My Recommended Basic Ingredients for Any Young Person’s Kitchen Based on Location
Fridge
The fridge is a critical component of every kitchen and without it food born illness would rage against humans across America. Luckily, we all have fridges to keep bacteria growth slow so here are some of things I recommened you try to keep stocked in yours.
Sauces
Mayo
Ketchup
Caesar Salad Dressing
Long Lasting Produce
Garlic on a jar or squeeze bottle
(Optional) Shallots in a jar or bottle
(Optional) Basil in a jar or bottle
warning the basil gets moldy much faster than the other two
Dairy
Whole milk
(Optional) Heavy Cream
Blocks of Cheese if you have a grater shredded if not
cheddar
parmesan
swiss
(optional) pepper-jack
Butter
Eggs
Eggs last a while but if you find yourself tossing old eggs ever don’t buy a whole dozen buy 6 at a time instead most grocery stores carry half dozen cartons
Pantry
The pantry is the central hub for all non-perishable foods used in most recipes and can be used to keep many products designed to ease the time it takes to make a meal for example most people don’t have the time to hand make pasta every time they want a bowl of gluten-y goodness so they get dry pasta made without eggs that can sit in a pantry for years without going bad that are cooked in the same way as fresh pasta.
Dry Pasta and Starches
Angel Hair, Bowtie, Penne, Fettuccini
(Optional) Udon Noodles
(Optional) Chinese Rice Noodles
White Rice
(Optional) Wild Rice
Much Healthier than White rice, however, more complex and less applicable texture
Canned Items
Canned Tomatoes
Canned or Boxed Chicken Broth
Caned or Boxed Beef Broth
Make sure to refigerate the Beef and Chicken Broth after opening
Not necessary if instant stock (in the spice cabinet list) is more your style
Either Granola or some sort of Nut like Walnuts Cashews or Almonds
Helpful in many recipes to add a healthy crunch to the dish without using oil to fry
Baking
All Purpose Flour
White Sugar
Brown Sugar
(Optional) Powdered Sugar
(Optional) Sprinkles!
(Optional) Cake/Brownie mixes
Cake and Brownie mixes and all those things keep for a very long time and are great when you have particularly strong munchies, need something sweet to quench them, and can wait about an hour start to finish
Spice Cabinet
Ok first things first Seasoning and Flavoring are different things. Seasonings go on and in everything at every step of the cooking process while Flavorings are added at specific times and in specific amounts. Seasonings help bring out the flavor of flavorings in the right quantities, so both are important.
Seasonings
Salt Grinder with any salt but iodized salt in it
Pepper Grinder with black peppercorns
(Optional) Flaky Sea Salt
(Optional) Ground White Pepper
Flavorings
Cooking
Ground Smoked Paprika
Ground Cayenne Pepper
Crushed Red Pepper
Ground Cumin
Whole Dried Bay Leaves
Dried Oregano
Dried Thyme
(Optional) Garlic Powder
(Optional) Onion Powder
(Optional) Instant Broth, Chicken and Beef
Baking
Ground Cinnamon
Ground Nutmeg
(Optional) Ground Clove