The Bare Necessities

First things first, check out this article from today's New York Times... http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/02/weekinreview/02bittman.html . It discusses the ease and benefits of cooking and how three easy recipes can present seemingly endless possibilities. Check it out, see what you think.

On to the soul of this posting, every cooks best friend, their go-to pantry items. Now I consider my pantry to be any item I have on hand 99% of the time, even if it doesn't technically live in the "pantry", but making sure you have your staples available will allow whipping up some dinner at the end of a long day a snap. So what, may you ask, should a pantry have?

Starting with the cupboard, I always have: Olive oil, canola or vegetable oil, cooking spray, kosher salt, pepper, honey, sriracha ( an asian red pepper sauce. Adds a touch of heat without the vinegar-y bite of Franks or Tabasco sauces), vinegar (I like red wine and apple vinegars), instant brown rice (any rice is fine, but I find my selection to be healthy and quick), a loaf of bread, whole wheat pasta, flour, sugar (white and light brown), peanut butter, garlic, red and yellow onions, and bread crumbs.

Moving on to the fridge/freezer: Eggs, milk, butter, a head of lettuce, lemons, salad dressing (I usually go with 2, one home made and one from the store), sliced and shredded cheeses, tortillas, and chicken.

From these basics, you only need a few other ingredients to create a weeks worth of meals. Some of the fresh items will need to be replaced more frequently (milk only lasts so long) but the majority will last you a while, only needing to be replaced every few months (give or take). And of coarse you will want to add your own favorites to your basics list. I also always have a variety of my favorite dried herbs and spices, supplies for baking (just in case the mood strikes), and a variety of my favorite veggies that I can toss in a salad or stir fry. But that's just me. I have a friend that is never short on wheat germ and apples. The boyfriend can't live without Franks Red Hot (which he gets by the gallon jug. Yeah, its a little disgusting). I have another friend who always has Nutella and Easy-Cheese. To each his own, but that's the point. It's all about figuring out what works for you.

So how do you get these staples? That's right the grocery store. Which we will be discussing tomorrow.

Happy Eating!