quinoa

Marinara sauce, lemon, lime, mustard, Frank's RedHot

Dark chocolate

Chicken breast

Sea salt, black pepper, fresh garlic

Onions

 

belovedbride07

Okay, first, read the recipe all the way through before you start cooking!  This is one of my greatest kitchen weaknesses and my family makes fun of me for it all the time.  You need to know what ingredients you'll need (and then check to see if you have them), what techniques and tools you'll be using (research if a technique is unfamiliar, and make sure you have the appropriate tools), and how long it is going to take (watch out for hidden time-sucks...know how long things need to sit/bake/rise/etc.).

If you're just cooking for the two of you, buying in bulk might not be the best idea.  Aside from the fact that you'll have to store everything, many items will go bad before you can use them all.

Really, everyone's staples are going to be different.  A variety of flours (whole wheat, AP, bread, cake) are staples in our house because I do a lot of baking, but for someone who doesn't bake, they wouldn't be necessary.  I would recommend that you meal-plan, making good grocery lists based off of your menu, and shop off of that.  Like GRKaters said, after a couple trips, you should be better off.

If you're interested in learning more about our "Green Living" kitchens, definitely stick around.  Produce, meat, dairy, and GMOs in particular are popular topics around here.

Lucyboo25

Same thing as what the PP said....  Is your H also veg? If he isn't, you probably will need his help with the meal planning and grocery lists. I'm veg and don't live with my SO, so I rarely plan meals out in advance. I keep frozen veggies and brown rice and gardenburgers on hand all the time. Cheap, quick and healthy

 

GL!

SuperGreen

Like PP said, everyone's staples are going to be different.  I meal plan so that helps a lot with having the right ingredients.  I go to the Farmer's Market and buy whatever's fresh and in season.  I come home, and use my cookbooks or internet recipes to make 5-6 meals out of those ingredients.  I then fill in the holes in those recipes by making a grocery list of the non-Farmer's Market items like citrus, pasta, or spices.  This is where reading the whole recipe is key.  Once you've done this a few times, you'll find you have a pantry full of items that you can use for multiple recipes.  I try really hard to stay on top of things before they run out, for example if I see I have a 1/4 jar of garlic powder left I put it on the grocery list.

We don't bake very much so I don't use a lot of flours. Here are the staples I buy in bulk where they're on sale to have on hand. 

Dry Staples 

-Large bottle of good-quality olive oil.  We use Colatvia. 

-multiple kinds of canned beans (garbanzo, black, pinto, kidney at least)

-Canned diced tomatoes

-a large array of spices

-multple kinds of pasta (penne, spaghetti, bowtie, rice noodles, and lo mein at least)

-Lentils (brown, red, and yellow)

-multiple kinds of rice (jasmine, basmati, brown, and white)

-several boxes of cous cous flavors

-ethic spice packets, like fajita mix and indian dishes

-Prepared jarred sauces (soy, BBQ, hoisin, and peanut at least)

-Vinegars (red wine, white wine, balsamic, apple cider, rice wine)

Fridge Staples

-organic milk

-organic butter

-organic yogurt (you'd be surprised how often this comes up in recipes)

-minced jarred garlic

-ginger.  You peel it, freeze it in a plastic bag, and grate it when you need it for a recipe.  I used a bunch last night and saw that I frozen them in March!

-I freeze tortillas and indian naan bread when it's on sale and thaw what I need as necessary

-Huy Fong garlic-hot sauce

 

ETA: For some of these, if I use it up I don't immediately buy more the next week.  Like the ethic noodles for example, I wait until I have them on the recipe list and then buy 2-3 boxes.  Once I've gone through that pantry stash I repeat the process.  Some things that I use all the time though, like diced tomatoes, I buy more when my pantry stash is low.  Normally I have at least 3-4 cans of diced tomatoes on hand.