THE UMAMI PANTRY is a list of suggested items for you to stock at home that will make your life a whole lot more delicious. Many of the items listed have Umami qualities and others don’t, but we still list them because we feel they play an important role in great home cooking.

Think of this list as a starting point from which to grow as you make new discoveries in the kitchen.

For The Pantry

Kosher Salt

Kosher salt is salt with a larger grain size than your common table salt without the added iodine. Chef’s love kosher salt because it is easier to handle by hand which allows them to be more precise when seasoning food. Look for the Diamond Crystal brand.

Flaky Sea Salt

Often times the only thing that separates deliciousness from blandness is a few sprinkles of flaky sea salt. Not only does it elevate the flavor of the food in question (because it is, after all, salt) but it adds texture as well and every so often you will taste a perfect salty little crunch with a bite of food - yeah. Until, recently all of the best flaky sea salt was produced overseas, but Ben Jacobsen is changing the game and doing it right in Portland, Oregon.

Black Peppercorns (with Peppermill)

Fresh cracked black pepper will always be more precise and way more delicious that the pre-ground stuff.

Vinegar (various)

You should always keep your pantry stocked with at least 2 or 3 different vinegars such as red wine, champagne, and of course balsamic (always a crowd favorite). If you have at least one of these vinegars and a good quality EVOO you’ll never have to buy salad dressing again (ps. always season your salad with a touch of kosher salt or a good quality sea salt).

Rice Wine Vinegar

We prepare a lot of steamed rice in our house and for that reason rice wine vinegar deserves it’s own category because a simple drizzle of the stuff over the rice works wonders.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

A bottle of good quality extra virgin olive oil goes a long way. It can get pricey so you don’t always have to use it for cooking, but there is no substitute for adding the fresh taste of a good EVOO to certain dishes. Where is the best olive oil from produced? Italy? Spain? Greece? How about Fresno, CA. Check out what the Ricchiutti Family is doing with Organic California Olive Oil.

Soy Sauce

Soy sauce is a liquid condiment made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and Aspergillus oryzae (a.k.a. Koji) or Aspergillus sojae, which are types of molds. Add it to almost anything for a little added Umami.

Dried Mushrooms (such as Porcini, Shitake, Oyster)

You could grind them up and season a steak with them, rehydrate them for a pasta or risotto dish, or add them to a braise or stew. Whichever direction you decide to take with dried mushrooms the result will be a meatier, more savory, and (of course) more Umami flavor.

Bonito Flakes + Dried Kombu

These two ingredients get the same category, because if you stock one of them in your pantry you may as well stock the other because if you have both on hand you can make a quick dashi broth at any given time - and being able to make dashi on demand may end up leading you to a seriously delicious lifestyle.

Bonito Flakes are dried, fermented, and smoked skipjack tuna (or, of course, Bonito).

Kombu is dried kelp (seaweed)

Fish Sauce

The bolder you are willing to be in your Umami journey the greater the rewards. Yes, when one person opens a bottle of fish sauce in the kitchen the other person (who could be in the bedroom or even the backyard) will know there’s somethn’ funky going on. However, if you come to embrace it and use it properly you will become addicted to it.

How to get started with fish sauce? Go out for a bowl of pho and add a few dashes to your soup. Or get really crazy and make a batch of Andy Ricker’s Pok Pok Wings (or just go to Pok Pok and order them - they were possibly the most delicious thing I ate in 2017).

Panko Breadcrumbs

Any time you are in the mood for something a little crispy Panko will come to the rescue. Panko breadcrumbs are composed of larger flakes than regular breadcrumbs which results into a crispier and more pronounced texture in whatever you decide to prepare.

Garlic

This one is a no brainer so I’ll leave you with a fun fact (or fiction…):

Did you know the myth of the ancient Korean kingdom of Gojoseon that eating nothing but 20 cloves of garlic per day along with mugwort (a plant in the sunflower family) for 100 days straight allowed a female bear to be transformed into a human woman who would go on to have a son who would become the founder of the nation of Korea!

Rice

For my fellow non-Asian people out there, listen to me on this one - OWN A RICE COOKER! With so many bold ingredients on this list we are going need a blank canvas to balance it all out and when we are at home (and in a hurry) rice is often the answer. Rice cookers make the rice making process nearly foolproof (just don’t forget to rinse your rice a few times).

They are also clean and convenient. If you don’t feel like storing your extra rice away immediately after cooking it you could leave it on the warm setting for hours and get back to it later, or just eat another rice bowl for dinner!

(also, you will find yourself making some awesome “refrigerator extras” fried rice, or rice bowl meals).

Truffle Salt

Experience the happiness of shaved truffles on a daily basis by sprinkling this magic salt on finished dishes (the key word here is finished, this salt is not to be used as a seasoning on something that will then be heated)

For The Freezer

Gochugaru (Korean Red Pepper Flakes)

Gochugaru is not only spicy, but smoky as well which makes it more versatile than your average red pepper flake. It is used pervasively in Korean cuisine but lends itself well to all sorts of foods - I love to incorporate it into marinades for grilling.

Anchovies (the dried version)

An absolute staple for several Korean soups. Koreans also like to stir fry them as a side dish to nibble on, which then enhances the flavor of everything else at the table. One of our favorites is this dish with anchovies and blistered shishito peppers

For The Fridge

Gochujang (Korean Red Chili Paste)

Gochujang is a magical fermented condiment (made from chili powder, glutinous rice, fermented soybean, barley malt powder, and salt) that is savory, sweet, AND spicy - gochujang is amazing (and again works great for marinades).

Calabrian Chilies

I like the jar of crushed hot chilies from Tutto Calabria. It is a mixture of dried and crushed chilies grown in the Calabria region of Italy. They will last a very long time in the fridge and you can add them to almost anything you would normally add red pepper flakes to. The Calabrian chilies will be spicier and add more depth of flavor than the basic chili flakes.

Capers

I always seem to be drawn to southern Italian flavors and capers are one of the reasons why. They are an awesome way to season a dish (especially pizza or pasta) if you are looking for something more dynamic than simply salt. If you deep fry them, they will get crispy and flower open and act as a unique garnish on just about anything.

Miso

The well-known Japanese paste produced from fermented soybeans, salt, and koji. Boil water with miso, add firm tofu and scallions and you have an instant and delicious soup.

Doenjang (the Korean Miso…almost)

Doenjang is very similar to miso except without the koji. Doenjang is also the main ingredient in the Umami-centric condiment known as ssamjang (a mixture of doenjang, garlic, sesame oil, and gochugaru) which can then be parlayed into a red leaf lettuce wrap served with crispy slices of pork belly at which point you’ve found your happy place.

Anchovies (the cured version in jars or tin cans)

Anchovies are like that person you didn’t like the looks of at first glance, but then you got to know him little by little and it turned out he’s actually an awesome guy. If you have an ugly association with anchovies stop thinking of them as anchovies, think of them as a seasoning that lends itself to a complex saltiness that tastes of the ocean. Start by sauteing just a teaspoon of minced anchovies with some garlic and chilies as the base for a pasta dish such as Puttanesca.

Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese

Parmigiano is not cheap, but in this case you pay for what you get. Whenever I buy a $10 block of Parmigiano at the store I always have to remind myself that it will probably hang out in my fridge for at least a month or even longer if I don’t use it up by then. Add it to everything (except for linguine with clams or the Italians might ban you from cooking or eating their food). Also, save the rinds, add them to your soups, then remove them just before serving.

While we’re on the topic of Parmigiano I should seize this opportunity to mention Pecorino Romano, which could be thought of as the sheep’s milk version of Parmigiano Reggiano, but carries it’s own distinct sharpness of flavor and saltiness (and is perhaps most famous in the simple, but beautiful, Roman pasta dish known as Cacio e Pepe)

Kimchi

Kimchi is the broad term for the various salted and fermented vegetables in Korean cooking. Not exactly a “pantry” item as it’s flavor and texture will evolve on a daily basis as it hangs out in the fridge, however it does last a long time and can quickly transform a boring breakfast or lunch into something spicy, bold, and delicious.

The most common kimchi is perhaps the Napa cabbage variation. Kimchi is becoming more and more popular in the Western world, which means you have to be careful what you buy (there are some subpar versions being sold in the supermarkets so if you are new to kimchi I would recommend finding a Korean market). Also, it is fun to make so if you are up for preparing it at home I really like this version by David Chang.

Lemons

I don’t keep lemons lying around because I want to add lemon-y flavor to everything, but rather I think of the lemon’s juice or it’s zest as a type of seasoning (just as one might use salt) to enhance the flavor of a particular dish.

Tomato Paste

Add more depth of flavor to tomato-based sauces or add a hint of tomato flavor to non tomato-based sauces. Be sure to seek out the double-concentrated stuff.

Thyme and Rosemary

Utilizing fresh herbs is one of those techniques that can elevate a meal from average to good or from good to great. I only list thyme and rosemary here because they last longer than most fresh herbs in the fridge and both are also excellent to use in marinades or dry rubs for meat.