whats in your kitchen?

[CalebsMama05]

trying to eat healthier, from scratch etc and I found that I have nothing for *ingredients* so what does everyone have that they use a lot? what are your staples?

I have flour and sugar and a few spices. (and a couple bags of great northern beans )

[velcromom]

Some things I find I use the most to cook from scratch: (mind you I am pregnant and eating like a horse with reckless abandon, lol, trying to keep it non-processed and reasonably healthy)

eggs
whole wheat pastry flour (I mix with white for things I know the kids won't eat completely whole wheat, but we're working on that, lol)
quinoa
kashi 7grain pilaf
steel-cut oats
bags of pinto, black, northern and butter beans
tomato sauce (we go through a lot of this!)
garlic
onions
celery
carrots
basil (puree and freeze so you have it on hand, tastes better than dry)
tortillas
cheese
salsa
broth (trying to build a stash of homemade & stop using store-bought)
butter especially for making a roux when I need a sauce/gravy
a good soy sauce
dry herbs for seasoning - rosemary and fennel, maybe thyme & sage too

we use either fresh or frozen veggies, our favorites are the seasonal things

I love a meal with a sauce, lol, so as long as I have the ingredients to make a sauce or gravy, I can make dinner. My dh is the one who can put a dinner together and never consider a sauce, I'm like, where's the wet stuff? lol

One thing I have relied a lot on is white pasta, but I'm trying to use less.

[Mihelinka]

Cans of different kinds of beans
Canned whole tomatoes
capers
spices
eggs
cheese
pasta & rice, all types, sizes, shapes
onions, scallions, shallots
garlic
tomato paste in tube
flour, sugar
flour tortillas
buttermilk

[rainyday]

dry beans: black, pinto, chickpeas, split peas, different kinds of lentils, lima
canned beans for when I forget to soak them
cans and boxes of tomatoes: puree, diced, paste
canned pumpkin
canned artichoke hearts
vegeteable broth (keep homemade in freezer and boxes in pantry)
ww pastry flour (I get a very fine soft kind and use it for almost everything, even cake)
ww flour for breads and pizza crusts
unbleached white flour (rarely used by me, gets loaned to the neighbors a lot)
sugar
brown sugar
honey
maple syrup
cornmeal
whole barley flour (use with ww pastry flour in lots of things)
oatmeal
oat bran cereal (hot cereal)
pasta: big variety
brown rice (short-grain) I keep this in freezer so it doesn't go rancid
basmati rice
masa for making corn tortillas (pretty fast, easy, and way better than bought)
corn and flour tortillas (in freezer)
buns and bread (in freezer)
veggie dogs (in freezer)
ginger root (in freezer)
lots of spices (use chili powder, cumin, oregano, thyme, cinnamon, cloves, and garam masala the most)
frozen vegetables: peas, edamame, corn, green beans, broccoli (use in casseroles, good to have on hand for when I haven't been to the store)
buttermilk powder (in freezer)
eggs
milk
butter
cheese
carrots
celery
green onions
potatoes
onions
garlic
winter squash (fall-spring)
sun-dried tomatoes
dried porcini mushrooms
bouillon
oils
vinegars (balsamic, ACV, seasoned rice wine)
assorted condiments: ketchup, mustard, olives, capers, salsas

I almost always have the above stuff on hand, and I can make lots of different meals out of these things when I haven't made it to the store for the fresh veggies our meals usually center around. It looks like a long list, but we use most of it pretty regularly. The dried tomatoes and mushrooms may only get used once or twice a year, but they also don't take up much space, and they don't go bad.

[Beppie]

an Indian pantry

My DH is from India so I always have stuff on hand to whip up curries in a hurry. Those ingredients are:

TONS of spices --- cinnamon sticks & powder, cardamom pods & powder, whole cloves & powder, whole pepper, mustard seeds, fenugreek, fennel, paprika, cayenne, garlic & ginger powder, nutmeg, cumin (seeds & ground), coriander, turmeric, etc...
Canned coconut milk
Canned organic tomatoes (in winter especially, it's hard to get good tomatoes)
Onions
Garlic Paste & regular garlic
Ginger & Ginger paste
Curry Leaves
fresh hot Green chilies
Tamarind and Kodumpuli (south Indian dried fruit for Fish curries)

for other kitchen needs I rely on flour, baking soda/powder, cornstarch, rice, rice flour & cream of rice, canned things like clams and tuna, chicken & vegetable broth for making homemade soups, lots of kinds of beans (red lentils are my favorite, also black beans, yellow split peas, Indian dals, pinto beans, etc.), lots of kinds of pasta, and frozen foods like blueberries (for breakfast), veggies for soups, potatoes... plus we love to eat fish (from India) so our freezer is stocked with fish.

This is all offhand... not sure what I've left out.

[lexapurple]

How do you guys make and store your broths?

[AarenLisbeth]

Originally Posted by lexapurple

How do you guys make and store your broths?

The best way I've found to store broths is to put some large amounts into cleaned out large yougert containers and freeze, but the ultimate time saving trick is to freeze broths/stocks in several ice cube trays and when frozen transfer into bags' jars etc. This gives just the right amount for making graveys etc. on the fly. I also use the latter trick for pestos and tapenades too.