Spice Cabinet

I've had a half dozen potential post ideas to make, but then I realize that fiarly often when I cook, I don't use exact enough measurements to allow these things to be recreated without me hovering over anyone trying to cook and tell them how much of this to put in and how long to cook that. And if I were to do all that for anyone making these recipes, it would be creepily invasive and too much of a demand on my time. So, to stall for another week, I'll talk about my go-to things in my spice cabinet.

I'm beyond lucky to have a new tea and spice store move in downtown in my university town. I could spend so much money in that place. But, since I am a college student and trying to be thrifty, I'm not about to go all out for my spices. I am, however, willing to seek quality spices for a good value if I know I'm going to be using them a lot. So, here's what gets used most in my kitchen:

1. Kosher Salt: Salt gets used in everything. Really. Just try and go into any functional kitchen and see if you can't find a pinch of salt. I use kosher salt for most of my cooking because I like the heft of it, for lack of a better word. I still have regular table salt for baking, brines, and table seasoning.

2. Coarse Black Pepper: Along with salt, pepper is one of those ubiquitous kitchen things that gets tossed in whenever you're seasoning something. It's good for just about anything that needs a bit of a bite, and has a home alongside the salt shaker on the table.

3. Garlic Powder: When you just need a hit of garlic flavor and don't want to bust out a clove and chop, just use a sprinkle.

4. Onion Powder: The same concept as garlic powder, this can add just the hint of onion to sauces, rubs, and savory sautés.

5. Bay Leaf: I used to not see the importance of this little leaf, I mean, what good is a something that you have to take out before you eat? But for broths and sauces, I haven't found a better way of adding a unique and earthy note of flavor that many people won't be able to place. If it's in something traditional, like a macaroni and cheese, people will wonder what your secret is for why yours is so deliciously different.

6. Allspice: This is another thing I didn't quite understand until a little while ago, but now this little berry is something I love to use with any meat and a variety of soups and sauces to give them a bit of a flavor kick. It's something like a cross between a peppercorn and a clove in flavor, and very versatile. I first used it in my Smoked Pork, Buccaneer Style from last year, and it's another one of those things that will give a mystery flavor to whatever you add it to.

7. Basil: This isn't just for Italian food any more. Branch out with some basil eggs for breakfast, or apply this herb to your Indian or Thai cooking. It's a distinctive herb, but try experimenting with it in unlikely places where you need another hit of flavor.

8. Poultry Seasoning: This is a bit of a cop out, since I also use thyme and rosemary fairly often by themselves, but this mix of several different traditionally savory herbs gets placed in a ton of my soups, gravies, sauces, meat seasonings, and a surprisingly large number pies and casseroles. I bet you haven't had a Thanksgiving dinner without at least a bit of poultry seasoning.

9. Cayenne Pepper: There's a ton of options for adding some heat to whatever you cook, but whenever I need to put some fire in my dish, I turn to cayenne pepper. Whether I'm working with a curry, chili, or cheese sauce, I love using this pepper. I have a really strong cayenne pepper, but even with regular cayenne pepper, be careful when handling it and keep it away from your eyes. Really, do be careful with it.

10. Cinnamon: I had to debate whether to put this one here or my honorable mention, but I think cinnamon deserves it. No, it's not just paired with sugar and sweet treats (though that's a good thing to do with it too). Cinnamon also thrives in a savory role, like when used in a rub with beef or in a slightly spicy sauce. Even in a traditionally sweet role, like a crust, cinnamon can complement a savory pie. When I ate at the oldest restaurant in Quebec, their meat pie had cinnamon in the crust that accented the filling so well you couldn't imagine it any other way.

Honorable Mention: Nutmeg: Another spice that tends to get type cast in the apple pie role, this too can find a place in your savory dishes. Sneak it into recipes with meats or sauces, though I tend to pair it with mushrooms whenever I cook with them.

An invaluable complement to these spices is a mortar and pestle. This allows me to buy whole spices and grind them up to smaller bits when I need them. It's really beyond helpful, especially when trying to release the flavor from the leafy herbs. If I'm doing anything where herbs/spices need to be ground in the same recipe that requires salt, I use the kosher salt as a sort of abrasive grit to help with grinding the spices in the mortar and pestle.

These are just a few of the things I use, and it's just an indication of what styles of food I cook most often. I also have curry powder, garam masala, cumin, herbes de provence, dill weed, and a slew of other things I use to make more specialty things. But while every spice cabinet is different and can act as a cook's fingerprint, sometimes you just need to know where to start when building up your first set.