champagne tastes on a beer budget

My pantry is more than just food storage. Since I’m (currently) only cooking for two, I generally go grocery shopping once a month, with fresh produce pickups every other Sunday. Ideally, my pantry should carry me through the month, with plenty to spare.

 

A good pantry takes time (and money) to build, so don’t try to get everything at once. Get what’s most important to you to start, gradually adding things as they’re on sale, and gradually phasing out all the crap (junk food, sugary cereals, soda, etc.). There are probably several things on here that are unfamiliar (fish sauce, for example) or that other people would never consider essential (Nutella, truffle oil). Again, feel free to adapt this list to your own purposes. I have all these things because with this pantry, I can make or fake almost any recipe out there.

 

Here’s what I consider to be essential:

 

Basics

Flour (all-purpose; bread; White Lily Self-Rising, for biscuits; semolina)

Sugar (regular, brown, confectioner’s)

Baking soda

Baking powder

Cornmeal (yellow and blue)

Cornstarch

Onions (yellow, red, shallots)

Garlic

Potatoes

Powdered milk

Baking chocolate (cocoa powder; semisweet; bittersweet; chips)

Bread crumbs

Panko

Crisco

Karo syrup (light and dark)

Crackers

Graham crackers

Powdered Gatorade

Tomato juice

Croutons

 

Pasta

Spaghetti and/or linguine

Penne

Elbow macaroni

Lasagna noodles

Orzo

 

Rice

Regular white

Brown

Basmati

Arborio

 

Grains and beans

Black beans

Black-eyed peas

Garbanzo beans

Grits (quick, regular)

Israeli couscous

Lentils (green and red)

Oatmeal (steel-cuts oats and quick oats)

Pearled barley

Quinoa

Red beans

Regular couscous

White beans

 

Dried

Dried fruit (apricots, raisins, cranberries, blueberries, assorted other)

Sundried tomatoes

Dried peppers, various kinds

Dried mushrooms, various kinds
Vanilla beans

 

Nuts

Almonds (whole and sliced)
Peanuts

Pecans

Pine nuts

Pistachios

Walnuts

 

Oils and vinegars

Apple cider vinegar

Balsamic vinegar

Champagne wine vinegar

Chili oil

Grapeseed oil

Olive oil, the best you can afford

Peanut oil

Red wine vinegar

Rice wine vinegar

Tarragon vinegar

Truffle oil

Vegetable oil

White vinegar

White wine vinegar

 

Extracts

Vanilla

Lemon

Almond

Orange

 

Sauces and Condiments

Fish sauce

Honey

Hot pepper sauces

Maple syrup

Memmi sauce

Molasses

Nutella

Oyster sauce

Peanut butter

Peanut sauce

Soy sauce

Sriracha chili sauce

Teriyaki

Worchestershire sauce

 

Spices

Allspice (ground and whole)

Arrowroot

Barbecue seasonings (a variety)

Basil

Bay leaves

Bouillon cubes

Cardamom

Cayenne pepper

Celery salt

Chili powder

Cinnamon (ground and whole)

Cloves (ground and whole)

Coriander

Cream of tartar

Cumin (regular and whole)

Curry paste

Curry powder

Dill

Dried mustard

Dried pepper flakes

Fennel seeds

Filé powder

Garam masala

Garlic powder

Ginger (ground, crystallized and whole ginger root)

Ground pepper

Lavender

Lemongrass

Liquid smoke

Marjoram

Mint

Mustard (ground and whole mustard seeds)

Nutmeg

Old Bay

Onion powder

Oregano

Paprika (regular, Hungarian sweet, and Spanish smoked)

Parsley

Poppy seeds

Rosemary

Saffron

Sage

Salt (sea salt, regular table salt, and various flavors of smoked salt)

Sesame seeds

Star anise

Tarragon

Thyme

Turmeric

Wasabi powder

Whole peppercorns

 

Canned items

Anchovies (in tins and anchovy paste, in tube form)

Beef broth (as a backup)

Capers

Clams

Coconut milk

Crab

Creamed corn

Evaporated milk

Olives

Tomato paste (also in tube form)

Tomato sauce

Tomatoes

Tuna

 

Tea and coffee

Black tea

Cold-brew iced tea bags

Espresso

Green tea

Ground coffee

Peppermint tea

Various herbal teas

Whole bean coffee

 

In the fridge

Bacon
Bacon fat

Butter

Cornichons

Cream

Cream cheese

Duck fat

Eggs

Feta cheese

Goat cheese

Gorgonzola

Horseradish

Jam

Ketchup

Lemon juice

Lime juice

Mayo

Mozzarella

Mustard (regular and Dijon)

Parmesan

Plain yogurt

Ricotta

Sour cream

Tofu

Yeast

 

In the freezer

Andouille sausage

Chicken broth

Frozen corn

Frozen peas

Frozen spinach

Ground beef

Italian sausage

Phyllo

Puff pastry

Whole chickens

 

Other

A good supply of dish towels and dish rags

A good supply of jars (to put homemade broth into)

Disposable latex gloves, for chopping hot peppers

Kitchen matches

Paper towels

Twine

Ziploc bags

Foil
Parchment paper
Wax paper
Plastic wrap