Inexpensive, Versatile Foods in the Pantry
Quinoa, an inexpensive and versatile pantry item.
Sometimes we need to rely on what's in the pantry when produce isn't looking too swell or when the market on the corner has shut down for the evening. SFGate continues their Kitchen Essentials series with 10 versatile pantry items, including mirin, dark chocolate, fish sauce, quinoa, salted capers, chipotle peppers in adobo, garbanzo beans, high-quality honey, whole-grain mustard, and fancy tuna in olive oil.
The thrifty shopper in me would love to add red lentils and Israeli couscous; both can adapt to many recipes, yet are never boring. While most of you might not have every item on the list, there are plenty of substitutions, and none of the ingredients are expensive or impossible to find.
What are your versatile pantry items?
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27 Comments:
San Marzano tomatoes & Chicken stock.
tinytim at 8:30PM on 10/08/08
Good, canned tomato sauce. Uncle Ben's microwavable rice pouches. Shredded cheese.
LunaPierCook at 8:36PM on 10/08/08
Canned black beans, tomato sauce, tomato paste and of course, rice and pasta.
JigsawJones at 9:27PM on 10/08/08
Good call on the quinoa and san marzano tomatoes, rustichella d'abbruzo (sp?) pasta, black beans, beets, lentils, green beans, and of course pb&j
esgood at 10:16PM on 10/08/08
i'm with you on about half of those. i always try to keep some kind of stock around, as well as canned tomatoes or pasta sauce and, of course, pasta.
those trader joe's indian food packets are good as well -- the ones you can boil or microwave in the bag.
oh and jell-o. who doesn't like some jell-o?
anysuchname at 10:17PM on 10/08/08
There are always rice, dried beans and pasta in the pantry in some form or another, and usually several varieties of each. Always several varieties of oil and vinegar, as well. And there are usually some nearly-ready-to-eat homemade foods in the freezer for a quick meal. RIght now those selections include tamales, ravioli, peirogi, egg rolls, and buns. Also some cupcakes and blueberry muffins. And a couple soup stocks, plain tomato sauce and spaghetti sauce.
dbcurrie at 12:29AM on 10/09/08
pinto beans, canned tomatoes, mac and cheese, rice, pasta, canned kraut, vegetable stock, lentils
smile at 12:39AM on 10/09/08
from a strictly pantry perspective: bulgur, good prunes, good Moroccan sardines and Spanish tuna in olive oil, Chinese preserved radish or mustard greens (great in a stir fry with pork), capers, Herdez tomatillo salsa, coconut milk, and lots of almonds, hazelnuts, and pistachios.
markemorse at 2:27AM on 10/09/08
I once had some boxed quinoa and there was tiny shards of broken glass in it. I can never eat the stuff since.
@anysuchname- I don't like some jello. I don't like some jello at all.
sailordave at 3:07AM on 10/09/08
Soy sauce, olive oil, brown rice, pasta, ham, eggs, tofu, frozen peas, bran oats, bananas.
Yu Ming Lui at 4:47AM on 10/09/08
I know when I have to go out grocery shopping when I'm out of:
- sriracha
- rice
- shiitake mushrooms (dried)
- tofu
- miso
- canned diced or crushed tomatoes
- corn
- shoyu
- soba/ramen/udon
- sesame oil
Cassaendra at 7:29AM on 10/09/08
I like to have stock, different types of oils and vinegars, nuts, canned tomatoes, arborio, pasta, and i'm adding quinoa to the mix now.
cookingbroke at 8:23AM on 10/09/08
Canned soup, canned veggies/frozen veggies, pastina, olive oil and vinegar, pasta, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic and beans. Oh, and rice! I love risi e bisi. :)
I think eating Italian (or some rendition of it) is one of the most economical ways to go...pasta, tomatoes, beans and some veggies. Delicious and affordable.
sweethunibabi at 8:56AM on 10/09/08
Israeli couscous is a favorite in our house. We also always have the standards in the pantry- beans, rice, pasta, soba and udon noodles, lots of oils and vinegars, stocks, canned tomatoes, and a new favorite is dried apricots.
myfirstkitchen at 8:59AM on 10/09/08
My most versatile must-have items are:
-Mirin
-Soy Sauce
-Miso, tofu (firm and silken) - although these are technically "fridge items"
-Dried Shiitake
-Brown Rice
-Couscous (whole wheat)
-Quinoa
-Dried beans - garbanzo, kidney and white
-Soba noodles
-Whole wheat pasta
-Whole wheat flour
-Honey and molasses
-Several varieties of mustard (including Colman's, whole grain, several kinds of dijon, etc.), oil (olive, sesame, grapeseed, canola, walnut) and vinegar (white, various kinds of rice, various kinds of wine, apple cider, black, pomegranate)
-Tinned tomatoes
-Sea salt, pepper (whole peppercorns) and spices (sweet and smoked paprika, cumin, Chinese 5-spice, turmeric and saffron, red pepper flakes and some others)
-Fresh herbs.
brooke29 at 10:30AM on 10/09/08
Here are my must-haves, which might be different from some since I stay on a lower-cal diet:
- brown rice and quinoa
- whole wheat pasta
- sesame oil
- waterpacked tuna
- black beans
- tomato sauce
- soy sauce
- mixed nuts
- sweet potato
- avocadoes
- many many spices
- bread crumbs
- whole wheat bread and whole wheat tortillas
sherock at 11:21AM on 10/09/08
I totally agree with the siracha (although we call it rooster sauce).
I tend to have 2 types of beans, rice, tomato sauce, shredded cheese, and perhaps the most disgusting thing: kraft dinner, because it is literally the only thing I can taste when I get my frequent sinus infections.
Geeka at 7:49PM on 10/09/08
evaporated milk
coconut milk
peanut butter
flat rice noodles
canned clams
Seina at 10:57AM on 10/11/08
ditto on the israeli couscous
pimenton...Spanish smoky paprika
couple of varieties of olive oil
black beans
2-3 varieties of Goya salsitas
various whole wheat pastas
freezer items to include: boneless/skinless chicken breasts, organic cornmeal pizza crusts, quart bags of crushed tomatoes from the garden
Scottzel at 11:04AM on 10/11/08
various flours
Pastas
Strained tomatoes
Olive oil
Nuts
Honey
tomato paste
chic peas
canellini beans
Rolled or steel cut oats
baking soda/powder
canned tuna
Raisins
Peanut butter
pecorino at 11:41AM on 10/11/08
count me out on the jello as well. i think the last time i allowed it to pass my lips in any form was in 1974.
i've got a fair amount of the things already mentioned, plus matzo meal. nothing makes me happier in the winter than a bowl of soup with matzo balls.
cybercita at 1:48PM on 10/11/08
Jello is good stuff when it's made perfectly, where everything about it is firm; the kind only found at Chinese buffets, at least in Cleveland. Every time I see the sheen of these vibrant cubes calling out to me, I just want to grab the entire display of different colors, pile them in a big bowl, take them to my table, and shake them to watch them jiggle in all their glory.
When I'm done marveling at their dance, I partake in their cool, firm texture, the giggling sound they make in my mouth when I'm chewing, the burst of fruity flavor, and then the tiny cubes of firmness rolling in my mouth...so heavenly.
Cassaendra at 7:03PM on 10/11/08
canned tomatoes, black soybeans, different types of rice (brown, brown basmati, Lundberg Country Mix, regular white basmati rice, jasmine rice), different grains (quinoa, millet, bulghur), different types of bbq sauce, vinegars, oils (extra virgin olive oil, grapeseed, vegetable oil, plain olive oil), balsamic vinegar, chickpeas, chinese pantry items such as soy sauce, rice vinegar, rice wine, hoison sauce, oyster sauce, thai items such as fish sauce, different types of chiles, lots of different spices and herbs. I do an awful lot of cooking.
RisaG at 10:57PM on 10/11/08
I love pecorino's "chic" peas -are they French? LOL
snowmoonelk at 10:57AM on 10/13/08
homemade croutons
noodles
penne
tinned tomatoes
curry powder (for emergencies!)
red lentils
cous cous
dried chestnuts
miso
tinned anchovies
snowmoonelk at 11:02AM on 10/13/08
Great list, but the inclusion of mustard makes me wonder if I don't need to keep it in the fridge.
I add brown rice to the pantry list as well as nuts (most of which I toast), oatmeal and olive oil. I've also been enjoying peanut oil recently.
CanadianFoodieGirl at 11:04AM on 10/13/08
I don't keep mustard in the fridge
snowmoonelk at 4:21AM on 10/14/08