[Miracle1986]

So I am about to move into a new house, and I have never had to stock a kitchen/pantry by myself, and I am turning to ya'll for help.

What are some things that you would consider "staples"... the necessity for any kitchen to have on hand?

[Naturefreak]

I found I have certain staple foods in my kitchen made all the difference in the world when it came time to cook dinner. By keeping my kitchen staples on hand it seems no matter what I want to cook I can usually make it work and I no longer have to ask what’s for dinner. The following is what I keep on hand and I make a list when I run out and immediately replace it.
Produce
Salad stuff, fresh veggies, potatoes, fresh fruits & plenty of onions.
Shelf Items
Breadcrumbs, broths, soups, cornmeal, croutons, dry pasta, dry potato flakes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, diced and stewed tomatoes, ketchup, mayonnaise, minced garlic, mushrooms, corn, green beans, mustard, olive oil, olives, rice, pasta sauces, salad dressing, salsa, shrimp, tuna, salmon, stuffing mix, sun-dried tomatoes, green chilies, tortillas, taco seasoning, dried herbs such as basil etc.
Meat, Poultry, Fish & Seafood
Boneless skinless chicken breasts, whole chickens, pork chops, fish fillets, ground beef, sausage, shrimp and ribs.
Dairy
Butter, refrigerated biscuit dough, eggs, cream, cream cheese, cottage cheese, milk, cheese of all kinds and sour cream.
Frozen foods
Breaded chicken strips or nuggets, filled pasta products, meatballs, potatoes, all kinds of veggies and veggie and meat combinations.
Bakery
Loaf of sliced bread, garlic bread, pita bread, dinner rolls and pizza crust.

[onlymedid]

Noodles! You can do just about anything with em! I lived off of noodles when I first was out in my own place because it was cheap and I could add veggies, sauce, meat or just have it with olive oil and herbs.
Oh yeah...herbs!
And everything that Babysteps mentioned too!

[Yoda]

ABC fire extinguisher

also you can use baking soda to put out a grease fire but don't try to put out a grease fire with flour because flour is explosive (won't make that mistake again)

[ECHOES]

Are you asking about foods or gadgets?

[Miracle1986]

Originally Posted by ECHOES

Are you asking about foods or gadgets?

foods, herbs, etc

[ECHOES]

Thanks, I wasn't sure

I like to keep in my cupboard: Cereal, oatmeal, canned soup, canned vegetables, canned fruits. Flour, white sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, baking soda and baking powder.
Olive oil, nonstick oil spray, salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, parsley, curry, paprika, lemon pepper, dill weed, and cinnamon.

[Christina86]

Definitely what I keep (keeping in mind that I'm 23 years old and HATE cooking and don't have oodles of time)

-Cans of broth (also bouillion cubes for flavouring)
-cans of tuna, salmon and other fish. Cheap and nutritious!
-Pasta (I love pasta)
-Garlic salt (love garlic and salt)
-Salt/Pepper
-White sugar, brown sugar
-Flour and baking powder
-Cans of soup
-Crackers
-Onion soup mix (good for use in recipes)
-Cans of vegetables and beans (you never know when you'll need them)
-Cans of tomato sauce and tomato paste (good to be used in lots of stuff)
-Chocolate chips AND other baking chocolate (yum)
- Vanilla extract (used in a lot of baking)
-Macaroni and cheese ("KD") boxes
-Instant noodles
-Rice
-Hamburger Helper mixes, "side kicks" (instant side dishes, like potato mixes, instant rice mixes, and instant noodle mixes)
-Jello mixes
-Pudding (mixes or pudding cups, yum)
-flavoured juice crystals or water crystals (add to water = flavoured water, add to water can also make juice, like Kool Aid!)
-Peanut butter and honey
-Cereal (I don't like oatmeal, but you can also get that)
-Oils (cooking oils) olive oil or sunflower oil is a good thing to have
-Vinegar (white vinegar can be used for cleaning things too... but apple cider vinegar and others have different flavours)
- Trail mix, granola bars or cereal bars - something that has some protein in it, that's also easy to eat on the go!
- Tea bags and/or coffee filters and/or ground coffee and/or powdered milk or "coffee whitener"

In the fridge:
-Cheese! (I love cheese. If you do multiple things with cheese, get a block of cheese, possibly cheez whiz, and processed cheese slices)
-Ketchup, mustard, relish
-Pickles (and/or other pickled vegetables you like)
-Eggs
-Bread/bagels
-Milk
-lard or equivalent
-butter or margarine
-Soy(a) sauce
-Hot sauce (I got "Louisiana Hot Sauce" which isn't horribly spicy, but adds a nice kick to food)
-jam/jellies
-salad dressings
- whipped dressing/mayonnaise
-carrots/apples/other staple veggies/fruits you enjoy
-sour cream, yogurt, cream cheese, etc

Other assorted veggies:
- Onions
- Garlic
- Potatoes
all have a long shelf life, but should NOT be refrigerated!

For the freezer:
- Frozen hamburger/chicken/other meat/bacon
- frozen fish fillets and french fries
- frozen veggies (you can get cheap mixes)
- frozen waffles or something like Pop-Tarts if you like those
- ICE CREAM (Yes, it's important ) - I suppose for a healthy alternative, frozen yogurt?
- frozen fruits (usually berries) -> good for smoothies and baking!
- Ice packs (very important to have freezing in case you need one!)

Random spices:
http://homecooking.about.com/library...ve/blherb2.htm
(I agree with this list except I don't know what #20 is...)

[AAAAA]

#20 is like Cornstarch, better for gravy's and sauces than flour, which can give it a pastey/bland taste if you don't cook it in butter/margarine before adding. You need much less to thinken things and it doesn't clump up like flour would.

[jerrymichele]

What I do is buy what everyone likes to eat. I usually need to cook 2 or 3 different meals. I like healthy food, and the others don't so much.
If you want to eat healthy, I would go with protein, like chicken, and fish. Fresh vegetables, and fruit are best. Frozen fruits, and vegetables, are better for you, then the canned vegetables. Canned food has a lot of sodium in it. If you like hamburger, I would go with the ground turkey. Turkey is healthy. Red meat has a lot of fat in it. If you use butter, get low fat butter. Oil use olive oil. If you use regular oil it doubles the calories on your food.

[Elysium]

Don't forget your non-food items like napkins and paper towels. I even suggest you get a box of plastic utensils/plates for sick days when you don't feel up to doing dishes...it's pretty handy when you don't feel well and you can just use them and toss them.

Also...get some inexpensive, dishwasher safe, disposable tupperware for left-overs. Oh yeah, plastic wrap, tin foil, freezer/sandwich baggies, and wax paper for cooking/baking.

I really hope you have fun in your new place!!

[jbug]

Whole nutmeg thingys and a grater to grate it with, ginger root, I get the already peeled and chopped garlic that way my hands don't smell like garlic and my garlic press doesn't get all clogged.

I also keep my flour in the freezer because of bugs. I found that it keeps the little mites that flour tends to attract away if you keep it in the freezer.

I also keep Bisquick on hand that makes a ton of things, biscuits, pancakes, impossible pies etc.

But you have a good list of things from what others have said.

Jan