I picked up the idea for this from Ali Slagle’s Substack, 40 Ingredients Forever.

Using fewer ingredients, rather than buying some oddity that you might use once and then forget in the back of the cupboard/fridge, is economical common sense. In my mind it will also avoid a lot of the faff around cooking and recipes; I can’t be doing with 27 obscure ingredients, 39 steps, and two dishwasher loads, of buggering around just to make dinner. (Except possibly very, very occasionally.)

You see, if you have your 40 go to ingredients always available, you have at your fingertips both the means to make a good meal, or cook almost anything, and make it interestingly tasty.

My list differs substantially from that of Sohla El-Waylly, which is the list Ali Slagle originally posted. And your list will not be the same either, although there are likely to be some commonalities.

In creating my list I’ve assumed that in the cupboard there are already six very basic basics:

• Salt (although I rarely use any)
• Black pepper
• Plain flour
• Milk
• Sugar
• Baking powder

So here’s my list. (Frozen, where appropriate, is fine.)

40 Essential Ingredients

Hot lemon chilli flakes Tandoori spice mix Creamed coconut Worcs sauce Mixed spice Almond essence Dark chocolate Extra virgin olive oil White wine vinegar White wine Dry sherry Cashew nuts Kalamata olives Fresh ginger Fresh coriander Hot lemon chillies Basmati rice Linguine Tinned plum tomatoes Tinned cannellini beans

Charlotte potatoes Button mushrooms San Marzano tomatoes Bell peppers Banana shallots Garlic Lemons (& limes) Smitten apples Blackcurrants Chicken thighs Lamb neck fillet Bacon Chorizo Prawns Eggs Butter Double cream Parmesan cheese Cheddar Brie

Having said all that, this starts getting difficult when you have to take dietary restrictions into account. That’s where we are now with a medical need to reduce phosphate and potassium levels, sugar and salt – which cuts out a huge range of foods from avocados to crab by way of nuts and seeds. Because of the potassium alone almost all vegetables have to be boiled (yeuch!) and many fruits are off limits. This of course hits the 40 ingredients – but here are some possible substitutions.

Removed Ingredient	Replace with
Baking Powder	Yeast
Creamed coconut
Worcs sauce
Dark chocolate
Dry sherry	Gin
Cashew nuts
Kalamata olives
Tinned plum tomatoes
Tinned cannellini beans	Tinned chickpeas
Button mushrooms	Shiitake mushrooms
Blackcurrants	Cherries or blueberries
Bacon
Chorizo
Parmesan cheese
Cheddar	Mozzarella
	Salmon
	Fresh thyme
	Asparagus (in season)

It’s going to get interesting.