Pantry Dinners: A Roundup

I've commandeered the term "Pantry Dinners" to unite and identify two different species of meals. You are probably familiar with both of them, although some of you have probably banned the second kind from your kitchens.

First, there are the virtuous Pantry Dinners. You clear your mind, put on your apron, open the fridge and summon a decent meal from virtually nothing. Some of these are miracles of simplicity, others are skillful compilations and still others are what I like to refer to mercifully as "hashes". All of them are frugal and good for the spirit and the budget, if not the body.

Secondly, there are the not-so-virtuous Pantry Dinners. You flounce into the kitchen, open the cupboard doors, and nearly weep with relief when you see a convenient box and possibly a can sitting within your weary reach. These meals are sometimes frugal, nominally healthy, but always good for the mother who has reached the end of her proverbial rope.

I try to incorporate at least one of the first kind into my menus each week, whether that means actually putting it on the menu or just leaving it to chance on a Thursday night. The second kind often goes unmentioned but lurks (benevolently) in the shadows.

Pantry Dinners of the First Kind: The Roundup

Southern Cajun Rice
A tip from my dear cousin Sarah in Houston. She said, and I quote because I like it, "With ANY leftover cooked meat, from chicken to roast, steak, pork chops, sausage, you can brew up a beautiful pot of jasmine rice, chop up the meat or meats, saute it with onion and garlic, and toss all together with a generous dollop of cajun seasoning and salt, and it is DELICIOUS!" Somehow I had forgotten how much I like jasmine rice. And Cajun seasoning. And meat. Why have I never put them together?

Pizza and Quiches
This is what my friend Katy makes for pantry dinners (who, by the way, is the only friend I have who is actually LIVING the dream that so many of us talk about...she milks goats, grows a gorgeous garden, preserves food, raises chickens, teaches her brilliant son Sam and just had a new baby girl two days ago...I miss you Katy!) As she reminded me, you can make pizza or quiche out of anything, and if you have a bread machine to make your pizza dough for you then it requires a tiny bit of foresight but very little work. (Pie dough, however, is quite another story for quite another post.)

Fried Rice
A suggestion from Lisa, and one which I need to remember more often. My favorite one involves simply rice, peas, onions, garlic, parmesan and lemon zest, with a little bit of egg. I usually have all of these things in the pantry.

Egg Foo Yong with Rice
Speaking of eggs, this was a treasured meal from my childhood, straight from the battered pages of Betty Crocker. Beat eggs (about 1 1/2 per person) thoroughly and add some salt, some onion and some bits of this and that (finely chopped pork, diced peppers, bean sprouts, whatever you have around). Heat some oil in a skillet (medium heat) and pour about 1/4 cup of the egg mixture into the skillet. Gently push it into a thin patty as it cooks. When the eggs are set flip it over and cook until the other side is brown. Serve on a bed of rice with the following sauce: combine 1/2 cup water, 1 teaspoon cornstarch, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon vinegar and 2 tablespoons plus 1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil and stir for 1 minute, until thickened. Sauce serves 2, so multiply if necessary.
Trust me, this is delicious.

Fried Egg Sandwiches
Notice how eggs figure so heavily in this list? Nothing is better than a lightly scrambled and fried egg on fresh bread with lots of butter, mayonnaise, raw onion, freshly ground pepper and salt.

Poached Eggs over Sauteed Greens (with Polenta, or Toast, or Baguette, or Fried Potatoes)
Once again, the inevitable egg. Thank you, Lord, for chickens.

Stewed Tomatoes and Macaroni
This is another childhood meal, one that we would have when Dad was gone, as he was not particularly enthusiastic about it! Mom canned her own stewed tomatoes, so she would simply boil some macaroni noodles, heat a can of tomatoes, and serve with toast and parmesan cheese. Mmmm.

Biscuits
Yes, that's right. Just biscuits. I'm indulging in a little reminiscence now, and biscuits were my specialty as a young cook. Actually, it was the only thing I knew how to cook. So Mom would let me make biscuit dough and then improvise with whatever I could find (not much) to create a multi-course meal of...biscuits. Biscuits with specks of cheese. Biscuits with dollops of jam. Biscuits made into cinnamon rolls. You get the idea here. A patient mother, hungry siblings, and a dad very fond of raw biscuit dough. It was an amicable arrangement.


Pantry Dinners of the Second Kind: A Confession
(and no, Trader Joe's is not paying me...)

TJ's Organic Shells with White Cheddar combined with TJ's Turkey Chili

TJ's Organic Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup combined with TJ's Tomato-less Sweet and Spicy Corn Salsa

Annie's Mac-n-Cheese with Peas

Note: this list serves partly as a recommendation of these tasty dishes and partly as a testament to the success of Trader Joe's sample program. It's a cautionary tale.