I always want to have basic baking ingredients at hand so I can bake anytime I want without making a trip to the grocery store.
TYPES OF BAKING INGREDIENTS
The type of basic ingredients to have is sometime difficult, especially for beginner bakers. When you are starting to bake as a beginner, it can sometimes be a daunting task to searching for what you need to buy or have in your pantry to make your baking journey easier. Well, not anymore, because in this article, I have listed most of the ingredients you may need to start the baking journey on a smooth takeoff.
The Differences Between Non Perishable and Perishable Food
This list is divided into two main groups which are perishable and non-perishable food items. Some food items can fall under both groups and an example is eggs. In Europe and other parts of the world, eggs are stored at room temperatures but when you come to U.S., eggs are stored in refrigerators making them perishable. Therefore, use any method of storage that works best for you.
Perishable Food Items
Perishable foods are food items that need refrigeration for storage. They will go bad or rotten if not consumed immediately or kept in the fridge. Therefore, For perishable foods to be safe to eat they must be kept in the fridge.
Examples of Perishable Food Items
- Butter
- Buttermilk
- Cream Cheese
- Sour cream
- Milk
- Cheese
- Whipping cream- light or heavy or double.
Non-Perishable Food Items
Non-perishable food items are those that store well in a pantry and does not need refrigeration. A well stocked of non perishable food items are not only good for baking but also for emergencies like the pandemic we are going through right now (COVID 19). You can buy them in bulk because they have a long shelf life. Non perishable foods will last for a long time if stored properly, but may lose some flavor and taste overtime. when you open it, you must check from time to time to make sure the food is in good condition.
Examples of Non-Perishable Food Items
Examples of food item that need to be checked frequently when opened is flour. Another food items, are baking powder and baking soda, which are active rising agents. Even though they are non perishable items, you have to be checking constantly to ensure that they are fresh in order to get desirable effects when used for baking. It is also a good practice to always check to see if they are active and not expired before using them.
Other examples of non-perishable foods include:
- Coffee
- Condensed milk
- Corn syrup
- Cornmeal
- Corn starch
- Cocoa powder- natural cocoa powder, Dutch-process cocoa powder, sweet cocoa powder
- Chocolate- you can buy dark chocolate chip or bar, semisweet chocolate, milk chocolate, white chocolate, bittersweet chocolate and other flavored chocolate.
- Cream of tartar
- Dry fruit- raisins, cranberries, candied fruit and others
- Extract or flavoring- vanilla. lemon, peppermint, strawberry, rum etc.
- Flour: plain/soft or cake flour, all-purpose flour, hard or bread flour, self-rising flour, whole wheat flour and other special flour from nuts and seeds.
- Sugar: superfine sugar, white granulated sugar, brown sugar (light or dark) powdered sugar.
- Spices: all spices, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger
- Seeds: sesame seeds, poppy seeds, flax seeds, and chia seeds
- Sweeteners: honey, maple syrup, molasses and other natural and artificial sweeteners.
- Shredded coconuts
- Leavening agent or rising agent: baking powder, baking soda, yeast (dry active, instant yeast, rapid rise yeast)
- Nuts: cashew, peanut or groundnut, pecans walnuts
- Nonstick cooking spray
- Fats and oils: vegetable oil, margarine, coconut oil, vegetable shortening
- Vinegar: these can be white or red wine vinegar, cider vinegar, white vinegar
Hopefully, this list will get you started on buying the basic ingredients for your pantry. When you get most of the items on this list in your pantry, then you are ready to start baking at any time. You can read more on basics of baking here basic baking tools.
Thanks for reading. As always, know that God loves you and stay blessed.
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