Shopping, Storing and Cooking Tips During COVID-19 Stay at Home

Here are 8 things you can rely on when going grocery shopping. These are helpful for lessening the stress when trying to figure out how to store all that food, let alone cook in an efficient and healthy way.

BULK IT UP 

Buy non-perishable items in bulk to the extent that you can. Whether you are single or have a small or large family, bulk quantities will allow you to minimize back-and-forth runs. It will also allow you to cook large meals which also cuts down on your cooking time.

Things to buy in bulk:

• Rice/grains
• Beans
• Eggs
• Butter
• Granola
• Steel cut oats
• Nuts
• Onions/garlic
• Peanut butter

FRESH IS BEST

Try to buy fresh produce and vegetables that can be stretched and used in a variety of ways. You want diversity during this time. For instance, cauliflower can be used to make cauliflower mash, cauliflower steaks, cauliflower florettes for salads, roasted cauliflower,… The list goes on and on. Same goes for potatoes. Keep herbs to a minimum for now unless you’re cooking for a lot of people and fresh foods every day.

B’s safety tip: make sure to wash all of your fresh produce when you get home. Assume people have been touching ALL of it. 

AVOID BUYING JUNK AND CARB-HEAVY FOODS

During anxious and stressful times, we tend to cling to comfort foods. However, these comfort foods generally aren’t the best for us and ultimately end up on our wasteline. Since gyms are closed and we’re not moving our bodies as much, bad eating habits will be way harder to reverse on the flipside of this. When shopping, try to stick to fruits and vegetables, regardless of being fresh or frozen. Those are always better options. If you’re a snacker, opt for nuts (almonds, pistachios, cashews) and trail mix (eat moderately as mixes cab be really high in calories). If it’s not in your kitchen or pantry, guess what? You can’t eat it! Make smart(er) decisions.

{MAKE THIS: CAULIFLOWER STEAKS COUSCOUS SALAD}

GO CRAZY WITH BANANAS

Buy bananas in large quantities! They are cheap no matter where you shop. Bananas are such a great resource of energy, each having about 110 calories, not to mention they are low in fat. It’s also a great source of potassium and protein. Under ripened bananas can sit on the counter for a few days. Ripened bananas are great for cereals, yogurts, baking, and eating as a standalone fruit. You can also peel, chop and freeze ripe and slightly ripened bananas for later use. I love throwing them in my green smoothies.

GET THAT VITAMIN C

Buy loads of citrus. Limes, lemons, grapefruit, and oranges are great source of vitamin C which is highly recommended for building our immune systems. Generally, it’s good to practice anyway. Keep the skins for zesting into your breakfast food (See above). But also for adding some clean and fresh aroma to your garbage disposal when you are running it.

MAKE BEANS, STEWS, SOUP, ETC. YOUR BFFS

Cook beans, soups, stews, and chili in bulk and in the pressure cooker, if you can. Store them in two-four cups portions in glass (or plastic if you have to) containers and freeze them. This will save you a lot of cooking time since you’re doing a lot at once, but also allow you to have portion-controlled healthy meals ready to go when you are out of immediate options. Obviously, you’re going to have to thaw out frozen anything… But it’s a good practice to have healthy foods in the freezer.

GET TO CHOPPING

Spend an hour or so chopping up all your veggies so that you can have them ready to go when you are ready to cook. Store them in glass containers and label with the date. Since we have so much time on our hands right now, this would be a good time to meal prep but also have ingredients ready to go. This will save you a lot of time every step of the way.