While many of us are avoiding unnecessary trips to the supermarket at keeping ourselves at home, cooking up our favourite meals isn’t as simple as it once was. The thing is, you don’t often need a heap of fresh ingredients to make the tastiest dishes – those tinned cans, dried herbs and back-of-the-freezer goods you may have shrugged off are more useful that you think. Here are some of the dishes real people are cooking right now – all made with pantry basics you probably already have.
@lavenderandlovage / Instagram
Pantry ingredients you need: Tinned corned beef, baked beans, onions, potatoes, BBQ sauce.
Lavender and Lovage says: “This hearty store cupboard recipe is made with easily accessible pantry ingredients, such as tinned corned beef, tinned baked beans, onions, potatoes and BBQ sauce. I’m sharing this recipe in response to the dozens of emails I’ve received asking me about recipes that people can make using everyday store cupboard staples. It’s a fabulous recipe that I used to make for my daughter when she was little, and she loved it. Topped with a cheesy mashed potato, serve this pie with steamed greens such as Savoy cabbage in the winter, or a crunchy salad in the summer.”
Read the full recipe here
Pantry ingredients you need: Risotto rice, saffron, chicken stock, butter.
Rosie says: “Something simple, yet cheeringly comforting and indulgent. This beautiful creamy saffron risotto uses just a few ingredients, and little more than a pinch of saffron strands; making it frugal and luxurious all at once. I enrich it with an egg yolk but if you don’t have eggs it’s still delish. I’ve seen lots of you making chicken stock and this would be a fantastic dish to use some in – it will give it a wonderful base flavour and plenty of goodness. If you’re veggie, a fridge forage veg stock would also be a good idea, there’s a recipe for one in The Joyful Home Cook; but it’s as simple and cleaning what hard veg you have and infusing it in water with perhaps a bay leaf, some peppercorns, a splash of wine and some salt.”
See the full recipe here
3. White bean garlic soup by Budget Bytes
Pantry ingredients you need: Cannellini beans, garlic, vegetable or chicken stock, dried herbs.
Budget Bytes says: “Got canned beans? I bet a lot of you do. You can turn them into a super easy, flavorful, and filling soup in about 30 minutes with just a handful of shelf stable ingredients. I like cannellini beans best for this one.”
See the full recipe here
@storecupboardrecipes / Instagram
Pantry ingredients you need: Frozen prawns, tortilla wrap, chilli flakes, paprika, ketchup, mayo, hot sauce.
Store Cupboard Recipes says: “ Used a piece of @lodough.co as got a new delivery today but of course a tortilla wrap can be used. Frozen prawns, leaves, chilli flakes, paprika, lemon juice and sugar free Rose Marie sauce (ketchup, mayo & hot sauce).”
5. Macaroni and Spam soup by Scruff & Steph
@scruffandsteph / Instagram
Pantry ingredients you need: Spam, pasta, wonton soup mix, egg.
Scruff & Steph says: “Has anyone else tried macaroni and spam soup? I’ve spent years telling Scruff that this is the best thing ever, he’s finally given in to trying it and we now have the recipe on our blog. Simply fry up some spam and egg, boil up some pasta and make up some packet wonton soup mix. This is perfect for breakfast, lunch, dinner, insomnia and hangovers.”
Read the full recipe here
6. White fish, spaghetti hoops and broccoli bake by Yuliya Blaser
@newdishnewday / Instagram
Pantry ingredients you need: Frozen fish, spaghetti hoops, broccoli.
Yuliya says: “White fish, broccoli and hoops bake. Frozen fish, half a broccoli and 2 tins of spaghetti hoops. Never thought I would feed spaghetti hoops to my family. Never thought schools would close indefinitely and never thought that driving tests would be suspended for 3 months. Never thought that we need to ration our food because I will need to feed 5 people next week 3 meals a day.”
@slimmingpats / Instagram
Pantry ingredients you need: Tinned beef, rice, rogan josh spices, garlic, ginger, red pepper.
Slimming Pats says: “Quick & easy beef rogan josh using Marks & Spencer tinned beef & #jdseasonings rogan josh blend #synfree with 3 syns of mini popadoms. I fry the red pepper, onion, garlic & tsp ginger before adding the #jdseasonings rogan josh blend give it a good sizzle before stirring in your tin of beef, simmer gently then add spinach & tomatoes for a few minutes.”
