Dietitian’s Staple Grocery List

Jul 17

My “staples” grocery list as a dietitian!

My strategy behind the “staples” grocery list is this:

Making sure I have enough protein, veggies and carb sources to make easy meals
To get in and out of the grocery store fast. I don’t try new recipes every week (I usually do when I have slower weeks)

I create my meals with a protein, veggie and carb to make sure I balance blood sugars and, of course, get enough minerals. This stabilizes energy (protein does not get enough credit for how much it boosts energy), muscle growth for metabolism (not necessarily to get buff) and promotes a healthy weight by supporting my thyroid, gut and again blood sugar levels.

There are several other ways you can build your meals like CPF (carb, protein, fat), MyPlate, PCFF (protein, carb, fat, fiber) etc., etc. I recommend clarifying your goals and then trying a method to see if it works for you. You will know it works for you if you can be consistent 80-90% of the time, if it gets easier over time and it helps you reach your goals.

Remember, many of my clients are dealing with low energy, weight loss resistance and bloating. So since they don’t have a ton of energy, we look for simple changes that a have big impact. Plus, I want to teach my clients skills they can do long term.

A question I get often with this strategy is… what about fat? Well, if you’re eating meat, dairy and cooking with butter, olive oil or avocado oil, you are getting enough healthy fats IMO. Of course, if you are being very diligent with your macro counts because of your goals, you’ll count fat and adjust. But again, that’s not my focus daily or typically with clients.

Oh and it’s important to note that this doesn’t include the flavors! When I shop with this list I already know I have spaghetti sauce, taco seasoning, bbq etc. for the recipes! So be sure to check your pantry for any of the add-ins :)

Now to get to the actual list so you can replicate if you want!

Protein:

Beef
Chicken
Eggs
Cottage Cheese
Yogurt

How I use them:

Beef is for burger, sloppy joes, tacos, pasta dishes
Chicken is for salads or tacos. TBH, we use it mainly for Finn’s lunches these days
Eggs. Daily. We eat egg dishes daily. Fried on toast, in a casserole, or scrambled
Cottage cheese is for my “lunch box” meals where I will literally put together cottage cheese, some fruit and leftover veggies. I’ll usually add an avocado too. Meals don’t always have to be full recipes
Yogurt. This is for high protein snack or my “mini ”breakfast. I attempt to eat a full, savory breakfast every morning, but I don’t always have an appetite (that’s a hormone signaling issue I am working on)

Veggies:

Carrots
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Peppers
Onions
Spinach
Microgreens (that’s newer)

How I use them:

Carrots, broccoli and cauliflower are so easy to roast, stir fry, or grill.
Onions are for flavor in any dish like sloppy joes and tacos. That goes for peppers too, but I will also just slice those for a side on “lunch box meals”.
You can put chopped up spinach in anything to boost the nutrition content without compromising flavor. They don’t taste like anything! I would just get fresh versus frozen, so you don’t get all the water.
Same with microgreens. They are all the rage in the nutrition world. Get em’ while they’re still accepted. In all seriousness, they are packed with nutrients and another easy way to boost your meals

Carbies

White potatoes
Sweet potatoes
Jasmine Rice
Blackberries
Raspberries
Strawberries
Chickpeas
White northern beans
Black beans
Tortillas (trying to do corn)

How I use them:

Who doesn’t love mashed potatoes? I have that for a side and Adam has been using them to make a Shepards pie type dish.
With sweet potatoes, I’ll sometimes top a sloppy joe recipe on top or taco meat. You can also just have it as a side.
Jasmine rice for stir fry or side of anything with meat. Did you know both potatoes and rice are even better the next day? Yep. Cooked and cooled starches like rice and potatoes are prebiotics (feed the gut)
Fruit for after meals or in yogurt
Chickpeas in stir-fry or salads
Beans for side
Tortillas for taco night

Other things to think about:

My staple grocery list could also be labeled as “foundational” grocery list. This is a great place to start, but if you have more specific goals, you would obviously change your list. This is what I help clients do each week. I have a food first approach so this list would change as we dive deeper into your protocol. Here are some examples:

Adrenal Fatigue (these people are so tired)

Easy digestible carbs
Easier digestible protein
Lots of eggs
Easy meals

Gut infection

Avoiding low nutrient foods
Meals that focus on blood sugar
Anti-inflammatory foods (most of the time infections are really flaring up the immune systems)

Acne