Photo: Eran Finkle/Flickr

I remember reading a fabulous, open-ended question put to a professional chef that went something like this: ‘What are the five ingredients someone can always find in your kitchen?” In essence, what’s really being asked here is, ‘What are the core flavors you feel are essential to your cooking? What flavors do you like best?’

For the life of me I cannot verify the chef being interviewed (though I believe it was Lidia Bastianich). What I do remember was one of her staple ingredients: fennel. How unusual! Imagine the flavoring possibilities. My own answer to the same question is a bit more mundane, perhaps, but no less flavorful: Kalamata olives and capers. It’s the Sicilian in me, for sure, since their tangy saltiness seem to meet some innate flavor need I wasn’t even aware I had. Dishes forever have greater appeal if they call for olives and/or capers and, — funny how this works — I always seem to have them in my pantry.

Photo: courtesy of Oldways

I was easily enticed, then, by a recipe for Baked Mediterranean Fish from Oldways based here in Boston. A white, firm-fleshed fish such cod or halibut serves as the backdrop to a caper, olive, lemon zest and hint-of-oregano sauce that is a cinch to prepare. You get a big return on flavor for a small investment of time whether you’re baking or grilling. It’s an elegant, simple and nutritious dish.

So, what makes up the handful of ingredients YOU always have on hand? Let us know! And, guaranteed, if you’re looking for a creative way of incorporating one of them into your next meal, you’ll find it in the treasure trove of recipes offered at the Oldways site.