10 Essential Italian Pantry Ingredients Every Kitchen Should Have
Renowned for its simplicity and rich flavors, Italian cuisine relies on a few essential pantry staples that every Italian household treasures. Read about our 10 essentials and get inspired!
(Ready to dive into authentic Italian cuisine for yourself? Browse our Abruzzo Day Tours & Experiences, including our Wine Tasting Tour in the Abruzzo and Abruzzo Cheesemaking Experience.)
Essential Italian Ingredient Number One: Pasta
What would a respectable Italian pantry be without pasta? It’s the nation’s #1 staple! Italians are the top consumers of pasta per capita in the world, with the average Italian consuming over 23 kg of pasta per year. Made of flour, durum wheat semolina, water, and sometimes other cereals and eggs, pasta is a must-have.
But remember, Italians choose their pasta wisely. Cooking with a creamy sauce? Try a wide pasta like tagliatelle and pappardelle. Use spaghetti or bucatini, meanwhile, when cooking with a more delicate sauce.
(Check out our Traditional Pasta Making Class in Abruzzo if you want to learn how to make tasty pasta for yourself at home.)
Tomatoes: A Versatile, Italian Pantry Essential
Come late summer, when tomatoes are especially ripe, Italians are busy making and bottling their flavorful homemade passata. Widely used as a base for many pasta sauces, soups, and other dishes, this fresh tomato purée is bottled into a preserve and stored on pantry shelves to use throughout the year.
Beans, Lentils, and Legumes
Despite regional variations in traditional dishes, all Italian pantries are likely to be full of beans (fagioli) and legumes such as fava, lentils, cannellini, borlotti, and chickpeas.
Dishes like pasta e fagioli and zuppa di fagioli are traditional Italian favorites containing beans and are enjoyed throughout Italy. They are warm, belly-filling dishes, especially during the colder months.
Say Cheese!
Marvelous Italian cheeses like Pecorino, Parmigiano, and Grana Padano are staples in every Italian household. They are supreme pasta toppers and are used in many recipes, from pesto to meatballs, stuffed peppers, and artichokes.
However, many Italians say, “Not with fish!” and balk at the sight of cheese on seafood dishes.
Mozzarella, burrata, and ricotta add a creamy touch to dishes like cannelloni and ravioli or can be enjoyed alone with a drizzle of olive oil and basil.
If you’d like to try some delicious Italian cheeses that are a little less common, try the rich, semi-soft taleggio or the aged provolone.
And if you’d really like to expand your cheese knowledge, book a place on our Cheesemaking Class in the Abruzzo.
Wine: A Must-Have in Every Italian Home
You’ll never find an Italian household without wine. Whether for cooking, pairing with a meal, or simply enjoying with friends, Italians always have it covered.
In Abruzzo, you can find excellent wines, including the native red Montepulciano and white Trebbiano, along with popular varieties like Passerina, Pecorino, Montonico, and Cococciola.
Take part in a Wine Tasting and Winery Tour in Italy to really develop your tasting skills.
Vinegar: A Flavorful Staple
Standard red and white wine vinegars, along with their posh cousin, concentrated balsamic vinegar from Modena, are essential in Italian kitchens. Great for preserves, salads, and more, these vinegars offer various health benefits like antioxidants, lowering blood pressure, aiding digestion, and supporting weight loss.
Spices and Herbs: No Waste of Thyme!
If not growing in a garden, windowsill, or terrace, you’ll find herbs stored and dried in the Italian pantry. Italians keep plenty of basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, and sage on hand. To add spice to dishes, dried peperoncini or peperoncini in olive oil make great condiments.
Oh Olive Oil!
What’s not to love? Olive oil is the cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet—flavorful and aromatic. Extra-virgin olive oil (EVO) offers superb health benefits, being high in monounsaturated fats and antioxidants. It has anti-inflammatory properties, may prevent heart disease and stroke, strengthens the immune system, is great for liver health, and can lower blood pressure. Italians certainly know best!
Discover the fascinating world of Extra Virgin Olive Oil in Italy by reading our 25 Important Things You Need to know About Olive Oil next.
Digestives (Digestivi) : Italian Elixirs for a Happy Stomach
Italian households love to keep a little something on hand to aid digestion. Who needs Tums when you have limoncello? Italy is famous for its boozy beverages that make you forget how much pasta you just ate. Cheers to ending every meal with a tipsy twist! Italian liquors and digestives are like wingmen for your digestive system, helping it work smoothly after a meal.
If life gives you lemons, make limoncello!
This Italian liquor is basically lemon zest’s boozy alter ego, sweetened with sugar syrup. It’s like lemonade for adults, hailing from the sunny south of Italy, with a bright yellow hue and zesty citrus taste. For a fancy and refreshing drink, limoncello is the way to go—it’s like a spa day for your taste buds.
Ah, the famous Italian stomach soother—Amaro! It’s like a hug in a glass, but with herbs. Perfect for when you’ve eaten so much pasta that you feel like you might explode. Amaro is a mix of different herbs and spices, offering a bitter and sweet taste. It’s a fancy way to enjoy a drink while pretending to be healthy. Every region has its special herbal elixir to aid digestion. You can drink it straight or mix it into a fancy cocktail. Bellissimo!
In Italian households, you might find a secret stash of grappa, a magical elixir made from winemaking scraps. It’s like the Cinderella story for grapes! Grappa is a strong, clear spirit with warming powers, perfect for sipping slowly from a tiny glass.
Have you heard of Ratafia? It’s like the Italian cousin of a unicorn—rare and mysterious, but delightful. This gem from the Abruzzo region will make your taste buds dance to the tarantella. Made with Montepulciano d’Abruzzo wine and wild cherries, it’s like sipping the Italian countryside. Delve into the secrets of this magical elixir.
Italian liquors and digestives are not just for drinking alone; they are a crucial part of Italian culture and hospitality. The Italians truly know how to live the good life! When enjoying all the pizza and pasta Italy offers, don’t forget to indulge in their fancy liquors and digestives. It’s like adding a little “Mamma Mia!” to your meal.
Espress-Oh! The Italian Coffee Culture
After WWII, the iconic stove-top Italian moka pot, invented by Antonio Bialetti and Luigi Di Ponti in 1933, became the standard way of making coffee at home in southern Europe. Talk about ‘coffee culture!’ Today, Italy’s iconic moka pot has found its way into European pantries and is the most commonly used on the continent. This stove-top classic brews coffee by passing boiling water pressurized by steam through ground coffee, resulting in a thicker, more concentrated flavor (don’t call it espresso).
When visiting hospitable Italian friends or relatives, you can be sure there will always be a moka pot ready to go, and you’ll be offered a cup following friendly greetings.
Experience the Italian Pantry Staples Firsthand!
Are you a passionate foodie and curious traveler? Imagine embarking on an exciting tour that brings to life the very ingredients and traditions discussed here.
Experience ‘The Italian Pantry Staples’ firsthand! Dive into the heart of Italian cuisine and explore the origins and production processes of these quintessential staples. Picture yourself in a local’s home, making traditional pasta, or visiting a vineyard to learn about the wine-making process and sample Abruzzo’s secret grape varieties. Explore olive groves and oil mills to discover extra-virgin olive oil production. Cheese lovers can visit a cheese-making facility to not just sample but make Italy’s finest cheeses, such as Parmigiano and Pecorino.
If you’re an adventurous food and wine lover ready to explore Italy’s culinary treasures, join us and immerse yourself in the authentic culture and gastronomy of Abruzzo. It’s a chance to taste, touch, and experience the essence of Italy.
Experience a mouth-watering Italian adventure that will create memories to last a lifetime! Contact us today for a Custom Tours in Italy.