Plant-Based Pantry Staples

Recent weather events have been a real reminder of the benefits of a well-stocked pantry. Having a good variety of ingredients on hand gives more options and make cooking – and eating – more fun!

Here are my favourite ingredients to have on hand in my vegan pantry – some of them I never want to run out of, and some are more of a wish-list than must-have. You’ll have your own set of priorities.

It’s great to experiment with new ingredients and broaden your culinary horizons – but I definitely find that if I buy something new and don’t use it almost immediately it will likely get forgotten at the back of the cupboard. So I do try to make a point of using novel ingredients within about a week of buying them.

If you’re wanting to add more plant-based meals to your diet, or more variety to your current plant-based diet, I hope this list will give you some inspiration!

Pulses
Split peas
Brown lentils
Red lentils
Black-eyed peas
Chickpeas
TVP

Split pea soup is one of my favourite cold-weather meals. Split peas are so tasty they barely need any other flavours added – but if you want to jazz them up with coconut cream or curry powder, that’s good too!

TVP is great for nacho mince and in a Bolognese sauce. It’s cheap and readily takes on whatever flavours you cook it with.

Red lentil dahl is quick to cook and very satisfying. 

Black-eyed peas and chickpeas are larger pulses that take longer to cook - I tend to cook them in the pressure cooker. I like to do several meals’ worth at a time, and stash the extra in the freezer.

Cans/jars/packets
Diced tomatoes
Tomato puree
Baked beans
Black beans
Kidney beans
Four bean mix
Pineapple
Baby corn
Chipotle
Beetroot slices
Artichoke hearts
Olives
Capers 
Coconut cream

Tinned food is affordable, very long-lasting and doesn’t need refrigeration to keep it fresh! Recent weather events have been a good reminder to me to keep the tins section of our pantry topped up. 

Nuts and seeds
Peanuts
Mixed nuts
Sunflower seeds
Sesame seeds
Pumpkin seeds
Cashews

I love having a good selection of nuts and seeds to boost a meal’s protein or just for the flavour and texture – sesame seeds are great as a garnish, too.

Grains
Pearl barley
Brown rice
White rice
Sushi rice
White and red quinoa
Buckwheat
Packs of pre-cooked brown rice/quinoa

I love quinoa but until recently I found the results a bit hit and miss. I recently learned the best way to cook quinoa – in the pressure cooker. Just toast it for a couple of minutes in the dry pan, then add 1 cup water for each 1 cup quinoa. Pop the lid on, bring it up to high pressure for one minute then turn the heat off and let the pressure reduce naturally. The result is perfectly cooked quinoa! 

The pre-cooked packs of rice are very handy for quick healthy meals.

Pasta
Couscous
Orzo
Lasagne sheets
Small lasagne pieces
Spaghetti
Macaroni
Shells

All pasta is made of the same stuff but each different shape has its own characteristic (and its own fans). If I had to settle on two pasta shapes for the rest of my life I reckon I’d choose orzo (for salads) and small lasagne pieces (for hot meals).

Oils/vinegars
Cider vinegar
Balsamic vinegar
Red wine vinegar
Olive oil
Sesame oil
Rice bran oil
Coconut oil

Sauces/spreads
Peanut butter
Tahini