basic pantry

GinoK said:

This probably has been covered somewhere, but I've been Googling around on the Web and in Usenet
for a few hours and haven't found it.

I'm cooking for one. I've found some stuff on that -- here and elsewhere --, but it's not quite
what I'm looking for.

I am very rigid in my thinking, aka anal retentive. What I am trying to find is something
like this:

1. Here are the (making up the numbers) 5 dry spices you need. (garlic powder, ... )
2. Here are the 5 condiments you need. (mustard, ... )
3. Using this stuff you can make one of the following 50 main course dishes.

TIA,

P.S.Btw, it seems like all good cooks prefer fresh spices to powdered, but when I am cooking for
one and buy, say, a thingy of parsley I end up using a small fraction, watch the rest rot and
have to throw the rest away. Is there a workaround for this?

Google for the thread "stocking the spice cabinet".

ec.food.cooking+insubject:stocking+insubject:the+insubject:spice+insubject:cabinet&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-
8&filter=0

K.

--

Quoted message said:

^,,^< Cats-haven Hobby Farm >^,,^< [email hidden] >^,,^<

"There are millions of intelligent species in the universe, and they are all owned by
cats" -- Asimov

Custom handcrafts, Sterling silver beaded jewelry cgi3.ebay.comawOpen ↗
cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewListedItems&userid=katra

GinoK said:

Btw, it seems like all good cooks prefer fresh spices to powdered, but when I am cooking for one
and buy, say, a thingy of parsley I end up using a small fraction, watch the rest rot and have to
throw the rest away. Is there a workaround for this?

Sure. Frozen herb cubes.

Buy a bunch of parsley. Chop it by hand or in the cuisinart or blender. Add enough wine to cover.
Freeze in ice cube trays. Remove to a sealed plastic bag. With the next bunch, use vinegar instead
of wine. Label the bags.

Every recipe will benefit from either wine (tomato sauce, beef bourginonne) or vinegar (marinated
mushrooms, salad dressing).

This works with tarragon, dill, basil, and most other green herbs.

--Lia

"GinoK" wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm cooking for one. I've found some stuff on that -- here and

elsewhere --,

Quoted message said:

but it's not quite what I'm looking for.

I am very rigid in my thinking, aka anal retentive. What I am trying to

find

Quoted message said:

is something like this:

1. Here are the (making up the numbers) 5 dry spices you need. (garlic powder, ... )
2. Here are the 5 condiments you need. (mustard, ... )
3. Using this stuff you can make one of the following 50 main course dishes.

It seems as though you believe that cooking/eating should be treated like some sort of manufacturing
exercise. It just isn't that way.

I live by myself and here's what I do:

I buy spices/herbs/seasonings as I need them. There is no magic formula for what makes a properly
stocked pantry. It depends mostly on your taste. With a few exceptions, I buy in as small a quantity
as I can, especially with spices/herbs.

I feed my neighbors. I could eat the same thing over and over again, but that gets boring and
doesn't feed my cooking jones. When I give food away to my neighbors the minor expense to me, which
otherwise might be waste, is far exceeded by the payback I get in friendship.I'll invite them over
for dinner or give them the leftovers of something that came out particularly good. I give away more
bread than I keep. It may cost me a few pennies, but it is money well spent.

I go food shopping just about every day. I try to buy what I need just for the meal I'm making and
nothing more. If something I need comes in a larger quantity than I need at the time, I try to plan
a meal in the near future that will include it as an ingredient. Maybe a pay a little more because I
don't buy some things in bulk, but I cut down on waste.

Quoted message said:

Btw, it seems like all good cooks prefer fresh spices to powdered, but

when

Quoted message said:

I am cooking for one and buy, say, a thingy of parsley I end up using a small fraction, watch the
rest rot and have to throw the rest away. Is

there

Quoted message said:

a workaround for this?

You'll never get completely away from having some waste. I just try to minimize it.

-Mike

"GinoK" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

This probably has been covered somewhere, but I've been Googling around on the Web and in Usenet
for a few hours and haven't found it.

I'm cooking for one. I've found some stuff on that -- here and

elsewhere --,

Quoted message said:

but it's not quite what I'm looking for.

I am very rigid in my thinking, aka anal retentive. What I am trying to

find

Quoted message said:

is something like this:

1. Here are the (making up the numbers) 5 dry spices you need. (garlic powder, ... )
2. Here are the 5 condiments you need. (mustard, ... )
3. Using this stuff you can make one of the following 50 main course dishes.

TIA,

P.S.Btw, it seems like all good cooks prefer fresh spices to powdered, but

when

Quoted message said:

I am cooking for one and buy, say, a thingy of parsley I end up using a small fraction, watch the
rest rot and have to throw the rest away. Is

there

Quoted message said:

a workaround for this?

IMHO - Salt and pepper, of course. Garlic is a must - powder, not salt. I also would keep some
seasoned salt and seasoned pepper on hand. Works great sprinkled over meat before cooking - I love
that little zing as it cooks into the meat. I also keep some dried parsley and oregano on hand. The
die-hards will say that you should NEVER use dried herbs, but IMHO I see nothing wrong with it - if
it simmers a bit in the sauce, it's fine.

I would always keep butter, mayo, catsup, mustard, and lemon juice on hand. I also keep a jar of
prepared diced garlic in the fridge. Sometimes I don't want to take the time to crush fresh garlic,
and this works okay. (I know I'll hear from someone on that!) I'll also keep a small bottle of Magi
and Kitchen Bouquet in the pantry.

Beyond that, follow the advice of someone else that said they buy their spices as they need them.
It's a good way to stock up your pantry. Start with some basics and expand as necessary.

GinoK said:

I am very rigid in my thinking, aka anal retentive. What I am trying to find is something
like this:

1. Here are the (making up the numbers) 5 dry spices you need. (garlic powder, ... )

Extensive thread on this. Another poster kindly supplied the reference

Quoted message said:

2. Here are the 5 condiments you need. (mustard, ... )

I believe this was included

Quoted message said:

3. Using this stuff you can make one of the following 50 main course dishes.

No can do. Cooking isn't this rigid. You might be interested in looking up "5 ingredient" or "3
ingredient" recipes or cookbooks.

The bottom line is that one person's 'essential' is another's 'never use.' Most here would say
garlic was essential -- usually fresh. If you don't like garlic, it won't be on *your* list.

Quoted message said:

Btw, it seems like all good cooks prefer fresh spices to powdered, but when I am cooking for one
and buy, say, a thingy of parsley I end up using a small fraction, watch the rest rot and have to
throw the rest away. Is there a workaround for this?

Grow your own. There was a nifty recipe here some time ago for a simple pasta dish that used mostly
parsley (a lot) and olive oil. I think. You can try freezing. However, it *is* a common problem.
Dried parsely is (sort of) ok when it's cooked *into* a dish, but for say, parsley-butter sauce for
fish, fresh is necessary.