One great way of saving money is to always how some key ingredients on hand. This will allow you to make dishes without the daily trip to the store. I put together a list of all the staples that I always keep on hand.
Items to always have on hand
Pantry:
Dry Pasta ( I always have at least a couple boxes of spaghetti noodles and a couple shells and bowties)
Dry Pinto Beans(We buy ours in 25 pound bags at smart and final!)
Dry White Rice
Dry split Peas
Dry Navy Beans
Tomato Sauce ( I like to buy 8oz cans for salsa, pizza sauce, meatloaf, chili, etc, just nice to have on hand!)
Canned tomato (various sizes will do)
Chicken broth (for when you haven't made your own
Oats
White and Apple Vinegar
Flour (Bread flour and All Purpose)
Sugar (powdered, granulated, and brown)
Baking Soda
Baking Powder
Chocolate Chips (Definitely an essential at my house!)
Pure Vanilla Extract
Spaghetti Sauce
Corn Starch
Oil (Vegetable Oil, cooking oil spray, Olive Oil)
Tuna (For quick lunches or emergency dinners)
Peanut Butter (For lunches)
Refrigerator
Eggs
Milk
Mayo
Mustard
Sour Cream
Salted Butter ( I like to butter in bulk and keep a couple pounds in the freezer for emergencies)
Yeast ( I keep mine in a Mason jar in the fridge)
Freezer
Ground beef
Chicken (Breast and whole chicken)
Beef Roast
Butter!
Dorot Ginger Cubes
Bacon
Sausage
Seasonings
Garlic Salt
Chili Powder
Italian Seasoning
Salt
Pepper (We love the taste of grinding whole peppercorns, but any pepper will do)
Parsley
Oragano
Cumin
Thyme
Produce
(while I try to have as much fresh fruits and veggies on hand as possible, the essentials are...)
Onions
Potatoes
Bananas
Apples
Jalapenos
Bell Pepper
Green Chilis
Spinach
Romaine Lettuce
Broccoli
Keeping your kitchen stocked with commonly used items will be huge money and time saver! Keep an ongoing shopping list on the fridge so as soon as you run out of an item you can rest assured it won't be forgotten on the next shopping run!
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