I need to buy spices, but which ones?? What are the essentials to stock a new kitchen?

Question

I like to cook, but I am learning.
What are the essentials for my kitchen.
I like to bake and grill and slow cook. I am just begining to learn about marinade, so all suggestions are great.

Answer 1

Spices are the most expensive things when you're stocking a kitchen, but console yourself with the knowledge that since you only use a little at a time you won't have to buy them often.

My picks: Salt, pepper, garlic salt, basil, oregano, thyme, bay leafs, bouillon cubes, olive oil, vinegar, paprika. Buy garlic fresh and lemons too - they're cheap enough to do so. You can do all kinds of cooking & marinades with these items.

Answer 2

Besides the obvious salt and pepper (I mean peppercorns, and get a grinder, it's sooo much better that way), there are a few that I use over and over. My absolute favorite when I started to cook was lemon pepper. Put that and salt on anything and bake it or cook on the stovetop, yummy! Also, I'm from Texas, so I have the typical cayenne and paprika. Cumin is also a good one. I like to mix those 3 and salt and put on chicken breasts and cook it on the stovetop, and eat that on top of a salad. Those are probably all I ever use enough of before they go bad in my pantry... :)

Good luck!

Answer 3

Best bet is to buy a spice rack. It usually comes with the essentials:
Salt - Kosher and Sea is good to also have.
Pepper
Nutmeg
Parsley
Garlic
Oregano
Red Pepper
Onion flakes
Montreal Steak seasoning
Chili

You might also need some vanilla extract, baking soda, baking powder - if you plan on baking.

Answer 4

Slow cook is good..I'm Italian so cooking is one of our passions! spices are important but... go easy on them! you can kill a good dish with the wrong spice or overpower it with to much of it! Salt (only the coarse variety) pepper corns, and a pepper mill (so it can be freshly grounded) Cumin powder, (for the chilly dishes) chilly pepper, and Crushed red pepper, then a dry mixture of green herbs (to be added on most pasta dishes and pizzas) such as Oregano, and Basil. Bay leaves (for stews) never use more than one! and Rosemary.
Nutmeg (a pinch for a Beshamel sauce, and potato puree. and of course, Cinnamon for your apple pies and other desserts... Good luck!

Answer 5

Well of course salt and pepper, I like sea salt, I also think garlic and onions are an essential, I always like to keep some kind of seasonal all like Lawerys, it goes good with everything. Rosemary is good with chicken and pork, thyme goes good with beef. Those are some basics but try out different things, I always smell the seasonings it tells me if I will like it or not.

Answer 6

here's what's in our kitchen:

thyme
rosemary
curry
allspice
cumin seed
dill seed
Paprika
sage
savory
marjoram
celery salt
celery seed
cardomon
sesame seed
fennel seed
cloves
mustard flour
chefs seasoning
cinnamon
oregano

I know that you can buy spice racks that come with labeled bottles that would tell you some common spices. You could look for those too.

Answer 7

Start with garlic powder, oregano, basil, onion powder, dried parsley, mustard powder, dill, cinnamon, dried chives, fresh ground black pepper, lemon pepper, chili, rosemary, paprika.... and if you like to bake, you might want some vanilla and almond extract.

Answer 8

basil, oregano, garlic, pepper, salt, cumin, bay leaves, oil, red pepper flakes. There's a few that I know I couldn't live without. Oh also try coconut oil. It's yummy when you make popcorn.

Answer 9

BASIL, SWEET CALIFORNIA coarse cut Basil
GRANULATED GARLIC POWDER
GRANULATED ONION POWDER
OREGANO
GARLIC PEPPER (Butcher’s Rub)
CHILI POWDER
PAPRIKA, HUNGARIAN SWEET
GROUND BLACK PEPPER
ROSEMARY
THYME

The website below actually has all these in a kit you can order. They call it a Starter Set of Spices