Single girls’ Grocery Shopping Guide

So often we hear how single girls complain about fresh food spoiling in their fridges and the effort to cook for one. Well, stock up on these ingredients, then mix and match to make easy, healthy, convenient meals. With this handy shopping guide there’ll be no excuse to eating cereal morning, noon and night, plus you’ll save petrol finding a drive-through.

 With this shopping list you will be able to eat:

·        A low GI breakfast cereal with dried or fresh fruit

·        A morning snack of yogurt  and/or fresh fruit

·        Lunch consisting of a low GI sandwich or leftovers from last night

·        Afternoon snack of nuts, Provitas or vegetables crudités with cottage cheese

·        Dinner with a starch, a protein and some fresh or frozen vegetable

Faced with aisles upon aisles of products, the grocery shop can be a daunting experience. Here are some helpful tips to make your visit to the shops that much less stressful.

§  It’s important to always plan your menus beforehand. A common reason why people don’t eat well is because they are too disorganized. Disorganized shopping leads to disorganized meals.  Make a list every time you go into a food store. Not only will you save money but you will also stock up on good, healthy foods.

§  Do one big monthly grocery shop for all staples, and smaller weekly trips to the shops for fresh fruits, vegetables, milk and bread. The basic pantry should consist of the following items:

-        Whole grain carbohydrates: pasta, couscous, wild rice, brown rice

-        Snacks: Provitas, Ryvitas, corn thins

-        Cereals: muesli, All-Bran, Special K, oats, oat bran, ,muesli (e.g. Nature’s Source, Bokomo) Pronutro (whole-wheat)

-        Dried fruit: pears, apples, mango, prunes, guava rolls

-        Assorted nuts and seeds

-        Spreads: peanut butter, fish paste, hummus

-        Long-life milk: skim or low-fat

-        Spices, dried herbs and rubs

-        Tinned and dried legumes: chickpeas, beans, dried beans, lentils

-        Tinned vegetables: corn (not cream-styled), tomato and onion mix (various flavours, for pasta), mushrooms, artichokes, asparagus, etc

-        Tinned fish: tuna, salmon, pilchards, sardines

-        Oils, vinegars and glazes: avocado, olive, canola, peanut, sesame, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice,  fish sauce, soy sauce, spay ‘n cook, sweet chili sauce

§  Buy in bulk, where possible, on food with long shelf lives such as long-life milk, tinned fish and legumes, etc.

§  Cook ahead and freeze what you can.

§  Separate portions of chicken, fish and meat. For food to stay fresh, repack your food in portion sizes in individual sealable bags and mark each item with the product name and date that it was stored. Also, separate bread loads into individual slices to use as needed, or chop up fruit and freeze in individual packets to add to smoothies.

§  Most people are unable to get to the shops more than once a week and complain that buying fresh vegetables daily is an inconvenience. Stock up on frozen vegetables like baby carrots, peas, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and corn, and use the frozen vegetables on busy days when you can’t get to the stores.

§  Always purchase low-fat (or even better, non-fat) options of dairy products such as milk, yoghurt and cheese.

§  Pass the chocolates and sweets aisle altogether if temptation is too rife.

§  Always shop on a full stomach. Studies have shown that hungry shoppers are more likely to buy unhealthy foods then those who shop on a full stomach. Also, refrain from shopping when you are tried or stressed out.

§  Ask the butcher to pack meat into individual portions e.g. 2 chops, 1 chicken breast etc preferably vacuum packed (with or without a basting).

§  Stock up on essential cooking utensils and equipment for quick and easy preparation

-        Microwave

-        George Forman grill machine

-        Steamer (either electric, or use a pot and colander)

-        Small pots for soups and stews

-        Non-stick frying pans

-        Blender (handheld works just as well for smaller portions)

-        Oven dishes, various sizes

-        Various size Tupperware and containers

-        Various size packets and Ziploc bags

PS: Follow the blog for a handy free printable shopping list for your convenience coming up next week!