đ The Pantry
Twenty ingredients that unlock most of the recipe library. Nothing here is rare, nothing needs a specialist shop, and where something is unfamiliar we name the ordinary substitute standing next to it. Stock these and almost every recipe we offer is a shopping-free decision.
Grains and pulses
Short grain white rice. The base of congee and the most forgiving grain in the kitchen; sushi, arborio or pudding rice all do the job. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine (rice); âī¸ The Cold Core lists sweet rice, its stickier cousin.
Porridge oats. The fastest honest breakfast there is, and they toast beautifully in a little fat. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine; đĒī¸ The Windblown (as a warm cooked grain).
Millet. A small golden grain that cooks into the softest porridge in the library; find it with the grains or in the world food aisle. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine; đī¸ The Dry Well.
Pearl barley. Cheap, nutty, and the grain we reach for whenever a dish needs lightening; it simmers happily in broths and stretches congee. Leaned on by: đ§ The Waterlogged; đĨ The Furnace (barley).
Quinoa. A quick, light grain that steams fluffy in fifteen minutes; rinse it well or it sulks. Leaned on by: âī¸ The Cold Core.
Red lentils. They collapse into velvet without soaking, which makes them the fastest route to a proper soup. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine (well cooked lentils).
Yellow split mung beans. The gentlest bean in the cupboard and the base of the cooling green pot; world food aisle, sometimes labelled mung dal. Red lentils stand in culinarily while you find them. Leaned on by: đĨ The Furnace; đ§ The Waterlogged.
Aromatics and spices
Fresh ginger. The hardest working ingredient in this whole kitchen: sliced into broths, minced under hot oil, grated into porridge. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine; đĒī¸ The Windblown; âī¸ The Cold Core lists dried ginger, so keep a jar of that too.
Cinnamon. Ground for porridge, a stick for the pot; it earns its place in sweet bowls and savoury braises alike. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine; âī¸ The Cold Core (cinnamon bark); đĒ¨ The Stuck River; đĒī¸ The Windblown.
Fennel seeds. A sweet aniseed lift that blooms in thirty seconds of hot oil and flatters chicken, beans and rice equally. Leaned on by: âī¸ The Cold Core; đĨ The Furnace; âī¸ The Pressure Cooker; đĒī¸ The Windblown.
Cardamom pods. Crack them fresh and they perfume a whole pot; pre-ground fades in weeks. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine; đ§ The Waterlogged; đĒī¸ The Windblown.
Ground turmeric. A teaspoon turns a pan golden and stains everything it loves; buy small jars often rather than one big one rarely. Leaned on by: âī¸ The Pressure Cooker; đĒ¨ The Stuck River.
Spring onions. Whites for the pan, greens for the finish, and the raw material of the scallion oil that upgrades everything it touches. Leaned on by: âī¸ The Pressure Cooker; đĒ¨ The Stuck River.
The umami shelf
Dried shiitake. Instant depth for any broth, and their soaking water is free stock; dried porcini stand in, though they run warmer and more blood moving, and we say so. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine (shiitake); đ§ The Waterlogged (mushroom).
Good chicken stock or bone broth. The difference between a dish and a good dish; keep a decent fresh pot or the best cube you can find. Leaned on by: đĒĢ The Depleted Engine (bone broth); âī¸ The Cold Core (bone marrow broth); đ¯ī¸ The Pale Thread (bone broth).
Fruit, roots and seeds
Daikon. A long white radish that turns translucent and mild in broth; look for mooli in the world food aisle, or use turnip, which sits on the same list. Leaned on by: đ§ The Waterlogged.
Goji berries. Small red berries for broths and stewing fruit; most supermarkets now shelve them with the dried fruit. Dried cranberries are a texture substitute only, not a therapeutic one, and we say so plainly. Leaned on by: đī¸ The Dry Well; đ¯ī¸ The Pale Thread.
Red dates (jujubes). Honeyed dried fruit for the slow pot; ordinary dried dates stand in, use fewer, they are sweeter. Leaned on by: đ¯ī¸ The Pale Thread.
Black sesame seeds. A toasted scatter that makes plain bowls look and taste finished; toasted white sesame stands in at the table. Leaned on by: âī¸ The Cold Core; đī¸ The Dry Well; đ¯ī¸ The Pale Thread.
Ghee. Butter with the milk solids removed, so it keeps for months and toasts without burning; clarify unsalted butter gently at home and you have made it. Leaned on by: đĒī¸ The Windblown.