what's in your pantry?

[Soapymomma]

all right , everyone, whats in your pantry that you cant live without?

or at least cook without

mine are definately fresh garlic and onions
basil, wow, we use a lot of basil , between pesto and salads ....
Fresh parmesean cheese, not the canned stuff, the real stuff with the honey gold rind, rounded outside from being a part of the wheel , .... yummy !

whole wheat pasta
honey, several kinds, amber dark to grade a clover

well, what about you ?

[Lavandula Girl]

Miso, 4 or 5 kinds of grains (rices, barley, oats), fresh and dried fruit (we eat a lot of fruit). I freeze my marinara sauce so we can have pasta quickly when we're on the fly. In the fridge there's always yogurt, a few kinds of cheese, and some kind of fish. My husband makes the best smoked salmon ever, and that's always around, along with shrimp. My husband is also a classically trained chef, although he no longer does it for a living. We're pretty spoiled because of that.

[johno]

If I had to pick one item that the whole family couldn't do without, it would be basmati rice. We have to go to Little Rock to stock up on the good stuff. No other rice compares!

Other than that, we don't all have similar tastes... For me, it would be garlic and onions. For the youngest, probably rice cakes; the oldest likes oriental stuff like sticky rice and sushi... For my wife, I'd have to say we need to stock a variety of chocolates (she insists it helps with her crohne's disease... ahem...)

[bluelacedredhead]

Sage. Fresh leaves for making pretty designs under the skin on a turkey or chicken breast a la Martha Stewart 1980something..sage for stuffings and sage sauce for pork chops....
Frozen tomatoes..I use them all year long in spaghetti sauce, casseroles, soups and stews. Even frozen for 10 or 11 months, they have much more flavour than those things in the grocery store no matter what the season!

[tashak]

Rice, garlic, onions, lemon or lime, canned tomatoes, peanut butter, ginger, hot peppers, cheese, good Canadian oatmeal, eggs, pasta, beans, cornmeal, whole wheat bread, dried or canned milk. Russet potatoes in the winter.
When I'm flush with cash, canned or packaged whole olives, couscous, frozen green peas, bacon or ham hocks, hamburger or London broil or chicken quarters or liver sausage or salami or pork, frozen hashbrowns, celery, green bell pepper, good cheese (not the cheapest on sale stuff), good yoghurt, buttermilk. Chutney. Mrs. Dash. Parsley. Cilantro.

But the real can't-live-withouts are chocolate, black tea, classic CocaCola, cheese, and bread. Feel deprived if I don't have one of those daily.

[flowerpower]

Sage. Fresh leaves for making pretty designs under the skin on a turkey or chicken breast a la Martha Stewart 1980something..sage for stuffings and sage sauce for pork chops....


Blue, I do the same with chicken and also put garlic and onion slices under the skin. I guess I've been watching too much Martha also. lol

The one thing I always have in the pantry is Coffee. I use alot of onions, garlic and spices. I always have pasta, rice, beans, peanut butter and soup around.

[bluelacedredhead]

One can never watch too much Martha! I just like to tease about it that's all, lol. :p
I actually have that particular MS Thanksgiving special on tape :D

[Soapymomma]

ok i had an ulterior motive for posting this, and i thank everyone who contributed, and who might continue to do so , i had reached a writers block , i mean i know what i have in my kitchen , what i consider essentials for how we cook and eat, but wasnt sure what everyone else would consider essentials ....
and since my editor requested this article i needed a boost ,
it did remind me of a few things that if i find im out of will send me running to the store

peanut butter for one, did you know thats a very american food , peanut spread, as its called in other places is regarded more as a delicacy , and that most american of consumables the pb and j isnt even referred to as such most places, this came as a shock to me when i was 12 and went overseas ot france with my "tante" we went out shopping for food , and had a heck of a time finding peanut butter in the little town we were in ....

fresh vegetables, goes without saying, why do i garden otherwise:D

chocolate is an absolute necessity. i have in the house right now, semi sweet, milk ,white (which isnt really chocolate , but for the sake of argument we'll include it) and 2 kinds of cocoa regular and black and a couple of bars of dagoba eclipse, cause theres no better dark baking chocolate

mayonaise, the real stuff, no miracle whip here....

i have 3 different kinds of garlic in the house now , but thats for the garden ..
i always have fresh and yes some granulated garlic

fresh black peppercorns in the grinder, i swear once a person has gotten used to fresh pepper, nothuing will ever substitute for it

fresh sage, rosemary and basil , i keep these three growing in the house all year long .... nuff said

dried lemon and orange peel , i dont always have the fruit here, but ikeep these on hand for when i need that flavor

olive oil , peanut oil,and several infused oils that i make myself, including a black walnut oil which is to die for !

vinegar, cider,red wine, white and i dont have balsamic cause i dont care for the taste

tea......ok , i make my own teas and sell them , so i have more tea than any one person can possibly consume ..... about 40 lbs of my different blends

thats all i can think to add now, ill post up the article, which of course wont be this extensive since i only have a certain amount of column inches i can fill.... but when i get it done i will share it with you all

[bluelacedredhead]

I for one will be watching for your article, TY

[sparrowgrass]

Johno, I am a rice-a-holic, too. I buy Missouri grown basmati and jasmine, and it is wonderful. It comes from Martin Rice Company at Bernie MO.

I had some snooty folks on another cooking board tell me that basmati is only good if it is aged and comes from Thailand. I did a side-by-side taste test with the Thai brand the snobs recommended. The Martin basmati won hands down for aroma and flavor. (Plus, I am buying local, which is important to me.)

I don't get a kickback from them--wish I did, because I have recommended it so many times. They do online sales--www.martinrice.com

Other than 100 pounds of rice, my panty has several kinds of flour, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, green enchilada sauce, green chilis, beans of various types. The canned goods cupboard has home canned tomato sauce, salsa, green beans, peach jam.

[boston]

Garlic is a must. I can do without onions but my wife likes them, some spices and I have always wondered about the peppercorns vs. ground pepper.

[GreenZone]

Actually a lot of seemingly good basmati comes from India too.

Randel

[ipaintedmyhousewhite]

Soapymomma, where would we find your article?

[Soapymomma]

Cooking Fresh
By Beth LaFerriere
Cooking is made much easier if you have everything needed to make a dish on hand, special recipe shopping quickly blows a family budget to pieces
I was asked via email by a reader of this article if my kids actually eat the recipes I share in the articles, and the answer to that is an unpresuming yes, my children have grown up with a wide variety of flavors in their lives, and while each has their own quirks, that I try to respect to an extent, if something is served that they don’t want to eat, they are always encouraged to try it , that’s not to say the kids are perfect eaters, they certainly aren’t, my daughter loves guacamole for example, but wont eat avocado on a sandwich , and my son loves foods made with eggs, but wont eat eggs by themselves
Well as I promised last week , here is a listing of some of the foods I like to keep on hand for recipes
Fresh garlic cloves
Lets face it , dried garlic is a pale imitation of the real thing, and pre packaged minced garlic that they sell in the produce section is a kind of convenient product, but it only takes a second to peel and dice a fresh clove or two of the stinking rose, so why not go ahead and get it, bulk garlic is quite reasonably priced
Capers, these are the pickled flower buds , quite strong in flavor a little goes a long long way ,buy a small jar.
Fresh rosemary, this is perhaps one of the best smells to have ,it can be grown as a year around houseplant and has a sharp pungent piney flavor.
Fresh basil , I’ve waxed eloquent on fresh basil many times, I love the mild sweet flavor, in summer I enjoy it as a salad ingredient, and I make lots of pesto to freeze, but I also freeze whole leaves of basil. To freeze basil simply wash gently ,dry between paper towels, separate and freeze in plastic bags, take out as much as you need . This is an ingredient where the dried herb is just not nearly the same.
Feta, feta is goats milk cheese, its sharp taste and creamy mouth feel really cannot be duplicated by any other cheese, though in a pinch a blend of parmesan and Romano can work
FRESH parmesan cheese, not what’s sold in the green cans in the grocery. Real chunks of parmesan ,often has a dark honey colored rind on it.
Fresh Whole Black pepper. Black pepper loses much of its flavor and potency when its ground, by using fresh pepper, you’ll actually use less than you will of the preground stuff, thus making up for the cost
Whole wheat pasta
Honey Honey comes in different grades, use light clover honey for sweetening drinks and dark robust honeys for cooking
Red wine /balsamic/vinegar cider vinegar different vinegars are used for different reasons, while in a pinch you can use nothing but white vinegar, try the other kinds too your palate will thank you.
Olive oil virgin and extra virgin olive oil are indispensable in cooking
Nuts store in freezer to prevent rancidity, try to keep on hand black walnuts, English walnuts, and almonds,pecans
Whole ginger root
Yeast
Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce
Tempeh
Tofu
Molasses
Lemon juice
Mustard
Curry paste/powder
Cumin
Baking cocoa, bittersweet chocolate, semi sweet chocolate
Cinnamon
Chili powders,
sweet and hot paprika
Corn starch or arrowroot, for thickening, sauces and gravies, flour is not always desired
Vanilla bean/vodka, to make your own extract, you split open your vanilla bean and put in a pint of vodka, put in a sunny spot and shake daily till the liquid turns golden brown, then its ready to use
Allspice
Nutmeg
Cloves
Atar anise

Bay leaves, dried, I actually have a small bay laurel bush , for fresh leaves, but dried works ok in this instance
Raisins,dried cranberries, dried cherries
Dried lemon peel / orange peel
Celery seed, This isn’t actually seeds of celery, but a separate seed that has the same flavor, it replaces well in a pinch
Flax seed, sesame seeds ( buy in bulk , store in freezer)
Horseradish sauce
Several different kinds of dried beans, we generally keep on hand , lentils, northern beans , limas,pintos,black beans, red beans
Rice, I always have long grain rice on hand, some wild rice, as well as jasmine and basmati

[G. Gordon Gumbo]

In the following order of priority:
Pasta
Rice
Beans
Tomato products
Olive Oil
Balsamic vinegar
Fish
Chicken
Onions
Garlic
Chili peppers
Bell peppers
Celery
Carrots
Lemons
Bananas
Apples
Fruit juice
Coffee
Tea
Beer
Herbs
Spices
Louisianna hot sauce
Worchesterhire sauce
Soy sauce

Those are the essentials. The rest is luxury.

GGG

[dirtundernails]

You put coffee before beer in importance?! GGGolly.....

[johno]

Me too. Gotta have my coffee. I only drink beer once every couple of months or so, and then only one or two. That sometimes varies when I'm with old friends...

[G. Gordon Gumbo]

You put coffee before beer in importance?! GGGolly.....


Well, actually I don't drink either coffee or beer anymore, but ...

In this household, I'm responsible for gettin' that fresh ground coffee perked in the mornin' before my dear, hard-workin' wife gets up and runnin'. And I'm also responsible to see to it that there's plenty of ice cold beer in the garage refrigerator when she comes home after work.

So, my personal peace, happiness and general well being depends on coffee and beer stayin' on the larder list of essentials regardless of their order of priority. And I remember when I drank my share of both coffee and beer and the order of priority was coffee first thing in the mornin' and beer first thing at night.

GGG

[Cliff Timmons]

Do mice droppings count?

[Lavandula Girl]

Only if those teeny weeny sugar ants do!

[boston]

Only if those teeny weeny sugar ants do!

aren't ants considered a delicacy

[dirtundernails]

GGG, making coffee for your wife is mandated by the Bible. Hebrews...

[Cliff Timmons]

GGG, making coffee for your wife is mandated by the Bible. Hebrews...
Uggggggghhhhhhh