As long as I've got __ I've got dinner.

[Canice]

I noticed the other evening that I'd forgotten to buy parsley - parsley! What a silly thing if you don't need it for a recipe. Yet I realized there are a few simple items I have to have on hand to make dinner out of nothing:

garlic
lemon
parsley/other fresh herbs
red pepper flakes
Parmesan cheese
peas or spinach
olive oil

Of course there are many good and useful pantry staples, but I've found that I'm actually a little anxious if I don't have all of the above on hand.

You?

[cherylopal]

hummus
wraps
greens

garlic
rice
beans

[RiverFarm]

We have a large walk-in pantry and three freezers, so I am used to having a lot of raw materials on hand. Among other things I really like having fresh thyme and rosemary around - the thyme is outside in the garden and the rosemary is in a pot on the porch. Lemon juice is another staple, along with garlic, asiago cheese, peas and spinach, and olive oil. Rice and beans are also major components of our typical menus. And various kinds and shapes of pasta and Italian sausage. And the packages of shoulder lamb chops, two in each; I can do a lot with those. My emergency last-minute meal is linguine with white clam sauce, so if we're out of the clams that DH has dug and I've frozen there's always canned.

[1grl1by]

onions
pasta
olive oil
anchovies
parm cheese

[Ohioan]

BEANS!
Also...
Rice
Pasta
Greens (cooking and/or salad)
Tomatoes
Cucumber - or - zucchini - or - yellow squash
Garlic
Olive oil
Vinegar
My whole spice rack. (Actually, two of them plus the overflow.)

Cheers,
Phoebe

[margeslp]

Actually I do pretty well in keeping well stocked. EXCEPY my dog reminds me that I fail from time to time in the dog food dept. like this weekend. She is eating some of the feta creamed corn till I get out to the store

[vbak]

I'm good to go if I have garlic, olive oil, lemon, parmesan, dried herbs and chicken. My cupboards are pretty well stocked as well as the freezer, but I always need that extra something from the store.

[SusanMac]

That's interesting you have parsley on your must-stock list. I always thought of parsley as one of those things you can skip in a recipe if you don't have any on hand. I really like flat-leaf parsley, but hardly ever keep it around the house.

I ditto bean as one of my must-haves. Eggs are another good one. You can make a meal out of anything + eggs

[wallycat]

Chicken stock and garlic.

[Ohioan]

I ditto bean as one of my must-haves. Eggs are another good one. You can make a meal out of anything + eggs

Oops, I forgot about eggs. Yes, that's one of my always-on-hand items, too.

Cheers,
Phoebe

[heavy hedonist]

If I have olive oil or flour, I can make dinner with whatever is in the house.

[jjsooner73]

for the bare minimum:
eggs
pasta or rice
olive oil

extras:
onions
garlic
zucchini
Parmesan cheese
mushrooms
muir glen fire roasted tomatoes
chicken broth

And my spices.

[Canice]

That's interesting you have parsley on your must-stock list. I always thought of parsley as one of those things you can skip in a recipe if you don't have any on hand. I really like flat-leaf parsley, but hardly ever keep it around the house.

I know it seems odd; I go through pretty much a bunch a week! (always flat-leaf). I don't know how I got into the habit, but yea, along with lemon zest, garlic and red pepper flakes it can do a lot.

[Shugness]

Ramen Noodles.



Seriously, I try to keep various cheese (parmesan, blue cheese and a mexican blend mainly), various pastas, canned tomatoes, canned green beans, canned refried beans, jarred salsa, eggs, heavy cream, frozen shrimp and frozen chicken on hand, and potatoes and onions in the pantry.

[TieKitty]

BSCB
chicken stock
pasta
diced tomatoes
beans

[LakeMartinGal]

Mine is:

ground beef
pasta, rice or beans
garlic
tomato sauce or some other kind of canned tomatoes

Of course, there are many other things that I throw together if I'm stumped, like tuna melts, etc. But the above are my go-to ingredients.

[Tutalady]

This is my "go to" recipe and always have pasta, canned tomatoes, vodka, and half and half on hand so am always good to go. Or if I have fresh veggies.......have a pasta cookbook with all kinds of recipes that calls for fresh veggies.........or even caramelized onions that are great over any type of pasta.

[mrswaz]

As long as I have flour I can make something for dinner. It be something as simple as breakfast for dinner, like pancakes or waffles. I can make pizza with any topping as long as I have flour for making the crust. Lately I've been making a lot of calzones with various leftovers tucked inside. Makes a great portable meal to take with us to dance classes. If I have flour I could also make homemade noodles to add to any broth for a simple soup.

[DCook]

Eggs would be my first answer

[RiverFarm]

Nice list you got here.

Reported.

[veschke]

Hm. Diced tomatoes, beans, and some sort of grain are probably my go-to staples. Though you can make a frittata with just about anything, so add me to the "eggs" list.

I almost always have parsley... very, very sad parsley I bought a week ago and immediately forgot about.

[Anne]

I can almost always come up with something with beans, greens, and grains. I try and keep at least a quart of each easily accessable in the freezer. On one of those 'crazy days' I can pull them out on my way to work, plop into a bowl, and have dinner almost ready by the time I get home.

[katygirl]

Eggs and cheese are a must have for me too.

[RiverFarm]

Something fresh. Recently, my house is having coleslaws every night Haha

Reported.

[PurplePotato]

Reservations.


*giggle*


For me it is:

pasta or rice
tomatoes and/or beans
olive oil

With that base I can build from whatever other misc stuff I have around. But I have a very well stocked pantry as well as a deep freezer so there's always something. Even when I do things like not think to go to the grocery store before a predicted snow storm like I did last week.

[JackieO]

Canice, I know you have Parmesan on your list. But no self-respecting Wisconsinite would go without cheddar, Swiss and some sort of decent cracker on hand.

I never thought much about this, but my son and his girlfriend (who is from Minnesota) were here over the weekend. She talked about how NONE of her friends/family from the Twin Cities ate cheese as a snack until she went to college in Wisconsin!

So, definitely have to include an "eating cheese" to that staples list.

ETA: Yes, cheese and crackers does meet the definition of dinner in Wisconsin, especially if accompanied with wine or beer!

[RebelYell18]

ETA: Yes, cheese and crackers does meet the definition of dinner in Wisconsin, especially if accompanied with wine or beer!

Heck, I'm not even from Wisconsin and I'm right there with ya! Its a perfect dinner!

[haley17]

My absolute basics are:

Eggs
Cheese -parmesan, cheddar
Pasta
Canned beans - black, kidney, garbanzo
Canned tomatoes
Broth

[Alisa]

Better than Bouillion!

[Soupandstew]

Canned tomatoes
Rice, brown and white basmati
Pasta
Eggs
Olive Oil
Garlic
Onions
Dried spices and herbs (I could weed the collection down to curry, cumin, chili, dill, caraway and file gumbo if someone put a gun to my head-you are getting the saffron over my cold dead body)
Herb garden in backyard (currently rosemary, oregano, chives, thyme, mint-sage died again, got swallowed by the rosemary and oregano)
Canned beans - cannellini, chickpeas, black beans
Dried lentils
Dijon mustard
Vinegars

As you may sense, we're not big on animal protein, but we're not opposed to adding the stray chicken to the above or a little lean beef.