- Canned tomatoes
- Cream of mushroom/chicken soup
- Frozen corn and/or peas
- Canned veggies
- Rice
- Stock (chicken or vegetable)
I also usually keep ground beef or ground turkey in the freezer, which can be mixed into just about anything. It is really amazing how easily some of these items mix together and can change any dish.
One of our family's favorite recipes involves pork chops, stewed tomatoes and frozen corn, which is not a combination I would have ever thought of on my own. Someone else gave me the idea, and I ran with it. That one recipe helped me to figure out what kinds of things might taste good together. Now, when I stand at the pantry door, I can look at that weird collection of cans and think, "Oh! Those two will taste good together. I'll just add that to the chicken I have thawed out." An added bonus is that cooking this way usually means that dinner costs between $3-5 total, and we often have leftovers for another night!
So, what do you keep in your pantry? What are your must have's - things you can't live without? I encourage you to go look in your fridge or your pantry and make a meal from scratch. Experiment, mix something together you never would have thought of before ... and see what your family thinks. I'd love to hear any good ideas your come up with (or the bad ones, so I can avoid making the same mistakes!).
My pantry "must haves" include: frozen veggies- love Costco's giant bags of organic green beans, corn, peas, etc. I personally have to have a veggie with every meal and get frustrated if I don't have any, buying these giant bags make this frustration a rare occurance; ground beef or turkey; a bag of costco chicken tenders; yoshida's sauce; costco pack of diced tomatoes; sandwich thins (for burgers, sandwiches, garlic bread with spaghetti, etc.); a pack of chicken burgers from Costco for easy effortless dinners; tomato paste (I use it in my spaghetti sauce); always have onions on hand, sauteed onions make any dish yummier and more exciting somehow; I think that's it.....
ReplyDeleteHa ha, Costco has earned a LOT of my business obviously!!
I just stocked up on those very chicken tenders you're talking about, Patti! They do come in handy. Another one that I forgot about that is great are the all white meat chicken nuggets that Costco sells. 90 seconds in the microwave, a handful of veggies, a piece of fruit, and my munchkin has a meal. So handy!! I also usually have tomato sauce & tomato paste on hand, although not as often as I used to. Thanks for the ideas!
ReplyDeleteMy must haves:
ReplyDeleteonions- cheap and flavorful
minced garlic- the big jar cause it adds zest to anything
broccoli- a personal favorite and always in season
whole wheat pasta in various shapes
rice
lemon juice- you'd be surprized how a few drops can add that something special to an ordinary meal
and cheese, my fridge is rarly lacking in cheese
Also my favorite accidental recipe happened a few months back. I was making spaghetti so I cooked the noodles choped some onions, black olives, mushrooms, garlic, and tossed in some leftover taco meat. I went to the pantry and grabbed the jar of speghetti sauce to pour on the veggie mix and heat up, but the jar had not been properly sealed and it had gone south on me. I squirted a tablespoon of katsup and of olive oil into the mix to stick it together and heated it anyway. I dumped the whole thing into the noodles and it was fantastic!
That sounds yummy, Amy! I love using leftover taco meat in things like spaghetti - adds a little extra zest to the meal. :) And I hear ya on the cheese ... I currently have cheddar, american, mozzarella, colby jack & a shredded mexican mix in my fridge. I usually have lemon juice on hand too, but I actually tend to use lime juice more often. Used it for a couple recipes & now I'm hooked on it - has a little more zing than the lemon juice, or something. Oh ... and thanks for the reminder that I need to restock my minced garlic supply!!
ReplyDelete