Dinner Tetris with chickpeas, bell peppers & green beans
Welcome to Dinner Tetris, an advice column here at 40 Ingredients Forever where a reader shares the ingredients they always have on hand and Caroline and I dream up three dinners using those ingredients. If you’d like your pantries Tetris-ed into dinners, head here.
The cook: Yolande (she/her)
Occupation: Data analytics
Residing in: South Africa
Feeding: 2
Notes: My pantry may seem extensive, but I keep making the same dozen or so dishes - mexican, stir fry, creamy pasta dishes, stews & curries. I have this great selection and I'm stuck in a rut. Hubby, due to medical reasons, struggles with foods that aren't juicy or saucy - hence the extensive dairy/condiment selection. I love cooking, but after a long day I don't have the energy to cook elaborate meals on week nights - I save those for weekends. Hubby also can't stand any of the legumes (lentils, beans, chickpeas etc).
Forever ingredients:
Veg - Zucchini/courgette, portabellini mushrooms, spinach, cauliflower, sweet bell peppers, roma tomatoes, onions, potatoes, avocado, cabbage, carrots.
Cheese - gouda, feta, danish (smooth) feta, cream cheese.
Other dairy - sour cream, cream, smooth cottage cheese, cottage cheese, milk, greek yoghurt.
Other - gherkins/pickles, pickled chillies (peppadew, jalapeno, serano), olives.
Condiments - soy sauce, tomato sauce, chutney, balsamic vinegar (light & dark), whole grain mustard, Worcestershire sauce, pesto.
Fats - olive oil (basil flavoured & plain), coconut oil, butter.
Herbs & spices (dried) - mixed herbs (basil, thyme, sage, marjoram), sweet basil, parsley, cloves (whole & ground), cumin, coriander (whole & ground), cayenne pepper, bay leaves, origanum, cinnamon (whole & ground), fennel seeds, chipotle, whole black pepper, table salt, Himalayan salt, mild & medium indian curry spice mix (Cartwrights or Robertsons), wet masala, turmeric, biryani whole spice mix.
Starch - white rice, cake flour, self raising flour, penne, spaghetti, linguini, lasagne noodles, corn tacos (hard), tortillas (corn & flour), brown bread.
Proteins - beef (steak, ground beef, oxtail, stewing cuts), lamb (chops, stewing cuts), chicken (drumsticks, thighs, breast), pork (bacon, rib eye steaks), prawns.