Here are the 12 fundamental essentials I always have stocked in my kitchen cupboards to make any simple dish into a star meal.
Here are the 12 fundamental essentials I always have stocked in my kitchen cupboards to make any simple dish into a star meal.
Soy sauce/Tamari
Soy sauce is a flavour enhancer, tenderiser used in marinades, dips and stir-fries. Soy sauce does contain wheat, so if you are gluten-intolerant, look for tamari sauce instead. The better the quality, the less you need to use. You can also find reduced salt Japanese soy sauce.
Sriracha or chilli sauce
Whether you’re a Tabasco lover or sriracha is more your thing. It’s Perfect for spicing something up when you need extra heat.
Maple syrup/honey
Honey is not just for toast or porridge. If you love Chinese cooking, a drizzle adds that bit of sweetness to balance the hot and the salty. It’s also fantastic in dipping sauces, rather than using sugar.
Spices
Suppose your style is Indian, cumin, coriander seeds and turmeric. For Spanish dishes, it’s paprika and saffron. For Chinese, five-spice Star anise. If you can, buy most as whole seeds or pods and grind your own. Great way to give any dish some va va voom!
Sea salt & Pepper
Sea salt or kosher is the salt you want. It has a pure taste, and you will use much less than standard table salt. (Which you should stay away from!) Also, buy whole peppercorns too.
Good extra virgin oils
Nut oils, such as walnut, are lovely in salads. Rapeseed oil is very on-trend, I love the taste, but a good Spanish, Greek or Italian Extra virgin olive oil is hard to beat.
Tinned anchovies/fish
A tin of anchovies, whether for a pasta sauce or cooking with a roast leg of lamb. Full of healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Tinned salmon is excellent for quick fish cakes or bulking out a fish pie.
Tinned chickpeas/pulses
High in protein, a must to add something a bit more to your everyday soup or salads. A tin of chickpeas is transformed into hummus with olive oil, tahini, lemon juice and garlic.
Dried mushrooms
With such a long shelf life, you rehydrate them in warm water, then strain them. You can use the soaking liquid too as a stock. They add a deep, savoury flavour to dishes such as risotto or add them to a beef casserole.
Nut butter
Almond/peanut/cashew butter is pretty versatile. It’s fantastic in a banana smoothie, great in cookies and makes an easy satay sauce for chicken and stir-fries. I’d recommend you use the coarse, rather than smooth, in recipes.
I hope this helps you cook up a storm!
Chef Joe
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