Whether you’re whipping up a batch of chili with dried beans or using flour to make gluten free pizza crust, having versatile cooking ingredients in your pantry makes delicious dinners a breeze.
Food pantry items, like their fridge and freezer counterparts, are essential to making your time in the kitchen efficient and fun. From lentils and dried beans to quinoa, make sure these staple ingredients are on your shopping list the next time you venture to the grocery store.
You’ll find that having these 15 ingredients on hand will help you to prepare fabulous dinners every night (without those extra trips to the store).
Oil
Having a variety of oils in your pantry will help you get creative in the kitchen—and make for some fun dinners and side dishes. Extra virgin olive oil, sesame oil and coconut oil can jazz up your dishes in no time! Try coconut oil and seasonings in your brown rice, extra virgin olive oil in your salad dressings, and sesame oil with your chicken to make it especially delicious.
Garlic
Garlic is one of our favorite cooking ingredients of all time. You can dice it up and add it to any sort of grain-based dish (like quinoa, rice or barley). You can also use an immersion blender to mince it with fresh parsley and olive oil to pour over chicken for a flavorful herb-based sauce with bite.
Lentils
Lentils are such a quick legume to prepare, plus they’re wonderful in soups. They also make for a lovely weeknight salad when tossed with a vinaigrette and paired with veggies you may have in the fridge. In Middle Eastern cuisine, lentils are often served over rice and topped with caramelized onions and a dollop of sour cream or plain yogurt.
Vinegar
Vinegars are a go-to for everything from salads to chicken marinades. Though we’re fans of them all, we’re particularly fond of apple cider vinegar. Throw it in coleslaw to add tang, add it to your pesto, or incorporate it into your fish marinades. If you have some mayo on hand and are whipping up a batch of deviled eggs to go alongside your dinner, add a few splashes of apple cider vinegar to the mix.
Stock or Broth
The wonders of stock and broth are endless. You can use them for all sorts of soups or sub them in place of water when cooking rice (it’s so decadent!). During the cooler months, you can use your broths for hearty soups like sausage, collard greens and lentil soup. When it’s warmer, use that broth for a homemade miso soup, paired with sushi rolls or barbecued teriyaki salmon.
Beans
Like many of the other ingredients on this list, the possibilities for delicious bean-based dinners abound. Use beans to whip up a vegetarian burrito, make a big batch of chili for your family or add them to salads (we love bean salads in the summertime and wintertime—just switch up the spices based on what flavors the season calls for).
Hot Sauce
The best thing about hot sauce is that it can make even the most mundane leftovers taste glorious. Throw a splash of hot sauce on top of cheesy scrambled eggs as breakfast-for-dinner, or add a few dashes to your chicken and rice dish to spice it up. We’re convinced one of the best and easiest dinners is a stir fry with protein, veggies, beans, rice and hot sauce.
Quinoa
Quinoa is a nutritious wonder food and a delicious substitute for rice. Quinoa is always one of our staple ingredients for nightly meals. Not only does it add protein and fiber to your dinner, but it cooks up in roughly 15 minutes. It’s a great side dish to serve alongside fish and a simple green salad. You can also toss it into stews and soups.
Rice
No pantry is complete without a good brown rice. Its subtle earthy, mild flavor pairs with just about anything else you might be whipping up, and it tastes so good with some simple herbs and seasonings. Go for creative variations by adding in the citrus juice of your choice alongside chopped fresh parsley or basil.
Flour
Whether you’re looking to make bread, pizza, pasta, crackers or biscuits, flour is your best friend. Today, there are so many options for alternative flours, like Almond Flour, Coconut Flour, Gluten Free Flour, and Chickpea Flour, in addition to Whole Wheat Flours and All Purpose White Flours. We suggest keeping an assortment on hand to help keep your dinner rotation lively and interesting.
Pasta
If you aren’t mixing that dough and rolling out your pasta by hand on a Wednesday night after work, better keep a few packages of pasta in your pantry. We find the type of noodle is entirely dependent upon our moods—sometimes we’re yearning for spaghetti and other times it’s a bowtie-shaped farfalle we’re hankering for.
Salsa
Pantries and cupboards can often be filled with jars upon jars, but perhaps one of the best is the jar of salsa. Keep a red variety, a green variety, and a fun variety (like mango or pineapple) on hand. These can be thrown on white fish, added to the slow cooker with chicken for an easy taco night, or just eaten as a pre-dinner snack with some homemade guac and tortilla chips.
Rolled Oats
If you’ve never done it, oatmeal for dinner is a true treat. To keep things simple, throw a sunny-side-up egg on top of your oats with a bit of cheese mixed in. Add onions and peppers if you have them for a beautiful and tasty dinner bowl.
Barley
Barley can be added to soups and salads, or served as a side dish, but it’s extra wonderful when made into a simple casserole with roasted tomatoes. Add some bread crumbs for crunch and pair with your best tunes.
Cooking by Ingredients: Dinner Recipes
From tortilla soup to chicken pot pie, here are a handful of our favorite pantry staples (put into dinner recipes).
5-Ingredient Mexican Quinoa
This hearty 5-Ingredient Mexican Quinoa from brilliant Chef Billy Parisi is packed with so much flavor and protein. It’s loaded with peppers, tomatoes, corn, beans and cilantro, and can easily be eaten as a delicious main dish.
5-Ingredient Almond Chicken Tenders
These easy 5-Ingredient Almond Chicken Tenders are where versatile Almond Flour comes into play. Juicy chicken is coated in seasoned almond flour and served alongside honey mustard or BBQ sauce for dipping. A gluten free and kid-friendly dinner is served!
Gluten Free Deep Dish Pizza
This Gluten Free Deep Dish Pizza is made with our Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour and comes packed with cheese, meat and sauce, for the ultimate pizza Friday dinner. Add your favorite toppings, choose your favorite flick, sit back and enjoy.
Tortilla Soup with Red Lentils
This recipe for Tortilla Soup with Red Lentils puts a twist on the classic tortilla soup recipe by incorporating slightly sweet Red Lentils. Serve it in bowls with a sprinkle of tortilla chips and a slice of lime for a special yet simple dinner.
Gluten Free Chicken Pot Pie
This Gluten Free Chicken Pot Pie is made with a creamy chicken filling with herbs wrapped in a crispy crust made from a mix of Almond Flour, Sweet Rice Flour and Tapioca Flour. You can make the dish the night before you want to cook it for a little week-night meal planning, and the recipe can be made as one big pie or six individual pies.
Spicy Vegan Farro Chili
Our Spicy Vegan Farro Chili utilizes a variety of wonderful pantry ingredients: vegetable broth, Organic Farro, Red Kidney Beans,canned tomatoes, canned corn and garlic. Once your ingredients are all set in your slow cooker, simply sit back and relax. In 50 minutes, garnish with fresh cilantro and enjoy.
Tomato Basil Lentil Salad
Another way to utilize Red Lentils, vinegar and garlic is with this fresh and fragrant Tomato Basil Lentil Salad. Throw this dish together when you have extra tomatoes on hand and are looking for a light and refreshing salad. The fresh basil in combination with the feta and parmesan cheese is delightful.
Cooking by ingredients--and making sure you have the necessary pantry staples on hand to do so--is a stress-free way to integrate more variety into your daily dinner routine. With these 15 cooking ingredients, you’ll be whipping up everything from vegan chilis to breaded chicken tenders in no time.
Have any pantry ingredient that are great additions to your pantry you just can’t live without? Share them with us in the comments below!
We want your ingredient inspiration. Happy eating!
You have new things I haven't tried, but will. I live 95 miles from the nearest store with any amount of Bob's Red Mill products, so I'm making a LIST. Thank you for producing quality, healthy foods.