What Pantry Items to Splurge On and How to Use Them

When you're on cooking on a tight budget, you spend a lot of time cutting corners in your kitchen. You pack lunch instead of succumbing to the comfort and ease of Seamless. You lug oats and grains home in bulk, save your stale bread, and use every last scrap you come across.

Sometimes, though, there are ingredients that you're going to need to spend a little more money on -- either there is no cheap substitute for what you need, or using the inferior version is going to severely impact the quality of your dish. I've rounded up a few investment pieces for your pantry, so go ahead: Treat yo' self.

Check out the slideshow above for the best pantry items to splurge on.

Waste Not, Want Not: When to Save Your Scraps and What to Do With Them
4 Dish-Brighteners That You Should Keep On Call

This article originally appeared on Food52.com: What Pantry Items to Splurge On and How to Use Them.

Become a KD VIP to save your favorite recipes from anywhere to your recipe box and so much more.