Shopping for one. Any tips?

giblerj27

As of right now I am the only one striving to eat healthy in my household. This makes shopping for myself difficult. Most products in grocery stores are sold for the average sized American family. What gets me the most is buying fruits, and vegetables. It's hard enough for me a to stick to eating them every day as it is. It makes it harder when I can't eat all of them within one week without them spoiling, and getting rotten. So if any of you have any tips let me know. I've been doing really good sticking to my diet, and although I can buy frozen vegetables. I prefer fresh.

smn76237

Frozen is really my only suggestion. Buy frozen, and freeze everything.

Some fresh fruits have longer shelf life than others when you refrigerate them. Apples and oranges can last longer than a week in the fridge, for example, but berries and bananas (unless they are really green when you buy them) go bad much faster.

I suppose you can get dried fruits, but you have to watch your portion sizes with those because you can go over on calories really fast.

I bought these to try to prolong my fresh produce, but honestly I didn't think they helped much.
http://www.amazon.com/Debbie-Meyer-Green-Bags-Pack/dp/B0011TMP3Y

dancephysics

Make sure you have a plan for every thing that you buy. I used to buy a lot more than I needed "just in case" I wanted to use more later in the week. It always went bad, because I didn't have a plan. When you have already planned out what you are going to buy, make, and eat, it's a lot easier to avoid spoiling food. Also, try portioning out what you buy as soon as you get home from the store. So, if I buy a big container of berries, for example, I split it up into tupperware containers right away and plan to eat one container each day. If a certain food only comes in an amount that's too large for you, look up multiple recipes that use that one ingredient. If you find yourself at the end of the week with an ingredient that will go bad soon, look up a recipe that can be made and stored in the freezer, so you don't have to eat that right away.

But basically, meal planning. If you don't currently plan out everything you will eat for the week, you should start. It saves a lot of money and wasted food.

4legsRbetterthan2

you dont have to buy a whole batch unless you are looking at something sold by the container - anything sold by the lb (cherries and grapes are the big one) you can put a few handfuls in another bag and they will still ring it up normal at the register instead of getting the large sizes they sell

for bananas dont buy a whole bunch, take 2-3 yellow ones and 2-3 green ones from different bundles to get you through the week and still have them in their ideal window

learn to love your freezer, buying in bulk is cheaper so I buy meats individually when I get home and feeze them

Kale comes in big bags at my grocery store so I freeze like 3/4 of it and pull out what I need when I need it.

DirrtyH

I find that I have to go to the grocery store twice a week sometimes, and I only buy the amount of fresh produce that I can eat in that amount of time. Otherwise things go bad and I've wasted money and my fridge stinks. It's a pain, but necessary.

But aside from fresh fruits/veggies, the freezer is your friend!

SonicDeathMonkey80

For most vegetables, [flash] frozen is really no different than fresh (except for corn, IMO, I prefer canned). For convenience sake, you might have to alter your preferences or just buy more premium-type products. Freezer is your friend. I also use a microwave veggie steamer and make a crown of broccoli (small one is about 85g of florets) in it almost every night, or stab a smaller sweet potato a few times and nuke it. Marshmallows/syrup optional. I also go to the grocery store almost every day for fresh stuff. It's my happy place

1shauna1

In for tips.....I live alone but often have to chuck things that have gone bad because I can't eat that much of one thing.

giblerj27

That's usually what I'm doing too, is going to the grocery store every day, to every other day. Though I don't like spending money so often. I'm with you on that dancephysics. I should get a plan together. Thanks everyone for the advice. I will try going frozen, but probably not for everything. I still like my fresh tomatoes, and carrots.

janecarol61

I have had tremendous luck with Green Bags! Veggies last three times longer. But you have to use them as instructed - no twist ties, etc. The meat and cheese ones didn't work so well.

bcattoes

I don't really understand. Other people in your house don't eat fruits or vegetables? My goodness, I hope none are children!

Do you have access to a farmer's market? You can buy whatever quantity you want of produce there. Frozen is just as healthy as fresh from the store, sometimes more so if the item is not in season where you live.

If you have produce that is on it's last legs, cook it and freeze it. Make a pot of soup or stew wtih it and eat on that for a few days, or freeze or can it.

hillbillyannie

I buy products that can be repackaged in smaller amounts such as meat. I weight out 3 ounces and freeze it. It's hard to eat the same stuff over and over but then I think about the end results.

train_01

For bananas, wrap the stems in plastic wrap. They last WAY longer that way. I also usually buy some yellow and green ones, just so they last. Also, don't put tomatoes in the fridge. Watch how you store the veggies. Potatoes and onions should be stored in a cool, dry place but never together. If you have a fruit bowl, don't put berries or bananas in it.

Lizzy622

I am lucky to pass the market everyday on my way to and from work so I stop off a couple of times a week for perishables and buy less of these when I do my BIG Sunday shopping.

fhfreedom

I plan my meals ahead as much as I can and duplicate them so I am using up all the ingredients. It can be boring a bit, but I don't waste the food and money. Fruits and veggies, I buy in smaller batches and gladly return to the store if I come up short later in the week. I don't like wasting and I get a better idea of a budget. Single person living/lifestyle

sympha01

If you are truly concerned about fresh fruits and veggies and not packaged food or meat, it's just not true that they are only sold in family-sized packs. (Except in discount markets, and obviously if you're shopping somewhere that exclusively pre-packages in restaurant sizes, you're not really saving money if it spoils, are you?). If you're shopping for one, give up on the idea of saving money by buying in bulk, at least for fruits and vegetables. You'll clearly save money buy buying smaller amounts, possibly shopping more frequently, than buying big amounts and throwing half or more of it away.

Some veggies do come in big packs in regular stores, but most don't and even ones that do don't come that way EXCLUSIVELY. You can buy loose broccoli, carrots, bell peppers, sweet potatoes, tomatoes etc. And you can eat a lot of "huge" vegetables pretty fast. One big head of cauliflower? Roast it immediately, and refrigerate -- makes 4-6 servings that will keep for a week if already cooked. Those great giant tubs of spinach? Deceptive -- spinach cooks down so much, even the giant tubs only provide about 3 or 4 servings. I live alone, and those are gone in a few days. And they do sell spinach in smaller 9 or 10 oz bags that I get 2 servings from (or just one serving if I'm spinach-greedy, which I often am).

I don't know where you live, but farmer's markets are a great option for fruits and veggies. Again, most things are not sold in huge packs. AND USUALLY CHEAPER than supermarkets, providing you can control the urge to splurge on fancy exotic stuff or the kettlecorn wagon, etc.

I find that meat does come pretty much only in big packages (and I am utterly unwilling to pay "single serve" prices for meat), so I freeze meat in single serve (or recipe-sized) bags and thaw as needed.

And what someone else said about having a plan for what you buy. Do your meal planning for several days in advance of shopping and you'll know how much to buy. I won't usually buy spinach AND a lot of mushrooms the same day, for example. And generally I eat meals made of more perishable food the first few days of the week, and by the end of the week I'm eating things that keep better or thawing stuff from the freezer. Also -- going to the market more than once a week is not the end of the world. Especially if you walk. I get in an extra walk a week by strolling down to the grocery to top up on quick-spoil veggies (I eat a lot of scallions) before I run out after my big weekly shopping trip.

Finally, if you're shopping and prepping food for one, you might have to resign yourself to sometimes eating the some of the same food two or three days in a row. See above re: spinach. When I buy spinach, I know I'm eating spinach a lot for a few days. Many of us are so lucky and privileged to have so much variety and choice available to us, but there's no law that says you have to have an orgy of variety every single day. If you're eating a healthy, good balance of macros and switching things up gradually the vitamins and minerals will take care of themselves over the average.

ktsmom430

You can buy individual piece of a lot of fresh fruit, and vegetables. That is what I do. My husband will not eat fruit, so it is just me. I very rarely throw any fruit or vegetables out and I buy 90% fresh, very little frozen, and no canned. I prep everything (wash, dry and cut up) when I get home from the grocery store so it is ready for the week.