22 ingredients top chefs always have in their kitchens
If there’s one things chefs can agree on, it’s that there are certain staples you should always have in to rustle up a decent meal. From oils and spices to ingredients that bulk meals out or serve as an easy base sauce, there are plenty of products worth always having in.
Most of them have long best-before dates and don't cost much, so when the cupboards are bare or you're not feeling flush you can use these ingredients to rustle up filling meals to satisfy most dietary requirements - and tastebuds.
Former Great British Bake Off winner Nadiya Hussain told the BBC she always has a tin of tomato soup or chopped tomatoes in the cupboard. This useful ingredient can be used as a base for a sauce in a variety of dishes such as a Bolognese.
Lorraine Pascale takes it back to basics and told The Independent you should always have flour and eggs at home. Not only are these great for thickening out sauces, but for baking too.
Jamie Oliver thinks everyone should have chickpeas, beans or pulses in their cupboard to add texture, fibre and protein to every meal. The father of five also revealed to The Mirror that curry paste and pesto were useful for transforming ingredients into humble staple dishes.
Mary Berry is renowned for encouraging cooking to be simple, as she tries to base her recipes on ingredients that can be used in multiple dishes. The former Great British Bake Off judge says good-quality stock cubes are always a good investment for a home cook to have, as well as spices and a number of previously-mentioned essentials including chopped tomatoes, beans, pulses and pastes.
Gordon Ramsay told Men’s Journal that he always has eggs and parmesan cheese as bare essentials at home, the multi-Michelin star chef added: "grated cheese and lemon juice over penne is delicious." He also recommends crème fraîche, as it’s perfect for creating creamy sauces.
While Tom Kerridge told the BBC that leek and potato soup, as well as vegetable stock cubes are a must-have in the kitchen. The chef is passionate about being able to cook on a budget, and having these long-life and cheap ingredients can help elevate any meals. He adds: "Keep it simple and don’t over think it."
On his website, Gino D'Campo has curated a selection of his store cupboard essentials from dried pasta to chickpeas, red kidney beans to vinegar and chopped tomatoes. Along with these firm favourites from the top chefs, Gino recommends having some gnocchi and olives stored away for a rainy day too.
Nigella Lawson recommends having a bottle of olive oil and fresh lemon or lime juice to hand. On her website, the acclaimed chef recommends "regular olive oil and garlic infused oil for cooking" or "extra virgin olive oil… for salads." If you want to branch out, she also suggests a bottle of Worcester sauce could “add depth of flavour or saltiness” to a dish too.
Rachel Khoo offered a spicer alternative to Good Housekeeping of Tabasco and Sriracha or simply a good chilli sauce as a must-have in the kitchen. These hot, flavourful sauces will add some extra kick and depth to any dish.
Chef-approved ingredients to add to your weekly shop
A tin of tomato soup
A tin of leek and potato soup
Chopped tomatoes
Chickpeas
Beans
Pulses
Curry paste
Pesto
Olives
Stock cubes
Lemon juice
Oils
Flour
Eggs
Vinegar
Dried pasta
Gnocchi
Parmesan cheese
Crème fraîche
Worcester sauce
Tabasco
Sriracha
Read more about cooking:
Mary Berry's Unexpected Secret To The Best Marmalade Cake (Huff Post, 2-min read)
One in five Britons believe they make spaghetti bolognese better than Italians (Yahoo Life, 3-min read)
Should onions be kept in the fridge? The expert verdict on how to store the vegetable (Yahoo Life, 2-min read)
