Soup Essentials, Vol. 2: Ingredients/Pantry Staples

Time to get your pantry in a twist

Welcome back to Soup Academy!!! The last instalment covered tools and gadgets, today we’re talking pantry staples and key ingredients! The next instalment will go into the varied world of soups and how to master each type.

A well-stocked pantry can turn coming home from work from a hangry situation into a delicious and fun one. A bit of planning and one “big shop” every now and then can level up your cooking game immeasurably! I will admit that moving to Munich has made me much more foresighted on this front since the only establishments that sell anything food-related past 8 pm (or on Sundays) are gas stations.

A well-stocked pantry also enables you to create something from “nothing”. This sounds ironic considering the long list of ingredients I implore you to buy below, but the point is that you’re not buying these every day. When you store them correctly, some will last you months, if not years.

In a dream world, all of my herbs and spices would be stored in uniform containers, colour-coded and neatly stacked (see Joan Didion above).

The sections below are categorised as follows:

1. Wet Stuff (Oils, Vinegars, Sauces)

2. Dry Stuff (pantry-stable grains, starches, pastas, noodles, etc)

3. Flavourful Stuff (condiments)

4. Tinned, Canned, and Jarred Stuff

5. Spicy Stuff (Herbs + Spices)

6. Cold Stuff (Fridge)

7. Ice Cold Stuff (Freezer)

8. Fresh Stuff (Produce)

9. Fun Stuff