Nutrition Month 2014: Stocking a healthy kitchen

If you haven’t yet, please check out my previous post on Nutrition Month 2014 to give you some background information or visit www.nutritionmonth.ca.

What better place to start than in the kitchen! When it comes to healthy cooking the most important thing is to have a kitchen pantry and fridge that is stocked full of healthy foods because there is no way you can cook a healthy meal if you don’t have healthy foods in your house. Healthy cooking truly starts at the grocery store so here is a helpful grocery store guide for things to have on hand to help set you up for success when it comes to making healthy homemade meals throughout the week.

IN THE FRIDGE

Fruits and Vegetables

  • Leafy greens- spinach, kale, romaine lettuce, arugula or spring mix
  • Pre-cut ready to eat vegetables like baby carrots, cucumber, bell peppers, celery, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, snow peas etc.
  • Easy to grab fruits like apples, oranges, pears, plums, peaches etc.
  • An assortment of your other favourite fresh vegetables such as green beans, asparagus, turnip, butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, beets, zucchini, eggplant etc.
  • An assortment of your other favourite fresh fruit such as berries, kiwi, grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe, pineapple, cranberries, grapefruit, mango, nectarine, papaya etc.

Milk and Alternatives

  • Skim/1% milk or fortified soy milk
  • Low-fat regular or Greek yogurt
  • 20% M.F. cheese

Meat and Alternatives

  • Eggs
  • All natural peanut butter or other nut/seed butter (only ingredient is nut/seeds)
  • Hummus

Other

  • Soft margarine
  • Reduced fat salad dressings (vinaigrettes made with olive oil are best)
  • Salsa
  • Mustard (Dijon & regular)
  • Low-sugar jam
  • Minced garlic and ginger
  • BBQ sauce
  • Hot sauce
  • Lemon juice

IN THE FREEZER

Fruits and Vegetables

  • An assortment of frozen vegetables such as broccoli, peas, carrots, cauliflower, stir-fry blends, edamame etc.
  • Frozen berries
  • Frozen overripe bananas (perfect for smoothies or banana bread!)

Grain Products

  • Keep bread products fresh in the freezer

Meat and Alternatives

  • Keep whole or ground meats such as chicken, turkey or extra-lean beef fresh in the freezer
  • Keep portions of salmon, trout, tilapia or shrimp fresh in the freezer and ready to thaw whenever you need it

Other

  • Leftovers!- Freeze leftover soups, stews, chilis, etc. so that you have a healthy homemade meal ready to thaw when you are in a hurry

IN THE PANRY

Vegetables and Fruits

  • Bananas (it is best to keep bananas at room temperature)
  • Sweet potatoes, regular potatoes or winter squash before it is cut
  • No-salt canned tomatoes
  • Dried fruits such as cranberries, apricots, apples or raisins

Grain Products

  • Whole grain bread
  • Whole grain crackers or rice cakes
  • Whole grain bagels, English muffins or tortillas
  • Brown rice, wild rice, quinoa, barley or bulgur
  • Rolled oats
  • Whole grain high-fibre/low-sugar cold cereals

Meat and Alternatives

  • Dry-roasted unsalted nuts and seeds such as almonds, cashews, walnuts, peanuts, pistachios or sunflower seeds
  • No-salt canned legumes such as black beans, chickpeas, kidney beans or lentils
  • Low-sodium canned fish (tuna or salmon) in water

Spices and Seasonings

  • Dried herbs: bay leaves, dill, basil, parsley, cilantro, chives, rosemary, thyme leaves, oregano, tarragon, Italian seasoning blend
  • Spices: allspice, chili powder, ground cinnamon, ground cumin, curry powder, ground ginger, garlic salt, dry mustard, nutmeg, paprika, cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper, turmeric
  • Vanilla extract

Other

  • Extra-virgin olive oil
  • Canola Oil
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