A while ago I wrote a blog which included the Ultimate Caravan Checklist, a handy guide for those perhaps new to caravanning, or those of us who forget easily, which aimed to help with the everyday set up and pack up when you’re touring about.

It proved to be a popular list and has been downloaded from the website many times. If it doesn’t suit your set up exactly then it’s a helpful base to start your own handy reminder of jobs that have to be done on the road. Following up from that, I’ve decided to make an Ultimate Pantry List.

I actually have packing lists that look similar to this, which I use every time before we leave home. Some of these items live permanently in the caravan, but it always pays to check that items in your pantry are in date and still good to use.

As with the Caravan Checklist, this is meant to be a guide that you can adapt to your tastes and requirements, but I’ll explain a little why these items are always in our van.

• Plain flour is a necessity and if you add baking powder in the ratio of 1 teaspoon per 1 cup of plain flour, then you have self-raising flour too. I’ll use flour for making things like damper, batters and cakes in our travels and my preference is to use wholemeal flour.

• Rice and pasta are easy for meal preparation when you’re travelling either as the main ingredient or as something to add to dishes to stretch them out or bulk them up. Also Hokkien noodles last for ages in the pantry and go with any Asian inspired dishes. I carry basmati and risotto rice and take elbow noodles as well as fettucine. Look for the healthier varieties now available in supermarkets.

• Herbs and spices can add instant flavour to many dishes and can be added to flour or breadcrumbs to make interesting coatings for food. I’ll always have oregano, basil, paprika, and cinnamon in the pantry.

• Potatoes, onions and garlic more great base additions to meals including bakes and casseroles. I buy low carb potatoes and you can always have onion and garlic powder in the pantry if fresh are hard to come by.

• Olive oil is a great all round oil to have for both cooking and to make a simple salad dressing along with garlic and lemon juice.

• The pantry cupboard always has some canned foods including different beans that are so versatile to add to casseroles, pasta dishes, soups and salads, and these are especially useful if fresh supplies are running low.

• Canned soups varieties such as cream of mushroom or tomato, are also handy to whip up quick meals by adding some protein, pasta, and some herbs, spices and vegetables. Long life milk is also a staple for those times when fresh runs out and you can use it to make creamy sauces too.

• Everyone has their favourite type of cooking pots that are used frequently, I know many people these days now take air fryers with them, but for us it’s the deep dish butane cooker which can be used for cooking breakfasts, casseroles, bakes, shallow frying and more and can be used outdoors or inside with minimum clean up afterwards and it’s lightweight.

• If there’s room and the type of holiday permits, we’ll take a camp oven for roasts or damper cooked on the coals and you can even make desserts too.

• For fresh fruit and vegetables when we’re travelling we always try to visit farmer’s markets for the best of local and in season.

Feel free to print the checklist here or use it as a guide to create your own.

Cheers

Glenys

**If you enjoyed this post, please hit the *LIKE button, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE, leave a comment, and share the love on your socials. If you want to see more content between uploads, follow me on Instagram and Facebook for daily updates.