Peek Into My Pantry: Spices

photo credit: Tanilee Gonzalez Photography

For quite some time a lot of you have been asking about my pantry staples. You cook a long with my Instagram Stories and may see me use ingredients you are not accustomed too. Everyone’s pantry staples are different. The ingredients in your kitchen and pantry are SUPER personal. You can tell a lot about a person by peeking in their cupboard.

Are you all pasta and grains all day long? Are the only vegetables you have canned? There is no wrong or right way to build a pantry. However, there is an economical way and a way that influences your cooking. The ingredients you have on hand influences the choices you make in the kitchen. Before you build your pantry think about your current lifestyle. Do you eat at home every night? Are there certain dishes you eat on repeat? If you are like me, you eat at home most nights. You also know you make a lot of salad with balsamic vinaigrette and you make your own tomato sauce. Therefore, I always have canned tomatoes, olive oil, kosher salt, balsamic vinegar and garlic on hand.

Other considerations are your current diet and goals. Are you trying to cut down on sodium or cholesterol Make sure your pantry choices encourage you to do so. Also, think about how you WANT to cook. What things do you love to eat when you are out? What is one spice you would like to try? When I shop every so often I will pick an ingredient that I can play with. I usually choose something that is on sale. Such as a finishing salt or flavored oil. This can change up a typical marinade or dressing. Encouraging and sparking new ideas in the kitchen.

I thought I would start out with a peek into my spice cabinet. Below are links to some of my favorites so you can shop yourself. I do tend to try to use a lot of organic spices but again, that is clearly preference. Some of my new favorites are smoked paprika and furikake. Furikake came into my life on a trip to Hawaii. It was sprinkled on rice and poke frequently. When I found it in the grocery store here I was so excited! A new comfort food for me is sprinkling this on white rice and dousing it with fish sauce!

Smoked paprika adds a subtle sweet and smoky flavor to chicken marinades. I have been loving adding this extra layer of warmth to ground meat as well. Other favorites are a lemon finishing salt. Adds a little zing of freshness to roasted potatoes after they come out of the oven. I also love a fig laced balsamic vinegar. I feel like can go on and on. For now, click through the photos below and keep watching my IG stories to see how these ingredients work into my everyday life!