Good nutrition somewhat depends on your smart choices in the grocery store. Cooking healthy meals would be challenging if you do not have the right ingredients in your kitchen. To save time Grocery shopping can be an ominous mission, simply because there are so many choices. We are here with some fruitful suggestions to choose the best food at the grocery store.
How to Pick the Right Foods from Any Grocery Store?
Plan Ahead
Plan your meals for the week and make a list to shop from before going to the grocery store. To make the plan you may need just a few minutes but it will save your time in running back to the store for missing ingredients.
You can save money by checking the weekly grocery ads and using coupons. You can also consult with your maid, cook, or help hand in the kitchen before planning your grocery list so that you do not miss all the foods you need for good health.
Make sure in your chart there are plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy, lean meat, fish, poultry, beans, and nuts. Try to eat different types of items in different weeks. It would be if you could choose organic foods.
Make Grocery Budget
It is wise to allocate a fixed amount of cash for your weekly grocery shopping. If you have a fixed budget, it would be easy for you to pay with money. With a fixed budget, you would buy only your required products. Moreover, it will reduce your tendency to buy extra goods like processed food. Therefore, with a fixed budget, you can buy enough nutritious foods without wasting money on less significant items.
Avoid Using Cards
Always try to pay in cash and avoid using cards to stop your willingness to go overboard. In fact, we cannot deny this universal truth that if a person uses an abstract model of payment, he generally goes beyond the set limit. When you pay in cash, you stay conscious about your grocery budget limit and the amount of money you are spending.
Pick Foods of Current Season
Choosing the right products in the right season is another effective strategy for grocery shopping. We are lucky that we get various fresh fruits and vegetables in different seasons. So, it is easy for you to make a list of your grocery with the fresh fruits and vegetables available during that season.
Always try to avoid canned or processed vegetables. But try to buy the newer product because the newer product is healthier since there are no preservatives added. Let’s see an example, you may find apples all year round but fresh apples may be available from October to January. Moreover, during the season, foods are available at the cheapest price.
Read the Labels
It is essential to have ingredients knowledge if you go grocery shopping on a regular basis. Of course, read what ingredients your products contain and make sure whether it is good for your body or not. This consciousness is very essential for edible food products, as well as other lifestyle products.
For instance, when you are going to buy shampoos and conditioners, you must read carefully about the ingredients. Companies hide hundreds of ingredients used in the product under the name of “scent”. So, do not put any product into your shopping cart without reading the label of the product properly. Thus spending a little time, you can easily identify the ingredients that are toxic to your body, and skin.
Inquire About The Purchase Day
Most supermarkets have their fixed date to come in farm-fresh products. If you love to have farm-fresh products, keep in mind that date and go immediately to buy your desired product before they are going to finish. You can also order them earlier so that the members of that market call you as soon as the products come in.
Skip Grocery Shopping When You Are Hungry
Most of the time an empty stomach makes you senseless. So, with an empty stomach, you would buy unnecessary foods. If you are hungry, you might become silly. You then just satisfy your hunger! Most often a shopper may only purchase instant food that has no nutritional benefit but seems tasty and colorful. Hence, prevent going shopping on an empty stomach.
Touch, Smell and Look Before You Purchase
It is important to touch, smell and look before you buy any veggies and fruits for your home. Sometimes, greens veggies, and fruits are spoiled inside. So check them the proper way. Try to buy firm fruits and vegetables but make sure they do not be too firm. Choose an appropriate size, your buying do not be too big or too small. Avoid hybrid produce. Never forget to wash your vegetables before cooking.
Check The Expiry Date
The most important part at the time of buying products is to check the expiry date. The expiry date of any product is usually tagged over the surface of the product. But the sad truth is that some supermarkets paste a new validity date over the expired period. So, check carefully whether the date is original or not. Besides, you can buy from any renowned supermarkets that generally do not do this nasty work.
Spend more time buying Bakery items
Generally, you need to avoid bakery items if you want to reduce using sugar. The fragrance of these items makes you more hungry which ultimately increases your weight and hurts the organs in the long run. But if you need to purchase, take more time to justify carefully. Remember you must choose the right kind of food items for your family and you.
Bread, Cereals, and Pasta Purchase
Make sure you choose the least prepackaged food that is made from whole grains. At the time of choosing whole-grain cereals, aspire to select at least 4 grams of fiber per serving. Remember that the less sugar, the better. If you want to help your family get used to whole grains, first start with whole-wheat blends and then move to 100% whole-wheat pasta and bread.
Buying Meat, Fish, and Poultry
The American Heart Association advocates taking two times of fish a week. Try to choose lanky cuts of meat such as round, top sirloin, and tenderloin. Always select skinless poultry.
Choose Fresh Dairy
You need to keep the dairy products in your daily meals because they are the best source of bone-building calcium and vitamin D. So, you can take drinkable and single-serve tube yogurts, and pre-portioned cheeses. Usually, dairy products come with short shelf lives. Therefore, try to purchase the most recent dairy products from your grocery store.
Be Selective While Buying Canned, Dried Foods
A variety of canned vegetables, fruits, and beans can help you to toss into soups, salads, pasta, or rice dishes. If possible, choose vegetables without added salt. Nut butter, olive oil, and vinegar can keep on hand always. While choosing canned and dried foods do not forget to check the labels for ingredients and expiry date.
Source: United News of Bangladesh