Must Have Pantry Essentials

When it comes to cooking delicious Chinese food at home, there are a few pantry essentials that will show up in many great dishes and add those unique and bold Chinese food flavors that the whole family is sure to enjoy. The more of these basics you have on hand, the easier it will be to perfect your favorite Chinese food dishes and begin experimenting with great flavor combinations and unique recipes. 

Here at Fly By Jing, we want to bring the best flavors from Chinese cooking home to your kitchen. That’s why we carry oils, spices, and ingredients that belong in every pantry and provide the history and culture that shows just how unique these ingredients and meals really are. 

Pantry Essentials

When it’s time to begin cooking Chinese food at home, here are the pantry staples that you’ll want to pick up. 

Soy Sauce

There are two main types of soy sauce that you’ll want to use in your Chinese home cooking, and it’s a good idea to have both on hand. 

Light soy sauce is the more versatile of the two, and you’ll want to use light soy sauce in your home cooking unless the dish calls for dark soy sauce specifically. As the name would indicate, light soy sauce is lighter in color. It is also thinner and higher in sodium than dark soy sauce and is used in both the cooking process and as sauce or side. 

Dark soy sauce is both darker in color and a little thicker in consistency. It adds a deep reddish-brown coloring to your favorite dishes, most often as a marinade, and has a slightly sweet flavoring to it. In addition to dark and light soy sauce, you have options that are flavored with vegetables like mushrooms or even seafood ingredients like shrimp. 

You’ll use soy sauce in many Chinese dishes, including spicy noodles, stir fry, dumplings, and more. You can also use it as a side sauce for dipping or an addition to your favorite soup. 

Fish Sauce

Fish sauce is made from fermented fish and other fermented ingredients like meat and soybeans and can be traced back over 2,000 years. It carries a unique umami and savory flavor that mixes well with a wide variety of dishes, like roasted or earthy vegetables, meat-based stir fry dishes, and, of course, seafood. 

You have many different fish sauce options available to you, and you’ll want to play around with your favorite flavors to find the right addition to the meal you’re working on next. Use a little bit of fish sauce at a time to avoid overpowering your other flavors.  

Oyster Sauce

On the other side of Chinese cooking flavors, you’ll find oyster sauce. If fish sauce is extremely savory, oyster sauce has a thick and rich sweet flavor profile that makes it a welcome addition to hot and savory dishes in need of balance. The ingredients are simple: salt, sugar, and oyster juices. Sometimes, oyster sauce has a touch of thickened soy sauce, as well. 

The story goes that in the late 1800s, an oyster seller left his oyster soup over the heat for too long. When he returned, his oysters had caramelized, creating a rich and sweet flavoring that paired well when mixed with or used as a dipping sauce for many Chinese food dishes. 

Oyster sauce is an extremely useful ingredient to keep in your pantry. Use in dishes like pork or beef stir-fries, scallion pancakes, and more. 

Hoisin Sauce

Hoisin sauce doesn’t just add flavor to your favorite dishes. It adds a rich and thick texture, as well. When it comes to the ingredients, you’ll want to use hoisin sauce as a glaze for your favorite meat dishes or mix it into meat or seafood stir fry dishes. Hoisin sauce also makes for an excellent dipping sauce, especially when paired with dishes that need a rich, sweet flavor for balance. 

Funnily enough, hoisin actually translates to the word “seafood,” even though there are no seafood ingredients in the sauce itself. Instead, you’ll find fermented bean paste, chili paste, brown sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and Chinese five-spice. You may find recipes that include peanut butter or even molasses in the hoisin sauce for a modern blend of flavors. 

Sesame Oil

Sesame oil goes into a wide variety of dishes, from Zhong dumplings to sesame noodles, soups, or even salads. It’s derived from sesame seeds, as the name would indicate, and used as a natural flavor enhancer to bring your favorite spices and flavors to the surface. 

The reason you’ll find sesame oil in so many Chinese food dishes is that its use dates back over 5,000 years. Sesame is a very resilient crop and can grow in periods of drought and when other crops fail to propagate or survive. That made it an easy option for creating an oil that can be used in many dishes. 

Like soy sauce, you can have both light and dark sesame oils. Light sesame oil can be used for deep frying because it has a high smoke point. Dark sesame oil is better for sauteing and stir-frying. 

Rice Vinegar

Rice vinegar, as the name indicates, is made from fermented rice and comes in many varieties to fit all of your home cooking needs. You may find versions flavored with spices or bases like ginger, orange, or cloves, but the traditional rice vinegar is subtly sweet in flavor. 

There are three main types of rice vinegar: red, white, and black. Brown is another variant of rice vinegar, but these are the kinds you’ll use most commonly in your cooking. 

White rice vinegar is the most subtle and used in most dishes. Red rice vinegar is derived from red yeast rice, which gives it the distinctive coloring and tart, sometimes sweet flavoring. This flavor pairs particularly well with seafood. Black rice vinegar has a smokier, darker taste that comes from a combination of grains, including black glutenous rice that gives it the coloring. 

It’s important to note that in addition to different types of vinegar, there are regional variations of the flavors and textures that can alter how your dish tastes, so make sure you’re using the right rice vinegar for your dish. 

Rice Wine

While the name may be similar, rice wine and rice vinegar are both produced and used in their own unique ways, and they cannot be substituted for one another. 

One of the most common types of rice wine is Shaoxing wine. It adds a rich, salty flavor that can be a welcome addition to many broths, stir fry dishes, and meat dishes. It’s also an excellent addition to the filling combinations in wontons and dumplings. 

Doubanjiang

Another commonly used ingredient in Chinese home cooking is doubanjiang—or fermented bean paste. There are actually many different types of bean pastes that you’ll use in the course of your Chinese cooking, but this is one of the most common. 

It can be traced back to the Pixian area of the Sichuan region, which is known for its spicy peppers and hot flavors. In addition to spicy chili peppers, the doubanjiang bean paste is made from broad beans, which are traditionally fermented for more than three years. It also features soybeans, salt, and flour. 

Wok

A wok isn’t an ingredient, but it is a tool that will help bring your home-cooked Chinese dishes to the next level. Woks are wide-bottomed cooking pots and can be used to help create all of your favorite dishes. It makes it easy to try out many different cooking techniques, including stir-frying, boiling, braising, steaming, or pan-frying. You can even use your wok to make soups. 

Conclusion

When it comes to creating your favorite Chinese food dishes right at home, the ingredients you use are essential to getting the flavors you love and making the recipes all your own. The more of these pantry essentials like soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sesame oil that you have on hand, the easier it will be to start trying out dishes like soups, scallion pancakes, and stir-fries. Additionally, these great ingredients will help you to make sauces and drizzles that can add a little extra kick to everything from dumplings to noodles. 

When it’s time to start stocking your pantry with Chinese food ingredients, Fly By Jing is here to help. Explore our growing shop of sauces, oils, and spices, and check out our collection of classic recipes just perfect for taste testing today! Don’t forget to share your favorites. 

Sources: 

How to Stock a Chinese Pantry: Essential Staples to Keep on Hand | Serious Eats

The Difference Between Lao Chou and Sheng Chou (Dark and Light Soy Sauce) | The Spruce Eats 

What Exactly Is Oyster Sauce? And What to Use if You Can't Find Any | Bon Appetit