The Well Stocked Pantry

Some of my friends have asked me to post my meal plan I do on Sunday and then my grocery list with pricing and the actual amount spent.  

I'm more than happy to do that at my next grocery run but first I thought I'd get out a great list of pantry items/freezer items that any cooks kitchen should have.  

Below is a good starter list of the most commonly used pantry/freezer items in my cooking.  You can use this list as a guide to get started and then personalize it for your family's needs based on the foods you like to cook.

I try not to buy items at the store that will only go into one recipe and I may never use again or won't use for several months.  If you buy things you won't commonly use, not only is this waste of money when you are budgeting but if its taste is not something you are familiar with it could be a disaster for your tastebuds.  

Cook what you love!  If thats Mexican food everyday, then by all means stock up on Rotel, Cumin, limes, chili powder, etc.  If you love Vietnamese cooking then stock up on sriracha to really make your food spicy.  You get the picture.

Who doesn't love a little spice in their life.  I know I do.  So what spices should you have?  The most commonly used spices in our house are:

* Salt (table and sea salt)

* Pepper

* Garlic Powder

* Cumin

* Chili Powder

* Taco Seasoning

* Italian Seasoning

* Cinnamon

* Ground Ginger

* Ground Mustard

* Rosemary

* Thyme

* Oregano

* Basil

Pantry Items that work well into sides dishes:

* Instant Brown Rice

* Instant White Rice

* Quinoa 

* Bread Crumbs

* Tortilla Shells (Flour or Corn)

Canned & Bottled Goods:

* Rotel 

* Organic Cream of Chicken Soup 

* Organic Chicken Stock/Broth (my favorite is by Pacific because you can buy it in a pack of 4 and each one has about a 1 and a half cups in it, if I buy the large one it goes to waste)

* Canned Beans of All types (black, chili, pinto, great northern, kidney)

* All White Canned Tuna

* All White Canned Chicken

* Organic Ketchup (Simple Truth is very good)

* Hoisin Sauce

* Dijon Mustard

* Assorted Pasta

* Assorted Pasta Sauce 

* Canned Tomatoes (diced, with garlic and herbs, plain diced, chili ready diced)

* Green Enchilada Sauce

* Canned Corn

Baking Products:

* King Arthur Brand Flour

* Sugar

* Canned Pumpkin (I'm obsessed with pumpkin so when its on sale for $1 a can I'll buy 20 or more to make pumpkin baked goods throughout the year.)

* Vanilla Extract

* Brown Sugar 

* Honey

* Natural Peanut Butter and Almond Butter

* Corn Starch

* Baking Power 

* Baking Soda

* Quick Whole Wheat Cooking Oats

Refrigerator Basics:

* Milk

* Eggs

* Cheese Blocks or Shredded Cheese (usually Mozzarella and Cheddar)

* Sour Cream

* Salsa

* Ketchup, Mustard, Mayo

* Greek Yogurt (Plain and Vanilla)

* Juice Boxes or Milk Boxes (if you are a mom these are a must for school lunches, we love Apple and Eve Brand and Horizon for the milk boxes.)

* Parmesan Cheese

Freezer Basics: 

* Vegetables (broccoli, mixed vegetables, stir fry mix, spinach)

* Fruit (if you like smoothies then frozen fruit is the way to go)

* Frozen Meatballs (We LOVE Butterball Italian Turkey Meatballs)

* Chicken Breast

This list seems overwhelming but check this out, I'm going to pull some recipes just from this list for your amazement :o)

Does this seem like your day: work all day, come home and you are scrambling on what to do for dinner...check it out...you have a well stocked kitchen so you are prepared.

For the Panicked Chef:

Super fast Chicken Enchiladas - 2 Cans of Chicken, Can of Corn, Can of Enchilada Sauce, Shredded Cheese, Can of black beans.  Mix in a bowl: Chicken, Corn, Beans, and some shredded cheese.  Once mixed, scoop some onto a tortilla shell and spread down the middle, wrap tortilla and place in a greased baking dish.  Make 4-6 tortillas.  Once they are in the baking dish pour the can of Green Enchilada Sauce on top of tortillas and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  Bam Dinner Done! Ha ha. 

Spaghetti and Meatballs - Pack of Turkey Meatballs, 1 Jar of Sauce, 1 box of noodles.  Cook turkey meatballs in a sauce pan with the jar of sauce.  Cook noodles according to directions on the back of the box.  

Tuna Wraps - 2 Cans of Tuna Fish, Mayo, salt and pepper, shredded cheese, tortilla shells.  Mix together tuna, mayo, salt and pepper.  Put some of the mixture in a tortilla shell, top with shredded cheese.  

For the Prepared Chef:

Chicken Stir Fry: 2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Brest, Hoisin Sauce, Stir Fry Frozen Vegetables, Instant Brown Rice.  Thaw the Chicken and cut into cubes.  Cook in a wok with some Hoisin Sauce, once chicken is cooked, add in the frozen vegetables, add a bit more Hoisin sauce and stir.  Cook with a  lid on stirring occasionally.  Also cook the instant white or brown rice according to the box in another pot. 

Bruchetta Chicken (this is best with fresh tomatoes but you are on a budget and want to make something quicker.) - 2 - 3 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, Italian Seasoning, jar of diced garlic and onion tomatoes, mozzarella Cheese, Dried Basil.  Season the Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast with the Italian Seasoning on both sides, put the chicken into a greased baking dish.  Drain the can of tomatoes and sprinkle them onto of the chicken in the baking dish.  Then sprinkle with parmesan cheese and small amount of dried basil.  Bake in the over at 375 degrees for 30 minutes (or until the chicken is done, cut it open to check, or use a meat thermometer, chicken should be 165.) If chicken is done or very close to being done do the next step.  Take out of oven then sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, bake another 10 minutes. 

These are just some very basic simple meals you can whip together for your family as the main dish.  With a well stocked pantry and food basics you can make 100s of recipes and combinations from the lists above.  

If your not the world's best cook PLEASE DON'T GET DISCOURAGED!!  Cooking is something that is learned over time and if you keep at it you will find yourself getting better and better.  You will find that you will come to know what certain spices are good for, that you can whip something up without a recipe, etc.

When I first got married, I literally could not cook to save my life.  I actually messed up instant potatoes (made them into soup, unintentionally), I broke my hand mixer attempting to make mashed potatoes because I did not boil them long enough, and I served a not completely cooked casserole to guests.

It was not the best time in my life, but I was determined to get cooking right since I knew I wanted to start a family and I wanted to be a wonderful cook for my husband and children as my mother was for my siblings and I growing up.

I'm proud to say after almost 10 years of marriage I feel pretty confident cooking.  I still won't attempt certain things in the kitchen but I was pretty amazed when I made Julia Child's recipe for Beef Bourguignon and it was delicious. 
 If you haven't seen the movie Julie and Julia its a MUST!!

So get out to the store with your meal planned grocery lists and then get cooking!

Hope this helped a little!