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So far, I have talked about cooking from fresh ingredients and avoided the use of processed ingredients. But, just as I think everyone should have a date night dinner they can pull out to make, I think everyone should be able to make dinner strictly from pantry items. This is useful when you (like me) have recently been traveling and haven’t been able to get to the grocery store, or if (like me) you are just swamped at work and haven’t been able to get to the grocery store. Knowing how to make a meal from the pantry means you can still avoid the high calorie, high volume of take out.
I have a pretty extensive pantry. As a partial list, I keep canned beans (black, white and red), canned tomatoes, canned green beans, canned artichoke hearts, canned tuna, and cream of mushroom soup on hand. I also always have frozen broccoli, artichoke hearts, Brussels sprouts, and salmon or other frozen fish in the freezer. I keep rice, wheat pasta, rice noodles, and bouillon in my pantry as well. In addition to canned, frozen, and dry goods, I think of a few fresh (fresher) items like kielbasa, or other pre-cooked sausage, onions, garlic, spinach, and lemons or limes as pantry items because I always have them on hand. Your pantry items may be different.
Pantry meals do have a downside. They aren’t as tasty as cooking from scratch and downside for me – upside for some – they make more than one serving. I take the leftovers to work for lunch.
Sausage and Beans
I make sausage and beans from pre-cooked sausage (most recently chicken and garlic), white beans (usually cannellini, but others work), garlic and spinach.
I cut about one third of the kielbasa into rounds,the rest I put in the refrigerator – it will keep for a few days for other recipes – and sauté the rounds.
I just brown the slices on both sides. I don’t even add any oil. The slices will give off fat while browning. Next, I add some chopped garlic and a drained and rinsed can of white beans. I like the beans toasted, so I give it a minute or two, stirring occasionally.
Then add about one half of a bag of spinach.
Turn off the heat and toss it until the spinach wilts.
Squeeze a lemon quarter over it, it does make a difference. This makes about three servings for me.
But why not just get takeout? I timed this. It took me sixteen minutes to make, including slicing the sausage and chopping the garlic, and I wasn’t rushing. It also cost much less than takeout and I think it is better for me.
Variations: You can use black or red beans, even chickpeas, instead. On one occasion, I didn’t have sausage, but I did have pepperonis. So I put a little oil in the pan, sautéed the garlic, added the beans and pepperonis, then the spinach. It was good. You could substitute chorizo or other sausage as well. If it isn’t pre-cooked, though, it will take longer to make.
Another use for sausage is a variation of the stove top hotdish I grew up with. Stove top hotdish is a package of mac ‘n’ cheese combined with a cut up hot dog and frozen veggies or a can of tuna and frozen peas. I no longer buy packaged mac ‘n’ cheese. Instead I use a little pasta, frozen veggies and whatever cheese I have on hand. Most recently I had cream cheese to use up. I sautéed my sausage, microwaved a broccoli cauliflower mix and combined it with some pasta, cream cheese, cheddar, and cayenne pepper.
Spinach, sausage, and garlic are fresh(er) ingredients. What if you don’t have those on hand?
Easy, make 8 minute soup. This is a strictly canned goods dish. Drain and rinse a can of black beans and a can of red beans. Put in a pot. Add a can (including liquid) of tomatoes. Add a drained and rinsed can of corn. Add two or three cups of broth (made with bouillon if needed) and a tablespoon of chili powder and ½ tsp of cayenne and ¼ tsp of black pepper. Taste, then add salt. All those canned goods have salt, so make sure you taste to avoid an overly salty dish. Bring to a boil and boil for 8 minutes. If you use vegetable broth, you have a vegan soup. (You’re welcome, SP).
These are just three of what I call pantry meals. There are hundreds more that you can make. As I mentioned above, it really depends on what you keep in the pantry. So, Glibertarians, what do you keep in your pantry, and what are your favorite pantry meals?
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Comments
133 responses to “Spontaneous Cooking: Pantry Meals”
I’ve got ramen noodles in my pantry. Any recipes involving those? 🙂
You can always add an egg or two in whatever form to whatever you have and it makes it better. Eggs are cheap, last a longer time and take 3 minutes to cook. Egg plus ramen=dinner
My college go to was basically the sausage and bean dish above with ramen and flavor packet mixed in. Pork ramen preferably.
Ramens a great base to play with. I usually use Better Than Boullion and my own spice rack to make a broth, I toss the flavor packet out. But once you make the broth, you can add a protein of your choice, any veggies you got on hand, then simmer it all together and toss the noodles in. Easy, quick, cheap, super versatile.
I wish I liked tuna, because they’ve got these flavored tuna packs now that are on sale for a buck a piece. I buy them for my fiancee, she loves them.
I ate a lot of those in grad school. Especially the ones with a little tuna steak.
Ramen is on my list of potential posts.
https://www.amazon.com/Art-Pantry-Delicious-Everyday-Ingredients/dp/1787130479/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=C813XJ472NPX72NVR532
This cookbook is nice. It’s a bit pretentious, but it does a good job showing you how to set up a nice basic pantry and showing the different approaches you can take to cooking with it. The recipes can get a little too out there for some, and I think it tries too hard on some aspects. Like, I’m not looking to do a full course meal from the pantry. Pantry cooking to me is about putting down weeknight dinner. If I am planning on hosting people with app/entree/dessert, there will be fresh ingredients.
I’ll check it out. I’m always looking for new ideas.
I have a lot of cookbooks that list pantry items. The problem is I rarely make more than a few recipes in any cookbook, so the pantry they recommend and what I need never match. I don’t want to be too prescriptive, so I’m not going to tell anybody what they should have.
Improv is everything, not recipe. You get it.
that is the difference betwern cooking and baking. Home brewing falls on the baking side. Recipe and execution are the keys.
If you use vegetable broth, you have a vegan soup. (You’re welcome, SP).
LOL
Thank you!
Yes, I think everyone should have a few pantry meals they can create quickly. Tasty, generally inexpensive, and can be extended easily if unexpected guests show up.
We always have pastas, garlic, fresh herbs in pots, and many quarts of tomatoes that I can every year. I also usually have homemade “artisan style” bread sliced in the freezer, so it just needs a quick toasting and application of garlic.
Canned beans are always super useful. Can easily throw together a garbanzo bean/garlic sauce, or soups from a variety of others. Rice and beans. The list is almost endless.
Frozen vegetables like corn and peas are also really helpful to have on hand.
The other thing I always have on hand are dried “soup jars.” I make up a variety of them, organized by cooking time. I have “instant” (5 minutes), vegetable (30 minutes), lentil (45-60 minutes), and bean (all day in the slow cooker).
I think this year I am going to can some vegetable soups/stews for a wider variety of heat-and-eat soups.
The wife and I usually have 2-3 soups or stews in the freezer in food saver bags. You can nuke or heat up in a pot for a quick meal in the summer months after making a big pot of something good.
Yep!
At the moment I have various vegan chilis, some eggplant/tomato sauce, and some ratatouille (I think) in the freezer.
Our favorite summer soup can’t be canned or frozen, though.
Gazpacho?
Gesundheit!
Jacques Pepin Garlic and Chile Soup
Freezing alters the flavor profile.
I usually have soup in the freezer too. In fact, I have tortilla soup thawing in the refrigerator for tonight’s dinner. That should help my sinuses.
Dammit, I have to plan dinner. *looks in fridge and cabient*
Dammit, I have to go to the store… on a sunday. 🙁
yum
Since I’m the only one who cooks, I make simple things, Today is Boneless Pork ribs in the crock pot, with A box of BC Au Gratin Potatoes for Baking, and cut Green beans.
Peanut Butter Cookies for Dessert
Total cost, 10$
Total time, 30 minutes
Boneless ribs.
ò_Ô
He bought two McRibs at McDonalds.
How’d the bugmeat taste?
To day’s dinner will be grilled bacon cheese burger sausage from the local Amish butcher and my wife’s macaroni salad.
Bacon cheeseburger sausage?
Eats Shoots and Leaves.
We’re Living on Nuts and Berries,
We’re Setting a Bad Example!
Basically a beef sausage with cheese and bacon added.
STEVE SMITH ALWAYS OFFER CHEESE AND BACON…CUZ EVEN STEVE SMITH OFFER BREAKFAST
It had to happen sooner or later.
Assault pistol
Correction: Assault revolver
Er, if it’s a true wheelgun, there’s no magazines.
Goddamn, does anyone do actual reporting anymore?
I tried to verify at cbs news, but got nowhere.
did find this tho
Dardick Model 1500
Holy shit, that is the most overly complicated weapon on this side and of the galactic spiral
Why?? What’s the advantage to doing it that way?
Well, Dirty Harry might agree
That story is from 2014, fwiw
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/suspect-killed-officer-injured-in-southern-california-shootout/
I make a Japanese noodle soup out of buckwheat soba noodles, frozen portions of homemade broth, soy sauce, and mirin.
You can add pretty much anything to this. Eggs are a good choice. I like to use shrimp because it’s easy to thaw out a handful and toss them in the pot.
Soup isn’t really a meal unless you crumble some crackers in it.
I’ve got ramen noodles in my pantry. Any recipes involving those?
Ramen noodles, stir fried with a tin of sardines. No, I’m not joking. You could put something else in there if you felt like it.
Er, if it’s a true wheelgun, there’s no magazines.
There was that Clint Eastwood movie (High Plains Drifter, maybe?) where he was swapping out cylinders on his Navy Colt, so- totally legit.
I actually have food in the house, for a change, but all I want to do is go someplace and get a hamburger and a beer.
#notvegan
I never said I was vegan.
Kraut dogs with mustard tonight.
Wtf now i love monarchism
She was a mechanic in WWII.
Euphemism?
https://www.warhistoryonline.com/war-articles/queen-elizabeth-ii-auto-mechanic.html
https://mashable.com/2015/04/22/queen-elizabeth-army/
Mighty Spark™ burgers on the Ghetto-Approved gril, deviled AIGS, fried okra (winfrey), and cold Keystone Light double-deuces.
Thanks for the article, Tulip. Always enjoyable.
Chicken satay and gado gado here tonight.
I had to look up gado gado. Tell me more.
It must be dusty here at my Palatial 2X-Wide. I had gunk in my eye or something when I read this Nut Punch.
Further Citation here.
That kid sounds like someone I would have liked to have known.
That kid sounds like someone I hope to be.
[flings poo at Très]
Form of……Larch Tree!
Ya, seems I just developed allergies or something. Damn.
As someone that had to deal with Mama Tres and pancreatic cancer, I embraced the frankness of the kid’s mom:
“When Garrett was first diagnosed, doctors were blunt with Ryan and Emilie Matthias about the reality of cancer treatment. So his mom knew what would happen:
It’s not those beautiful commercials with these kids with bald heads that are smiling and everyone is cured. They were upfront that chemo is poison, radiation, burns. The other way is to cut it out. You choose and make hard decisions about poisoning, burning and cutting your child.”
I adore St. Jude’s hospital and the work they do, and I frequently send them ca$hi$h. But she’s 100% right. Dead kids dont test well in focus-groups, but that’s the reality.
Dead adults, too.
I love St. Jude’s.
A neighbor delivered a baby within a day or so of Webdom being born. Their child was born with an orthopedic problem that would necessitate multiple surgeries over many years of growth for the child to be able to walk (and keep walking).
St. Jude’s not only did every complicated surgery completely free of charge (these folks had no insurance and no resources), but St. Jude’s found a way to pay for their travel, the parents’ lodging and a temporary fund to handle bills so both parents could take time off to be there for each surgery.
Yes, I donate.
Amazing how that works with no government intervention whatsoever. Though, of course, with socialized medicine it would probably be illegal to run a hospital like St. Jude’s. Then all the disabled newborns can be crippled for life equally (except those of connected bureaucrats).
I just pulled a pork butt out of the smoker, but the last two nights I have had Kraft mac and cheese when I sobered up enough to remember I was hungry. I think those two boxes of mac and cheese are the first two I have purchased in several years. My go to pantry meal from the broke ski bum days was Kraft mac and cheese, fake crab meat and a can of peas. Delicious. I crave it sometimes.
Stove top hot dish for the win!
Eeeewwww, peas.
Nice. I love these easy recipes. I like to take chicken breasts and chop them into smallish pieces, some red potatoes chopped into bite-size pieces, and some canned vegetables (usually peas and carrots or green beans). I just make a row of each in a baking pan, spray them with olive oil, and sprinkle a package of McCormick’s marinades over them. Cook them at 350 until it’s all done and enjoy. Super easy meals and lunches.
Elon Musk loses his shit on Twitter, calls Thai diver a pedo, deletes tweet:
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-07-15/twitter-meltdown-elon-musk-calls-thai-cave-diver-pedophile
What an asshole…
For as much as people say Trump’s antics are designed to take attention away from the Russian-collusion-investigation-waste-of-money-whatever, I’d be an easy sell on the idea that Musk did this as a PR move to draw attention away from TESLA circling the bowl. And it blew up in his face.
Someone needs to take away his phone, you can’t make those kinds of statements when you’re trying to sell a product, especially about a guy who just helped save a bunch of kids.
No, let him keep tweeting. I want the company to go belly-up more quickly!
Please let there be a lawsuit please let there be a lawsuit please let there be a lawsuit…
I saw that this morning. No idea where he got the “pedo” thing.
WTF? The guy does the equivalent of running into a burning building for perfect strangers and Musk trashes him and slanders him as a pedophile? I do *NOT* what some of whatever the hell Musk is smoking.
want some*
Just wait till it turns out he actually IS a pedophile! Y’all gonna get musked hard
All men are pedophiles, just like all men are rapists?
No. Elon Musk isn’t one.
Off comes the scuba mask and its…….Gary Glitter!
#MuskToldYaSo
I went for the easy dinner tonight. Strip steak on the grill and a side salad.
Tulip, I’m a fan of your cooking posts. ?
OT: Grrrrr. My flight out of Orlando is delayed over 3 hours. No way I’ll make my connecting flight home. United tells me it’s due to weather in the NY area (plane is coming from there.) What’s going on weather wise in NY local area glibs?
A high-pressure system due to the hot-air coming from DeBlasio? Perhaps he’s speaking in public?
We had some minor thunderstorms this morning, and some more this afternoon up here in the Catskills, but when I watched the 5PM news I didn’t see anything notable for NYC.
My sympathies. I hate airports, and flying. I love visiting new places, but HATE having to fly there.
Thanks Tulip. I’m a pretty good flyer. I just hate when the schedule is thrown way off. I’ve got a bunch of stuff on my calendar for tomorrow. Time to make alternate plans.
Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)
Due to WEATHER THUNDERSTORMS, EWR is currently experiencing ground delays averaging 2 hours and 36 minutes.
That answers it. Thanks GL. I’ll shake my fist at the sky instead of cursing United.
eh, cursing United is always ok, the have and will continue to screw you over at another airport, another time.
Where are you going?
San Diego.
Oh, and regarding the NYC TV news, they ran a story about how the NYC comptroller wants to impose another regulation on landlords capping security deposits. Because yet another regulation will make housing more affordable or something.
Just finished installing a new backsplash in my bathroom after 5 G&Ts. I guess I’ll have to wait until I sober up to see if I did a half decent job.
gonna do some miter cuts after a case of newcastle… angles be damned!
Be sure to do a before and after count of your fingers.
5 G&Ts? I thought you started knocking them back at 9 am?
How long of a nap did you have, anyhow?
He didn’t say how big the glasses were.
my not so spontaneous meal…smoked chicken wings (beer basted pub rub and a vinegar wet rub) and ribs. Gonna grill some artichokes, mash some cauliflower and eat my heart out
Mmm, grilled artichokes.
Yeah my kids love artichokes and it’s a cheap veggie to give them. slathering the butter might be counter intuitive but tis life.
I’ve been watching The Greatest American Hero most of today.
Poll for you Glibs: Who was hotter (in their prime) Erin Gray or Connie Selleca?
My vote goes to Erin, though it’s a close contest.
Erin grey in Buck Rodgers skintight outfit.
Erin. space outfit everytime
I loved Erin in that space suit but Connie Selleca was hotter.
Erin Gray
Connie Selleca – not even close.
Speaking of convenience, what are your top 5 “tier two” kitchen products? Tier one is the necessities, pans, knives, cooking utensils, etc. Tier two are convenience tools. Tier three are specialty tools/unitaskers, pizza ovens, woks, rice makers, etc.
1. Stand mixer. It makes breads, pizzas, cakes, and the like super easy.
2. Thermometers. Precision is key to many recipes. Thermometers are the only way to get any semblance of temperature precision.
3. Slow cooker/pressure cooker/instant pot. Set and forget is the name of the game.
4. Food processor. Want guac in 3 minutes flat? Look no further than the food processor. Want to make up for less than amazing mincing skills? You get the idea.
5. Chest freezer. Do you hate cooking up something and eating it for the next 5 meals straight? Gallon ziploc bags plus a chest freezer equals months worth of food storage.
Other than what’s on your list. Blender, food saver vacuum sealer, and citrus squeezeer
Stovetop smoker. Add smoke flavor in a convenient roasting pan. Here’s the one I have. Perfect this time of year for smoked corn on the cob. Salt, Pepper, paprika with some hickory smoke flavor.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00004SZ9D/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_rZ9sBb5CA3BS5
Do you use it indoors?
1) Iron skillet
2) pressure cooker (mine’s approx 40 years old in case you think I jumped on the InstaPot® bandwagon)
Iron skillet is Tier one.
Mandolin
Souls vide.
Food processor.
Handheld blender.
Stand mixer.
Slow cooker.
RC, you are one of my favorite commenters, but this list…go home, you’re drunk.
I think thermometers are Tier 1. Otherwise, stick blender, food processor, crock pot, toaster oven and stand mixer.
I don’t have a stick blender, but there is no practical replacement for a toaster for making toast.
And I guess a microwave is Tier 1?
LOL.
That’s a waste of a hot chick.
That’s just mean.
That is not going to end well.
Today’s star of dinner was fresh-picked sweet corn on the cob. We passed the farm and Mrs. JI saw them stocking the stand and insisted we turn around, go back and buy some. She was right. Oh and we had some burgers and pepper-slaw to complement the corn.
Thanks Tulip for the tip on the white beans – that’s one I don’t usually seem to have in the pantry and I think I will remedy that.
Ligunini di interruzione elettrica
12 oz. linguini
1 can tomato paste
2 cans of tuna
1/4 cu. olive oil
1/2 red wine
5 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf
red pepper flakes
dried herb (Roman, not Riven)
Phone the power company. Grab a flashlight, and get the green Coleman stove from the garage. Put a pot of water on one burner on high, and add a palm of salt. When it comes to a boil, turn it off and cover. Meanwhile, smash garlic, remove skins, mince, salt heavily. Put on another pot on the other side on low. Add oil. Wait a minute. Add garlic. When the garlic starts to sizzle and darkens a bit, add tomato paste. Bring to medium heat. Cook paste while stirring frequently. Add wine. Stir. Add bay leaf, hot pepper, fresh ground black pepper, and one kind of herb (eg. oregano, marjoram, basil). Thin with water. Stir in tuna. When it comer to a low boil, lower the flame, cover and let simmer, stirring occasionally, about 15-20 minutes, until the oil separates and it tastes cooked. Turn the water back on high. When it reaches a full boil, add pasta. Stir. After seven minutes keep checking to see if it’s done. Drain. Add sauce. Eat. Enjoy the savory balance of fat, protein, and carbohydrates. Drink the rest of the wine. Pass out in the darkness.
I’ll have to try that.
If the power goes out, you can make it without opening the fridge.
Alt-right goobers
Goddammit, I feel the need to insult someone and Spudalicious doesn’t seem to be here.
Did Baltimore lose agai……oh, nevermind.
Insult SP.
Nope.
And live to tell the tale? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
Dan Carlin released an episode about the cultural and philosophical build-up to Japan’s role in WW2. ~hour in and enjoying it.
What is this … “cooking” … you speak of? m
I have a lot of steal cut oats and garbanzo beans in my pantry…