A well-stocked kitchen is a motivation to throw together a fast, flavorful meal after a long day. Having these ingredients prevents you from unnecessary stress over a meal all the time and makes your cooking exciting and fun.
Here are the 10 most common cooking ingredients you should have;
1. Salt
Salt is the most important ingredient you can never ignore in your kitchen. Everyone knows that salt adds flavor to food and is an age-old food preservative that has always been used in cooking.
2. Eggs
Eggs are a great protein addition to most meals. It is a key ingredient that can be added to pasta, baked foods, rice, custards and lots more. In any well-stocked fridge, eggs are regarded as the “shining star.”
3. Tomato Paste
Tomato paste is one of our absolute essential kitchen ingredients. It is one of the cheapest ingredients you must always have in your kitchen at any point in time. It comes in handy when preparing dishes such as tomato sauce, Jollof rice e.t.c. Just a few dashes of this paste will give your meals the additional flavour it needs.
4. Garlic and Ginger
Not everybody takes garlic because of its smell and aftermath taste. But these tiny bulbs of sugary oil are perfect for all your spicy dishes when taken into consideration. This is as important as ginger too. Want to know a special secret? Blend both into a dry paste and you have the perfect space for dishes.
5. Flour
This can serve as your best bet for almost everything. Beyond baking, flour is great as a thickener for sauces, or as a coating for fried foods. It is also important to note that, despite its high protein content it produces a dense loaf unless mixed with all-purpose flour.
6. Lemon and Lime
So juicy and so cheap! Lemons are great for cooking fish and meat, as the acids in lemon juice help breakdown the raw flesh, so yummy spices, and juices can mix together to give a great taste and smell. You already know it’s refreshingly tart on its own, and blends perfectly with fresh greens and other veggies. Yum!
7. Onions
Onions are an awesome flavourful base you should always have in the kitchen.
They are easily accessible and very cheap to get. It is one of the most widely used vegetables in cooking because of the tasteful flavour they add to cooked vegetables and meat dishes. Ever tried adding some slices of onions to your cooking oil before frying? It smells like “heaven”. winks
8. Oil
A gallon or jar of oil is handy to have around when you are cooking in the kitchen. Cooking oils are great sources of fats that our bodies need to stay healthy and our food needs to stay tasty. It can be used in frying, baking, and other types of cooking. It is also used in food preparation and flavouring not involving heat, such as salad dressings and bread dips, and in this sense might be more accurately termed edible oil.
9. Nuts
Nuts are great for your health, and studies have shown that people who eat a handful of nuts at least a day live longer, and healthier lives. It also doesn’t hurt that they are delicious and can turn almost any recipe into crunchy, nutty deliciousness. There are all kinds of nut such as almond, tiger nut, cashew nut, peanuts and so on.
For instance, almond is highly recommended for increasing brain capacity, intellectual and longevity. Cashew nut is widely known as a beneficiary to diabetes patients and also boost fertility for men.
10. Stock
Making stock involves simmering animal bones, meat, seafood, or vegetables in water or wine, adding other aromatics for more flavour. This flavour comes majorly from the bones or flesh. To make your meal extra delicious, keep some chicken, or seafood stock handy to help thin out heavy sauces or add moisture and flavour to any recipe.
Bonus
Spices enhance your dishes rather than overpowering it. They don’t just make your food taste good, they are also important for your overall health too.