Building a Useful Pantry

the subtle art of a stocked pantry

i use the word pantry loosely here. to me a ‘pantry’ is a few shelves in a cupboard. it can also be a much bigger space! my current kitchen is limited in storage so in the last three or so years i’ve tried to master the art of keeping a well stocked, useful and concise pantry. i’ve found that if i try and have these to hand i can usually put something nice together to eat, even if i’m low on fresh food in the fridge. below, i’ve listed items by groups with a section at the bottom on brands. hopefully this is not extremely boring! it’s possible i’m in an echo chamber where pantry organisation is interesting…

canned and jarred
tinned tomatoes
tomato paste
tinned or jarred chickpeas
tinned or jarred cannellini beans (any white beans!)
capers
anchovies

oils and vinegars
extra virgin olive oil
a neutral oil
apple cider vinegar
rice wine vinegar

sauces
dijon mustard
honey
maple syrup
soy sauce
fish sauce

dried herbs and spices
bay leaves
curry leaves
chilli flakes
ground cumin
ground coriander
curry powder
cayenne pepper
paprika
garlic powder
herbes de provence
stock cubes
black peppercorns in a mill
coarse sea salt flakes
fine sea salt

dried goods
spaghetti
fusilli
rigatoni
orzo
basmati rice
puy lentils
red lentils
rice noodles

for baking
plain flour
self raising flour
caster sugar
light brown sugar
dark brown sugar
baking powder
bicarbonate of soda

extras
garlic
onions or shallots
lemons
butter

a note on brands
pasta
my number one choice is rummo. i like their variety and quality. they’re often on sale in supermarkets.
tinned tomatoes
i could literally write a whole post on different sorts of tinned tomatoes but i won’t bore you with that. i’ve tried and tested a lot of different sorts and i’ve found my favourite are the mutti finely chopped tomatoes.
vinegars
once in awhile i like to treat myself to a bottle of drinking vinegar from gimlet. they’re lovely for drinking but are equally nice in salad dressings. for a more day-to-day option i buy any acv that is made with the mother.
extra virgin olive oil
il casolare is my favourite. as the price of evoo has crept up, and up, and up, and up in the last few years i’ve started using it sparingly. these days i reserve my ‘best’ evoo for salad dressings and drizzling for flavour. for cooking with i use a cheaper option. supermarket brands are good, i like the aldi and lidl ones.
stock cubes
i love the kallo stock cubes the most.