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FLAVOR THINGS: HERBS and Such.

Building to the ability to cook on the fly begins with an inventory (see my previous posts). Part of the inventory you should add is herbs and spices. If you are a fast food, prepared food, or restaurant eater, you may be shy about herbs and spices, especially if you "don't like spicy things." 
I am going to tell you WHY you need "flavoring things" in your cooking, and how to pick them out.

One of the reasons you find pre prepared foods are good to eat is right on the labels. Canning and freezing food, especially for a long time, tends to take some of the natural flavor out. So most companies that produce fast food (or frozen meals etc.) put flavor back in with salt, fat, sugar, or chemical substitutes for them. 

As a home cook, you are going to want your food to have flavor! And a healthier way to get flavor in your food is to use herbs and spices. I am going to urge you NOT to buy the ones in fancy glass jars. Look for dried herbs and spices in cheap bags or large plastic containers, so you pay for the herb and not the glass!

You should ALSO know that many herbs and spices are the least expensive per ounce the larger the quantity. Unless you have a large freezer, are cooking for a big family or a way to share your bulk buy, you will be limited as to how much to buy. You will find links along the way to buy on line if you can…I am a dedicated Amazon shopper, so all my links go there. I don’t get sponsored by them, yet (but wouldn’t object if they did).

I am going to urge you to buy and use this list of  ESSENTIAL Flavor Things almost immediately.. 

1) SALT and PEPPER. If your budget is tight, buy kosher salt. A bargain per ounce and good for almost every type of cooking you can do. PEPPER is best when ground from the whole corns!  I have found this very cheaply in plastic hanging bags like this:  
https://www.amazon.com/Barry-Farm-Tellecherry-Peppercorn-oz/dp/B001GM3E6S/ref=sr_1_4_s_it?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1497115563&sr=1-4&keywords=whole+peppercorns
Until you buy a grinder, you can smash the corns with the back of a heavy pan, or the back of a sturdy knife.
2) LEMONS OR LEMON JUICE. Once again, fresh lemons can get expensive if you don’t live where they grow. Here in NJ, I opt for the bottled juice so I have it when lemons get expensive (which is most of the time).
3) PARSLEY. I am going to tell you to ONLY get fresh. Parsley (and its near cousin Cilantro) is only good fresh! BUT (here is a big but..(insert joke here) MOST cooks, even experienced ones, waste half of it in the trash. DON’T YOU DO IT! You will be wise, and SAVE the stems, chop them up, bag or wrap them,lable AND FREEZE THEM! The stems are just as flavorful as the leaves, and are essential for soups, stews, and sauces.
4) WHOLE BAY LEAVES. I forbid you to get the ground version! Ground bay is pitiable in flavor and pricy per ounce. Buy whole in the same isle you bought the peppercorns, in plastic bags (not the spice jars).
https://www.amazon.com/Barry-Farm-Bay-Leaf-Whole/dp/B00017P2H8/ref=sr_1_3_s_it?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1497116696&sr=1-3&keywords=whole+bay+leaves
5) THYME. Almost all styles of cooking use thyme. Once again, the WHOLE dried thyme is best, not ground. ALL herbs are mildest when fresh, best dried if whole, and almost worthless when ground. I love fresh thyme (and I can grow it here in my kitchen)..BUT as a busy and practical person, having whole dried thyme in my pantry is great. This link is to a very large container indeed. If you look for this brand in the international isle, Spanish or Mexican foods isle, you might find it at the same price per ounce in smaller quantities.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=sr_nr_p_89_4?fst=p90x%3A1%2Cas%3Aoff&rh=n%3A16310101%2Ck%3Awhole+thyme%2Cp_89%3ABadia&sort=price-asc-rank&keywords=whole+thyme&ie=UTF8&qid=1497117824&rnid=2528832011
6) ONIONS AND GARLIC. If you don’t think you like these, you are WRONG! I am going to show you how to cook these to add flavor, without the tummy problems or strong taste you might associate with these two. ALWAYS buy fresh if you can. With onions, store in a paper lunch bag on your counter or in a drawer, NEVER in your frig. I HATE dried onions and ABHOR store bought garlic salt. With garlic, store in a SEPARATE paper bag.  I admit I have a jar of already chopped garlic in my frig.
7) PREPARED STOCK. Here is where my practical side wins out over my ideal inner cook. It is ALWAYS best if you make your stock (veggie, beef, or chicken) from scratch. BUT after a hard week on my feet, the very last thing I feel like doing is spending hours (yes, it can take hours) to make a good stock. SO I buy stock that is low salt, “natural” or organic when I can get it. Or get bouillon cubes to save space.


If you shop for all the above, plus the pantry items I recommended before, believe it or not, you can cook a variety of good, cheap meals already! Tune in tomorrow!

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