By Amanda Laird

One of my favorite sayings in life is “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”  It doesn’t get much cheesier than that, but it’s true – in all facets of your life; work, fitness, and yes, even in the kitchen. 

It’s happened to all of us; you want a home-cooked meal and you’ve found the perfect recipe for dinner.  Only once you’re in the kitchen you don’t have a key ingredient.  Or two.  Or five.  So instead of your delicious home-cooked meal, you turn to a TV dinner or take-out, again.

The key to sticking to making home-cooked meals that are healthy and easy is making sure your pantry is well stocked.  Having some key ingredients on hand means that a delicious dinner is never far away.  Just add fresh produce.

Salt & Pepper More specifically, kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper.  These are basic flavours, essential to almost everything you cook.

Oils You want to keep a couple different types of oil in your pantry; olive oil for flavour and a vegetable oil such as canola.  Canola has a higher smoking point and is better for frying.

Vinegar Balsamic is a good place to start.  Red or white wine vinegar, apple cider or rice wine vinegar if you like Asian flavours are also good choices. 

Stock Chicken or vegetable stock can instantly perk up rice, potatoes, even scrambled eggs.  Buy low-sodium versions in shelf-stable tetra packs to keep on hand.

Dried pasta Have a couple different lengths in your pantry; some long and some short.  This little guide can help you match the appropriate sauce to the size and shape of your pasta.  You might also want to keep a bag of ravioli or tortellini in the fridge or freezer for something a little more substantial.

Canned tomatoes Whole tomatoes are probably the most versatile to keep on hand.  You can chop them up if you need to or keep them whole if that’s what a recipe calls for.  Canned tomatoes and their liquid can add flavour to sauces, soups, and chillis, just to name a few.

Rice Brown rice is good for you and it makes for an easy side dish or accompaniment to a quick stir-fry.  Use stock instead of water for extra flavour.  You might also want to keep basmati rice for Indian flavours, or Arborio rice if you like risotto. 

Beans  An affordable and easy protein, keep canned or dried beans on hand to add to soups, toss over salads or mix in to rice.  Keep in mind that dried beans need to be soaked overnight before use.

Herbs & Spices Curry powder, cayenne pepper, coriander, nutmeg, cinnamon…  Whatever flavours you like and match with your style of cooking. 

Other good things to have on hand Dijon mustard, frozen vegetables like peas and spinach, soy sauce, canned tuna packed in water, honey, your favorite cheese, bacon,  grains like couscous or bulgar, and a couple bottles of wine.

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