The Essential Pantry Staples to Stock in Your Kitchen

This list of essential pantry staples is the only one you’ll ever need! Whether you’re a seasoned home cook trying to fill in the gaps or a college student starting fresh on your own, this list will help you make sure you’re not missing anything! Use this pantry staples checklist to make sure you don’t miss a thing during your next pantry restock. 

In 2016, I had just graduated from college with $70,000 student loan debt. I learned quickly that eating out is significantly more expensive than cooking from scratch and went all-out on learning how to cook healthy meals from scratch for as cheap as humanly possible. 

During this time my husband and I were spending just $25 per week on groceries and very slowly built up the well-stocked pantry I cook from today. So if you’re just starting out, PLEASE do not feel the need to go out and buy everything from this list today. Figure out how much to spend on groceries each month, then pick up one bulk item per week and slowly build it over months, if not years! 

Instead, I’d recommend browsing this list of cheap vegan meals, finding 5-10 favorite recipes, and stocking what you need to make those 5-10 recipes by shopping at the Cheapest Grocery Stores in America. 

Or, find inspiration using a few of my real-life meal plan examples:

• Weekly Vegan Meal Plan for Two under $60 (Week 1)
• Weekly Vegan Meal Plan for Two under $50 (Week 2)
• Weekly Vegan Meal Plan for 2 under $25 (Week 3)
• Weekly Vegan Meal Plan for 2 under $55

The Pantry Staples

Additionally, please keep in mind these are what we like to stock as people that eat a primarily plant-based diet. Depending on your lifestyle and diet, what you stock in your pantry might look a little bit different. But as a whole, I think you’ll find most of these basic ingredients in any kitchen pantry, regardless of diet. 

• Rice: I usually have white rice and brown rice on hand and purchase it in 25 or 50-pound bags. If you are on a tight budget, settle for just white rice. It is cheaper and will store for significantly longer than brown rice. Check out my favorite 40+ Meals to Serve with White Rice for tons of new ideas.
• Oats: If you stock just one type of oats, make it rolled oats. They’re the most versatile, and can be used to make Oatmeal Muffins, Overnight Oats, Homemade Granola, Cheesecake Crusts, Cookies, and more. If you have the space and budget, I also love steel cut oats and oat groats (for making Homemade Oat Milk). Steel cut oats are my favorite type of oats to use in hot oatmeal recipes and you can cook them in the Instant Pot or Slow Cooker.
• Dry pasta: It can be helpful to have a few types on hand for making classic pasta and dump-and-bake pasta recipes! If you prefer pastas that are a bit more nutritious than wheat, check out these 10 Best Plant-Based Pasta Brands.

Other whole grain pantry staples you might want: Quinoa, Barley, Sorghum, Amaranth, Farro, Millet, or rice noodles/ramen! 

• Beans: Beans are super versatile and a great plant-based protein to include in a budget-friendly diet. Use them to make soups, burritos, tacos, burrito bowls, tortas, taco salads, chili and more. I like to keep black beans, pinto beans, white beans, and red beans on hand and usually exclusively cook dry beans from scratch. 
• Peas: When you think of beans, you don’t usually think of peas, but green peas are a bean and a great pantry staple to keep on hand. I usually buy both canned and frozen for recipes like Vegan Beef Stew, Pot Pie, and Shepherd’s Pie.
• Lentils: Easily one of my favorite legumes! Lentils are so versatile and are a great, cheap beef substitute that are easy to cook from scratch in the rice cooker. Green lentils and brown lentils in particular make a great Sloppy Joe filling, hearty Curry, Meatloaf, taco filling, Instant Pot recipes and more. Red lentils, on the other hand, are soft and melt into anything you add them to. Give them a try in a few of these popular red lentil recipes.
• Chickpeas (garbanzo beans): While green lentils are my go-to beef substitute, chickpeas are my go-to chicken substitute. They’re my favorite legume to add to recipes like Lemon Orzo Soup, White “Chicken” Chili, Chickpea Avocado Salad Sandwiches, Summer Salads, and Butter “Chicken.” 

• Tomatoes: It can be helpful to keep a handful of tomato products on hand like tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and tomato paste. 
• Chiles and peppers: We eat a lot of Mexican cuisine and I usually keep green chiles, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and jarred jalapeño slices on hand. These products are all affordable, have a long shelf-life, and can add instant flavor to any dish. 
• Marinara sauce: I usually try to make my Homemade Spaghetti Sauce and freeze the excess because it’s filled with sneaky vegetables and is typically cheaper than store-bought options, but having a few jars of store-bought pasta sauce on hand is great for last minute dinners like Tofu Bolognese or a homemade pizza night. 
• Coconut milk: ​This won’t be an essential for everyone, but for family’s like ours that follow a plant-based diet, coconut milk is great to have on hand to add richness to a dish. It’s even helpful for making breakfast recipes and desserts like Quinoa Porridge and Lemon Poppy Seed Cake.
• Canned fish: If you eat meat, keeping a few cans of tuna or salmon on hand is a great way to ensure you have a cheap protein source on hand. Use them to make delicious recipes like Spicy Canned Salmon Rice Bowls or Simple Tuna Salad Sandwiches!
• Canned vegetables: Stock things like canned corn, canned peas, pumpkin puree, canned olives, and canned green beans. You can add them to almost anything for a boost of cheap nutrition! 
• Vegetable broth: Once opened these need to be transferred to the fridge. But when sealed, unopened, they can last for years. I highly recommend buying Better than Bouillon Vegetable Base. It’s a bouillon paste you mix with water to make vegetable broth (or chicken broth and beef broth if you prefer!). 1 small jar from Costco costs just $8.99 and makes 100 cups of broth. Very frugal, space-saving, and delicious. 

• Ketchup: If you’re looking for a homemade recipe, I love this Healthy Homemade Ketchup.
• Mustard: ​I like to keep yellow mustard and dijon on hand.
• Mayonnaise: Use it as a simple sandwich spread, or turn it into a Sriracha Aioli, Honey Mustard, Coleslaw dressing and more. 
• Salsa and hot sauce: Once opened these should go in the refrigerator, but I always keep a few jars on stand-by so we always have it to drizzle on meals for a boost of flavor.
• Soy sauce: ​If you are gluten-free buy tamari or coconut aminos. Essential for adding umami flavor to Asian recipes like Orange Tofu, Egg Roll in a Bowl, Tofu Fried Rice, and General Tso’s Tofu. I also use it to add flavor to Vegan Ground Beef!
• BBQ sauce: Buy store-bought BBQ sauce or go the homemade route! 
• Worcestershire sauce: Buy vegan or regular 

If you’re looking to stock all of the pantry staples I have, here’s my favorites:

• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Avocado oil 
• Coconut oil (mostly used in desserts)
• Vegetable oil (mostly used for frying or baking)
• Sesame oil (a total splurge that’s great for Asian recipes)
• White vinegar
• Apple cider vinegar
• White wine vinegar
• Red wine vinegar
• Rice vinegar
• Balsamic vinegar

If you cook from scratch often (which you should if you’re trying to save money on groceries), here’s the must-have pantry staples:

• Flour: I like to stock a mix of all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour. If you are into more specialty baking, bread flour, chickpea flour (besan flour) and almond flour are great flours to have which can be used to make Healthy Banana Muffins and specialty breads.
• Cornmeal: Great for homemade Cornbread Muffins!
• Sugar: ​White sugar and brown sugar are the most common and versatile choices. 
• Yeast: ​Active dry yeast or instant yeast are the most helpful to have on hand for homemade breads, cinnamon rolls, naan, and more. 
• Leavening agents: ​Baking soda and baking powder are essential for any home baking! 
• Cocoa powder and chocolate chips: Optional, but great to have for homemade desserts or sweet beverages like Crockpot Hot Chocolate.
• Cornstarch: ​A great thickening agent that is used in several types of recipes.
• Liquid sweeteners: ​Maple syrup and honey are my top choices, but agave nectar is another popular choice with a long shelf life.
• Vanilla extract: This can be quite pricy and is not necessary, but it does add a lot of flavor if you have the budget for it. 

• Almonds
• Cashews: My most used nut for vegan recipes like Cashew Sour Cream, Cashew Mozzarella Cheese, Spinach Artichoke Dip, Healthy Blender Hot Chocolate, Vegan Ricotta and more! 
• Walnuts
• Pecans
• Peanuts
• Pumpkin seeds
• Chia seeds
• Flax seeds: Used to make my favorite budget-friendly egg substitute in baking.
• Hemp seeds
• Sesame seeds

​I don’t personally stock pine nuts because they are wildly expensive and I’d pretty much only use them to make pesto. Instead, I’ve developed the BEST tasting pesto recipe​ made from almond butter instead. 

Nut Butters

• Almond butter
• Cashew butter
• Peanut butter

Spices

Building up a well-stocked spice pantry staples stockpile takes time, so if you’re just starting out grab 1 per week until you have a good collection. Here are a few of the top spices I recommend every home cook have on hand for making the best pantry meals. 

• salt: I like to stock sea salt and kosher salt
• black pepper: I stock peppercorns
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• chili powder
• cumin
• paprika
• cinnamon
• red chili pepper flakes
• bay leaves
• curry powder (good to have if you enjoy Indian cuisine)
• Italian seasoning blend
• Taco seasoning blend
• Nutritional yeast: ​For vegan and plant-based cooking! 

• Butter: ​we use dairy-free butter because my husband is lactose intolerant and I don’t tolerate dairy well either. 
• Yogurt: ​Greek yogurt is great if you tolerate dairy. We use Coconut yogurt. 
• Tortillas: I usually do corn tortillas (for tacos) and flour tortillas (for burritos). I either make them myself or buy them in bulk at Costco and keep the excess in the freezer. 
• Potatoes: ​I usually have Yukon gold potatoes or russet potatoes and sweet potatoes on hand. Here are some of my favorite potato recipes.
• Breadcrumbs
• Eggs: ​I don’t always have eggs on hand, but they can be a great source of relatively affordable protein and are useful in a number of recipes. The last time I had eggs on hand I used them to make Homemade English Muffins and Whole Wheat Pancakes and it was great! 

And there we go! The final pantry staples essentials list! Leave a comment down below if there’s anything you add to your must-have kitchen stash.