What are your top five "must have" pantry items for cooking on a budget.?

Rice

Pasta

Tuna

cream soup

tomato (diced, crushed or sauce)

Pasta

Rice

Can of Tomatoes

Can of Beans (not baked beans)

Can of Pasta Sauce (preferably Tomato based, because you can use this in a variety of dishes)

In the freezer, you should have some frozen veggies. One bag can last you a while.

Buy fresh produce for the week (onions, tomatoes, chicken, etc.) and work with leftovers when you can (eg: leftover pasta sauce works well on toast with a bit of cheese, or even on top of chicken breasts roasted in the oven).

Here's the list for my house:

diced tomatoes

canned beans

spaghetti sauce

mashed potato flakes

english peas

1) PASTA!!!

2) Bread

3) Milk

4) Cheese

5) peanut butter and jelly lol

brown rice (goes with anything and healthier than white)

green lentils (for protein, make into stews, etc)

canned beans (for spreads, stir frys or anything)

coconut milk (for curries, oatmeal or pina coladas)

canned tomatoes (soups, sauces, pastas, stuffed peppers, etc)

Rice

Mac n cheese

spaghetti noodles

mixed vegs.

Beans