12 Pantry Ingredients Our Food Editors Can't Live Without

If you pay close attention to our recipes, you likely already know that there are a number of ingredients that our food editors always have on hand. Among them? First, there's extra virgin olive oil for cooking and for finishing, kosher salt and sea salt for seasoning, and the obvious selection of assorted grains and baking supplies galore. You'll also know that our test kitchen team likes to stock up on lots of fresh produce; lemons, onions, shallots, and garlic are year-round staples, but other produce rotates in and out based on what recipes they are developing and what's in season (or not!). Here, we're shining a light on some other ingredients that you'll always find in our test kitchen pantry. They're all shelf-stable so you can have them on hand (some require refrigeration once opened) and use them in the many ways our food editors do, as well as experiment and come up with your own favorite ways to use these flavor enhancing ingredients.

Some of these pantry essentials might be new to you while others you may remember from your grandmother's kitchen; either way, we're certain that sure you'll find our suggestions our recipes bring something new to the table. That's because the test kitchen team uses each ingredient in so many different ways (and not always the most obvious ways at that). Sure, miso is used for soup, but using it for a chocolate ganache is less expected, and the results are so delicious. Coconut oil is a staple of vegan baking but it's also a stellar oil choice for prepping various proteins. Pepperoncini make a great snack straight from the jar (even food editors get hungry!) but they can also become a party-worthy app, transforming into a popper that's far better than any jalapeño one.

Read on to discover our pantry picks, and the delicious ways we use them.

It's versatile, vegan, and readily available, which means there's a lot to like about coconut oil. Try it in baked goods; you'll find that it makes a wonderful vegan substitute for butter. We also like cooking with it as an added flavor boost in savory dishes, including everything from soup to scallops.

One important note: Be sure to look for organic, virgin varieties that haven't been hydrogenated. Pressed from raw coconut, the unrefined oil has subtle nutty, tropical notes.

Shop Now: Spectrum Naturals Organic Virgin Coconut Oil, $23.47, amazon.com.

The ultimate in umami? Yes, but there is so much more to this protein-rich fermented soybean paste. It has been used in Japan since the 12th century and is a world-class flavor foundation. We use three types— shiro, aka, and awase—to impart the savory taste known as umami to salad dressing, roasted chicken, even pasta and chocolate sauce.

Shop Now: Shiro Miso, $11.79, amazon.com.

Think beyond the coffee mug: We never use espresso powder for drinks. We're too busy using  this inexpensive pantry staple for other things! Savvy bakers have long relied on the concentrated flavor of dark, rich espresso powder (instant coffee's Italian counterpart) to intensify the chocolaty goodness of brownies and to bring coffee flavor to cakes and buttercream. Its appeal hardly ends there, though: Use it in a steak rub rub, sprinkle it over scoops of lemon sorbet for a refreshing dessert, and even combine it with cinnamon and sugar to top slices of toast.

Shop Now: Medaglia D'Oro Instant Espresso, $4.99, amazon.com.

Made of nothing more than ground, hulled sesame seeds, this aromatic paste is akin to natural nut butter but has a thinner consistency and a more subtle flavor. It's used extensively in Middle Eastern cuisine, often as a key ingredient in side dishes or mixed into a sauce or dressing. You probably have some left from the last time you made your own hummus, but don't save tahini for just that alone—it's excellent in other dips, as well as in everything from eggs to roasted fish to a toast topper to cookies.

Shop Now: Joyva Tahini, $7.99, target.com.

We know what you're thinking: Do I really need another bottle of vinegar? Our answer is an enthusiastic yes. Made exclusively in the celebrated sherry region of Spain, vinagre de Jerez is aged for at least six months (and often more than a decade), taking on a rich color and complex, balanced taste faintly reminiscent of caramel. It's less sweet than balsamic and more nuanced than many other vinegars. Sherry vinegar is traditionally used to brighten up the flavor of long-cooked soups and stews or impart a smoky bite to the Spanish classic gazpacho. Just a splash also adds depth to vinaigrettes, vegetable dishes, and salmon.

Shop Now: Columela Vinagre de Jerez, $11.28, amazon.com.

Most capers we see in the U.S. are packed in a vinegar brine after curing, and that acidic brine is all you taste. But capers packed in sea salt have a fresher, almost floral flavor and aroma, that's why they are our test kitchens pick. They keep their shape and firmness better, too. They are a true power ingredient, elevating not just chicken piccata and salade Nicoise but simple dips, roasted vegetables, and more.

Shop Now: Frantoi Cutrera Italian Salt-Packed Capers, $14.99, amazon.com.

Not just for steak, Worcestershire sauce is tangy, savory, and pungently delicious. Like many of the best discoveries, the creation of the classic steak condiment was accidental: The formula was perfected only after its 19th-century inventors, John Lea and William Perrins, on a whim, sampled a batch of sauce they had rejected years before. What they tasted was tangy, savory, and pungently delicious. The inadvertent fermentation had lent a distinctive umami to the blend of anchovies, vinegar, cloves, tamarind, and molasses. These days, Worcestershire enhances any beef dish, but don't limit its potential—try it in salads, dips, and more.

Shop Now: Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, $4.69, target.com.

Think outside the dip bowl: Yes, salsa is a great match for tortilla chips, but its signature blend of tangy and spicy also makes it a versatile flavor enhancer in all kinds of recipes from from rice dishes to frittatas, even mussels. Our test kitchen pick is Green Mountain Gringo, a fresh-tasting salsa that's a perfect mix of sweet, spicy, and tangy. For a chunkier salsa go with Newman's Own.

Shop Now: Green Mountain Gringo Mild Salsa, $4.89, target.com; Newman's Own Chunky Mild Salsa, $2.99, target.com.

Maybe you've sampled these tangy pickles as part of an antipasti platter or sampled them straight from the jar? While we approve of both those uses, our favorite ways to use them is a stealth flavor boosters in recipes like a zesty chimichurri and an irresistible upgrade to that favorite app, the popper.

Shop Now: Paesana Tuscan Style Pepperoncini, $2.19, instacart.com.

The classic aperitif wine vermouth is essential in a Martini but also stands in for white wine in all kinds of savory and sweet recipes. Keep a bottle on hand and use it to deglaze a pan or for a stir fry.

Shop Now: Martini & Rosso Extra Dry Vermouth, from $8.99, drizly.com.

If you like the complex, briny taste of Caesar salad dressing, you're most likely an anchovy fan. When you want a slightly subtler flavor boost, reach for anchovy paste. Made from ground anchovies, salt, and oil, this concentrated paste, used in small doses, brings a savory (some say umami) boost to food without revealing itself as an ingredient in pasta, sauces, even as a seasoning for roast chicken. Look for it in easy-to-use tubes in your supermarket. There's a wide range in quality among anchovy pastes; we like one made from Sicilian anchovies.

Shop Now: Amore Anchovy Paste, $3.49, instacart.com.

Enrich all manner of dishes with this nutty pantry essential. Roasted walnut oil is a sleeper ingredient that adds a rich, roasted flavor and instant finesse to a range of winter dishes, plus salads, baked goods, and the simplest vegetable sautés.

Shop Now: La Tourangelle Roasted Walnut Oil, $7.54, amazon.com.