Best grocery and pantry staples

Start with the oil and the pasta — those two carry most everyday meals.

• Graza "Sizzle" EVOO — my top pick. A single-variety Picual oil built for roasting, searing and everyday cooking, in a squeeze bottle that's easy to control. If you also want a finishing oil, Graza's original is the milder sibling.
• Kasandrinos 3L organic tin — for anyone who cooks a lot and wants one big, high-polyphenol supply that lasts months.
• Kosterina 500ml — for drizzling and salads, where a smaller, punchier bottle makes sense.
• Barilla Cellentani — the workhorse pantry pasta: a ridged shape that holds sauce, and a brand you can restock anywhere.
• Giadzy organic bucatini or taccole — for slower, sauce-forward dinners where the pasta itself should taste of something.
• Great Value spaghetti or rotini multi-packs — for feeding a household cheaply without thinking about it.

Rice, canned tomatoes and beans I couldn't price this time — ask and I'll pull those next.