Pantry as Gold Mine

Every single wise cook that I have ever known has been able to make what might otherwise be a boring, cheap, and gastronomically flaccid meal (or even a boring, expensive one. Like broiled steak. Or broiled sole, like your grandmother used to make.) stand up straight and do jumping jacks precisely because of one thing: a smartly stocked pantry. 

The thing is, like everything that we know we’re supposed to do but don’t (eat more fiber, drink less wine, drop 20 pounds, etc), the act of stocking a pantry so that everything gets used in ways that make okay meals fabulous ends up being a daunting task for all but the most anal-retentive among us.

Nevertheless, it pays to be wonkish about your pantry, especially if you’re trying to save money. It’s important to know what simple, inexpensive pantry items will add huge flavor to inexpensive dishes quickly and easily. Example: you buy a pound of London Broil on sale, split it into four portions, freeze two, and then slice the remaining two into very thin slivers. You drizzle it with soy sauce, a thin disc of ginger (diced), lime juice, a dash of chili oil, throw it into a hot pan, and then toss it with rice noodles and a curly tangle of fresh watercress.

Now, scroll back to where you sliced the beef. Pretend you have no soy, no ginger, no lime juice, no chili oil, no noodles, no watercress. What do you have?

Flaccid beef on a plate. And after you eat it, you’ll still be hungry. 

So, let’s start here. Think of your pantry as your closet, and your go-to foundation ingredients as your little black dress. What are the foundation ingredients in my pantry, right now, that enable me to take a $5 pork butt (more on that tomorrow) from good to great, and give me leftovers tasty enough to re-purpose and serve at a small dinner party? 

Sriracha sauce

Fish sauce

Maggi (odd, but Andrea Nguyen turned me onto it and used in very small doses, it’s changed my life)

Balsamic vinegar

Soy sauce

Chicken or vegetable stock

Canned tomatoes

Eggs

Arborio rice

Basmati rice

Dried beans (garbanzos, white beans, black beans)

Lentils

Pasta (wide cut, tubular, Soba, and rice sticks)

Limes

Lemons

Ginger

Garlic

Jalapenos

Kosher salt

Black peppercorns

Red pepper flakes

Looking at this long list, I should be clear: you can buy it all at a high end market and pay through the nose. Or you can head to your local ethnic market and buy it for a fraction. Case in point:

Sriracha at suburban grocery store in Connecticut :$4.79

Sriracha at ethnic supermarket in New Haven, Connecticut: $1.89

Fill your pantry with these items, and with the addition of a few other inexpensive ingredients, you’ll be able to make amazing meals without breaking the bank.

What’s in your pantry that you can’t live without?