All My Kitchen Recommendations

that make cooking a joy

When I shared the list of what I’m loving the other week, a lot of people asked for a full pantry & kitchen staples list.

If you’re refreshing your kitchen for spring or helping someone set up a new apartment, these are my go-to’s in every category to keep your kitchen running smoothly and make cooking enjoyable.

I’m starting with my pantry staples—if you’re looking for tools and equipment recommendations, scroll down!

ok this isn’t my real pantry but you’d never know

Pantry Staples

Spices & Seasonings

We get a lot of spices at the shuk in Israel and store them in the fridge. I’ve linked my favorite brands for you here!

• Sea Salt

• Black Peppercorns

• Garlic Powder

• Onion Powder

• Oregano

• Sweet Paprika with Oil

• Ground Cumin

• Ground Turmeric

• Za’atar

• Vanilla Paste

• Nutritional Yeast

Oils & Vinegars

• Extra Virgin Olive Oil

• Avocado Oil (or another neutral oil)

• Toasted Sesame Oil

• Coconut Oil

• White Vinegar

• Rice Vinegar

• Red Wine Vinegar

Pantry

• Tomato Paste

• Tomato Sauce, most likely Rao’s to make magic sauce

• Rice

• Dried Pasta in shapes my kids will eat

• Chickpeas

• Medjool Dates, for desserts

• Vegetable Broth - love Bonafide

• Honey

Dry Goods

• All-Purpose Flour

• Bread Flour (Adi uses this for sourdough, you may not need it!)

• Granulated Sugar

• Brown Sugar

• Whole Oats

• Baking Powder

• Baking Soda

• Dark Chocolate Chips

Nuts & Seeds

• Raw, unsalted cashews

• Pumpkin Seeds

• Sesame Seeds, I like a black & white mix

• Sliced Almonds

Fridge & Freezer Staples

• White Miso Paste - this can usually be found near the tofu in the refrigerated section near produce. Essential for miso vinaigrette.

• Dijon Mustard

• Mayonnaise

• Tamari or Soy Sauce

• Maple Syrup

• Pickles, Olives, and/or Capers

• Tahini

• Homemade Bone Broth (freezer)

• Sourdough Bread, we store it in the freezer

• Pita, we buy it fresh and usually eat it immediately, but you can store it in the freezer

• Tortillas are a great freezer staple! Just warm them up in a frying pan.

On My Regular Grocery List

Every week I fill my cart with these staples and then think about what else we’ll need for meals for the week.

Fridge & Freezer

• Mini Cucumbers

• Whole Milk Cottage Cheese

• Fresh Herbs (Cilantro, parsley, dill)

• Eggs - My kids eat a LOT of them (in this economy 😅)

• Small mozzarella balls to pack in lunches

• Garlic

• Lemons

• Onions and/or shallots

• Red Bell Peppers for lunches and salads

• Frozen Edamame

• RISE Cold Brew, which now has a home in my drink fridge

• Proteins for the week, often salmon and ribeye

Pantry

• Grains - Farro, Freekeh, Bulgur, Quinoa, Lentils

• Nori - My youngest likes to eat it with salmon and rice

• Soba Noodles

• Jarred Artichokes

• Canned Tuna

• Breadcrumbs

• GroundUp Nut Butter - My nut butter of choice! Use MELISSA10 to get 10% off your first order.
  

Kitchen Staples

Knives & Other Blades

• THE Knife - This cleaver-like knife is what I reach for most often. It’s great for everything, from microchopping salads to cutting meat.

• My Favorite Knife of the Moment - I’ve been loving this one recently for chopping just about everything.

• Paring Knife - Great for cutting smaller or fewer produce.

• Serrated Knife - I love this little one for cutting bread and tomatoes.

• Tomato Knife - Like the above, great for thinly slicing ripe summer tomatoes and bread.

• Kitchen Scissors - A good pair that can do anything (cut herbs, break down meat, cut pizza) is so helpful in the kitchen.

• Mandoline - Watch your fingers!

• Microplane - How I make dressings bursting with garlic but without huge pieces.

• Y Peeler - A good peeler is essential.

Cooking Tools

• Wooden Utensils - These are great on all cookware and are perfect for soups and sautés.

• Wooden Tongs - I use these for just about everything, including toast and meatballs.

• Long Metal Tweezers - Same as above.

• Metal Tongs - Great for toast or mixing salads.

• Pastry Brush - Get just the right amount of oil on roasted veggies with an easy-to-clean brush.

• Whisk - I love the grip on this handle.

• Salad Spinner - Perfectly wash and dry everything, like lettuce, herbs, leeks, and more.

• Citrus Juicer - My favorite!

• Can Opener - Adi bought this for me so I’d stop cutting myself on the one we had.

• Spatula - Scrape everything out of a bowl, blender, or food processor.

• Bench Scraper - A great mess-free way to transfer chopped onions, carrots, garlic, etc. from board to pan.

• Mixing Bowls - Good, lightweight mixing bowls make cooking and cleaning so much easier.

• Cutting Board - I use this wooden board most of the time; for meat and beets (anything that would stain my big block), I use this board. A good wooden cutting board is a great housewarming gift!

• Measuring Spoons - Or just measure with your heart.

Pots & Pans

• Stainless Steel Pan - I use this for just about everything. It’s great on the stove and in the oven.

• Griddle - Perfect for pancakes!

• Baking Sheets - My go-to bakeware for just about anything.

• Muffin Tin - A must-have in my kitchen.

• Braiser - A deeper pan like this is great for one-pot meals and braising meat.

• Stock Pot - For soups and stocks.

• Square Pan - I use mine for snacking cakes, brownies, and blondies.

Organization & Cleaning

• POP Containers - These keep everything in my pantry perfectly fresh. Great for all dry goods!

• Jars - We get a lot of spices from the shuk in Israel, so it’s great to transfer them from bags into containers.

• Turntables - These hold SO much. I use mine for various olive oils, vinegar, and other bottles in my cabinet and pantry to make them easy to find.

• Sponges - These sponges are a lifesaver to get stuck-on grease off my stainless steel. (And they’re made by my dad!)

Appliances

• Food Processor - I love that this has a smaller footprint than larger food processors so it doesn’t take up as much space.

• Blender - I use this every day; it’s a great investment. If you want something smaller, I also like this one.

• Stand Mixer - A must-have if you want to bake a lot of bread, cookies, etc.

• Hand Mixer - Requires more attention than the stand mixer but great for shredding chicken.

• Air Fryer - Having this is like having an extra oven—which makes cooking so much faster and easier.

• Kettle - Ours is electric, so we can keep the stovetop open while we cook (and it looks great on the counter).

• Pizza Oven - This is more of a nice-to-have than a must-have, but we LOVE ours if you have the space.

• Drink Fridge - Like the above, if you have space this is great (and frees up space in your fridge).

Need more recommendations? Throw it in the chat!