From home canned goods, store bought staples, and even a few of those convenient foods, having a stocked pantry can help any home cook get through countless meals.
This list will help steer you into knowing what some versatile yet healthy ingredients are so you can work on stocking your pantry for everyday cooking at your own pace.
Here I go into some of “the basics” when it comes to a pantry (non-refrigerated items) that can help your grocery shop and prepare yourself for working in your kitchen this season (inspired through what I like to do).
Disclaimer: How much you want to purchase will be up to you and your personal kitchen goals. I will suggest having more than one of everything listed. But in the end, this is simply a guide to help people not waste food, money, effort, or time, and learn how to function in their kitchens well. Also, just buy the foods you like.
Let’s Dive in…
Proteins
Proteins should be a priority when it comes to your pantry. They are calorie dense, nutrient dense, and are usually the center of attention in most meals.
Even though fresh or frozen meats are preferred to most people, having some canned options is a good idea.
Here are some proteins you should think about filling your pantry with:
- Canned meats, including: chicken, tuna, salmon, ham, beef
- Beans, any color, shape or size (dry or canned)
- Lentils (dry or canned)
- Peanut Butter, or any nut butter of your liking
- Whey protein powders (great for smoothies and adding to baked goods)
- Collagen powders (tasteless and can be added to anything, provides protein)
- Whole Milk and Low fat milk powders (smoothies, hot chocolates, desserts, or just to have milk on hand)
You also can process your own meats and beans through your own pressure canner. Just be sure to follow a pre-approved canning recipe.
Veggies
Vegetables pair especially well with proteins, more so than fruits, and should be second in line in priority.
Filling your pantry with a wide variety of vegetables is ideal, because even if you are stuck with one type of meat or legume you can avoid food fatigue by intermixing different vegetables.
And although fresh vegetables are usually preferred, some canned options to think about are:
- Corn
- Potatoes
- Carrots (home canned carrots in broth, like these herbed carrots, are usually not metallic tasting)
- Mushrooms
- Sweet Potatoes/Yams
- Pumpkin
- Diced Tomatoes (a fruit technically but ate like a vegetable)
- Tomato Sauces & Pastes
- Peas
- Green Beans
- Pickles
Of course storebought versions are usually plain.
You can process your own vegetables through canning to expand your pantry even further with varieties like:
- herbed potatoes, honey ginger carrots, lemon green beans, salsas, pickled peppers or pickled cucumbers.
Fruit
Nature’s dessert. A good, stocked pantry always has some canned fruit on hand to give yourself a break from the heavy meats and vegetables.
They can be eaten as is or integrated into a dessert recipe easily (peach cinnamon rolls anyone? -yum).
Canned fruits to consider are:
- Apples (usually these are found in seasonal sections around thanksgiving, unless you can your own)
- Pears
- Peaches
- Pineapples
- Oranges
- Cherries
- Jams/Jellies, any flavor
Fruits juices are also used in marinades from time to time, so grabbing fruits prepared in their own fruit juice can allow you to have fruit juice on hand for occasions like that.
Convenient Foods
Do not skip on the convenient foods! In a perfect world, we would all make every single thing from scratch but even the most dedicated of people know that it’s not possible 100% of the time.
Give yourself some grace by making sure some convenient foods are always on hand.
These foods are aimed to help you speed up the process of meal making, so you don’t have to go to a restaurant to buy food.
*There are PLENTY of companies that offer ‘clean’ versions of these convenience foods. So don’t come at me.
Some of these include:
- Pancake/waffle mixes
- Mac and cheese boxes
- Instant oatmeal’s
- Hamburger helper/Chicken Helper type boxes
- Canned Soups
- Spaghetti or enchilada sauces
- Instant Rice mixes
- Cake or bread mixes
- Tortillas
- Biscuit or cornbread mixes
- Cereals
What you want to avoid is filling your pantry with junk food.
Not saying you can’t treat yourself, but they are LITERAL empty calories as in no vitamins or minerals or protein comes with the calories.
The items listed above at least give you something the thrive off of with the calories given.
Grains, Rice, Pastas
What’s a proper pantry without rice or pasta?
Having both in hand at all times should be the ultimate pantry staple. Even if it’s just white rice and some spaghetti noodles.
Besides rice and pasta, here are some other grains to consider:
- Popcorn kernels (you can make cornmeal with it or simply pop it over the stove)
- Flours: all purpose, whole grain, rye, cake, you pick what suits your needs
- Bread yeast
- Quinoa
- Arborio Rice (for risotto)
Oils & Seasonings
Almost every single meal calls for a fat to be cooked with and some seasoning.
So besides spray oils and salt & pepper, think about these:
- Avocado Oil (this is not a seed oil by the way!)
- Beef tallow (can order in small or large quantities)
- Bacon grease
- Butter (technically this needs to be refrigerated but it worth mentioning)
- Onion, garlic powders
- Italian and taco seasonings
- Hot sauces
- Nutritional Yeast
Buying Salt, Spices and Fats in bulk is always a good investment.
Why Bother?
Cooking at home should be the normal.
You don’t have to be creative or even wiling to explore new foods in order to successfully cook your own meals.
But having cabinets that are full of ingredients you’re willing to use is the key to consistently cooking at home.
And sometimes that can be a struggle to figure out what to actually buy at the store that would lead to home cooked meals in the daily.
This list is aimed to give you the basics. With these basics you can look up just about any recipe online or in a book and say, “Yep, I can make that today!”
Of course you might even add to the list and that is perfect. The goal is to get you comfortable enough in the kitchen to where meal creating isn’t taking up so much mental space.
That’s it!
I hope this helps you get started on the right track to a functional kitchen that will help you reach your goals this coming year.
If there’s anything I missed comment down below!
Enjoy!
The Cottage Vegetable 