Knowing what you need to buy in the supermarket can help you save time and money. Making a shopping list, especially with the current situation of a third lockdown would be great if you want to skip long lines, not forget anything and save every cent whenever you can.
If you’re the one who makes a long shopping list and yet when you come home and unpack your buys, you realize that half of what you spent on wasn’t really necessary then we’ve prepared a quick list on what kitchen essentials you should have at home:
- The Basics – This category has your rice, dried noodles, pasta, flour, eggs, cooking oil, salt and sugar in it. These are what you would consume daily and also the base for any meals. When buying essentials from this level, you can purchase more of each item as they won’t expire quickly. Say your family of 5 usually takes a month to finish a 10kg packet of rice, then getting a 10kg and 5kg of rice would be enough. Noodles and pasta works well as main meal options and also have a long shelf life. They are versatile and can be cooked various ways. Therefore having them as options in your pantry is invaluable.
- The Sauces – This category are for flavors. Olive oil, tomato sauce, chili sauce, sesame oil, soy sauce, thick soy sauce (kicap soya pekat), sweet soy sauce (kicap manis), oyster sauce (sos tiram), mayonnaise, mustard, balsamic, vinegar, fish sauce or any other sauce that you and your family likes. Sauces are great flavor boosters for any meal and can turn plain into delicious with just a splash or dash.
- The Dry Ingredients – Corn starch, tapioca flour, rice flour, curry powder, and turmeric (kunyit) powder are useful to thicken sauces, coat meats for frying, curries and more.
- Herbs & Spices – Star anise, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, bay leaf, cumin, asam jawa, asam keping, dried chili and many more. Herbs and spices add depths of flavor into any dish and is definitely an essential to get for your kitchen.
The right shopping list will get you what you need; the right storage method will keep what you need fresh longer so you won’t need to worry about stale ingredients, pests, expired items and a messy pantry. The great thing is, Tupperware has the solution for that! Check out our Umami Collection set, available in our latest June catalog. It is airtight, stacks perfectly, has a spoon with dual-measurements and will transform your kitchen counter elegantly.