The good news is, ‘we’re all in this together’. The unfortunate news is that we may be isolated in our homes for a minimum of 2 weeks. Yes, that means no walks to the park, no leisurely drives to Bondi Beach, no catching up with your bestie for a quick takeaway coffee. We will all be sitting at home under our safe roofs, on our balconies, on our lounge, office chair or anywhere you land yourself on that day.
If life in Australia does get to this point, then we best all prepare ourselves and our pantries for what’s to come.
Here I’ll share my #pantry essentials to hopefully get us all through this #pandemic without bringing ourselves to gagging over the thought of eating canned beans again and again.
YOUR SURVIVAL LIST
Rice
So many ways to use this ingredient! Mushroom risotto, fried rice, vegetarian rissoles and lentil curry just to name a few.
Pasta
I seriously could not live without #pasta in my pantry. I could probably eat pasta everyday, not just during a pandemic.
Bottled pasta passata/ sauce
Goes hand in hand with pasta, duh! But can also be used in other dishes like, minestrone soup, chicken cacciatore or huevos rancheros.
Nuts
Gotta have nuts in your pantry. Almonds, cashews, macadamia (if you can afford them), pistachios and peanuts. I know I can always rely on them when I feel like a little nibble in the afternoon but not hungry enough to start making dinner. Also a great addition to baking biscuits, muesli bars etc.
Oats
Nutritious, filling and versatile.
Olives
Seriously #olives are good with anything or just on their own!
Pickles
Again, an excellent snack or add them to a sandwich or a salad.
Pesto
You can buy #pesto from any grocer or you could make it yourself if you have a large basil plant just sitting on your balcony looking pretty.
Chocolate
You cannot create a #pandemic pantry without chocolate!
All the spreads you want!
In my pantry our favourites are Nutella, peanut butter, fig jam, honey and Vegemite.
Beans
Beans, beans the musical fruit might suck and aren’t always that appealing but you can jazz them up in so many ways. Puree them with a bit of olive oil “there you have it, olive oil again”, add some salt, pepper and dried oregano and spread that over a cracker. Take that bean! Or throw them in a minestrone to gain all their nutritious benefits.
Bread
If you can pick up some from your local bakery or supermarket, that's great. If not, head to the bakery section of your #Coles or #Woolworths.If you find that you’re always left with half a loaf after a few days, you can always pop it in the freezer and use it later.
Olive oil
I literally add olive oil to everything. Drizzle over a piece of toast with salt, over a fresh salad, over last nights food that I heated up in the oven, fried sliced eggplant, a few drops on some cheese with crackers. EVERYTHING.
Coconut Water
A nice change if you’re sick of drinking water. Although please make sure you are still getting your recommended water intake! Also perfect to add to smoothies.
Alcohol
I’m currently pregnant so #booze is not part of my pregnancy diet at the moment HOWEVER alcohol is a pandemic pantry staple! No pandemic pantry would be complete without it. Thats my opinion and I’m sticking to it!
See some other things that I can’t go without:
Popcorn
Coffee pods
Soy sauce
Dried chili flakes
Garlic
Rice cakes
Arnott’s biscuits
Canned tuna
Lentils
Dried porcini mushrooms
Desiccated coconut
Now you’re probably thinking, how am I supposed to make a delicious meal with just a tin of tomatoes or a bag of rice or a block of chocolate? We’re not allowed to go to the grocer for perishable foods? Well... and as this brings me to my next point…
IN THE WORDS OF MY MOTHER, ‘JUST FREEZE IT’.
Below are some items that you don’t need to store in your pantry but in your freezer and that will last you at least 1 month.
Parmesan cheese
BIG staple in my freezer. Pasta, meatballs, #schnitzel crumb, afternoon snack. What else??
Peas
Frozen peas are little balls of sweetness. If you’re stuck for a side dish, throw a couple of cups in a pot with water, butter salt and pepper and cook till your liking. Easy ‘peasy’.
Corn
Same thing with the peas. Little balls of sweetness and greatness.
Bread crumbs
Best for schnitzel making. Also great for meatballs, rice rissoles and adding to the top of a good mac n cheese.
Bacon
If you know, you know.
Frozen spinach cubes
I love these as you can add them to smoothies, risotto, pasta dishes, omelettes, stir fries. Anything really! You may need to thaw them out first or throw straight into the pan with a little water and watch it shrink.
Puff pastry sheets
Roll it out, roll things in it, wrap stuff with it.
Butter
Honestly butter is my weakness. I really feel strong about how much flavour a knob of butter can add to a dish.
Ask my partner, I make the best scrambled fluffy eggs. What’s my secret? #BUTTER.
Frozen fruit (blueberries, mango, strawberry)
If you have any fruit that you bought from the supermarket but has just gone past that fresh point, you can always cut up the fruit in small pieces and store it in the freezer to use in a smoothie later on.
Herbs
If you buy fresh herbs from your grocer, you can wash and portion them up then freeze them. They contain their #flavour and aroma which is why I think they are the perfect freezer candidate.
I hope you enjoyed our first blog, follow us for more blogs to come.
Stay safe everyone!
Love from the Paparedda Team. xo