ALWAYS BE READY WITH A WELL STOCKED PANTRY

When we started developing the concept for our  grilling cookbook
Gathering Around the Grill, we spent sometime examining our personal cooking styles and philosophies. The clear commonality was that we both agreed that using simple, fresh ingredients was the key to healthy, delicious meals, and that by keeping your pantry stocked with certain basic ingredients, you would always be prepared for the spontaneous dinners and celebrations that always seemed to be coming our way.  A word to the wise - when you have 4 children in your household, you must be comfortable with spontaneity , or you will never survive!

So we were not surprised to hear from one of our kids, Reid W., over the holidays that he has realized that by keeping a few ingredients in his pantry in his university residence, he can combine them in different ways to make a multitude of his favorite meals. The trick is to have the ingredients for the appropriate marinade or vinaigrette that highlights the flavor principles that he is feeling like that day. For example, garlic, lemon and thyme for Mediterranean, coconut milk, ginger and chilies for Asian, and so on. Often, student meals revolve around a little protein, lots of carbohydrates and as many. fresh vegetables as they can scrape together, either in a salad or a stir-fry.  Well, something must have rubbed off from being in the kitchen with mom—Hurray!!!

So, we were additionally pleased when we read  Mark Bittman's column in the New York Times a few weeks ago…… He wrote about his belief that many people are afraid of cooking, but that a cooking repertoire of 3 basic recipes can get anyone, and everyone cooking in the kitchen. His suggestions for 3 basic healthy recipes include a stir-fry, a chopped salad and a rice and lentil dish.   We are in total agreement with that, but also suggest experimenting with whole grains , like the Faro Salad recipe that we included in the blog last week.

One more thing that we would like to suggest is that by grilling some protein, such as a few chicken breasts, a pork tenderloin or a sirloin steak, students will have something on hand for the rest of the week to add to their chopped salad, stir-fry, sandwiches and soups!
This week , we suggest that students stock their pantries with the essentials that we recommend below, master these basic recipes and then start experimenting with the creation of their own nutritious and delicious meals.

Here are our pantry suggestions and a basic marinade and a basic vinaigrette to get started with.

PANTRY ESSENTIALS


OILS - olive, sesame, vegetable

VINEGARS - balsamic, rice, cider

SAUCES - worcestershire, soy sauce, asian chili sauce, fish sauce, dijon mustard

SWEETENERS - honey, maple syrup, brown sugar

FRUITS/JUICES - lemons, limes, oranges, canned coconut milk

FLAVOUR BOOSTERS - garlic, onions, shallots, ginger, chipotle chili peppers, fresh herbs

SEASONINGS - dried herbs and spices such as: salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, chili powder, cumin, coriander, thyme, basil, oregano and cinnamon





MEDITERRANEAN  MARINADE


1/4 cup dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon oregano
salt and pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients in a glass measuring cup and whisk well.
This is a versatile marinade for grilled chicken, fish and pork.


EVERYDAY VINAIGRETTE

We use this vinaigrette on everything from Salad Nicoise leafy greens. We used it last week on a composed salad of greens, grilled chicken breasts and bulgar wheat salad with cucumbers, tomatoes and feta cheese.
It was a perfect quick mid-winter dinner. Use whatever vegetables are in your refrigerator in the salad.

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
11/2 tablespoons lemon juice
8 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
salt & pepper to taste