Kitchen Basics III - Spicing it up

Image by monocore from pixabay

The Spice Rack

We have covered the hardware of what you need to get cooking which is a bit bland. Now this I hope will be more flavorful: what spices should you have on hand to start with. Spices are a key part of making a dish really good or even great. Some give an earthiness to the dish, some add freshness while others harmonize the ingredients. You may already have some of the essential ones on hand.

To start with, salt and pepper. You’re going to say “What are you talking about? Everyone has a salt and pepper set!”. But I am not talking about a salt shaker or a pepper mill. Recipes are going to call for X amount of these and you do not want to shake out a teaspoon of salt. It is extremely tedious and unnecessary. You may already have a box of salt on hand and that is what you need. A container of ground pepper is less likely in your pantry. Finely ground pepper will get you started but eventually you may want to get course ground as well.

“That’s somewhat obvious” you say. Let’s get to the meat of the subject. The following are what I consider absolute musts: Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Dried Parsley, Dried Oregano, Dried Thyme, Dried Sage, Dried Rosemary, Dried Marjoram and Bay Leaves. Bay Leaves? Yes, bay leaves for soups and stews.

Many recipes will call for a couple others that I find myself reaching for often are Dried Dill and Dried Basil. These are not called for as frequently, so I consider them important but not essential to get started.

Spice Sets to Start

Spice sets are easy to find, just do a search on your favorite search engine. You will find a wide, variety and many will include more spices than what I have listed which is fine but make sure you are not missing the basics.

Some sets come with racks or spinners which are not necessary and add to the cost. However, they will save you on storage space and you can place them conveniently to where you are cooking. Here are two examples for illustrative purposes only. The first is a spinner style, which will save on cupboard space and let you keep your spices conveniently at hand.

Image by Alexis Photos from pixabay

The second is an actual rack. If you have more wall space than counter or cupboard space this may be a better option.

Image by Peggy_Marco, Instagram and pixabay

This is not the most economical way to buy spices but is a quick way to get started. The spices will generally come in small bottles, as will those you find in a standard grocery store. Buying in bulk is much more practical and I will discuss that in in a future post but might be overwhelming at this point.

Once you pick a recipe, there may well be other ingredients called for: this will help you round out what is on your shelf. In future posts I will discuss spices for various cuisines and other ingredients you may want keep in your pantry.

I hope you found this helpful and keep cooking!