What pantry staples should I always have on hand for quick weeknight meals?

David, great question. Here's my essential list - with these in the pantry, you're never more than 20 minutes from a proper meal. Pasta (a long shape like spaghetti and a short one like rigatoni), tinned tomatoes (San Marzano if you can), good olive oil (don't cook with the cheap stuff and dress with the expensive stuff, use the same mid-range oil for both), garlic, dried chilli flakes, anchovies (trust me), capers, parmesan, and lemons. With just those, you can make aglio e olio, puttanesca, a quick tomato sauce, or a lemon-butter pasta. Add a tin of chickpeas and you've got dinner on toast. Come into Clifton Hill and I'll point you to the good stuff — the right tinned tomato makes all the difference.