What do I need to set up a well stocked pantry?

[momtoS]

I often RUN out of the items I need to make meals....especially if something comes up were I miss a shopping day or when times are tight...like Christmas!

How do I build a pantry from almost nothing? What are essentials?

[wife&mommy]

I think it's different for everyone. What do you normally use? Make sure to have those things on hand. We usually have (mostly organic) flour (lots of different kinds), sugar, oil (all different kinds of this too), beans, refried beans, rice, yeast, pumpkin, wow I could go on but I'd have to look to get specifics. I know I have a link on this somewhere, I'll look for it.

[wife&mommy]

Ah here is one... http://www.menus4moms.com/articles/pantry_list.php

[Tilia]

Personally, I stock up on:

boxed chicken broth, because I don't make my own
brown rice
pasta
black beans
chili beans
tomato sauce
tomato juice
enchilada sauce
diced tomatoes
black olives
green chilies
pancake mix

[ErinBird]

I have a seasonal list of recipes that I keep all ingredients on hand for. Its simple stuff like lentil soup, a rice and egg based casserole, pasta with vegetables, burritos. I make a point to replace the ingredients for those things before they run out- short grain brown rice, black beans, frozen spinach and broccoli, tomato sauce, dried pasta, lentils, etc.

I also maintain a well stocked spice box, which enables me to flavor the same four things very differently if need be.

[mamadelbosque]

IDk, I think its a very personal question. What do YOU cook with? What do you use every single week? Every day? I have a LOT of food in storage. I admit, we're stock pilers. Probably have a good 3-6 month supply of food, maybe more. But before I really started stock piling I still made sure that I ALWAYS had the following:

brown rice
pinto beans
black beans
lentils (various types)
canned tomatoes
canned broths (chicken, vegetable)
canned coconut milk
onions
potatoes
lots of spices & herbs
frozen veggies

I basicly still have all those things. The difference now is simply quantity - rather than having 5lb bags of rice or beans, I now buy 25# bags, and when one starts to get low I buy another - so I ALWAYS have at least 25# of each.

[siobhang]

Our pantry/fridge/freezer always has:

pasta (various sorts)
rice (various sorts)
potatoes
onions
herbs/spices
canned tomaotes (paste, sauce, and whole)
canned peas
dried mushrooms
peanut butter (crunchy and smooth)
flour (all purpose, bread and whole wheat)
yeast
sugar (various sorts)
corn starch
butter, shortening, veg oil, olive oil
chicken breasts (frozen)
turkey mince (frozen)
chicken broth (homemade)
various frozen veg
cheese
salami
crackers
milk
buttermilk