With the coronavirus shelter-in-place order, you're likely spending more time cooking in your home kitchen. And by now, you may have cycled through your usual-suspect recipes.

If your pantry is stocked but you’re out of ideas for what to cook next, here are five recipes ranging from approachable staples to others that take a bit more time, but deliver on the promise of your patient labor.

Sweet Potato Gratin with Goat Cheese and Harissa. (Patrick Wong)

1. Sweet Potato Gratin with Goat Cheese and Harissa

You can usher out the last of winter with this sweet potato gratin with goat cheese and harissa. Sweet potatoes are the sort of fresh produce that almost count as a pantry item. Though the root vegetable’s season peaks in fall, the gratin preparation will be forgiving of time lapsed. If you don’t have harissa on hand, try another red pepper variety.

Homemade Chicken Stock starting to cook. (Wendy Goodfriend)

2. Homemade Chicken Stock

There is no better time to be the sort of person who makes chicken stock from scratch. Chicken stock is a utility knife in your fridge. Naturally a great fit for chicken noodle and other soups and stews, it can also be employed to deglaze a pan, squeezing out maximum flavor from the meats you’ve just seared. You can also substitute water for stock in part or in whole to cook rice and other grains, and even beans.

Tanya Holland’s Vegetarian Dirty Rice. (Wendy Goodfriend)

3. Chef Tanya Holland's Vegetarian Dirty Rice

A one-pan recipe that can feed the whole household or give plenty of leftovers, Oakland chef Tanya Holland’s vegetarian dirty rice packs a punch in flavor. You likely have all the dry ingredients in your pantry, and this vegetarian delight will combine them in a uniquely delicious way. Get ready for a new addition to your list of tried-and-true recipes.

Homemade shoyu ramen with chashu, soy eggs, menma, cabbage, scallions, and nori. (Kate Williams)

4. Homemade Shoyu Ramen with Chashu

[aside postID='food_1336845,bayareabites_136541' label='Even more tips for your kitchen']
If you’re on the lookout for a recipe that can take your attention and time away from the news, look no further than homemade ramen. Though the recipe doesn’t require homemade ramen noodles, it does feature a long-simmering broth and a slow braised pork belly. Settle into this one and check the ingredients list to make sure you’ve got them in stock.

Grilled Shrimp Salad with Zucchini Noodles, Baby Greens, and Spicy Thai Basil Vinaigrette. ((Wendy Goodfriend))

5. Grilled Shrimp Salad with Zucchini and Baby Greens

Summer squashes are slowly making their way to grocery stores in the Bay Area, and this grilled shrimp and zucchini salad is a celebration of the warm weather that awaits. Light on starch but full of flavor, this inventive salad features grilled shrimp and a Thai basil vinaigrette, the latter which you can borrow for your favorite greens.

[ad fullwidth]

home cookinghome cooking

Noodle Soup, Homemade Dosas and Timeless Beans

5 Recipes to Try This Week

Book Q&A with Saveur's James Oseland