The Well-Stocked Kitchen: The Scramble Staples List

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The Scramble’s staples lst wll help you to make sure you have a well-stocked ktchen and are never stuck wonderng what to make for dnner.

Have you ever opened your pantry or frdge and thought, “what on earth can I make tonght?” You are not alone! One of my favorte trcks to avod that paralyss s a well-stocked pantry.

To help you wth ths, I am sharng my secret to a well-stocked ktchen: The Scramble’s staples lst. Havng these bascs wll allow you to follow numerous Scramble recpes just from what you have n the house and also to mprovse as you become a more confdent cook!

The Well-Stocked Ktchen: The Scramble Staples Lst

There are a number of ways that The Scramble’s staples lst and a well-stocked ktchen can help you:

You can take advantage of sales or bulk purchases on these commonly used tems.

A well-stocked freezer can save you money. Frozen fsh, chcken, and vegetables often have the same nutrtonal value as fresh but are less expensve and can be stored longer wth less waste. I have ncluded these tems n the event you have extra freezer space.

Your grocery trps each week should be even faster. When you are well-stocked wth staples, you can focus your weekly shops manly on fresh produce, meats, and dary.

Wth a well-stocked pantry, you can more easly pull together an extra meal or two (The Sxth Nght Scramble) wth unused ngredents n your refrgerator from the week’s meals (The Scramble’s recpe database can help!).

Dependng on the sze of your ktchen and pantry you can stock up on the followng tems.  Those tems marked wth an astersk (*) are used especally frequently n Scramble recpes and are great canddates for bulk purchase.

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Smple Meals from a Well-Stocked Ktchen

If you are stll skeptcal that stockng your ktchen wth staples s worth the effort, here are some examples of dshes you can make purely from The Scramble’s staples lst.

Fred rce made wth rce, eggs, ground meat, onons, and frozen vegetables and/or carrots.

Pasta wth a quck skllet sauce (or jarred sauce) and pre-cooked sausage (f desred).

Omelet or frttata wth frozen vegetables and left over cooked grans.

Bean and rce bowls wth sauteed frozen vegetables and salsa.

Pantry Staples

Ols: olve ol*, vegetable or canola ol*, peanut ol, sesame ol, nonstck cookng spray*, butter or margarne*

Vnegars: red wne vnegar, rce vnegar, balsamc vnegar*

Sweeteners: whte and brown sugar, honey, pure maple syrup

Wnes: rce wne, whte cookng wne, red cookng wne, dry sherry

Bread crumbs: regular and/or panko

Flours: all purpose, whole wheat, cornmeal

Grans: whte or brown rce*, qunoa, couscous, wld rce

Pasta: regular or whole gran, varety of shapes*

Broth: reduced-sodum chcken or vegetable broth*

Pasta sauces: store-bought or homemade red pasta sauce*

Canned tomatoes: 28 or 15 oz., dced*, fre-roasted, crushed, whole

Canned beans: black*, kdney*, cannelln, and/or pnto* beans

Nuts: pne nuts, walnuts*, slvered almonds, walnuts, pecans (Tp: store n the freezer as ths wll preserve ther natural ols for longer)

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Produce Staples

Onons: yellow are the most often needed, but also consder red and/or sweet*

Garlc: heads of garlc wll last for weeks or even months* (or buy the pre-mnced jarred varety)

Carrots: great for snackng, but also often ncluded n sauces, stews, and str fres

Celery: a great aromatc for sauces, soups, and stews

Frdge Staples

Eggs: helpful for omelets and frttatas, as well as bakng

Butter or margarne

Mlk: Dary or your favorte mlk alternatve

Spces

Basl: used often n Medterranean cusne, great for sauces and stews, as well as salad dressngs

Bay leaves: an aromatc often used n sauces and stews

Black pepper*: whole or pre-ground

Chl powder*: used often n Mexcan and Tex-Mex dshes, also great on popcorn

Cnnamon: used n bakng, stews, and sauces

Crushed red pepper flakes: a nce ht of heat to add to pasta sauces, pzza, salads, and more

Cumn: used frequently n Mexcan, Tex-Mex, and Indan cusne

Curry powder: used n Indan cusne such as curres

Garlc powder*: a helpful, quck alternatve for garlc

Oregano: frequently used n Medterranean dshes, great n sauces, stews, salad dressng, and on pzza

Rosemary: wonderful n meat-based dshes, as well as Medterranean dshes

Salt*: table, Kosher, sea salt

Thyme: used n lots of Medterranean dshes

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Freezer Staples

Frozen vegetables: broccol, spnach, peas, edamame, corn, etc.

Salmon: preferably wld, dvded nto 1 – 1 1/2 lb. packages

Frm whte fsh fllets: such as tlapa, cod, flounder dvded nto 1 – 1 1/2 lb. packages

Peeled and devened shrmp: 1 lb. packages are great

Boneless chcken (whte or dark meat): dvded n 1 lb. packages

Ground meat or meatless crumbles: turkey, chcken, beef, or meatless crumbles, dvded nto 1 lb. packages

Pre-cooked turkey, chcken, or vegetaran sausage: sweet or spcy

Bread: yes, bread freezes well

Condment Staples

Salad dressng: vnagrette s our favorte (or you can make your own)*

Djon mustard: great for addng a kck to a dsh, also helpful n makng your own salad dressng

Ketchup and barbecue sauce: a helpful condment to have on hand, especally for kds

Mayonnase: great on sandwches, but also helpful n dps

Asan sauces: reduced-sodum soy sauce*, hosn sauce

Salsa*: mld, medum, or hot, dependng on your preference. Look for ones wthout added sugar.

Hot sauce: Tabasco, srracha

Olves: great for salads and also to add a salty kck to stews, sauces, and casseroles

Capers: wonderful wth fsh, such as salmon

Do you have favorte staples that you would add to the lst? I’d love to hear about them n the comments!

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Want more cookng nspraton? Check out our tps on how to make daly cookng easy and my secret to meal plannng success.