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Running a household is a lot of work; cleaning and maintaining the property, stocking house supplies and keeping up with the bills to pay. It demands a lot of time and effort, but it is a job anyone is willing and happy to take because it comes with a blessing—a family.
For a homemaker, nothing is more fulfilling and satisfying than seeing to it that every need of the family is well-provided.
Food is a necessity in a home and should always be given attention. Aside from possessing the skills to cook, having readily available food items is essential. For a busy household, going to the grocery store to buy the lacking ingredient to a recipe is a lot of hassle.
To be able to run a household smoothly and stress-free, you should always look into the needs of your kitchen, especially the pantry. To make your life easier, here are the 10 pantry staples to always keep on hand.
Peanut butter is everyone’s favorite food, whether eaten alone or with a slice of bread. It is a go-to snack for the kids, easy and neat to prepare.If you are on a diet or need to get your hunger under control, eating peanut butter will fill you up fast and give you the energy you need for the day.
When grocery shopping for peanut butter, always make sure to get the one with 100% pure peanut ingredients—it has healthy fats, protein, vitamins, and manganese, which is an essential mineral.
Oats are a great source of dietary fiber, proteins, and rich minerals such as magnesium, phosphorus, iron, potassium, and calcium. This regular pantry item is very easy to incorporate to any diet, easy, and fast to prepare.
Once properly packed and stored, oats can last on your shelf of up to 30 years. Oats are lightly steamed to aid the cooking process, thus, helping you save fuel. Aside from being a healthy breakfast meal, oats are also an ideal replacement for flour in your chocolate chip cookie recipe.
Stocking your pantry with natural nuts and seeds allows you to make healthy meals and snacks in an instant. These long-lasting pantry staples can be used in a number of dishes, including salads, yogurt, and oatmeal.
For your gluten-free vegan diet, make sure to always keep on hand nutritious nuts and seeds, such as chia seeds, flax seeds, raw sunflower seeds, raw almonds, raw cashews, raw pumpkin seeds, hazelnuts, sesame seeds, and walnuts.
Always choose glass jars over plastic bags when storing nuts and seeds. Keeping them inside airtight, clean containers at room temperature let them last for months.
This must-have staple item can benefit both your cooking and health. Olive oil is essentially used in marinades, dressings, sauces, and soups. It is also a healthy cooking oil option for sauteing poultry, fish, and vegetables.
Besides helping you cook a tasty meal, research shows that the powerful antioxidants in olive oil can help reduce your risk of heart disease. Remember to buy an olive oil bottle marked “extra virgin”, otherwise you may not be getting its quality flavor and aroma.
If you have a last-minute dinner date to plan, having pasta in your pantry can save your night. Pasta-based recipes are very easy to cook and serve as a romantic dinner meal for two. You can mix the pasta with meatballs or vegetables, and get some bread to go along with it.
To be able to cook a variety of pasta dishes, make sure to store different pasta types in your pantry, such as spaghetti, penne, fusilli, orecchiette, and rigatoni.
It is important to check for signs of spoilage before you cook it to avoid wasting your time and kitchen resources.Pasta is best kept refrigerated to preserve its freshness and slow down mold growth.
Rice is a versatile pantry staple that can last long for months. It is a great choice for a main dish and can also be served with other dishes such as pesto shrimp, curry, and soy sauce egg.
For uncooked rice, such as milled rice, store it a tightly closed container to keep out moisture, dust, and other contaminants.
Brown, red, or black whole grain rice has a shelf life of up to 6 months and best stored in the freezer. Cooked rice, on the other hand, when kept refrigerated can last for approximately six months.
It is impossible to not have a single person in the family who loves coffee. That is why your pantry should not lack coffee beans. Brewed coffee can help with waking up in the morning, staying energized for the day, and late at night.
If you want to preserve the fresh-roasted flavor of coffee beans, it must be stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
Spices are crucial elements of your pantry. It is hard to achieve a specific taste for a recipe without pantry spices such as black peppercorns, cayenne pepper, chili powder, cinnamon, cloves, curry powder, rosemary, vanilla extract, etc.
While dried spices and herbs last long compared to fresh ones, it still needs checking and replacing before the flavor goes flat.
Keeping a loaf of bread or two comes in handy at times you are not in the mood to cook. You can make your favorite sandwich, whip up a french toast, or pair bread with pasta or soup.
Bread is affordable, so it is alright to keep several loaves in stock. The best ways to help keep bread fresh are freezing the bread, using a breadbox, and wrapping it in foil or plastic.
Many people consider applesauce as comfort food, and that is why you should also be keeping one in your pantry shelf. On top of that, it also has a lot of health benefits to offer.
When buying applesauce, make sure to pick one that is made from organic apples with no added sugar. The ideal storage place for applesauce is one that is away from the heat or sunlight.
