Restaurant Dropout Essentials

How I stock my cabinets, pantry, and fridge - at all times.

Alrighty, I want to preface this by saying that you by no means need to go out and purchase any of these ingredients OR the linked products I’m sharing.

I welcome your creativity inside the kitchen to find alternatives that work best for you. Say a recipe I share calls for white wine vinegar, but you prefer champagne vinegar - use champagne vinegar instead. Or say you’re allergic to honey and prefer using agave instead - use agave.

Just note, that this is a list of the ingredients and products that I keep on hand at all times and consider ✨essential in my household✨. That said, these ingredients will rarely make it onto the future shopping lists that I share with you all…unless I plan on using copious amounts of it in one week - then I’ll add it to the shopping list.

My Go-To, Ride or Die, Partner-in-Crime

• Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt

  • Plus, a salt container if you need one!

Spices

• Black Pepper (Whole Peppercorns)

• Bay Leaves

• Ground Cardamom

• Ground Corriander

• Chili Powder

• Ground Cumin

• Chili Flakes and/or Cayenne Pepper

• Garlic Powder

• Garam Masala

• Herbes de Provence

• Onion Powder

• Dried Oregano

• Ground Ginger

• Turmeric

• Ground Cinnamon

• Sweet Paprika

• Smoked Paprika

• Ground Allspice

• Chicken Bouillon (Vegetable Bouillon works too!)

• Sazon

• White Pepper

Aromatics

• Shallots (I always have at least 3 on hand)

• Garlic (I always have 2 bulbs on hand)

Fats & Vinegars

• Olive Oil

• Neutral Oil* (of your choice)

• Butter (salted for cooking, unsalted for baking)

• Sesame Oil

• Mayonnaise

• Balsamic Vinegar

• Apple Cider Vinegar

• White Wine Vinegar

• Red Wine Vinegar

• Distilled White Vinegar

• Rice Vinegar

Sweeteners

• Sugar (white and/or brown)

• Honey

• Maple Syrup

• Molasses

Dairy

• Greek Yogurt

• Buttermilk

Condiments

• Ketchup

• Dijon Mustard

• Yellow Mustard

• Worcestershire Sauce

• Tobasco

• Soy Sauce

• Fish Sauce

• Oyster Sauce

• Sambal Oelek

• Sriracha

• Chili Crisp

• Mirin

Additional Pantry Staples

• All-Purpose Flour

• Active Dry Yeast

• Peanut Butter

• Tahini

*Neutral Oil - any time I mention neutral oil, I’m referring to a flavorless, high-smoke point oil. Think avocado oil, canola oil, grapeseed oil, vegetable oil, etc.

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Food Storage Links

Again, this is by no means me telling you to buy any of these products. This is just me sharing the containers I use because it’s one of my most FAQs. Also, these are links to the Webstaurant Store, which is available to the public - I believe they just charge a, in my opinion, ridiculously high price for shipping if you don’t have a membership. 

One thing I will urge you to do is save money. So, if you’d like to get these containers for a better price, look up “local restaurant supply store” on Google, find a place that says it’s open to the public, and go there. These containers (minus the deli containers) will often be in the food storage section.

My Favorite Storage Containers

1 x set of Deli Containers (60 count)

Organization

Labeling Tape

Tape Dispenser

A Sharpie

For Dressings & Vinaigrettes

1 x 6-pack of Squeeze Bottles (8 oz.)

For Doughs or Larger Ingredients

1 x 1/2 Food Pan (4” deep)

1 x 1/2 Food Pan Lid

For Leafy Greens

2 x 1/3 Food Pan (6” deep)

2 x 1/3 Food Pan Lid

For Prepped Ingredients in Bulk

2 x 1/6 Food Pan (4” deep)

2 x 1/6 Food Pan Lid

Recommended Equipment

• A Very, Very Sharp Knife (My Recommendations Below)

  • Wüsthof

  • Miyabi

  • Hedley & Bennet (less expensive option)

• Cutting Boards

• Vegetable Peeler

• Mixing Bowls

• 1 Large Cast-Iron Skillet

• Pots and Pans (my dream set is this All-Clad set)

• Sheet Trays (I like Nordic Ware)

• Sizzler Platters

• Tweezer Tongs

• Salad Spinner

• Sieve Strainer

• Slotted Spoon/Spider

• A Blender and/or Immersion Blender (My Recommendations: immersion blender, low-cost blender, high-cost blender)

• Food Processor

• Kitchen Scale