Oooooooooh the power of whole food, healthy pantry staples! I don’t care if getting excited about dried goods and packaged products makes me sound like the 30-somethin’ millennial mom that I am – the potential of having quality snacks, supplements, sauces, seasonings, and sides stocked and ready (clap!) to (clap!) go (clap!) makes me absolutely giddy.
Now…I’m not the perfectly packed shelves, matching containers, and beautiful labels kinda gal (maybe in my dreams, but not in real life). My pantry is, however, filled with healthy and…*ahem*…realistic foods our family uses and loves on the regular, and I can’t begin to describe how comforting, freeing, and plain ol’ *nice* it is to have these go-to items stocked and ready, which eliminates the hunt for nutritious snacks and those “what should we make for dinner?” feels.
I don’t believe “healthy” eating is about restricting the foods you love. I do, however, believe it’s about regularly choosing the healthier, whole food options of the things you crave and enjoy…even if that means sometimes making it yourself. Going this route takes mindfulness, proactivity, and a liiiiiiiiiittle more time, but it’s worth it to intentionally (& successfully) fuel your body. Having a simple & sustainable pantry with items you’re confident in goes a long way in this goal.
If you’ve been looking to fill your kitchen with more easy ~and~ healthy pantry staples, this list is a great place to start. Food is one of ya girl’s love languages (like riiiiiiight up there with words of affirmation), and these are the nourishing & tasty essentials I refuse to go without.
Snacks
Let’s start with my favorite food genre – snacks! I’m a snacker through and through…and make it salty & savory, please and thank you! I prefer a graze-worthy charcuterie board or curated chips and dip combo over a hearty, three-course meal every day of the week. These healthy pantry staples are the clean ingredient (but still yummy…obvi) version of the snacks we all know and love, meaning I can grab the following with ~zero~ guilt and know my cravings will be satisfied.
PUFA-FREE CHIPS
I don’t think there’s a single person on the planet who doesn’t like chips, but unfortunately these fan favorites typically contain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA’s) like vegetable, sunflower, safflower, canola, corn, and soybean oils, which are highly inflammatory and proven to contribute to multiple diseases. I’ve tried (and enjoyed) a few PUFA-free chip options, but these three-ingredient (potatoes, sea salt, and avocado oil) potato chips are by far my favorite (especially the sea salt and queso flavors *wink wink*).
FREEZE-DRIED FRUIT (A TODDLER FAVE)
Ok…let’s be honest…I not so secretly love this fruit snack option too, but rarely get any because Lolo girl isn’t the best at sharing them, and I can’t blame her. These are the same healthy fruits we love to give our kids, but freeze-dried for a longer lasting & less mess alternative. I love packing these along for church, on a road-trip, even to a park play date. With minimal & nutritious ingredients (it’s literally just fruit!), these freeze-dried fruits are a way better option that goldfish or gummies.
BEEF STICKS
Every pantry needs an easy, grab-and-go, protein-rich snack, and these grass-fed beef sticks are my personal favorite. These have a short list of whole-food ingredients making them another no-brainer, healthy & filling staple. While I always prefer “fresh” meat over processed, these are the next best option when we’re short on time and energy.
Supplements
I don’t keep my vitamins in the pantry (blog post eventually comin’ sharing what’s in my medicine cabinet), but it ~is~ where I store the powders and ingredients that add a little extra somethin’ somethin’ to my diet and health routines…nutrient hacking, if you will. Over the years I’ve tried multiple different techniques and strategies to optimize my nutrition, and these are the products I’m currently obsessed with.
ELECTROLYTE POWDER
Drinking adequate water is one of the cheapest and most accessible things people can do for their health, but if electrolytes are unbalance, that water will go right through the body rather than be absorbed by the cells and tissues that need them. LMNT is my go-to electrolyte powder for it’s sodium, potassium, and magnesium ratios, ingredients, and flavor. I originally started using it to increase my milk supply while breastfeeding and loved its full body effects so much I never stopped.
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COLLAGEN PEPTIDE POWDER
I’ve tried allllllllll the protein powders out there – whey, pea, casein, egg, and rice – and while some of them taste AH-MAZ-ING (chocolate peanut butter or cookies n’ cream, anyone?!), they all upset my stomach. While I firmly believe in getting a majority of my protein from whole food sources like meat, eggs, and dairy, I like adding two scoops of this bovine collagen peptide powder to my smoothies in the morning for a little extra protein and all the skin and bone health benefits. This one has no flavor, and while I sometimes miss that chocolaty goodness, it ultimately makes this far more versatile. I even sneak this in Sloan’s yogurt, applesauce, or cottage cheese so she gets those same benefits.
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APPLE CIDER VINEGAR
I don’t use apple cider vinegar (ACV) in a ton of recipes (I’m more of a balsamic vinegar girl myself), but I’ve recently started adding ACV to my pre-meal routine. Research shows drinking ACV prior to eating lowers post-meal blood sugar, improves digestion, and reducing bloating. I mix 1 Tbs of ACV with water and shoot it back about ten minutes before each meal and have already seen improvement in gas and bloating as well as my skin and energy after meals in just a few weeks.
Non-perishables
I don’t know if I’d call myself a full-on “prepper”, but I do like having my pantry stocked with non-perishable goods for the just in case situation. More often than not, that scenario looks a lot like a hangry & busy mama, other times it’s a toddler who just doesn’t want what’s for dinner. Having healthy items on-hand means more options and less stress, and the following have never steered me wrong.
BROWN RICE PASTA
Other than homemade sourdough bread, I try to stay away from gluten as much as possible. But rather than let my monthly pasta cravings get the best of me, these brown rice noodles (that come in ~literally~ every shape) are now my go-to for lasagna, classic spaghetti, mac n’ cheese, chicken noodle soup, and buttered noodles for Sloan. I don’t think they taste much different than “regular” noodles, but the consistency is slightly different and I actually enjoy the thicker, more substantial texture. I’m not against carbs, but I do like my carbs to be high quality, and these fit the bill.
RAW NUTS
There’s really not much you can’t do with nuts – homemade nut butter, granola, cookies, sauces, top salads, pop a handful in your mouth – the options really are endless. I prefer buying raw nuts because the pre-roasted versions are often baked in those awful PUFA’s I mentioned in the potato chip section earlier. While it takes time and extra effort, raw nuts that are soaked prior to roasting (click here for soaking & roasting instructions) have better nutrient bioavailability and are easier to digest, and I can personally tell a difference if I skip this step. If I’m going to enjoy nuts, I want them to work for me, not against me, so raw nuts of any and every variety are what I keep stocked in my pantry for a quick hit of healthy & filling fats.
Cooking & baking
You knowwwww my motto is “less is more”, and that applies to the recipes I follow and effort I spend in the kitchen. If a recipe says “one pot”, “30-minutes”, or “five ingredients or less”, you can bet I’ll be trying it out, because I need easy but effective (and of course, yummy!) in this busy season. My secret to making just about *any* recipe more nourishing are the healthy pantry staples below, and not a day goes by that I’m not reaching for or stocking up on these essentials.
GRASS-FED TALLOW
I’ve officially beat the drum against PUFA’s throughout this blog post, and if you’re wondering what we use instead as our go-to “oil”…it’s tallow! Tallow is fat rendered from around a cow’s organs, and has so many benefits compared to other fats and oils. It’s a healthy form of saturated fat, is full of bioavailable vitamins and nutrients, contains stearic acid which lowers bad cholesterol, has lots of omega 3’s, is allergen-free, and has a high smoke point making it versatile for cooking. Any time a recipe calls for oil, lard, or butter, tallow is what we use and I don’t think we’ll ever go back.
BONE BROTH
From soups to crockpot meals to healthy hot chocolate (um…yum!) bone broth is a powerhouse ingredient to have on hand and what I consider to be *thee* most non-negotiable item in my pantry. Benefits of bone broth include improved digestion, stronger bones and joints, increased immunity and energy, and healthy skin, hair, and nails. I try to make and can homemade bone broth at least once a quarter, but if I run out, this is the brand I buy. Because of those benefits listed above, any savory recipe that calls for water, I substitute bone broth instead and am working on incorporating it into my everyday routine as a nourishing nightcap.
CHOCOLATE CHIPS
Ok…these chocolate chips honestly could have gone in the snacking section because I’m far more likely to eat a handful of this tasty treat on the fly to satisfy a sweet tooth than ~actually~ bake with them. I especially like these ones because, like the potato chips, most chocolate chips are made with PUFAs and artificial sweeteners…but not these! And honestly, they taste even better.
Seasonings
I have 9282750136 seasonings in my pantry like every other person out there, and yes…three quarters of them are probably expired. I’m not going to bore you with the Chinese five spice I’ve only used once or the two pounds of garlic powder we go through in a month. Instead, I’m sharing the seasonings I consider an asset to my health, a little bit “special”, and useon the weekly…even daily. As the Spice Girls sang – let’s spice up your life (there I go sounding like a millennial again)!
THIS FANCY SALT
At one point we were told salt is bad and to avoid it at all cost for heart health. Now we know this isn’t necessarily the case and it’s the type of salt that makes all the difference. We’ve started spending the extra money on mineral sea salt…and holy smokes! Not only does it taste ~exponentially~ better than your average table salt, mineral sea salt also promotes hydration, decreases fluid retention, balances electrolytes, improves digestion, reduces inflammation, and supports the adrenal glands. Beyond cooking with this, my favorite use is sprinkling it on my morning coffee to bring out all the *chef’s kiss* flavors.
HOMEMADE TACO SEASONING
The Davis house loooooooves Mexican food, and not a week goes by we’re not whipping up sweet potato nachos, quesadillas, tacos, or taco salads. What makes good Mexican, IMO, is the flavor of the meat, and this homemade taco seasoning is the GOAT. With a mixture of seasonings you likely already have in your pantry (and no added MSG), this recipe comes together in minutes and you’ll find me tripling it at minimum, storing it in a mason jar, and repeating the process every few months.
COCONUT SUGAR
We’ve already established that I prefer savory to sweets, but there are instances where I want a little suga’ suga’. While trying to limit my refined sugar consumption, I stumbled across coconut sugar and have found it to be a tasty replacement in just about everything – including my morning coffee! Compared to plain white sugar, coconut sugar packs a few health benefits along with its sweetness including a low glycemic index (read – no blood sugar spike), rich in amino acids, vitamins, and minerals. Do I consider coconut sugar “healthy” and something that can be consumed with reckless abandonment? No…but I personally use it in moderation with far more peace of mind.
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I think that’s it for my healthy pantry staples!
“Health” doesn’t need to be complicated, expensive, or time consuming…in fact, it can be as realistic as mindfully stocking up on practical, healthy pantry staples. Nothing on this list is outlandish or exotic because nourishing the body should be more about effortless (& delicious) additions and intentional swaps versus excluding or restricting the foods we love and enjoy.
Elaborate weekly meal plans & fancy grocery store hauls & organic everything meals aren’t necessary for wellness. A list of favorites stocked and ready to go for that worthwhile health hack, quick bite, or your tried and true recipes…[that’s] how you support your health goals day in and day out.
I’d love to hear what you consider your non-negotiable healthy pantry staples – tell me in the comments or shoot me a DM on Instagram so we can stock our shelves as effectively as possible…together.
See ya in the grocery store aisles, friend!
– Amanda
Disclaimer: The content provided here does not constitute medical advice, nor is it a substitute for personalized healthcare. I’m a doctor, but I’m not your doctor. If you have concerns about a medical condition, diagnosis, or treatment, you should consult with a licensed healthcare professional.
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