I admit it, I am one of those rare people who loves spending time in the grocery store, as soon as I get past the overly crowded, crazy parking lot! (I swear, some people forget their manners when food is a factor.) I am a bonafide grocery shopping nerd. I should probably find a hobby other than shopping for groceries, although it is a rewarding one (dank food on the REG!) Anyway, grocery shopping can be a headache, sometimes. There are so many products out there that claim to be healthy for you, but are secretly fatty little buggers. Don't be fooled by the marketing scheme! A lot of companies are packaging their products in earth-tone colors with "organic" looking designs, giving off the impression that they are healthy to the untrained eye. DO NOT BE FOOLED! You know how it goes, "if it seems too good to be true, it probably is." (kind of pessimistic, but unfortunately true in this case).
I spend a good chunk of time reading labels of products that I am unfamiliar with. I do my absolute best when trying to determine if a product is "clean" and therefore something I want to put into my body. It is hard to keep up with all the lingo for artificial ingredients; it seems like there is a new one every couple of months! So, I decided to write up a little grocery store guide that can help some of you weed through the good and the bad products.
My suggestions are just a short list of many! If you are really so inclined, there are boat loads of conflicting articles and research on these things that you may sort through. This is my general guideline for what I look for when I go to the store.
What to Look For:
- FDA Certified Organic.
- Naturally Occurs in Nature.
- Fresh Produce.
- Whole Ingredients.
- Whole Grain Breads NOT Whole Wheat.
- Local.
- Natural Sweeteners.
- Honey.
- Raw Sugar.
- Stevia (see section below regarding its use.)
- Pure Maple Syrup (none of that Aunt Jemima or Hungry Jacks stuff!)
- Stick to the outer edges of the store. The aisles are basically lined with processed junk, minus a few exceptions (olive oil, nuts, beans, etc.)
- Read your labels! The only "ingredients" listed should be familiar to you and should be whole ingredients.
What to Avoid:
- Unfamiliar or lengthy ingredients that make you go, "huh?"
- Whole Foods provides a great list of such ingredients here.
- I am sure there are more than what is listed, so the general rule of thumb is if you don't know what it is or if you can't pronounce it: don't consume it.
- Artificial Sweeteners:
- Aspartame: Equal, NutraSweet,
- Sucralose: Splenda.
- Saccharin: Sweet'N Low.
- Sorbitol/Mannitol.
- Neotame.
- "Diet" ANYTHING! (These products usually contain all kinds of chemicals, artificial sweeteners, and sodium)
- Anything that comes in a bag or a box. (Of course, this excludes bags of apples, greens, or otherwise "whole foods" that you can buy in bulk)
- "Refined" Carbohydrates.
- Anything that has been bleached. Gross.
- Added sodium or excessive sodium (usually used to preserve "diet" foods or "healthy" frozen meals. Again, don't be fooled!)
- Excessively fatty foods like bacon or whole milk (these ones should seem obvious to you).
- Over-the-top Claims like "0 calories!" or "Sugar-Free!" This usually means that they are either loaded with sodium or artificial sweeteners and are completely devoid of any nutritional value.
Why I Agree With the Use of Stevia as an Alternative Sweetener:
I do not include Stevia in my list of artificial ingredients, although some may consider it one. The premise of the argument is that although Stevia is a naturally occurring substance extracted from the stevia plant, it is still considered processed, because commercially made stevia extract involves a refining process. I will delve into this process further in a future post where I compare natural sweeteners with processed or artificial sweeteners.
For now, my thoughts on the matter are simple; the stevia plant's compounds responsible for the sweetness (steviol glycosides, of which there are over 30 different kinds) is naturally occurring within the leaves of the plant, therefore it is not artificial. It was not created in a lab. Point blank: that makes it okay with me. Stevia extracts, like the brand Real Stevia, are often "refined" in alcohol, which is the basis of almost all extracts out there. Under this premise, vanilla extract or maple extract would be "no-no's," as well. I think that classifying stevia extract as a "processed" food is a little extreme and unnecessary.
Don't like any kind of refined products? Grow your own stevia and make your own extracts and powders! That is about as natural as it gets. It's a fairly adaptable plant and can be grown as a houseplant if you don't have the space to cultivate it in mass quantities (let's face it, most of us do not own a farm…).
Not familiar with stevia and wondering what the heck I am talking about? Check out some stevia FAQ sections here and here to learn some more about it. Or check out that handy dandy Google machine.
An Example of My Grocery List:
So, now that I boggled your mind with a lot "do's" and "don'ts" of the grocery store, I'll share with you an example of what I buy every week or so at the store in order to lay it out a little more clearly.
*This list changes weekly, based on my weekly cravings, weekly sales, and seasonal availability. Asterisks (*) denote something in my kitchen that is considered a "staple" item, meaning I buy it once and use it for a long time until I use it up, and then I buy it again.
Vegetables:
Onion
Tomato (I know, I am old-school and still consider it a vegetable. Shame on me. Old habits die hard.)
Garlic
Sweet Potato
Butternut Squash
Spinach
Broccoli
Carrots
Cucumber
Mushrooms
Squash
Celery
*I like to experiment with a new veggie every time I go. This time it was watermelon radish!
Herbs/Garnishes/Spices:
Scallions/Green Onions (or Chives)
Cilantro (Coriander)
Rosemary
Ground Black Pepper*
Cumin*
Cinnamon*
Fruits:
Strawberries
Blueberries
Bananas
Lemon
Lime
Apples
Frozen whole fruits for smoothies (Mango, Pineapple, raspberries, etc.)*
Meats: (Only when on they are on sale, in which case I stock up on them)
Lean, Ground Turkey*
Shrimp*
Fish Filets*
Chicken Breast*
Smoked Salmon (often times, this is a splurge, but I shop the deals as best as I can!)
Grains:
Whole Grain Bread
Whole Grain Pasta*
Quinoa*
Whole Grain Couscous*
Lentils*
Other:
Fat-Free Greek Yogurt (I like Fage 0%, and I get a big 'ole tub of it!)
Fat-Free Cottage Cheese
Unsweetened Almond Milk
Unsweetened Apple Sauce
Eggs
Beans (black, pinto, kidney)*
Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas)*
Sriracha Sauce*
Extra Virgin Olive Oil*
All Natural Peanut Butter (or another kind of natural nut butter)*
Almonds*
Coconut Oil*
Coconut Flour*
Almond Flour*
Unsweetened Cocoa Powder*
Vanilla Extract*
Baking Powder*
Whey Protein*
Casein Protein*
Stevia*
As you can see, it appears pretty extensive. However, a lot of those items (noted with a *) I buy in bulk and they last me a long time, so it is only expensive on the initial trip. I buy my vegetables and most of my fruits at a local market, and it rarely costs me more than $20-$25. I shop the sales with my berries at the grocery store, and they are often on a "two-for" or "buy one get one" type of deal.
Here are is an example of a typical shopping trip to my local market. For all of the veggies shown below, it only cost be $20, and I couldn't even fit all of them in the picture!
With all of the above ingredients, I can make so many awesome, clean meals and snacks for up to 2 weeks. Some examples include but are not limited to homemade hummus, pancakes, stir-fry, mug cakes, omelets, and frozen yogurt. All the flavors are so fresh and complementary that you will rarely run across a bad combination.
My refrigerator and pantry are a clean eating GOLD MINE, and I LOVE IT! It took an adjustment period to stock my kitchen with these essential items, but I eventually made the full transition and opted to buy healthier foods each time I went back to the store. It is now a breeze, not to mention SO worth it.
Any and all feedback or questions is welcome! :)
