How To Stock a Pantry

How To Stock a Pantry

As a nutritionist and Avon Wellness Consultant I teach clients and customers how to lead a healthy lifestyle. Stocking a healthy pantry is one of the tools I share with clients transiting into a fresh real clean whole plant based lifestyle. Below is a simple quick guide to help you get started. 

Keep these ingredients on hand in your kitchen pantry so you can make a delicious, nutritious meal every night of the week.

I tell my clients all the time that just because life is busy, dinner doesn't have to be. A well-stocked pantry is the best way to ensure you'll have everything you need to make a healthy and flavorful dinner every night, even on the busiest weeks when stopping at the grocery store just isn't realistic. A combination of classic pantry staples (like canned tomatoes, chicken broth and canned beans) and flavor-boosting convenience items (like herb mixes, soy sauce and jarred pesto) are key to keeping your kitchen dinner-ready full of healthy foods. No need for expensive takeout when you have what you need to make a healthy dinner at home.

This kitchen pantry list below includes many of the items you need to prepare healthy recipes, plus a few other ingredients that will make impromptu meals easier and more delightful. If you're building a healthy pantry from scratch, start with the basics and slowly expand your pantry with some of the other ingredients as you're trying new recipes and cooking techniques.

Pantry Basics

• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Canola or grapeseed oil
• Unsalted butter
• Mayonnaise (olive-oil mayo has less saturated fat)
• White, red-wine, white-wine and cider vinegars
• Sriracha
• Dijon mustard
• Ketchup

Extra

   

      Flavorful nut and seed oils, such as toasted sesame oil and walnut oil

• Balsamic and rice-wine vinegars
• Reduced-sodium soy sauce
• Fish sauce
• Hoisin sauce
• Chile-garlic sauce
• Curry paste
• Kalamata olives and green olives
• Capers
• Barbecue sauce
• Worcestershire sauce
• Hot sauce

Pantry Basics

• Salt, including Kosher salt, coarse sea salt and fine salt
• Black peppercorns
• Onions
• Fresh garlic
• Dried herbs: bay leaves, dried thyme leaves, dried oregano, Italian seasoning blend
• Spices: chili powder, ground cinnamon, ground cumin, curry powder, dry mustard, paprika, cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper, turmeric, garlic powder
• Citrus: Lemons, limes, oranges. The zest is as valuable as the juice. Organic fruit is recommended when you use a lot of zest.
• Granulated sugar
• Brown sugar
• Honey

Extra

• Fresh ginger (store in the freezer for longer life)
• Anchovies or anchovy paste for flavoring pasta sauces and salad dressings
• Dried herbs: dill, crumbled dried sage, tarragon
• Spices: allspice (whole berries or ground), caraway seeds, cinnamon sticks, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, ground ginger, nutmeg, za'atar
• Pure maple syrup
• Unsweetened cocoa powder, natural and/or Dutch-processed
• Bittersweet chocolate, semisweet chocolate chips

Pantry Basics

• Canned tomatoes, tomato paste
• No-salt-added diced tomatoes
• Reduced-sodium chicken broth, beef broth and/or vegetable broth
• Canned beans: cannellini beans, great northern beans, chickpeas, black beans, red kidney beans

Extra

• Clam juice
• Light coconut milk
• Canned tuna (chunk light) and salmon

Pantry Basics

• Whole-wheat flour and whole-wheat pastry flour
• All-purpose flour
• Assorted whole-wheat pastas
• Brown rice and instant brown rice
• Rolled oats
• Whole-wheat breadcrumbs
• Whole-wheat panko breadcrumbs

Extra

• Pearl barley, quick-cooking barley
• Whole-wheat couscous
• Bulgur
• Dried lentils
• Yellow cornmeal
• Dried beans (black, cannellini, garbanzo)
• Polenta

Pantry Basics

• Walnuts
• Pecans
• Almonds
• Dry-roasted unsalted peanuts
• Natural peanut butter
• 
  
• Extra

• Hazelnuts
• Pine nuts
• Sesame seeds
• Tahini
• Natural almond butter
• Assorted dried fruits, such as apricots, prunes, cherries, cranberries, dates, figs, raisins

Fridge Basics

• Low-fat milk or soymilk
• Unsweetened coconut or oat milk beverage
• Low-fat or nonfat plain or Greek yogurt
• Reduced-fat sour cream
• Good-quality Parmesan cheese and/or Romano cheese
• Sharp Cheddar cheese
• Eggs (large)
• 
  
• Fridge Extra

• Orange juice
• Blue cheese
• Dry white wine
• Water-packed tofu

Freezer Basics

• Frozen vegetables: edamame soybeans, peas, spinach, broccoli, bell pepper and onion mix, corn, chopped onions, small whole onions, uncooked hash browns
• Frozen berries
• Italian turkey sausage
• Fish fillets
• Falafel
• Whole-wheat pizza dough
• 
  
• Freezer Extra

• Fruit-juice concentrates (orange, apple, pineapple)
• Sliced prosciutto to flavor fast pasta sauces
• Frozen yogurt for impromptu desserts
• Whole-grain bread