The Shopping List
If you are just moving out for your first time, or are venturing into the world of home cooking for the first time, grocery shopping tends to be a little more expensive than your average daily* or weekly shop.
The most common pantry staples you will need probably include baking supplies, grains, proteins, canned goods, oils and spices.
Baking Supplies
Flours
I always try to have some unbleached all-purpose flour on hand. Pizza dough and silky pasta use type 00, and having 1 or two higher protein flours is important if you want to get into sourdough.
If you start working with higher protein flours, some of my favourites include rye, einkorn, and spelt.
If you’re doing any gluten-free baking, almond flour, chickpea flour, and coconut flour are all useful to have on hand.
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Leveners
If you’re a novice chef, you’ll want to keep baking powder and baking soda stocked in your pantry. They will be used in any quick rise baked goods, and sometimes in sauces, and for cleaning.
If you ever want to make amazing fresh bread and pizza dough, you’ll also want to keep some yeast on hand.
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Sugar
Sugar is needed in most cooking and sauces to help balance flavour, so get a small bag even if you don’t do much baking.
Mix sugar with florals and bitters to create great cocktail garnishes or tea sweeteners. Lavender sugar is a personal favourite.
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Brown Sugar
Important in Asian sauces and balsamic glazes. It’s good to make sure you have lots of brown sugar if you like to stew fruit, make pies or tarts.
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Molases
Good in cookies, sauces, marinades, and beans. One jar will last you a while, but if you don’t like intense flavour, stick to a lighter variety.
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Honey
I would consider honey more essential than sugar. Unless you’re looking for a mechanical reaction in your baking, honey can be easily substituted into most recipes. I love using flavoured honey in my baking and in drinks to add a touch of extra flavour.
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Condensed Milk
Good for pies, cakes (hello tres leches), jams and spreads like dulce de leche. Will keep for ages so grab a couple when they’re on sale to help stock your pantry.
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Coconut Milk
Have a bunch of odd veggies in your crisper? Make a curry. Have half a block of tofu, or paneer sitting in your fridge from dinner the other night? Make a curry. Want to put something in the crockpot because you have a busy day? make a curry. Coconut milk is a vital ingredient.
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Falovour Extracts
Vanilla is the most common extract used in baking. You can make your own at home with vanilla beans and vodka.
Almond, lemon, orange, and peach are other extracts I’ve worked with (I do a lot of holiday baking). If you buy them for only one recipe, try using them in icings or cakes.
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Grains
Oats
Most winter mornings, I start my day off with steel-cut oats, greek yogurt and canned fruit. Necessary for making crumbles and a great addition to muffins.
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Rice
If you look in my kitchen cupboards, I currently have 4 types of rice on hand… I’m a sucker for basmati, but it doesn’t go with everything. Make sure to keep your pantry stocked with wild rice and if you are Italian, arborio.
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Barley
One of the most ancient grains, barley is a great staple to keep stocked in your pantry for stews and salads.
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Farro
This ancient wheat berry delivers about 3.5g of protein per 1/2 cup and is the perfect addition to fall salads. Slightly crunchy and nutty, perfect for accompanying cheeses and roasted stone fruit or beets.
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Pastas
It wasn’t until very far into this post that I realized I forgot this very important category. Although it’s pretty easy to make your own pasta, sometimes you need an easy dinner quick, and some noodle shapes are hard to make without equipment.
Shells, elbows, and penne are some of the most common you’ll find stocked in my pantry.
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Protiens
Lentils
Lentils are a great way to add some hearty protein to your meals. Cook a batch and store it in your fridge for up to a week.
Dried, lentils can last up to 5 months, so they are great to keep stocked in your pantry.
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Nut Butter
Great in smoothies, oats, sandwiches, sauces, and much more. I love peanut butter personally, but almond butter is always a nice treat. Again, if you’re just starting to stock your pantry, peruse sale isles in nice grocery stores for interesting treats.
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Canned Goods
Tomato Sauce
There are so many times that I rely on tomato sauce for a last-minute dinner. Yes, of course, there is classic pasta, but next time opt for some fried zucchini balls to get a few more veggies in there.
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Soups
Soups are for all seasons and always a good thing to have on hand if you can’t fathom cooking. I usually have two or three soups stocked in my pantry.
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Stocks
Stocks are the basis of soups and sauces. Add it to a blender with leftover veggies to create flavourful soups. I make my own soup stock out of vegetable cuttings, but you can buy it for cheap at most grocery stores.
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Pickles
Perfect crunch, so much healthier than most chips. There are so many interesting pickles out there and they are a great thing to add to charcuteries.
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Oils and Spices
Olive Oil
The most common type of cooking oil used in Canadian kitchens. Good for roasting and frying. A greek man told me to wait until the pan comes up to temperature, then throw in the veggies and oil at the same time.
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Vegetable Oil
An unflavoured oil from nuts, seeds or fruit, vegetable oil generally has a higher smoke point than olive oil, so it’s good for adding to baked goods and searing.
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Coconut Oil
This oil is high in saturated transfats, so it is debated in cooking. But it adds such a right texture and slight flavour to crusts. It’s also great on your skin, in your hair, and for your puppy.
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Balsamics
Yes, I used a plural. I was introduced to white balsamic this summer through this AMAZING gazpacho. But there are also balsamic glazes, which are great on everything from sandwiched to ice cream.
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Vinegars
The most common vinegars to stock in your pantry include; white, red wine, and rice. I usually buy white vinegar in bulk because I mix it with lemon peels to create gentle cleaners.
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Salts
There are so many types of salts. If you’ve never explored salt, I recommend you go watch its episode in the Salt, Acid, Fat Heat series on Netflix.
For a well-stocked pantry, you should consider getting at least sea salt and kosher salt. If you’re feeling fancy, there are smoked salts, black salt, and pink salts you can use to create a variety of finishing salts.
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Pepper
Just like salt, there is more than one type of pepper. Black pepper is the most common, and I’m still working up the kahunas to try and grow it in my own garden. But there is also white and pink pepper, which can make great visual additions to infused oils.
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Side Bars
*I grew up doing a weekly grocery store run, like most North Western households, but there are many who visit markets every day. These people usually live in highly walkable cities and it helps reduce food waste.
** While there are some affiliate links in this post, all opinions are truly my own, I wish bulk barn would sponsor a post.
