Pantry Archives – Karyn's Kitchen

I Joined the Club with Boxed Mac n Cheese

Are the rules you learned in childhood about food holding you back in your adult life? You probably know by now that my favorite question is why. Here are two rules that I was taught: Don’t eat anything from a can and never make boxed mac n cheese because “there’s junk in it.” Well, that may have been true in the old days, but if you read labels on packaged food, it’s possible to find some that are made with quality ingredients.

So, I made my first macaroni and cheese from a box. Well, they were small shells actually, but basically the same thing, right? I won’t lie to you and say it’s as good as homemade because there’s nothing like smothering pasta in your own concoction of rich, creamy cheese sauce and baking it until it’s nice and crusty on top. But at the end of a long day, this hit the spot with zero effort. And who’s to say you can’t still tweak it a tiny bit to make it a little more special? A pinch of spice? Some onion and garlic? How about some crab claws from a can? From a can?! Yes, I do open one on occasion and what a brilliant addition to this quick pantry meal.

crab claws in a can on a white countertop beside a glass of white wine and kitchen towel

So, I guess you can say I’ve joined the club. Club Connie, that is. What? You don’t get my little joke? That must be because you haven’t read my amusing story published in the new book: Chicken Soup for the Soul: Well THAT Was Funny. The stories contributed by the other authors will have you in tears of laughter as well. Laughter is good for the soul!

Make Shrimp Asparagus Risotto Your Easy Go-To Dish for Spring

Celebrate spring with shrimp asparagus risotto. It’s an easy main dish with so many possibilities.

Spring is here and asparagus is on sale. Eat with the seasons by combining asparagus with shrimp and arborio rice for a no fuss, one dish meal of risotto. Arborio rice releases its starch slowly while simmering with a little liquid added at regular intervals. The result is creamy and delicious. Look for it at an Italian market if your local chain doesn’t carry it. You will need two pots: one on the back burner for simmering a flavorful stock and a smaller one for cooking the risotto.

What will you use for stock? Packaged vegetable or chicken stock would be fine, but here at Karyn’s Kitchen, we waste nothing while looking for more flavor opportunities. So, if you’re using shrimp, put the shells into a pot of water to boil along with any veggie scraps you’ve been saving in the freezer. You will want to have about 4 times as much stock as dry rice to begin. You can always save any remaining stock for later. I always begin risotto with onion, so the ends of the onion go into the boiling water along with the tough, woody ends that I’ve snapped off the asparagus. I decided to add more seafood flavor by putting dried bonito flakes in my stock pot as well. Buy them at a Japanese market and keep in your pantry to make delicious seafood stock anytime.

Preparing the Risotto

Once you’ve got your stock simmering, sauté a chopped onion in some olive oil and butter. Once translucent, add the arborio rice. For two people, I tossed in a few handfuls. (This is one dish that I don’t recommend making more than you intend to eat for one meal because leftovers don’t retain the original texture.) Stir the rice to coat with fat and cook on medium/low heat for a couple of minutes before adding a splash of white wine. Once that has cooked down, add a ladle full of stock, stir and lower heat to simmer. (Because I had all kinds of loose bits floating in my stock, I ladled it through a small strainer. Unnecessary if your stock has already been clarified.)

The remainder of the cooking process is just to repeat, repeat, repeat adding a ladle full of stock, stirring and waiting for it to cook down. Add more stock each time before the mixture has completely dried. When it looks nearly done, taste a kernel and see if it’s tender. Ultimately, you want a toothsome center with a soft exterior. Don’t let it turn into mush. Once it’s just about al dente, which I find takes at least 30 minutes, add the shrimp and chopped asparagus. Both items take just a couple of minutes to cook. Shrimp should turn pink and opaque. Asparagus should turn bright green and remain crisp tender. That’s the way I like it anyway.

Flavoring Shrimp Asparagus Risotto

While your risotto is simmering away, you can explore your spice cabinet and see what flavors will complement what you have going. I chose a pinch of saffron and turmeric. A teaspoon of dried mint and a touch of fresh basil rounded things out. Eyeing a lemon, I decided to finish the dish by stirring in its juice at the end of cooking. You could add the zest of the lemon if you wanted to further brighten it up. Salt to taste.

So, there you have it. If you’re looking for an exact recipe with measurements to follow, you’re in the wrong place. Instead, think about proportions and flavor combinations using available ingredients in order to create a delicious, balanced meal you and your family will love. Start with an anchor ingredient. In this case, it was the fresh asparagus. Find a protein and a grain and have some fun experimenting in the kitchen. I didn’t mind stirring risotto on this occasion, but you could just as well prepare something similar by steaming another item from the pantry such as barley or farro. The choice is yours!

Ingredients For Stock:

water
shrimp shells
bonito flakes:
asparagus ends
onion and miscellaneous vegetable ends

Ingredients for Risotto:

arborio rice
onion
butter
olive oil
dry white wine
asparagus
shrimp
saffron
turmeric
dried mint
fresh basil
lemon juice
salt

What’s your favorite way to prepare asparagus? Try it with a lightened-up version of Beef Stroganoff.

This Black Lentils Recipe Will Spice Up Your Life

Try this black lentils recipe on meatless Monday or any time you want to spice up your life.

Are you looking for a black lentils recipe? You know, the ones that look like caviar…that’s why they’re also called beluga…I can tell you how to make an awesome batch, but I encourage you to develop your own intuition in the kitchen to make every dish uniquely your own. After rediscovering the packaged foil pouches of Indian food at my local market, I was inspired to try making my own black lentils with red beans. You can’t beat the convenience of something premade, but maybe I wanted a big batch of something like their Madras Lentils?

So I googled and stumbled across The Wanderlust Kitchen for suggestions on the spices, which is what good Indian food is all about. Well, it’s not the only thing, but if I were to ever become vegan, I would definitely master some Indian dishes. Vegan just doesn’t get any better than that, in my opinion. The texture of the black lentils will satisfy any carnivore, so this is a great way to introduce them. Remember that it’s small changes repeated over time that make a difference.

After finding some black lentils at my local farmers market, I decided to try my hand at combining them with some small red beans. After soaking the red beans overnight and defrosting some stock I had put away in the freezer, I was ready to go. Of course you can use prepackaged stock, but the last time my freezer bag was full of veggie scraps, I cooked them overnight in my slow cooker with a chicken carcass and water. That, my friends, is some amazing stock and a perfect base for all kinds of things you might want to cook. Free flavor and zero waste cooking!

Getting Started

In a big pot, I heated some olive oil and sautéed some chopped onion, jalapeno, hatch chile and ginger root until the onions started to get golden. Minced garlic joined the party and then the stock and a handful of spices. Added the red beans and simmered for 2 hours, uncovered, stirring occasionally.

As you may know, my husband loves Southern style red beans and rice. So he got very excited when he saw me soaking them overnight. Quick to tell him that I was preparing them differently this time, the next day while cooking, he kept asking, “What smells so good?” Ah, he was hooked on the aroma. That’s a good start, but of course he wanted to mash some of the beans against the side of the pot like the Southern ones I make. So I agreed that would add a nice creaminess.

Cooking Time

After cooking for two hours and smashing an eighth of the beans, I added the black lentils and cooked another 25 minutes until they were tender. After tasting, I added a touch of tomato paste and a little salt. I must say that given all of the flavors going on here, very little salt was needed. In fact you could even skip it if you’re trying to reduce your intake. Just be sure to get all the spices, chile peppers and a quality, flavorful stock in there.

Once again, I want you to experiment in the kitchen and enjoy creating a dish that you and your family will love. So, I am not about recipes per se. I suggest ingredients and proportions to get you started cooking without a recipe. You take it from there! Add more liquid to make it saucier or cook the red beans another half an hour if you prefer them softer. Reduce the amount of jalapeno if you don’t want it so spicy. Add tomato sauce and/or cream for more creamy sauciness. Be sure to let us know how you make this red beans with black lentils recipe your own.

Ingredients for Black Lentils Recipe With Red Beans:

1 pound small red beans soaked overnight
7 cups stock
1 1/2 onions, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
1/2 hatch chile, chopped
2 inches of ginger root, minced
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon fenugreek
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
5 handfuls of black lentils (1/2 pound?)
2 teaspoons tomato paste
salt to taste
tomato sauce and/or cream?

How do you like this approach to cooking? Learn principles and proportions that you can adapt to your own needs rather than being shackled to a recipe. Please share via your favorite social media using the buttons below.

A Pantry Meal In Minutes is Amazing

An impromptu meal is always attainable with a well stocked pantry and freezer.

After waiting on a business appointment that had gone very late, we decided to scrap our plans to go out for Chinese food. You gotta drive there, order, wait…I was too hungry to do all that, but my tastebuds were set for Chinese. What was the quickest pantry meal I could throw together that was the next best thing? Putting a pot of water on to boil, I imagined a chow mein-like dish with ingredients I had on hand. For me that meant spaghetti, pieces of leftover chicken, napa cabbage and julienned carrots in a great sauce.

I always have leftover pieces of chicken in the freezer and cabbage and carrots in the fridge, don’t you? Cabbage and carrots are superstars as far as I’m concerned. Good for you, colorful and with a long shelf life. Never be without them! Cooking without a recipe means intuitively using what you have to create something delicious. Don’t let the idea intimidate you. You can do it!

By the time the pasta had cooked, I had stir-fried the vegetables with:

minced garlic
minced ginger (kept in the freezer)
grapeseed oil
a touch of sesame oil

Heated the chicken through and seasoned everything with:

soy sauce
mirin (sweet cooking sake)
drizzle of oyster sauce
smidgeon of Sriracha sauce

After tossing the cooked noodles with the other ingredients, lunch was on the table. How’s that for a quick pantry meal?

Pantry Meal Basics

You will always find yourself prepared to create a great, impromptu meal if you stock a variety of proteins, veggies and starch/grains in various forms. Think fresh items with longer shelf life, dried goods and freezer gems. Sometimes I even open a can of something like cream of mushroom soup. It might be all you need to transform a couple of other ingredients into a satisfying dish on the fly.

Have you been benefiting from any of these ideas for stocking a pantry, keeping freezer flavor gems on hand and developing your intuition in the kitchen for cooking without a recipe? Please share via your favorite social media platform using the buttons below.

Cold Soba Is the Perfect Picnic Food To Pack

Packing a picnic is simple with cold soba noodles and veggies.

Ready to pack a picnic? Try cold soba, Japanese buckwheat noodles. Preparing the noodles and sauce the day before makes for a deliciously simple picnic lunch. Remember to pack some wasabi, furikake (seasoning of sesame seeds and seaweed) and green onions for serving.

You can buy both dried soba and the appropriate tsuyu (soup base) at an Asian market or you can easily make your own sauce with a few basic ingredients. Find out how in this previous post. After rinsing cooked noodles in cold water and draining, I would toss the noodles in a little sauce and green onions before refrigerating for a picnic. Pack additional sauce on the side.

a table set for two with cold soba, panko crusted seafood and green beans

Blanched green beans, refrigerated after tossing with sesame oil and sesame seeds are a nice colorful veggie accompaniment. Panko crusted fried shrimp, scallops and squid rounded out the dish pictured here, but for a picnic I would be just as happy with cold citrus marinated seafood or even a can of sardines or smoked herring. Keep it as simple as possible when packing a picnic. That’s what makes it fun!

In case soba is new to you, here’s a picture of a package.

Shopping List for Cold Soba Picnic:

soba noodles
tsuyu
green onions
wasabi
furikake
green beans
sesame oil
sesame seeds
cold or canned seafood of your choice

What’s your favorite cold picnic food to pack?

Have Fun With Summer Fruit In a Savory Meal

What can you pair with summer fruit to create a savory meal the whole family will enjoy?

What’s your favorite summer fruit? I love peaches, plums and apricots. The only problem is that sometimes they’re all ripe and ready to be eaten at the same time. While I enjoy eating them for breakfast and snacks, they can also pair well with a more substantial meal.

After putting a chicken into the oven to roast, I pondered how I might serve some peaches with it. I decided that steamed brown rice flavored appropriately could complement both items. Develop your intuition in the kitchen to create something amazing with ingredients on hand. What do you think would tie these various elements together harmoniously?

chicken breast with spiced rice, arugula and summer peaches on a white plate

Here’s How I Spiced Up the Rice to Accompany Summer Fruit:

minced fresh ginger (from my treasure chest of freezer flavor gems)
dried onion flakes
powdered turmeric
ground fenugreek
ground coriander
salt
olive oil

What would coordinate well with this sweet, spicy, floral combination? How about a peppery arugula sautéed in olive oil with garlic until wilted? Drizzled just a touch of balsamic vinegar at the end and plated arugula. While the pan was still hot, I put some freshly sliced peaches into the same skillet and lowered the heat. Flipped them over once they had just a tiny bit of color. I didn’t really want to cook them through, but just to warm them up and bring out their sweetness.

I had intended to use some plums as well, but they were so juicy that they ended up in my mouth instead of the skillet. What can I say? Summer fruit is irresistible! Do you ever use them as a side dish for a savory meal? Get Inspired With an Anchor Ingredient and Free Your Creativity.

Cold Somen is the Perfect Summer Meal

Cool off tonight with this easy, refreshing noodle dish.

Whenever it’s hot and humid outside, I think of my Japanese grandfather putting a cold washcloth on top of his head while he repeated the words, “becha becha”. Apparently that referred to the humidity and feeling sweaty and sticky, which prompted him to request cold somen (thin Japanese wheat noodles) for lunch. I still find that summer meal refreshing and it brings back memories of Ojiichan.

somen on a bamboo mat served with sauce in wooden bowls and garnishes on a white platter

You can buy dried somen and the appropriate “tsuyu”, or sauce in a Japanese market. However, I prefer to make my own sauce eliminating the MSG. It’s easy to do with the right ingredients. Here’s what I found on https://www.japanesecooking101.com/:

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup mirin
1/4 cup sake
handful of bonito flakes

Briefly boil the ingredients listed above and then strain out the bonito flakes. Combine one part of this sauce with 2 parts water.

I happened to be out of sake, so I used a dry white wine instead. It worked for my taste. After straining out the bonito flakes, I chilled the sauce to serve with cold somen.

This is an easy meal that’s quick to prepare because the only cooking involved is boiling the somen. The noodles are so thin that they cook very fast. Once tender, drain and rinse under cold water. Arrange them in serving sized bundles and top with ice if desired. Pour cold sauce into individual bowls. Technically speaking, I suppose you would call this soup, but I think it’s a great summer meal.

somen, veggies and fish in a wooden bowl. julienned cucumber and carrots in small bowls on a white platter.

I decided to garnish with some raw veggies. My julienne peeler made quick work of shredding cucumber and carrots. Chopped up some napa cabbage and green onions as well. The cold smoked ahi with sesame seeds provided even more flavor and protein to round out this cool and refreshing dinner for a summer evening. What do you serve on a hot day that brings back fond memories? Salad is a no-brainer. Learn how to make a miso based dressing to take it to the next level with Asian flair.

Be Transported to Amalfi With This Great Pasta

Get inspired to cook without recipes and create a delicious, simple meal with pasta and bacon.

Wondering what to cook for dinner tonight? Easy Bucatini Amatriciana is for you. It’s made of items you probably already have on hand. Bacon is a great freezer flavor gem and who doesn’t always have an onion and a box of pasta around? Not a bad deal for a few simple items to transport me to a memorable meal in Amalfi, Italy.

Traditionally, this pasta sauce is made with pancetta, but honestly I prefer the smokiness of the bacon if I had to choose. Also bucatini (long, skinny tubes) pictured here would be the ideal pasta choice, but any long pasta will do. Spaghetti, linguine etc.

a table set for two with pepper grinder, parmesan cheese and a single rose. bucatini amatriciana (pasta with bacon) on white plates.

Basic Ingredients For Pasta With Bacon:

olive oil
bacon
onion
wine
canned tomatoes
chili flakes

If you let frozen bacon sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes, it’s pretty easy to cut off a couple inches and chop into small pieces for this. I generally remove the bacon from the skillet and drain off most of fat once the bacon has gotten crispy. But if you want to leave more of it in the sauce, I won’t tell! Cooking without a recipe means you’re in charge.

Then add the sliced onions and cook them over low heat until they have become golden brown, scraping up all the browned bits as you go along. Give them enough time because the depth of flavor derived makes all the difference. I add some wine along the way as it becomes necessary. I usually use red wine, but white is fine too. Alternatively, you could splash a touch of vinegar in there if you wanted to. A little balsamic or red wine vinegar would be good. Develop your intuition in the kitchen as you experiment with simple meals like this one.

Once the onions have cooked down and become sweet and golden brown, add the canned tomatoes. Whichever variety you have works. Diced tomatoes hold their shape more than others and we prefer a saucier consistency for this, so crushed tomatoes or whole peeled tomatoes pureed in the food processor are preferable. Tomato sauce would be fine too. I’m sure you have something suitable in your pantry and now know what to cook for dinner tonight. Easy!

I like to add some red chili flakes and maybe some garlic and French thyme. Maybe some more wine before returning bacon to the sauce. Simmer, taste and see if you desire a little more of the bacon fat that you poured off…Let sauce simmer until the pasta is ready. Pull the pasta out with tongs and mix with the sauce.

What have your travels inspired you to cook? Here’s another favorite we discovered in Capri.

Cream of Mushroom Soup to the Rescue

Make a quick and easy meal with a few basic ingredients.

What can you do with a can of cream of mushroom soup? What other ingredients do you have on hand? Grab a protein, a vegetable and a starch because here’s what to cook for dinner tonight. Easy. No recipe required.

After watching one of Jacques Pepin’s brief videos on budget friendly meals to help those struggling with food insecurity, I developed a craving for cream of mushroom soup. He used it to make a tuna casserole with rice and canned green beans. Simple, cheap and filling. Nothing fancy, but it served its purpose. How about trying it with fresh or frozen fish and fresh or frozen green beans rather than canned? Simply thin out the soup with just enough water to give it a saucy consistency and poach the fish in it.

Maybe it’s a throwback to the 70’s, but when I was a kid, we always had a canned cream of something in the pantry. Would I use it every day? No, I don’t open cans often, but once in a while it makes pulling together a simple meal quickly a no-brainer.

Pasta Is Just As Easy

I remember having a friend over once in my late teens and we were talking about getting a place together as roommates. She was so worried about who would do the cooking. I laughed and said we would. She had never cooked before and I didn’t have a lot of experience either, but I had no doubt that we could learn to feed ourselves. That night I made pasta with some chicken and cream of mushroom soup. She thought I was a genius. I laughed again. 3 simple ingredients, folks. That’s all you need.

Hey, start by browning some ground beef, turkey or tofu instead. Add some fresh asparagus at the end when you toss it all together. Make it look a little more elegant by making meatballs if you like. What other vegetables do you have on hand? Try snow peas or broccoli. You’re only limited by your imagination and what’s on hand. Getting dinner on the table tonight can be this easy.

Want more veg and less starch? Think Spring With Asparagus and Farro.

It’s Easy to Put Meal Prep On Autopilot With Chicken

Stock fresh veggies and a pantry and you will always find new inspiration.

Sometimes we want to put meal prep on autopilot. How do I do that? Roasting a chicken is a hands off way to get started and ensure that I have protein for multiple meals later in the week or even further into the future if I put some in the freezer. I find 425 degrees for an hour and half to be just about right for a 4-5 pound bird. Pat it dry and sprinkle with seasoned salt before roasting. Simple meals don’t get any easier than that.

Near the end of cooking, I returned to the kitchen to decide what else I would add to create a meal. Yes, it had been a long day and I didn’t feel like expending much effort in the kitchen. Putting a pot of water on to boil for pasta seemed like a good idea. What would be refreshing on such an occasion? Lemon, I decided. The very fragrance banishes the cares of the day, doesn’t it? Taking a lemon out of the refrigerator, I perused the vegetables available. Which vegetable would be good with lemon and chicken? I contemplated cauliflower or broccoli and decided they would be equally delicious, but green broccoli would look nicer with white pasta. So that was that.

What else would I put into the pasta that would complement the other elements of this meal? Beginning with sautéing some crushed garlic in olive oil, I then smashed a drained can of anchovy filets into the pan. Don’t knock it if you haven’t tried it. It’s a delicious umami flavor boost. After adding some dry white wine and letting that reduce a bit, I added the lemon juice and broccoli florets to let them cook until crisp tender. Sprinkled with a little parsley and pepper to serve.

Badda bing, badda boom. Dinner was ready and it didn’t require much effort at all. Taking the pictures was a bit more taxing, so pardon me if they aren’t perfect.

Ingredients for Pasta Sauce:

olive oil
garlic
anchovies
dry white wine
lemon

The main thing is to be aware that cooking without recipes is just a matter of combining ingredients on hand in a way that makes sense to you and your palate. Make sure you always have a variety of fresh vegetables, proteins and pantry staples on hand. They provide the basis for an infinite number of simple meals. How do you put meal prep on autopilot?