• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups frozen shredded hash browns
• 1 cup chopped red or green pepper
• 6 lightly beaten eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 3/4 grated parmesan cheese

Heat the oil in a skillet on a medium high heat; then add the hash browns and peppers. Cook them for about 5 minutes or until the hash browns are slightly browned. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, milk and 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese. Pour this mixture over the hash browns and peppers; cover. Reduce the heat and let the eggs set, which takes about 10 to 12 minutes. When done, sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese over the eggs and re-cover. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Cut the frittata into wedges.

7. Ground Beef

Ground beef is another versatile ingredient that is great to have on hand. Lean ground beef can be used for tacos, hamburgers, meatballs or a meatloaf. All of these meals can incorporate spices that you probably have on hand, such as garlic, chili powder, salt and pepper. If you are looking for a slightly healthier option, choose ground turkey and you can still make all the dishes listed above but with less fat and calories.

8. Rice

Rice is definitely a must-have ingredient as it can be a great side dish for almost any meal or a main ingredient if you enjoy making risotto, sushi, chicken and rice soup, jambalaya or paella. Rice is also an ingredient that comes in a lot of yummy varieties that all lend themselves to different types of dishes. Next time you are in the grocery store, don't just grab the first bag of white, short grain rice you see. Why not try some wild rice, arborio rice, jasmine rice, basmati or any of the other 40,000 rice varieties in the world.