The ingredients you should always buy at the highest quality (and how to know which ones actually matter)
Most people waste money on the wrong food upgrades.
They will buy the “fancy” shallots instead of an onion… then cook with the cheapest pasta they can find.
Here is my rule:
If an ingredient makes up half your plate, or you use it constantly, that’s the one worth upgrading. Everything else? Relax. No one cares.
Once you learn this rule, cooking becomes easier, cheaper and wildly more satisfying.
Let’s break it down with examples that actually show the logic.
1. Pasta — worth upgrading every time
Pasta is one of the cheapest meals you can cook. It is also one of the easiest places to taste the difference between “basic” and “brilliant.”
Bronze-die, slow-dried pasta grips sauce, cooks evenly and has flavour. Cheap pasta is fine, but if want to truly enjoy your quick dinner, there is no easier or better way.
And because pasta itself is often 80% of your final dish, upgrading it upgrades the entire meal for way less than the price of a coffee.
If pasta is the main event, buy the good one.
2. Basmati rice — especially if you eat it often
Here is the test:
If you cook rice more than twice a week, stop buying whichever bag is on offer. Find the brand you like and stick to it. You will learn how to cook it better as it remains consistent. This means that it is much easier to make more adventurous rice dishes in the future, like Indian biryani or Arabic mandi.
Aged basmati (look for 1–2 years) is miles ahead of the basic stuff. The grains stay separate, aromatic and actually taste like food.
Rice is often the bed of the whole meal. Upgrade it, and everything on top tastes better too.
3. Proper salt — because it’s in everything
Salt goes into everything you cook, so using low-quality salt makes everything taste slightly worse, still salty, but you can definitely taste the difference.
Cheap table salt is sharp, metallic and harsh. Real sea salt or Himalayan is rounder, softer and cleaner, without any additives or anti cacking agents.
If you want to improve your cooking without changing a single recipe, start here.
4. Fresh herbs — the easiest instant upgrade
Some dried herbs have their place. Dried parsley… doesn’t.
Fresh herbs are not “cheffy.” They are functional. They add brightness, freshness and actual flavour, especially when added at the end.
If you are using herbs raw or as a finishing touch, go fresh every time. This alone makes homemade food stop tasting “home-made.”
5. The olive oil you eat raw
You do not need expensive olive oil for frying. But the one you drizzle over salads, bread or pasta? That oil deserves quality.
A good finishing oil transforms plain food instantly. Think of it as seasoning, not decoration.
So, which ingredients matter for YOU?
Here is your quick rule:
✔ Upgrade the ingredients you use the most
If you cook rice every week, buy the best basmati.
If you toss pasta into your weekly rotation, get bronze-die.
If tomatoes form the base of half your meals, buy better tinned or fresh plum tomatoes.
✔ Upgrade ingredients that make up 40–80% of a dish
A £2 pack of great pasta makes a bigger impact than a £2 pack of “fancy” shallots.
✔ Upgrade anything you use raw
Fresh herbs, finishing oil, salt, lemon — anything that stays “visible” in a dish should taste good on its own.
And the best part? Most of these upgrades cost pennies per portion.
They are not artisan, luxury, Instagram-food-person ingredients. They are basic kitchen staples, but in their best version.
And when the ingredient is the star, the quality actually matters.
