Making the Best of Your Grocery List

A few weeks ago, I received an email from Sean K from Blog Content Guild. Sean K is interested to write for my blog as a guest and supply some information with us on meal planning. This time, Sean K decided to share with us some information on making the best of your grocery list. I hope you would enjoy this as much as I did :)

Whether you look at grocery shopping as a way to get out of the house and socialize or a dreaded chore, it has to be done before you can eat. But before you run out of the house to brave the aisles, you have to prepare one thing: a grocery list, of course! Armed with this handy device, you can both save money and cut some calories out of your diet.

While you may be addicted to eating out, it’s rarely the healthiest option. Create your grocery list based on your favorite restaurant dishes and get in the kitchen, instead! For example, many people love to eat spicy Buffalo wings, but few realize that most restaurants prepare the chicken by deep-frying it first. Then, the chicken is tossed in spices and smothered with a butter-based spicy sauce. Instead of spending money on this unhealthy dish, you can buy a few spices from the store and make your own delicious Buffalo chicken. Here are some grocery-list contenders that will have you slimmer in no time.

Rubs - These combos of dry herbs, seasonings, and spices can be used to add that “pow” of flavor to meats that will be baked, broiled or grilled. Instead of frying or cooking meat in a fatty gravy or sauce, simply use a rub and eliminate hundreds of calories. So how do you use them? The name says it all. Just massage a thin layer into any meat and let it sit to make sure the flavor sticks. Though some people claim that you can bring the rubbed meat to the fullest extent of its flavor in just 30 minutes, if you let the meat sit for 4-8 hours, it’s sure to be loaded with juicy flavor through and through.

Marinades - Marinades can be used to either flavor meat or act as a light sauce. For fans of intense kicks of flavor, use both a rub and marinade. Throw a chicken breast into a plastic bag and leave it in the fridge overnight. Then, cook the chicken as desired. Making your own marinade at home is easy, too. Simply pick up some Dijon mustard and honey at the grocery store, add salt and pepper, and mix it all together to prepare a honey-mustard marinade.

Pre-cut greens - Fresh varieties of lettuce and other leafy greens are a wonderful time-saver when it comes to cooking a balanced meal. Mirepoix, or finely chopped onion, celery and carrots, can be used in soups, salads, and stews. If you like restaurant salad bars and want to have a variety such as arugula, cabbage and radicchio in addition to traditional leafy greens, precut, pre-rinsed, bagged greens are the perfect solution.

Prepackaged fruits - Fresh fruits that are precut can make a sweet addition to salads. You can also throw some chopped fruits into yogurt with granola for a parfait or simply used fruit as a side dish. For a light dessert, top fruit with vanilla yogurt or ice cream.

Thank you Sean K for that informative post.