Every pantry is stocked full of non-perishable staple items that do not go bad that we buy for those rare occasions when we need them in a recipe. For most people, the pantry is full of non-perishable items, canned goods and other food stuffs, and those food stuffs go mostly unused and dormant. Don’t let your pantry food staples go to waste. Cupboard kitchen staples are inexpensive and delicious and don’t deserve to stand idle in culinary purgatory. Kitchen staples can have some unique culinary applications. Follow these tips to learn how to add new and interesting touches to your meals with everyday kitchen staples.

Peanut Butter: In almost every pantry is a half-eaten jar of peanut butter. This cupboard staple is creamy and delicious, but most people only use peanut butter for sandwiches and dessert. The rich creaminess of peanut butter is also great in savory applications. Try using peanut butter to your next stir fry to give it a Thai-inspired flavor. Use peanut butter to make a peanut sauce that tastes great with pasta and vegetables.

Soy Sauce: Almost every East Asian dish calls for soy sauce. Soy sauce adds a nutty, salty taste to any dish, but most people only cook with soy sauce when cooking an Asian-style dish. However, soy sauce is a versatile ingredient that can work well in many recipes. Experiment and use soy sauce instead of salt in your favorite recipes to add some depth to the dish. In particular, soy sauce tastes great in barbecue sauces.

Almonds: As with most other nuts, most people only get almonds to snack on or for a dessert recipe. Almonds can be ground up into almond flour, a protein-rich and gluten-free alternative to regular flour. You can also blend up almonds with water to create almond milk, a delicious beverage that is a fantastic alternative to regular milk.

Bisquick: Originally intended for biscuits, Bisquick is used by many home cooks as the base to make pancakes. Bisquick has a wide variety of uses outside of just pancakes and biscuits. Use Bisquick as part of the dry ingredients for a wide variety of dessert recipes, from cakes and pies to muffins and tarts. Bisquick works great in casseroles too.

Cashews: As is the case with almonds and other nuts, cashews have a wide array of uses, but most only use them in the occasional dessert. Besides being a delicious out-of-hand snack, cashews add a nice crunchiness to vegetable dishes like a stir fry, a pasta dish or a casserole. Additionally, you can blend cashews in a food processor to create cashew butter, a spread similar to peanut butter.

Cocoa Powder: This rich chocolate powder only gets used in most kitchens to add a bit of flavor to the occasional dessert. Do not let the powerful chocolate flavor cocoa powder provides to go to waste. Use cocoa powder as part of a homemade hot chocolate mix. It also works particularly well in spicy applications, lending a bittersweet note to spicy recipes. Use cocoa powder to make an authentic mole sauce. Add cocoa powder to your favorite chili recipe.

Tags : Cooking
Categories : Cooking