Today, I want to talk about one of my very favorite activities. Grocery shopping. I love it. I hate shopping for almost everything else. Go figure. If I am not in a hurry, I could easily spend an hour walking through the grocery store. I love looking at products and imagining cooking different meals with them. I always have a grocery list, and I usually stick to it. I try not to go to the store hungry because if I do, all of my favorite ready-made snacks somehow end up in my cart. I usually plan something easy for dinner on the day I do my shopping. You'll understand why soon. Finally, I buy everything on sale. I am not a crazy coupon person. I just love knowing that I didn't buy something at full price. It feels good.
Step one: Planning to shop for groceries.
This part of grocery shopping is pretty easy. I keep a list of ingredients I run out of or ingredients I need to make something specific. This list is forever on the iPad in the notes. After I buy something, it gets removed from the list. If it wasn't on sale or didn't look good, it stays on the list. (By the way, I also love making lists. Maybe that is part of the reason I love grocery shopping so much. I get to make another list!) I don't grocery shop when I know the store will be crazy busy unless I absolutely have to. Why stress myself out for no reason?
Step two: What to buy?
I buy meat for about three weeks at a time and freeze it. I buy it all in bulk at break it down when I get home. Then it gets put into freezer bags, labeled, and put into the freezer. I love the way my freezer looks at that point in the month. It makes me happy. I buy veggies about once a week so there isn't enough time for them to go bad. I buy frozen goods as needed when they go on sale. I buy pantry items when they go on sale and stock up! I think I have about 30 lbs of sugar right now. No, I don't plan on eating it all this week. I just used about 5 lbs to make my own brown sugar (so much better than the pre-made stuff and and easier than you think). I like feeling prepared. I also store up on canned goods, rice, pasta, and cereal (especially oatmeal).
Please buy things in season. They taste better, they are normally cheaper, and there is usually a lot available. This is a great time to try new things. Introduce new ingredients a little at a time to expand your home menus. Let me channel my parents for a minute... "How do you know you don't like it unless you try it?" Don't just try it once. Try it several ways before you make a final decision. And by final, I mean, give it a couple of months and try again. I am convinced that someday, I will find a way to love eggplant. Thanks for the advice, Mom and Dad. Once again, you were right.
Only buy things you know you can eat. I hate wasting food. It makes me want to cry. To help with this, make another list! Think of all the food you like to eat, separating it into categories like main dishes, side dishes, snacks, and desserts. This will help you plan menus for meals. When you notice your potatoes are starting to go soft, plan a dinner with mashed potatoes on the side or make a bacon and potato soup. Celery starting to wilt? Stir fry for lunch or use it to flavor stocks or sauces you're making. Having a list of foods you like will give you a larger arsenal of ideas when you need them! Always add to this list. Even if you have never made the item, you can put it on the list of things to experiment with. That is what makes it fun!
Step three: Picking a store.
I am a judgmental grocery shopper. Grocery stores keep our food for us until we can take it home. They should be clean. Don't let them off the hook because they are busy and have a million things to look after. So do you, and I bet your fridge doesn't have blood sitting in the bottom of it. I also bet you don't let dirt pile up on your floor. Please, please, please look at the meat and produce sections of the grocery stores. If they aren't clean, file a complaint and/or go somewhere else. If there is blood resting in the meat cooler, it could potentially harm the meat you buy. If the produce doesn't look good, don't buy it there. There are several grocery stores within a 10 mile radius of my home, and I will only buy meat at two of them. Produce is a hit and miss in all but one of them. Be picky when it comes to your food. One last thing, if your favorite store doesn't carry an item you really want them to, tell them! Managers love that because it tells them you want to come into their store. They are usually super friendly about it.
Step four: Shopping.
Go into the store with a plan, start on one side and move up and down the aisles to the other side. Be patient if the store is busy. Be happy you get to go grocery shopping. I like to remember when I grocery shop to be grateful I have the money to buy food, and that I have the freedom to choose what kind of food I feed my family. That helps when the lines to check out are long. Speaking of checking out, I always organize my groceries as I take them out of my cart. That way, when I get home, the stuff that needs to go in the freezer are in certain bags, the same with pantry and fridge items.
Step five: Putting food away.
There are so many options here! You can wash and cut up veggies for easy access. You can make a salad right away so there is always one in the fridge. You can season meat before freezing it. The possibilities are endless. Just make life easy for yourself.
Welcome to my world of grocery shopping. Give it a try again using some of my tips and remembering my perspective. You might find that you actually enjoy it.
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