Although the list could go on & on, here is my list of wonderful ‘essentials’for the kitchen. I admit that I use some more than others but most would get a work out every given week. Add gradually to your stocks & reap the rewards of having a kitchen resource that makes it easy to enjoy simple food, full of flavour, every day of the week.
Essential dry goods
Extra virgin olive oil (Cobram Estate is a fabulous all rounder)
Vegetable or Canola oil
Sesame oil (keep refrigerated for longevity)
Fish sauce (three crab brand for the best)
Oyster sauce
Murray River Salt flakes
Verjuice
Aceto Balsamic (authentic aged balsamic)
Red wine vinegar
White vinegar
White wine vinegar
Rice wine vinegar
Dark soy sauce
Light soy sauce
Shao Xing chinese wine
Wasabi
Miso
Sugo or Passata
Tomato paste
Italian diced tomatoes, tinned (lots of & for mine, La Gina is the best)
Great quality dried pasta (Martelli for the best or De Cecco for an affordable all rounder)
Polenta
Burghul
Quinoa
Risotto
Brown rice
Jasmine rice
Persian red lentils
Green lentils
Dried chickpeas
Canned chickpeas
Canned butterbeans
Canned cannellini beans
Small jars or tins of good quality anchovies
Salted capers
Dried currants
Dried raisans
Essential dry goods (continued)
Fried red shallots
Rose water
Orange blossom water
S/R flour
Pizza flour
Plain flour
Ground almonds
Preserved olives, in jars from Mount Zero
Caster sugar
70% Dark chocolate
Raw sugar
Palm sugar
Brown sugar
Pure dutch cocoa
Dried or preserved figs
Spices
Cinnamon sticks
Vanilla beans, paste & extract
Whole nutmeg
Dried Oregano
Peppercorns – black & white
Saffron threads
Ground turmeric
Cumin seeds
Dried chilli flakes
Ground ginger
Ground cinnamon
Whole cloves
Yellow mustard seeds
Spanish Paprika
Cayenne pepper
Dried coriander
All Spice
Refrigerator & or freezer
Nuts - Sesame seeds, pine nuts, walnuts, pistachios, almonds, peanuts
Frozen peas
Unsalted butter
Preserved lemons
Frozen raspberries
Good quality Vanilla bean ice cream
‘Relish Mama’ Beetroot & aceto balsamic Relish
Sour cream
Cream
Haloumi
Parmesan
Cheddar
Sugar syrup (made weekly & stored in the fridge)
Whole egg mayonnaise
Whole milk
