Do you still have packets and bottles full of spices or other ingredients you bought to cook that one dish months or even years ago? If so, you’re not alone - buying ingredients exclusively for one or two dishes is a mistake we all make from time to time, but it would certainly be better to use up food ingredients and have as many versatile foods in your kitchen as possible. This way, even if you end up having just one or two things in your fridge or pantry, you’ll still be able to whip up a quick and fresh meal. The 15 foods we feature on this list are all serious multi-taskers, so even if you stock up on these, you’ll save on money and valuable kitchen space by using them.
1. Eggs
It's hardly surprising that eggs are the
first item on this list since they are a truly universal and nutritious
food. You can eat them alone by either boiling them, preparing eggs
Benedict or a good old omelet, or you can combine them with pretty much
anything a make a wide range of foods that includes sauces, breakfasts,
desserts, and even dinners like a frittata. Also, it's important to note
that eggs can be stored for quite a long time, so it's always a good
idea to stock up on them.
2. Rice
Rice is another one of those staple foods
that last for ages in your pantry, are easy to cook and are incredibly
versatile. There are different rice varieties, each having a slightly
different taste and nutritional profile, but having pretty much any
variety will come extremely handy as a side dish, a dessert (e.g. rice
pudding), or a main dish such as a stir-fry. Even simply cooking up some
rice and combining it with steamed or cooked veggies topped with a
sunny-side-up egg will make a perfect and quick weekday dinner.
Keep in mind, however, that refrigerating and reheating cooked rice can
be tricky and may affect your health if you don't do it properly, so
make sure to always store cooked rice in a separate container and never
reheat it more than once.
3. Lemons and Limes
If you don't want to stock up on a whole
array of bottles filled with sauces and condiments, which apart from
being expensive, can also take up way too much space in the fridge,
lemons and limes should be your best friends. By mixing lemons with any
oil and some spices, for example, you'll have the perfectly serviceable
homemade salad dressing.
A squeeze of lemon juice will also brighten the flavor and be that
finishing touch to any dish, be it fish and seafood, soups, grilled meat
or pasta. You can even use lemons to make desserts, such as a lemon
tart, lemon cookies, or even a delicious lemon souffle!
4. Stock
Having a jar full of simple vegetable or
chicken stock is a secret trick many chefs utilize. For one, you can
heat it up and add a bit of pasta and greens to it for a quick soup, but
you can also use it instead of water when you're cooking rice, making
cream soups, mashed potatoes, pasta, and steamed veggies. By doing so,
you'll be able to really enhance the flavor of these foods while adding
nutrients.
5. Greek Yogurt
Greek yogurt is a high-protein food that
can be used in so many ways! To prepare a quick mid-day snack, you can
mix Greek yogurt with some herbs and spices to make a delicious dip for
veggies. Other ways to use Greek yogurt is by substituting it instead of
milk or sour cream in recipes like mashed potatoes, soups, and
pancakes, or by adding it to homemade salad dressings. The options are
endless - you can even top it up with some fruit and granola for a
healthy and nutritious breakfast!
6. Oats
Oats are a staple breakfast ingredient in
our kitchen, as they are quick to make and can be combined with both
sweet and savory toppings. An even quicker breakfast is one you can
prepare the night before, and nothing beats overnight oats in this
respect. It is also nice to add a spoonful of oats to your smoothie to
increase its fiber and protein content or blend them up to make
gluten-free oat flour.
As you can see, oats are not limited to breakfasts, and you can even
prepare homemade oat milk, granola and a wide variety of healthy
desserts like cookies and muffins. Lastly, oats don't expire quickly, so
you'll surely use them all up.
7. Flour
Flour is the original versatile food, and
it's no secret that you can pretty much use it to make any kind of baked
goods out there, as well as homemade pasta. Sure, working with flour
requires a bit more skill and effort from the cook, but the results are
very well worth it. After all, why should you pay for pizza dough when
you can make a better version on your own for a fraction of the price?
Lastly, don't forget that you can use flour to make bechamel sauce and
thicken up many sauces and soups, so flour is an obvious must-have in
any kitchen.
8. Soy sauce
8. Soy sauce
If there's one condiment we're willing to
tolerate in the kitchen, it's probably soy sauce, mostly because it has a
long shelf life and can make any dish tastier and more interesting in
an instant. You can use it for obvious recipes, such as a stir-fry or a
dip for sushi, dumplings, and whatnot, but truly, soy sauce can be used
to season pretty much any food, such as salads, marinades for fish and
meat, and glazes.
9. Butter
https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations
Yes, butter is quite high in animal fats,
but if used in moderation, it can become an invaluable ingredient in
your kitchen, and it doesn't matter if you're a seasoned cook and use it
to make sauces and beautiful desserts, or you just want to make a pasta
sauce and French toast from time to time. We'd like to point out that
full-fat butter is much better for you than margarine, as the latter
contains a lot of trans-fats, which are much worse for your heart and
digestive health than the fats present in butter.
10. Canned tomatoes
Canned tomatoes are an excellent
alternative to fresh ones, and using them instead of fresh tomatoes for
pasta sauces, chili, soups, and stews is actually more convenient.
Needless to say, canned tomatoes also have quite a long shelf life, so
even if you have a few cans in your pantry to whip up an occasional
evening pasta quickly, these will come in handy. You can also make
shakshuka, a popular Middle Eastern egg-based breakfast stew, using
canned tomatoes instead of fresh ones.
11. Dairy or Plant Milk
There are very few ingredients that double
up as a drink, a companion to your morning coffee, or something you can
use to make breakfast, soup, sauce, dinner, or dessert. Milk is one of
those ingredients, and both plant milks and dairy milk will do the job.
The possibilities are truly infinite.
Do keep in mind, though, that while dairy milk is pretty much universal,
it does have a shorter shelf-life than plant-based milks and not
everyone can drink it. Navigating through the kind of plant milk that
will work best for a task, however, can be tricky, and I recommend
reading my next post.
12. Avocado
Avocado toast and guacamole sure are
delicious but don't underestimate the possibilities of this creamy and
incredibly healthy food. For one, you can add it into salads or
smoothies to make them creamier and more filling, but avocado is also an
excellent dairy substitute in sauces that will add the same creaminess
to the sauce. You can even use avocados instead of butter or cream in
some baking and dessert recipes.
13. Frozen Veggies
Taking all that time and effort to chop up
vegetables is a luxury we can't afford at times, but we still need to
eat vegetables on a daily basis, so what should we do when we don't have
all that time for peeling a chopping? The solution is frozen veggies,
which are already sold pre-cut and have the same nutritional benefit as
fresh ones. Simply steam them and serve as a side dish, add them to a
soup, a stew, a stir-fry, or a frittata - you name it. Truly, you can
make a whole variety of quick and nutritious meals out of frozen
veggies.
14. Potatoes
Potatoes had to make an appearance on this
list, as the variety of foods you can make using them is huge. Also,
potatoes are much healthier than you think, and they will benefit your
health if you eat them in moderation. All in all, you can make breakfast
foods, such as hash browns or potato pancakes, side dishes like mashed
potatoes and baked potato wedges, or main dishes like shepherd's pie
from potatoes. You can also use them in soups and stews to add substance
and creaminess.
15. Legumes
Nearly all legumes, such as chickpeas,
peas, beans or lentils, can be used in a variety of ways in your
kitchen. Apart from being super healthy and packed with proteins,
legumes are mostly inexpensive, have a long shelf life and typically
come in both dry and canned versions. You can make dips, such as hummus,
out of chickpeas, you can add legumes to soups and salads, and you can
make main dishes using beans, chickpeas, or lentils as a base or even a
substitute for meat.
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