Comments on: Pantry Basics

By: Heather

Heather — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 01:37:59 +0000

I can’t believe I forgot garlic. At the very least garlic powder, but garlic cloves are so much better.

Doh!

By: Rachel

Rachel — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 01:34:06 +0000

I’d like to suggest garlic or garlic powder at the least. Also, as someone who is *still* getting the hang of this cooking thing, I’d suggest a few survival staples like box mac & cheese, or even, heaven forbid, ramen noodles.

By: Heather

Heather — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 12:16:50 +0000

Cheryll, thank you for your suggestions on building a pantry for a reluctant or novice cook. As I mentioned in the post pantries are very subjective. For full disclosure, I did contact the submitter for further information on the young adult’s habits before making suggestions.

By: cheryll

cheryll — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 17:50:26 +0000

Of course, just because he has a kitchen, doesn’t mean he intends to cook….

Most of heather’s list probably wouldn’t have worked for my teen-aged son and might not be too good for this one, either.

He’s just not going to make things from scratch, unless he’s a budding gourmet, in which case he wouldn’t need the advice.

Some time ago (we won’t detail just how long) my youngest child was going on a summer internship on a site without either a kitchen or food service.

I figured he’d starve to death, since his entire repertoire of cooking skills — apart from using his college food commens card — entailed microwave pizza and fudge, Ramen noodles, and chocolate chip cookies.

So, I wrote him a little cookbook based upon what he had to work with, instead of the way most cookbooks are laid out by kind of recipe.

He didn’t know if he’d be in a hotel room, a dorm with a refrigerator but no cooking equipment — or an apartment shared with others who might know more about using a kitchen than he did.

I laid out tools, menus, recipes and stash suggestions for each possibility. Plus added Mom’s advice on things like cleaning and a glossary of skills.

Unlike his sisters, he had no kitchen experience beyond washing dishes, and had never learned what chop or saute or puree or ‘season to taste’ might mean. Let alone, how to crack an egg!

It worked. He is now 6’8″ and 250 pounds — and a stay at home daddy cooking for his wife and three kids!

Love this site!
cheryll

By: Pam

Pam — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 00:39:44 +0000

I would include some cans of soup,crackers, pasta and sauces. The soup for those occasion when he isn’t feeling well and mom isn’t there to provide some TLC….Pam from South Bend