Second Helping Toolbox
Pantry of Champions

Looking to jump-start your healthful pantry? There’s more to it than stocking up on all the normal “healthy” things. At some point, you need to consider how to make those items interesting.

And also versatile — if you want to aim for an ambitious dish, you have the ingredients available. If you just want to make your whole wheat turkey sandwich more lively, you have the tools to make even quick meals highly flavorful.

Kevin and Russ compared notes and created The Pantry of Champions — and not just what to stock, but what NOT to keep in the hosue. Whatever you do or don’t include, the important lessons to take from this list include the following:

• It’s not just what you buy at the store | Throughout our recipes at Second Helping, we’ll continually encourage you to pre-prepare some foods — those are as important to your pantry as anything you buy. This can include spice mixes, salad dressings, sauces, spreads, roasted vegetables (garlic and tomatoes are our favorite), oil infusions. These are what separate a “healthy pantry” from an INTERESTING healthy pantry. And taking the time to pre-prepare these foods allow you to quickly invigorate quick easy meals when time’s an a minimum.
• Mix and match fresh with pre-prepared | With a supply of vinegars, low-sodium broths and ample herbs, spices and sauces, you can take pre-prepared items grocery store chicken and some canned or frozen vegetables and work wonders. And because your array of flavor enhancers is so well-stocked, when you buy fresh produce you can avoid pre-marinated or seasoned products — these tend to be pricey and often full of additives. Either way, investing in the flavors now will save much time, additives and money at the grocery in the long term.
• Add new flavors and ingredients gradually | With pantry lists, there’s an urge to pick up an entire list of products, and maybe use two or three. The beauty of this list is in its versatility — you have the basics with this list to create dishes from a number of cuisines. But introduce the new flavors slowly into your cooking so you can take time with each and learn what it can and cannot do for your dishes.
• Experiment slowly | Nights where you know you need to eat but aren’t particularly hungry are the perfect opportunity to play around in the kitchen and see what you come up with. We suggest starting with a basic food (vegetables, whole wheat pasta, or meat), and an oil, maybe a vinegar, and then go from there.

The List

Oils, Vinegars & Condiments

• Extra-virgin olive oil for cooking and salad dressings
• Canola oil for cooking and baking
• Flavorful nut and seed oils for salad dressings and stir-fry seasonings: toasted sesame oil, walnut oil
• Butter, preferably unsalted. Store in the freezer if you use infrequently.
• Reduced-fat mayonnaise
• Vinegars: balsamic, red-wine, white-wine, rice (or rice-wine), apple cider
• Asian condiments and flavorings: reduced-sodium soy sauce, fish sauce, mirin, oyster sauce, chile-garlic sauce, curry paste, xaoshing cooking wine
• Kalamata olives, green olives
• Dijon mustard
• Deli mustard (the kind with the mustard seeds still intact. These provide additional kick and a more interesting texture than ‘ol yellow mustard)
• Capers
• Ketchup
• Worcestershire sauce

Flavorings

• Kosher salt, coarse sea salt, fine salt (many varieties of sea salt exist, which tend to be pricey. Start with the “standard” sea salt and experiment from there)
• Black peppercorns (don’t be afraid of multiple varieties)
• Red, yellow and sweet onions
• Fresh garlic, shallots
• Fresh ginger
• Anchovies or anchovy paste for flavoring pasta sauces and salad dressings
• Dried herbs | bay leaves, dill, sage, dried thyme leaves, majoram, oregano, rosemary, tarragon, basil
• Spices | allspice (whole berries or ground), caraway seeds, chili powder, cinnamon sticks, ground cinnamon,coriander seeds, cumin seeds, ground cumin, curry powder, ground ginger, dry mustard, nutmeg, paprika, cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper, turmeric, garlic powder
• Dried citrus peels, such as lemon, orange, lime
• Sundried tomatoes, preferably not packed in water or oil.
• Fresh lemons, limes, oranges.
• Pure maple syrup
• Agave Nectar
• Pomegranate Molasses (this is a specialty-order item that’s worth the effort. We’ll show you how it later)
• Unsweetened cocoa powder, natural and/or Dutch-processed
• Whey protein powder, chocolate and vanilla flavored (our recommended brand is Pure Whey Protein Stack for superior taste. We can attest to the Chocolate and Vanilla flavors; select other flavors at your own risk.)

Canned Goods & Bottled Items

• Canned tomatoes, tomato paste, canned roasted tomatoes. Avoid seasoned varieties — just add the seasoning yourself
• Reduced-sodium chicken broth, beef broth and/or vegetable broth
• Clam juice
• “Lite” coconut milk for Asian curries and soups
• Canned beans: cannellini beans, great northern beans, chickpeas, black beans, red kidney beans, lintels
• Chunk light tuna and salmon, packed in water.

Grains & Legumes

• Whole-wheat flour and whole-wheat pastry flour (Store opened packages in the refrigerator or freezer.)
• All-purpose flour
• Assorted whole-wheat pastas
• Brown rice and instant brown rice
• Pearl barley, quick-cooking barley
• Rolled, toasted oats
• Whole-wheat couscous
• Whole-wheat pita bread, sandwich bread, flatbread
• Asian black rice (also known as “Forbidden” black rice)
• Bulgur
• Dried lentils
• Yellow cornmeal
• Quoina
• Polenta (the pre-packed tubes in the refrigerator section are a quick-meal godsend and make for easily cutting)

Nuts, Seeds & Fruits

• Walnuts
• Pecans
• Almonds
• Hazelnuts
• Flax seed
• Dry-roasted unsalted peanuts
• Pine nuts
• Sesame seeds
• Natural peanut butter
• Tahini
• Assorted dried fruits, such as apricots, prunes, cherries, cranberries, dates, figs, raisins
  (Store opened packages of nuts and seeds in the refrigerator or freezer.)

Refrigerator Basics

• Low-fat milk or soymilk
• Low-fat or nonfat plain yogurt, both American (i.e. supermarket brand or Dannon) and Greek-style (the most common brand is Fage)
• Reduced-fat sour cream
• Good-quality Parmesan cheese and/or Romano cheese
• Sharp Cheddar cheese
• Feta Cheese
• Gorgonzola or similarly-pungent cheese (blue, etc.)
• Eggs (large).
• Orange juice
• Preferred brand of white and red wine.
• Water-packed tofu (extra-firm for stir-frying or baking)
• Pancetta (don’t worry about the fat content — often we render the fat first before using it as an accent in various dishes)
• Salsa

Freezer Basics

• Frozen vegetables: edamame soy beans, peas, spinach, broccoli, bell pepper and onion mix, corn, chopped onions, small whole onions, uncooked hash browns
• Frozen shrimp and salmon fillets (if fresh is not available)
• Frozen berries (mixes are fine, but purchasing blueberries, strawberries and raspberries separately will provide you greater versatility)
• Italian turkey sausage and sliced prosciutto to flavor fast pasta sauces
• Veggie Burger (one recommended brand is Morningstar Farm’s Spicy Black Bean burger)

Useful Items that AREN’T Best to Keep in your Pantry — Buy as Needed

Note | In the interest of freshness, quality and also not keeping foods around that encourage mindless or unhealthful eating, buy these products as you need them. Purchasing small quantities from supermarkets, restaurants or specialty shops you trust also provide a better eating experience when you do eat them.

• Pint of low-fat ice cream
• One slice of pound cake
• Small amounts of high-fat cheeses (we use them for accents on dishes only — best not to keep them around)
• Squares of dark chocolate (some shops sell amazing brands of dark chocolate by one-ounce squares — cheap, and tasty! Think of them like a “sipping whiskey.”)
• Bran muffins from a quality baker
• Whole-wheat baguettes, for slicing and making bruschetta
• Various juices, diet sodas, and juice concentrates
• Chips (brown rice or fiber-oriented brands)