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Buying fresh food and then not getting down to cooking it is the WORST. It’s like grinding up twenties in the garbage disposal. By depending more on frozen, canned, and the like, you will rarely waste your food! Buy breads, cereals, fresh meats, dairy and some produce on a “need” basis according to what you plan on making that week.

I can distinctly remember my first big food shopping trip as a new wife. Ketchup, Saran wrap, soy sauce. I didn’t quite know what I’d need. I know now, though, and my kitchen is humming. Sometimes when food shopping costs make me sad, I like to play “how many meals can I find in my pantry and freezer?” It’s a surprisingly good time.

If you are a new cook and want to get better, setting up shop is your first move. There is no shortage of recipes out there, and if you’re like me then you only pull the recipes when you have most of the ingredients. Buying ingredients ahead that will last a long time will allow you to tear out more recipes!

Cooking at home saves you money, saves you calories and can actually be a pretty good time. There is some expense on the front end, but trust me, you’ll make it up soon enough.

I arranged this in sections and italicized the ingredients that are a bit more random and get used seldom. Pick and choose. If you don’t bake, you can skip the baking pantry. If you hate spicy, DON’T BUY SRIRACHA. Oh gosh if you like spicy, buy sriracha and put it on EVERYTHING.

Some prep basics:

Plastic wrap

Waxed paper

Tin foil

Parchment paper

Large freezer Ziploc bags (gallon sized)

Sandwich sized Ziploc bags

Spices/Herbs

Technically, spices and herbs should be used within the year they’re purchased. They won’t go “bad”, however, they will just lose their potency. A rule of thumb with herbs is this: If a recipe asks for fresh herbs but you only have dry, use a third of the amount. Say a recipe asks for 1 tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary, use 1 tsp. dried rosemary (there are 3 tsp. in a tablespoon).

Table salt, kosher salt

Black pepper

Parsley

Basil

Rosemary

Thyme

Oregano

Bay leaves

Onion powder

Garlic powder

Garlic salt

Cayenne pepper

Crushed red pepper

Chili powder

Ginger

Cinnamon

Ground cloves

Ground nutmeg

Pumpkin pie spice

Paprika

Cumin

Curry powder

Poppy seeds

Sesame seeds

Dill

Ground mustard

Lemon pepper

Cream of tartar

Cooking pantry:

Keep your oils in a cool, dark place. Any oils you don’t plan on using frequently (like sesame), store in the fridge. Though I wrote whole wheat pastas, it’s good to have some “white” pasta on hand for when guests come that dislike whole wheat.

Chicken broth (Swanson Organic Free Range Chicken Broth tastes best)

Crushed tomatoes (Tutterosso is the best brand)

Diced tomatoes (Red Pack is the best brand (Red Gold on West Coast)

Tomato paste

Prepared tomato sauce (Giada’s brand at Target got GREAT reviews)

Olive oil

Canola oil

Balsamic vinegar

Soy Sauce

Dijon mustard

Mayo

Yellow Mustard

Ketchup

BBQ Sauce

Black beans

Cannellini (also called Great Northern) beans

Chickpeas (also called Garbanzo beans)

Whole wheat string noodles (angel hair, spaghetti, linguini, etc)

Whole wheat shapes (rotini, penne, ziti)

Little noodles (pastina, acine de peppe, orzo)

Lasagna noodles

Brown Rice

Whole wheat couscous

Peanut butter

Strawberry Jelly

Tuna (light is better for you than chunk white)

Honey

Raisins

Beef broth

Whole Peeled Tomatoes (Progresso is the best brand)

Tomato Puree (Hunts is the best brand)

Sesame oil

Rice vinegar

White vinegar

White wine/Red wine vinegar

Apple Cider vinegar

Sriracha

Jarred roasted red peppers

Jarred sundried tomatoes (in oil)

Jarred artichoke hearts

Light coconut milk, canned

Cornmeal

Nutella

Arborio Rice (used to make risotto)

Quinoa

Bulgar wheat (YUM! In organic section. Higher fiber and lower calorie than brown rice, and cooks a WHOLE LOT quicker, too)

 

Baking Pantry

This will all keep! Store your whole wheat flour in the fridge unless you plan to use it within a month or two of purchasing.

All purpose flour

White Whole wheat flour

Sugar (sometimes called granulated)

Brown Sugar (Sold as light and dark; recipes will tell you which to use but I find that more recipes call for light brown, so buy that. It’s just that dark brown sugar has more molasses in it, so the flavor is more robust)

Powdered Sugar (sometimes called confectioners’sugar)

Cocoa powder (unsweetened)

Baking powder

Baking soda

Unsweetened chocolate (Ghiradelli is the best brand)

Dark chocolate, chips (Ghiradelli is the best brand)

Semisweet chips (Nestle Semi Sweet chocolate chunks have a great flavor)

Old fashioned oats

Maple syrup

Vanilla extract (buy imitation if you only plan on using it for cookies, cake, pancakes, etc, as it makes NO DIFFERENCE IN FLAVOR. If you like making puddings, custards, etc, then use real vanilla)

Almond extract

Cornstarch

Shortening (small container, it can go funky after a year or two)

Molasses

Light corn syrup

Instant espresso powder

Unsweetened Applesauce

Canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix)

Sweetened condensed milk

Evaporated milk

Nonfat dry (powdered) milk

 

Freezer

Meat is good for many months if properly frozen (wrapped very tightly). Nuts will keep for up to a year in the freezer, as will your frozen veggies. It’s very difficult to buy organic if you shop on a budget. Frozen organic is a great way to go. These fruits/veggies were flash frozen at the peak of freshness and frozen is almost always cheaper. For berries, thaw in fridge in a cereal bowl overnight and enjoy with yogurt the next morning!

Chicken (Trader Joes frozen bag of chicken.. tenderloins.. best value)

Bacon

Nuts: Almonds and Walnuts are most used (best stored frozen so they don’t go rancid)

Broccoli

Spinach

Corn

Peas

Strawberries

Blueberries

Shrimp (Buy cooked, tail on or off, when on sale)

Frozen bananas (mash 3 very ripe, peeled bananas and freeze in ziplock bag)

Frozen whole bananas for smoothies

Bell pepper strips

Edamame (both in shell and shelled)

Mixed berries

Mango

 

Fresh Veggies/Fruit to have on hand

Most of these fruits and vegetables are affordable this time of year. The apples and oranges will keep for weeks in the produce drawer of your fridge, as will the carrots and celery. The potatoes, onions, and garlic will last several weeks as well, though they might start looking like aliens. For real.

Carrots (not the baby ones, the real ones)

Celery

Sweet Potatoes (stored in dark, room temperature pantry area)

White potatoes (stored the same way)

Onions (stored the same way)

Garlic (stored the same way)

Oranges

Apples (Macintosh for baking, Fuji or granny smith for eating)

Bananas (store at room temperature)

When on sale, a honey dew, cantaloupe or pineapple. They’re sweet if they smell sweet when you sniff the stem end. Let sit at room temperature several days and then cut up – if unsure of how to chop properly check out youtube).