If you were starting anew in a fresh kitchen, what would you take with you? What would you create from scratch? I am quite serious. I ask in earnest. Just imagine a kitchen that is empty. Oh sure, there are some cabinets, a sink, a refrigerator, and an ordinary gas stove. Otherwise, it’s a blank canvas. You might as well have tumbleweeds twirling about through the empty spaces.
It is hard to know where to begin. There are the spices that fill your cupboards, the different types of yeasts, flours, dried beans, and salts. But what other things do you use that might be overlooked? Preserved lemons for the refrigerator? Chicken stock in the freezer? Condiments collected over many many moons? The odd can of white beans or chickpeas in the pantry for the spontaneous hummus craving.
When I left the dormitory in college and moved into my first apartment, I had a mug and a sorry piece of tupperware. That was it. I didn’t own anything else that might be of any use in a kitchen and I had absolutely no idea where to start. The only good thing about the situation was my cluelessness. My excitement to begin real adult…
