12 Items to Stop Buying at the Grocery Store Now
Items to Stop Buying at the Grocery Store
Over the past few years, more and more people have opted to live a holistic lifestyle with old-fashioned tendencies. So many women I know have a burgeoning desire to stay home and make the most out of their kitchens. It’s like there is a revolution happening 😉 I’m blessed that I grew up with grandparents who taught me a lot of old-fashioned skills, particularly how to care for a garden, clean, sew, cook, and bake. My parents both worked and relied on my mom’s parents quite a bit. In return, I gained many skills that many of my peers did not have. By the end of high school, I was cooking multi-course meals for my family and knew about the importance of organic food while it was still considered a “conspiracy.”
In more recent years, I began my own journey to live a more crunchy lifestyle and purge as much ultra-processed food from my life as possible. It has resulted in an incredible amount of physical and mental healing, including a healthier gut and better sleep and skin among many other benefits. Of the best decisions I have made in the 2020s (besides marrying my husband), transitioning to a from scratch kitchen has been at the top of my list. Not only have I learned a ton and has it been so much fun, it has completely radicalized my way of living.
If you are new to from scratch cooking, it can feel overwhelming, especially if you don’t have a strong knowledge base. However, I’m happy to tell you, learning to cook can bring so much joy into your life! For those who still think cooking is overwhelming, I liken it to how I felt about running. I just ran my first half marathon but I used to despise running. It felt so hard and daunting, until I learned the right way to run so it didn’t feel terrible. The same is with cooking. You won’t go from boxed mac n’ cheese to cooking four course dinners if you don’t already do that. Instead, you’ll need to take small steps to help you increase your knowledge and skills.
In this week’s post, I’m really excited to talk to you about the items to stop buying at the grocery store. I visit the grocery store every week, but it’s for ingredients, not pre-prepared meals. I’d say anywhere from 80-90% of the food I eat is homemade or from scratch and I have seen incredible changes in my health because of it. I hope you’ll be able to gain some ideas from this post and start making your own delicious food from scratch!
RELATED POST: Easy Steps to Start Living a Crunchy Lifestyle
Baked good mixes
Switching from boxed baked good mixes to homemade treats is one of my favorite ways to make food from scratch. Sugar, flour, butter, eggs, leavening agents, and some type of liquid are the basis of most baked good recipes. Cookies and brownies are incredibly easy and tasty. This chocolate chip cookie recipe is my absolute favorite and this brownie recipe is right up there with it. If you don’t feel comfortable making crazy beautiful cakes, stick with a simple vanilla cake and frosting. I promise, no one will care what it looks like. The beauty of baking nowadays, is that there are so many tips, tricks, and tutorials online. Sally’s Baking Addiction is my go-to for tutorials. She breaks down all of the steps so well that you end up feeling like a pro!
Bread and bread products
Bread is the next of our items to stop buying at the grocery store. Making bread can seem really daunting, but it just takes a little time and practice to get it right. Think about all the types of breads Americans eat: Sandwich bread, bagels, English muffins, brioche, focaccia, French bread, ciabatta, dinner rolls, hamburger/hot dog buns, whole wheat, sourdough, muffins, croissants, croutons, breadcrumbs, panko breadcrumbs.
You may be familiar with terms like “sourdough” or “yeasted bread.” For beginners, starting with a yeasted bread made with commercial yeast is going to be easier than something like sourdough. I recommend starting with a simple artisan bread or sandwich bread. The amazing thing about making your own bread is you avoid the disgusting “bread” in the grocery store that contains additives and bleached flour. Not only that, but you can also turn the leftovers into croutons and breadcrumbs! Making my own bread and bread products has been such a game changer and I can say I plan to never buy store-bought bread again!
Condiments, dressings, and sauces
If there is one set of items to stop buying at the grocery store more than any others, it’s condiments, dressings, and sauces. For one thing, it’s about as easy and quick to make them as it is to pull them off the shelves, put them in your grocery cart, and pay for them. Most only use a handful of ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry. Condiments like mayo involve egg, oil, mustard, garlic, vinegar, and an immersion blender. That’s it! Even better, it comes together in less than five minutes and it’s so much healthier for you than store-bought mayo. If you want dressing, all you need is oil, vinegar, sometimes mayo, and seasoning and spices. Plop your ingredients in a mason jar and shake it all up. It’s so simple!
Snack foods
I’m absolutely fascinated by snack habits of Americans. Snacking isn’t necessarily a new concept, but during the mid-20th century, once companies started packaging food more, sales of packaged snacks like cookies, chips, and pretzels skyrocketed in the US. I could write an entire post on why it’s a good idea to give up snacking and focus solely on eating good quality meals. We over-consume and eat way more than we should, and snacking is a major culprit of our overeating. However, if you do choose to continue eating snacks, I highly recommend ditching packaged snacks bought at the grocery store. Pre-packaged snacks are not only expensive, they are also loaded with ultra-processed ingredients, industrialized seed oils, and chemicals, and usually contain only small amounts of protein, healthy fats, and fiber.
Instead of buying packaged snacks, opt for whole food snacks like fruits and veggies paired with a delicious homemade yogurt dip. Making your own beef jerky is so much healthier and it’s also less expensive. You can even have snacks as simple as cheese cubes and some nuts. Switching to whole food snacks may take some getting used to because eating real foods that aren’t hyperpalatable won’t be as pleasing to your taste buds. It’s important to try a few different options to see what you like best when you’re first starting out.
Whipped topping
I couldn’t tell you the last time I bought pre-made whipped topping. Once I realized what’s in it (WATER, CORN SYRUP, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OIL (COCONUT AND PALM KERNEL OILS), SKIM MILK, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF LIGHT CREAM, SODIUM CASEINATE (FROM MILK), NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, XANTHAN AND GUAR GUMS, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, POLYSORBATE 60, SORBITAN MONOSTEARATE, SODIUM POLYPHOSPHATE, BETA CAROTENE (COLOR)), I just knew I couldn’t continue consuming it! Out of the SEVENTEEN ingredients in Cool Whip, only ONE (minus water) is an actual food. I don’t know about you, but I can’t stand that sickeningly sweet taste paired with the weird foam it leaves on your tongue afterwards. No thanks.
Instead, opt for real whipped cream. Granted, this is one of the items on the list that is not cheaper than its counterpart. Dairy products can be expensive, and organic, grass-fed, A2/A2 products only add to the cost. However, it’s all about your priorities. For me, ditching the lab creation for actual food is totally worth it. If you’ve never made or had homemade whipped cream, I dare you to try it. I promise, it will change your life.
Pre-shredded cheese
This is one of my newer items to stop buying at the grocery store. I really only switched over to block cheese within the last 18 months or so. If you are currently buying pre-shredded cheese, drop everything and stop immediately! Ok, I’m somewhat kidding. Use up what you have, but the next time you need some cheddar or mozzarella, buy a block instead. Pre-shredded cheese is caked with preservatives to keep it lasting longer. You know what you have in your home that will keep fresh cheese lasting longer? A freezer. Buying large blocks of cheese is healthier and cheaper. AND it tastes sooooo much better. Because it doesn’t last as long as pre-shredded cheese, you may want to plan to freeze your cheese if you aren’t going to use it up right away. This guide provides some great tips to help you get the most out of your personally shredded cheese.
RELATED POST: Best Ways to Avoid Ultra-Processed Foods
Coffee creamer
Friends, this was a tough one for me to give up! I LOVE my morning coffee and I do not drink it black. There needs to be a good balance of sweet and bitter and I love having fun things to put in my mug. I am totally a seasonal gal who loves all things pistachio, pumpkin, peppermint, and caramel. When I began my from scratch journey, I held onto the store-bought coffee creamers, and I was definitely buying the kinds with all kinds of fake, lab-made ingredients. The more I made from scratch, the sooner I realized I could do the same with my coffee creamer! Let me tell you, it’s been almost a year and I am never going back. I can make my favorite seasonal flavors and whatever else I want. If I can’t find a recipe for something, I can just make it up.
Lately, I’ve really been into salted caramel, but I’m ready to try new flavors as summer soon rolls in (Hello, coconut!). If I can’t find a creamer recipe, another option is that I make my own syrup and then just add half and half. This can sometimes cut down on the cost of making your own creamer but tastes just as amazing.
Frozen waffles and pancakes
Remember Aunt Jemima pancakes your grandma used to make you in the 90s? Wait, are we allowed to speak her name?? I don’t care. I was totally an Aunt Jemima fan and always will be, despite cancel culture. Anyway, whenever I stayed over at Grandma’s house, we could always be sure there would be Micky Mouse-shaped pancakes. They were cooked in vegetable oil and topped with margarine and table syrup. They. were. delicious. It’s been quite a while since I’ve bought any of those items, but I still love pancakes. Thankfully, they are a breakfast food you can easily make at home. You probably even have all the ingredients you need. Now when I make my own pancakes, I cook them in butter or coconut oil, top with more butter, and drizzle real maple syrup. You will never want to do it any other way.
While waffles do require a special gadget, you can get a mini one for $10. I just got one a few weeks ago and it is a game changer! One of my best friends gave me a great tip for homemade waffles. Underbake them just a little, and then freeze. Then, when you pop them in the toaster to reheat, they won’t get too hard. While I don’t actually own a toaster, I thought this was a great idea. My friend also suggested the Preppy Kitchen waffle recipe I don’t think I will ever use another one. They are fluffy, light, and so delicious. So, do yourself a favor and start making waffles and pancakes instead of buying them!
Bottled water
Next on our list of items to stop buying at the grocery store is bottled water. I’m not sure why bottled water still exists. I don’t mean to sound pretentious, but with the amount of options out there, there is absolutely no need to still buy gallon or single-use plastic water bottles. Not only does the plastic break down and get inside your body, it adds to the major plastic crisis happening in our country and world. On top of that, it’s so expensive. Here are some better options you may want to look into.
For personal use, opt for a Clearly Filtered water bottle. Each bottle comes with its own filter that lasts around two months. I love using one because I know I can have filtered water wherever I go. Other stainless steel options include Klean Kanteen, HydroFlask, and IronFlask. Another fun option is to use a mason jar! I love glass and have worked to switch over many of my personal use kitchen items to glass. If you’re concerned about how to lug that thing around, no worries. For less than $10, you can purchase an insulated mason jar carrier. How cool is that?!
Canned soup
Out of the many items to stop buying at the grocery store, if there is one thing I will BEG you to stop buying, it’s canned soup. Just quit while you’re ahead. Not only is canned soup expensive ($2 or more per can), it’s terrible for you. Having food sit in aluminum cans is not good and neither are the ingredients in these soups. They contain very high levels of sodium along with all sorts of thickeners, stabilizers, and preservatives to keep up the long shelf life and hyperpalatable flavors. Instead of buying canned soup, opt for homemade! It’s simple, much healthier, and a little goes a long way. Most times, I have to cute a recipe in half or even a quarter because soup will typically make 8-10+ servings. Here’s a simple chicken noodle soup recipe that uses just a handful of ingredients. Not going to eat it all? No worries, because you can freeze it.
Soup is also versatile. All you need is broth, meat, veggies, spices and seasonings, and maybe some flour or cornstarch to thicken it. For new cooks, it’s one of the first recipes I recommend trying. It’s SO easy to make and you really can’t mess up soup.
Jell-O
Like some of the aforementioned items to stop buying at the grocery story, Jell-O is high in sugar and is filled with heavily processed ingredients like artificial flavors and synthetic food dyes. Food dyes can greatly affect children and there is a strong correlation between food dye consumption and behavior problems, including increasing ADHD symptoms. While necessary steps are being taken to eliminate food dyes from products, this isn’t happening until at least 2026, and that’s not to say that companies won’t simply find a way around this. Instead, make your own version of Jell-O! It’s ridiculously simple. All you need is gelatin and fruit juice. Now, of course, you should be careful to find juice that is 100% juice and does not contain added sugar. You can always add sweetener if you like.
Here’s a base recipe to get you started. A few months ago, I tried the orange creamsicle gummies recipe on the Calico and Twine blog and they were divine! I definitely recommend them, especially now that summer is just about here.
Margarine, Crisco, and industrialized seed oils
Ok, the last of these items to stop buying at the grocery store is a triple whammy. As a child of the 90s, margarine, Crisco, and vegetable oils were staples in my household. Uh, yuck! Looking back, it’s insane to me that humans thought consuming these products were a good idea. And many still do today. After finding the Weston A. Price Foundation and becoming radicalized, I have such a different view of these products. Margarine and Crisco are pretty easy to swap out. Instead of margarine, opt for REAL BUTTER or even coconut oil. There is nothing on this earth that compares to the taste of butter. Not only that, it’s insanely good for you and packed with vitamins. It’s high in saturated fat, but this is another topic I’ve become radicalized on. I never believed eating foods high in fat was bad, and have since learned just how beneficial saturated fat actually is. If you want a science lesson, check out this article.
Crisco is typically used in baked good and fried foods. For baked goods, simply swap it out with, you guessed it, butter, or even lard. For frying, I would suggest not eating as much fried foods, but if you do fry foods, use real fats like beef tallow, lard, and 100% pure avocado oil, as these fats are more stable and don’t oxidize as easily.
Unfortunately, industrialized seed oils are in almost every packaged food, it seems. You have to get really good at reading labels to identify if they are in a product. Thankfully, Dr. Cate Shanahan, author of Dark Calories and Deep Nutrition has curated a list called the Hateful Eight. These are the oils you most want to avoid. However, as you shop for groceries, you can view this other list Dr. Shanahan has created, which provides a list of fats you definitely want to use. When at the store, keep it handy and search for products with the good fats in them!
Honestly, I could keep going because there are so many items to stop buying at the grocery store that will be of great benefit for you. You’ll find that the more you begin to cook at home and live a from-scratch life, the less you’ll want to depend on a grocery store! I’m curious – what is not on this list that you’ve stopped buying or would like to stop buying? I’d love to hear your ideas!
