(no subject)

[kleenexwoman]

Moving into the condo this weekend. Dad promised to take me for first grocery trip. Am compiling list of stuff I need.


GRAINS
--Whole-wheat bread
--Oatmeal
--Cereal
--Pita bread?
--Brown or basmati rice
--Triscuits or Wheat Thins
--Whole-wheat noodles (thin, elbow)
--Mac and cheese
--Bagels?
--Tortillas?
--Granola?
--Rice noodles?

VEGETABLES
--Onion
--Cucumber
--Lettuce (pref. romaine or fun salad mix)
--Spinach (whole leaf or frozen)
--Stir-fry mix (frozen)
--Other veggie mixes (frozen)
--Broccoli
--Bell peppers (red or green)
--Potatoes
--Tomatoes
--Mushrooms
--Squash, zucchini, etc.
--???

FRUITS
--Apples (Red Delicious, Granny Smith, Honeycrisp)
--Bananas (green or light yellow)
--Oranges?
--Mangoes?
--Berries (poss. frozen)?
--Grapes?
--Lime, lemon (juice)
--???

DAIRY
--Milk (2%)
--Cheeses:
Sliced: Cheddar?, Muenster?, American prewrapped
Chunk: Cheddar, gouda?, Parmesan
Shredded: Mexican blend, Parmesan (real)
--Butter (real, salted)
--Cream cheese?
--Yogurt? (vanilla)

MEAT
--Eggs
--Lean chicken breasts
--Beef? (ground? strips? chunks?)
--Fish (tilapia or salmon) (frozen)
--Veggie burgers
--Hot dogs
--Canned tuna

MISC.
--Black beans (canned)
--Canned spiced tomatoes
--Soups? (chicken noodle, tomato, lentil)
--Hummus? Stuff for it? (chickpeas, tahini)
--Garlic (minced)
--Salt
--Pepper
--Sugar
--Brown sugar
--Nuts: Almonds? Walnuts?
--Cinnamon
--Curry powder
--Flour
--Baking soda (2x)
--Baking powder
--White vinegar (2x)
--ACV vinegar
--Cocoa (NOT NESTLE)
--Vanilla extract
--Ketchup
--Mustard (yellow)
--Mayo
--Vegetable oil
--Olive oil
--Soy sauce
--Salad dressing (Greek or Caesar)
--Jam/jelly (grape, raspberry, apricot)
--Peanut butter
--Salsa (already have hot sauce)
--Juice (orange, other?)
--Water: Bottled? (NOT ICE MOUNTAIN) Tonic?

UTENSILS
--Big spoon
--Ladle
--Shredder (for cheese, etc)
--Spatulas
--Big mixing bowls
--Oven mitts
--Masher?
--Strainer/sieve/colander
--Drink pitcher
--Toothpaste
--T.P.
--Paper towels
--Napkins?
--Clingwrap
--Plastic baggies
--Trash bags


We already have plates, bowls, silverware, Tupperware, and a set of good knives. I'm not asking him to buy me any booze (although he got a bottle of Kaluha for me when he went to Mexico, so that's all good and fun). And I'm trying to cut down on any sweets I don't make myself, as well as most prepackaged foods (mac and cheese aside because I love that shit with a shameful passion, and canned soups because I don't have a crockpot for easy soups). I already have tea and coffee that I'm bringing. I'm going to have to get things like pots and pans and other major appliances off Freecycle or Goodwill or Craigslist or something.

Any suggestions for a well-stocked kitchen?

Comments

[xjestx.livejournal.com]

Everything on that list goes better with TOFU.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

I shall look into it. I don't know how to prepare tofu, unfortunately, and I think it's more expensive than most meats.

[charlie-ihsan.livejournal.com]

Not really. :) A package is only $1.50, and if you look at it nutritionally, then it's the same or cheaper. Plus with the amount you need for protein, it's good.

Cut it into thin strips, marinade it for a few hours and bake it at 350F for 15 minutes on each side till it's golden brown. Then either add it to something or eat it just like that. :)

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

I'll see if I can pick up a few packages, then. It's been a while since I've had tofu.

[xjestx.livejournal.com]

Mmm...it's good baked. The great thing about tofu is that it just soaks up the flavors of whatever you cook it with. I like to put it in curry with other veggies.

If you get the silken kind you can use it as a creamy filling for stuffed pasta or lasagne. I know people who use it in cheesecake and smoothies, though I can't bring myself to try that.

[cobaltnine.livejournal.com]

Drain it by surrounding it by paper towels and squeezing slightly, then roll it in cornflour and fry it.

Wait, you want healthy? Nah, tofu's healthy enough. Frying it makes it a neutral food.

[drworm.livejournal.com]

Make sure you don't get more than you can eat. Get stuff that will freeze or keep in cans or whatever. Don't get too many perishable things like fresh fruits and veggies, because they will go bad before you get to them.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

I will remember this! I don't expect that Dad will spring for most of the perishable plants anyway.

(However, there is a farmer's market right across the street, and when it gets warm out...)

[drworm.livejournal.com]

yes that sounds better. :)

going to get online? i'm still drifting in and out because tired. :(

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

Y, but I need to finish packing up my stuff first--Mom and Barry are using the computer mostly until then, and I'm just getting on in between them getting up. I should be done in about 15 minutes.

[majorenglishesq.livejournal.com]

you need a generic Italian seasoning, for when you are throwing things together for maybe the 5th time and, half-way through cooking, are suddenly tired of it. throw in random Italian seasON-IN-G B00000M HEADSHOT. suddenly: new meal.

you have a kettle and/or french press and/or good ceramic cups for the microwave, right? TEA and COFFEE are their own food groups.

BUY A LARGE CONTAINER OF KOOL-AID. for when you are tired of being a grown up, also for if you become suddenly broke and have nothing to mix the vodka with.

also: alka-seltzer. Drew found this vid on Howcast about how you can clean anything if you let 2 to 4 alka-seltzer soak on it for 20 minutes & then wipe it clean.

everyday helpers, too, like aspirin, advil, pepto, vitamin Bs to keep you awake, E to help think clearly, C & zinc to ward off colds, BAND AIDS, RUBBING ALCOHOL.

eh.

wire whisk? for OMELETS, DAMMNIT. OM NOM NOM NOMELETS

btw, cooking utensils are surprisingly cheap while still of good quality at places like Ross. idk about Big Lots and shit, Ross is the lowest i'm willing to go.

[majorenglishesq.livejournal.com]

AND BEEF JERKEY.

and summer sausage keeps well in the fridge.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

Beef jerky is a good idea. I keep not eating proteins, and then getting horrible headaches and having to stop at drugstores or gas stations to chow down on a bag of teriyaki-soaked beef bits.

[majorenglishesq.livejournal.com]

yes, it is good for that. also, in our house at least, nuts and/or peanut butter serve as a good, concentrated dose of protein. mom gets the giant jar of cashews from Costco or something and she chows on them after work/before bed when she gets home at 2 a.m. normal grocery stores have those huge bags of just shelled or sometimes even unshelled nuts in the baking aisle, near the bittersweet chocolate and the toffee chips and the Betty Crocker and whatnot.

also, when she was sick and couldn't keep much down, to fill the protein need she could always at least keep down a spoonful of peanut butter. though, i have heard about recalls recently, so i'm not sure which brand you'll find at the moment.

i wish Twix still made those peanut butter versions of the candy. they don't have them down here anymore, idk if they have them elsewhere. i had one semester of classes where i went in at 9:30 a.m. and besides 10-minute breaks i wasn't out of class until 2:30 p.m. i avoided a whole semester of protein headaches and embarrassing tummy rumbles by chowing down between Tech Writing and Creative Writing.

meats and nuts: also, that's what she said.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

Got a French press, we're getting a coffeemaker and a kettle (although I've done well with tea in regular pots). Also got a 100-pack of Red Rose and some good coffee. I hope someday to move up to teapots and loose tea.

Almost forgot the first aid /o\ I have B-vitamins, multi-vitamins, and melatonin for sleep. Will try the E-vitamins.

I haven't had Kool-Aid in YEARS. I think now is the time. (I don't do vodka anymore, though--it does nothing until I drink enough of it that I puke. I want to try vodka-tomato sauce though.)

Will check if there's a Big Lots or something near. There's an Aldi's down the road, which is supposed to be good but I've never been there.

[majorenglishesq.livejournal.com]

if you want a less-sugared, grown-up alternative to Kool-Aid there are the Crystal Lite single-serving packets, like 36 to a box. a few flavors of those are good, and they're no sugar, my only problem with them is that sometimes they tend to dry my mouth out. but it's not the kind of parch that requires i fill the void with soda, usually i'm VERY thirsty for just really COLD WATER after i drink those.

i am no longer a vodka person either. though i'm sitting comfortably in the realm of BEER, i am currently enjoying, Sprite & Bacardi O, ye olde Jack & Coke and the deliciously-bad-for-you Mr. Pibb & amaretto, as well.

lastly: if you ever get the equipment or find a good cold brew, i know only Southerners like it, but, ICED TEA. it is fanTASTIC with fresh-from-the-stem MINT LEAVES.

ahhhhh... also i should not recommend what people should stock in their kitchens since i am so transparently E- and IRL-FATTY.

now i'm going to go look for more desktop backgrounds which feature CITRUS, kthnx.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

Crystal Lites are fun. I like the peach flavor, but I keep thinking, "This stuff is too bland," and putting in another one, and then they're all sugary and I can't get the concentration right. They're colorful, though, and that is what counts.

I make pitchers of iced tea by just making a ton of regular tea and sticking it in the fridge. It loses flavor after a few days and I don't know why. ooh and that reminds me I need to get some little herb plants so I can have growing things and don't have to shell out $$$ for dried stuff.

Fatties have the best kitchens, trufax.

FOOD!

[sighing-echo.livejournal.com]

At Aldi's you can get cheaper milk and box/canned foods. You'll start knowing waht isn't a btter deal 'cause you'll remember things like "I can get a bigger jar of peanut butter that'sll last a month at...)

I am far too hungry to read this. I'm going to eat a bagel. Bagels are awesome 'cause if you keep 'em in your freezer, you can pretty much microwave them soft and they will remain good forever. Upon bagels, one will not go hungry. I advise house plants as well, for seasoning and such.
Paper towels/napkins: whatever =cheaper.

Also, myself, I always want cheese. Get ALOT of cheese, 'cause it never lasts as long as it's s'posed too.

Re: FOOD!

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

I miss the Sav-A-Lot. Although there are a ton near here as well. I can shop around everywhere!

Bagels are indeed awesome. I'm kind of sadly psyched to not have to share mine. (I might end up begging a bunch off my grandma each week. She knows the owner of an awesome bagel shop and he gives her stuff.)

Cheese is so good. I think I eat more cheese than anything.

[josephwaldman.livejournal.com]

Keep it simple when it comes to implements. I am a huge fan of garlic but I have found one of those hand-held garlic crushers to be just about the most useless thing in the world. Impossible to clean, and you can do just as well with a good sharp knife. In fact you really don't need a food processor, either. Too damned difficult to clean. A blender is useful for drinks and shakes and a coffeemaker is of course essential but that's pretty much it when it comes to machines. Oh, wait, a toaster, too. Honestly, I got through the dark winter of 2001-2002 on little more than a frying pan, a cookie sheet, a toaster, a coffeemaker, a small pot for pasta, and a bottle each of scotch, brandy and wine. (I shit you not, I Xeroxed all the best pages from P.J.O'R's "Bachelor Home Companion" and taped 'em up all over my swingin' bachelor studio pad in the appropriate places. Those were mad, dangerous, frightening times.)

And of course do not forget the phone numbers of the nearest convenient pizza and Chinese joints kept in a convenient location.

[josephwaldman.livejournal.com]

Oh, and rice. Rice is always good. You can do so many damn things with it, and it sticks to the ribs a lot better than pasta, and doesn't get boring quite as fast. And oats. I've discovered that the best breakfast in the world is what I call a cereal speedball: cornflakes and cheerios together. You get a quick burst of energy from the corn and then a slow burn from the oats.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

Rice is the best.

I'll have to try your cornflake/cheerio mix. Sounds awesome.

[josephwaldman.livejournal.com]

Rice is good except for the time it takes to cook. But that's part of the fun. Remind me sometime to tell you the saga of my roommate Ron's bag of toilet rice.

Yeah, it's a good combo. It's dirt cheap (I buy generix for both) and makes great trail mix. Doesn't have a lot of sugar in it to get you all hyped up like granola sometimes does.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

That's what instant rice is for!

[josephwaldman.livejournal.com]

Yes, but . . . you sacrifice time and $$$ for nutrition. Remember that white rice is really worthless. Decent as a base with takeout Chinese, but in and of itself . . . it's like iceberg lettuce.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

Most instant rice is enriched with stuff. And they do sell instant brown rice. Just not instant basmati :( which is a shame because I love that stuff.

[josephwaldman.livejournal.com]

Mmm . . . monosodium poisonate.

[josephwaldman.livejournal.com]

As far as eating cheaply . . . Meijer's is the best bet around here. Wal-Mart is just fucking evil and their prices aren't quite as good. You can get good-quality stuff in reasonable bulk (not those insane things like twelve-gallon jars of mayo, but still something where you know you've gotten a good deal and that will satisfy the packrat within), plus which they sell booze (by which I mean both beer/wine AND liquor), which is always a plus.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

I like the cheap-o cheap stores. I did a lot of Wal-Mart up at school because they were close, and they had good cheese and these stir-fry mixes I liked. Sav-A-Lot and Aldi's and such are A++ for staples.

I'm thinking I might go easy on the booze as well for a while, at least until I start earning some actual money that doesn't just go to food and gas. I'm saving up for a Wii and a Wii Fit.

[josephwaldman.livejournal.com]

Have never been to Aldi's, but it always looked interesting (there's one just down Greenfield from me). Stay away from dollar stores. The quality of their food is crap and the per-unit cost really doesn't make it worth it.

Well, if you do drink (and you should, just a little), the el cheapo ways to go are Carlo Rossi jug wine, the 30-pax of Miller High Life (Busch and Beast are cheaper but their quality sucks), and Kamchatka vodka. Skol!

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

I recently discovered a brewery that will sell a half-gallon of their beer for $4 on certain nights. The place makes a great dark porter. I just can't drink stuff like Miller or Bud; they're all light and sour and gross.

[josephwaldman.livejournal.com]

Bud is bad news (too expensive, and reeks of fratpack assholedom), but Miller is good stuff. (Unionmade too, which I always like -- look for the unionbug, always.) But eh, whatever. Everyone's got a different palate. I prefer lager and ale. Can't really do the dark stuff. It takes me like an hour and a half to get through a Guinness, and my stomach always reacts to it kinda weird. I don't really have much of a taste for chocolate, either.

[benprime.livejournal.com]

Your list seems pretty comprehensive for food and tools. I have had a skim through and I don't see cleaning products, mainly detergent for dishes or dishwasher, bathroom cleaner, etc.
You can get by without a proper oven mitt if you have teatowels, without a colander if you can juggle the pot and lid cleverly, and without a potato masher if you have a fork or wooden spoon. (do you have wooden spoons? Do you have a budget for this Expotition?
Ditto what someone said about not going mad with fresh food initially. Build up a stock of frozen, canned and dry goods, spices etc. But Farmer's Market ftw!

and finally: good luck and enjoy your new place.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

You're alive! :D

I have cleaning products and I got a donation of utensils--life is good.

Thank you for the good wishes.

[cobaltnine.livejournal.com]

The way to buy spices is one-at-a-time, usually. If you have a bit more leeway, my most used spices are cumin and chili powder. An italian blend is good, or a mrs dash, to add another genre of spice. As for nuts, you can get away with walnuts about 75% of the time for cooking.

Re vegetables, though, I'd be careful not to buy more fresh produce than you need at a week, at most. That's my biggest problem - veggies that look sooo good and then I forget to cook them. Get frozen broccoli and less tomatoes/mushrooms than you think you'll need. Frozen berries rock, too, as does, suprisingly, frozen asparagus. (You can just grab as many sticks as you want out of the package, because they're so discrete. I love them for omelettes.)

We use a ton of canned diced tomatoes. I also try to use dried beans; if you can plan one day in advance you can soak just as much as you need at a time. Also, chickpeas are freaking fantastic roasted in the oven as proteiny snacky food.

Not sure if you wanted sauce for your pasta; don't see it on the list. Can of unspiced sauce is also useful to have sometimes.

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

I'll look for some fun blends. I don't think I've ever knowingly used cumin in anything--what do you usually use it to flavor?

I love getting fresh veggies too; sometimes if I am able to get a lot, I'll go nuts and just make a lot of them. I'll look for frozen asparagus.

Never tried dried beans, but now that I have my own place and space and don't have to worry about someone disturbing them, I'll look into it.

I don't use pasta sauce, mostly--that's what I use the canned tomatoes instead of, especially the spiced kind simmered with some fresh mushrooms. I do tend to neglect tomatoes, and they go bad so quick, but I use lots of mushrooms. The cheap button kind seem to stay good for a surprisingly long time.