Kitchen Staples

There are certain items we all always have available in our own kitchens. I've been wanting to share with you some of my favorite/reliable kitchen staples. I hope this list is especially helpful for those of you who are new to plant based eating, or are thinking about changing to plant based eating. Of course, this list only reflects my kitchen, but I encourage all to use it as a guideline/for ideas/as a shopping list, or whatever.


Fridge

• Earth Balance Soy milk, unsweetened
• Yes, I make a good amount of my own nut milk. But sometimes I crave the cold refreshing taste of soy milk. I love this brand as they use non GMO, USA grown, organic soybeans. The taste is smooth and not overly "beany" and it does not curdle coffee.
• Earth Balance Margarine tub, organic & Earth Balance sticks
• Best vegan option for butter. I use the tub for everyday basics, and the sticks for baking. They also make a soy-free option.
• Various oils, Spectrum brand
• Peanut, Toasted Sesame, Flax, etc...
• Organic Tofu, Naysoa brand
• extra firm, firm and silken
• Daiya - both cheddar and mozzarella style
• I don't use vegan cheese often, but when I do, I use Daiya. I keep it in stock just so I can have it at hand for a grilled cheese emergency. It freezes well, so don;t worry about opening it and not using a lot.
• Bragg's Liquid Aminos
• We were just having a discussion on how we should buy Bragg's by the case because we go through it so quickly...
• Maple Syrup
• Liquid Chlorophyll - just try it...

Freezer

• Flours - all purpose, whole wheat pastry, whole wheat, chickpea, oat & corn meal, among others
• purchased in bulk 
• Ground Flax Seeds, Spectrum Brand
• Various nuts - almonds, cashews, walnuts, pine nuts
• purchased in bulk, store in freezer to prevent oils from spoiling
• Coffee, whole beans
• Organic and local from my co-op. Even though we've both cut back, we always have it ready to go in the freezer.
• Rolled oats - bought in bulk
• Fresh Ginger

Pantry

• Nut butters 
• Earth Balance brand peanut butter and almond butter, as well as soy nut butter
• Nutritional Yeast
• Although, I do not use nooch in everything I make, but I do like to have it available at all times. Bought in bulk.
• Rice - bought in bulk
• Short grain brown & arborio
• Other grains as need, in bulk

• barley, quinoa, bulgur, millet, etc...
• Pasta - all kinds, see previous post on this topic
• Mori-Nu tofu - firm, organic
• Popcorn kernels, organic - bought in bulk (we go through this a lot)
• Liquid Smoke - one small bottle should last a long time
• Steel cut oats - bought in bulk
• Seaweed 
• Nori sheets, Wakame, Arame, Kelp granules
• Olive Oil - we keep a large tin canister stored at all times
• Distilled white vinegar - largest bottle I can find, used for cleaning

Baking

• Cornstarch
• Baking Powder & Soda
• shredded coconut - bought in bulk
• Coconut Oil - Spectrum brand
• Coconut sugar crystals - low glycemic index, expensive but used sparingly 
• Sucanat - used in place of sugar/brown sugar
• Dry Active Yeast packets
• Cooking Spray - Spectrum brand
• Molasses
• Pure Vanilla Extract

Produce

We go through a ton of produce weekly, and it varies by season/menu, but these are just a few items we always have around.

• Onions - Vidalia & red
• Garlic
• Carrots
• Spinach
• Lemons
• Bananas - keep the super ripe ones in the freezer!
• Potatoes

This is not even a complete list, but you get the idea.