Grocery shopping with recipes in mind (and a giveaway!)

Korean grocery store/mall all in one!
Massive fruit and veggie area through and to the right;
to the left it’s a regular mall area with Korean products
They are really into cooking up samples with their products
There are five to ten chef stations where they cook food samples
including meats in various sauce, samples of something you could make at home.
Two other chef stations, must have been about seven that day,
sometimes there are at least ten!
The grocery store has a housewares section in the back;
Notice: I put a rectangle around the women’s grocery cart (right, at bottom),
she bought tons of greens and meat.
That’s what almost everyone’s cart looks like…

I love to shop for groceries. My husband and I always shopped together before we had our kid and it was just fun to take our time and buy fun things. We don’t really have a favorite or “usual” grocery store as we just go where we please (“Trader Joe’s today?” “Great!”).

But sometimes we’ll make a special trip to the Korean grocery store/mall called Assi (sort of an unfortunate name — I don’t even know how to say it!) or to the Japanese equivalent Mitsuwa. I spent most of my twenties obsessed with Mitsuwa. It feels like entering Japan, which is just plain cool. In both “grocery malls” everyone is Asian and there also are restaurants set up in a little mini-food courts with many types of Asian food (only). I like to eat and shop, what can I say!

I am learning how to shop with recipes in mind. I’m a decent cook, but I’m not the kind of person who can “wing it.” I need to sit down and plan out meals (sometimes opening a cookbook, sometimes just writing out a meal plan with my standard meals) and then look through the fridge and cupboards to see what I have on hand.

I think what is telling about the last shot (above) is that the grocery cart is full of greens and meat — whole foods. My cart has boxes and packaging in it — I aspire to a cart full of basically greens and meat. Everyone who shops at Assi has a cart like that, especially if they are on the older side. These shoppers are probably fantastic home cooks who can throw together great meals with basic ingredients. It’s no wonder than Asian people who stick to a traditional diet (non-Western foods) have lower incidences of cancer and obesity.

Additionally, I like how Assi has chef’s stations with mini-demonstrations of how to prepare food. American grocery stores have stopped offering samples and when there are samples it’s usually “little smokies” or a similar convenience food. At Assi there is real cooking at the stations (although Mitsuwa does not do that to the same degree) and there are many, many different stations.

Finally, there is a housewares section in Assi. So you can buy a pot to cook the food you are also buying at the same store. Basic but brilliant, no? We have elevated cooking to something regular people can’t do and so to get our housewares we have to go to department stores or stand alone shops like Crate and Barrel (love it though). At the grocery store, food and cooking should be connected.

***
In the spirit of grocery shopping with recipes in mind, I’m giving away three brand-new cloth-like reusable grocery bags. I think they are adorable! Next week I’ll randomly choose three lucky readers to receive one of the below who comment on this post with tips, thoughts, or questions about grocery shopping:

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73 thoughts on “Grocery shopping with recipes in mind (and a giveaway!)

  1. I love your blog, it amkes me laught 🙂

    I think it is very important to go shopping with the recipes in hand. This way you are always thinking about your NEEDS for the week and not what you WANT!

    I go to my semi-local Asian market at least once a month, its the best!!!!

  2. Folks who stick to a traditional Asian diet have lower incidence of SOME types of cancer. They also have a higher incidence of other types of cancer, if I'm not mistaken. It's something I remember reading when I first became a vegetarian and did a lot of internet research on soy-heavy diets. People who know more about it– feel free to confirm or correct.

    Nonetheless, enjoyed reading about your grocery shopping! I, too, strive to someday fill my cart with only healthy things. 🙂

  3. I love reusable shopping bags!!

    I always go with meal ideas in mind, shop for what is on sale and base my menu on that so I save money and (try to) eat healthy!!

  4. I am 19 but have been coupon shopping all summer so I start with the ad and shop around what is on sale sometimes I will buy the unhealthy stuff such as rice mixes when I can get them under 25 cents and add tons of fresh vegetables to it. I have a verry small kitchen with which I share with 2 other people. I also plan to cook alot most of the times my boyfriend lives 30 minutes away but works with in 10 minutes of my apartment and goes to college with me he is a really big eater but I guess anybody would be after working on a military base for sometimes 16 hours straight so I always plan more even though I am not sure if he is coming or not becasue I know it will get eaten sometime. I love to throw some type of meat that was on sale in my crockpot on tuesday mornings (my busy day) and use it in different ways all week and example is the pork roast I cooked tuesday we have had it as a roast, BBQ sandwichs, in empanada, and to night I am using the rest of it tonight to make tamales. THis roast was about 8 dollars on sale and was huge so made for meals.

  5. We have a "grocery mall" like this in Seattle! It's called Uwajimaya, and they've got lots of great (and unique) produce and meat and seafood. I wish I had one of those exemplary carts with only whole foods in it, but they've got so many fun novelty items (iced tea flavored candy?!) it makes it difficult to do!

    Thanks for the great blog, in a way I feel lucky that my school didn't have a cafeteria and we had to bring our lunch from home 4 days a week – the fast food junk the school brought in on Tuesdays was not always the best, but I'm glad I had access to healthy food throughout childhood.

  6. I totally agree — our grocery store has some housewares but not very many. I was at Costco today and appreciated that one of their samples was organic (jarred) sauce and organic pasta, but it makes you wonder — why not give samples of fresh fruit or vegetables, meat or fish?

  7. I always thought that buying organic/whole would be more expensive, so even though I wanted better food I figured I just wouldn't be able to do it. Then I read Fast Food Nation and said to myself "I will see if I can go to the 'specialty' place and still buy what I need in a week." Although I have to buy non-food things like toilet paper and cat stuff elsewhere, I actually can buy all the food I need in a week and two stops on grocery night isn't that bad if the places are relatively close together.

    Surprisingly, my monthly grocery bill is now ~10% less on average! I feel better about the food I am eating, I feel more connected to cooking, and it's saving me money! For example, per pound, whole foods (think potatoes) are way cheaper than a box of 6 pre-processed patties-of-whatever.

    No one should be afraid of trying to fit more fruits/veggies into their budget – it may not be so bad afterall! Even if I weren't food-conscious, I would want to keep shopping like this because it's saving me money.

    ~D.C.

    p.s. those bags are cute! mine right are just undyed beige-ish fabric with no patterns or anything.

  8. Me and my boyfriend found that planning our meals out a week in advanced and then shopping for the items in the recipes, we saved more on groceries (if two meals call for a small amount of onion, use half for both and you are not tossing that second half), we ate much healthier, and the left overs were great for his lunch the next day. The best part though is we really expanded our recipe list and have become much better cooks. One of our hands down favorites is also one of the healthiest things we make, turkey meatloaf served with corn on the cob. So delicious!

  9. Woohoo! I LOVE reuseable bags! I keep at least one in my truck at all times.

    Before I go grocery shopping, I look through my cabinets, freezer, and the store ads and see if I have a coupon for that particular item that is already on sale. (It's like double the savings!) And I also think about what I am going to keep for the week.

    Justine
    justbettertogether at gmail dot com
    Just Better Together

  10. I too LOVE grocery shopping, and my husband and I like to go together. We have a WONDERFUL grocery store where we live in the East called Wegman's, which makes shopping a treat!!!!
    http://www.wegmans.com
    I love the cart full of produce and am always pleased with myself, too, when I manage that

  11. I've found that shopping with meals in mind inspires me to actually eat properly, rather than filling up on junky food, because I'll spend several days anticipating a particular meal and I know I've got everything I need to make it. When I shop by pulling random things off the shelf, I usually end up throwing more food away uneaten because I've bought too much of one kind of food and it goes off. Sadly, as I am cooking and shopping for one in stores that cater apparently for entire regiments, food waste is a massive issue.

    Wow, long comment. Sorry about that!

  12. We are lucky that our local grocery store (a small regional chain called Raley's) offers a seasonal magazine for free and it is chock full of new recipes that feature in season produce. The produce signs have a "local" oval if they are locally grown….and all produce says where it is from, by county and farm name if within our state! Some items are even sticker free in the organics, from small family farms….they sell lots of freshly pressed juices from a farm within our county that I love!

    Like you, I love to grocery shop and find new local items to use! they have a small food court/deli type thing and a peet's coffee shop inside, so you can sit on couches or at tables in front of a fireplace, watch the snow fall….and enjoy some snacks or lunch! cozy homey and friendly staff!

    Thanks for the chance to win!

  13. I do my meal-planning by keeping a bookmarks category in Google Bookmarks titled "Recipes." Anything I see online that looks good, I bookmark in that folder, and then I can pick and choose when it's time to plan.

    For stuff that's not online, and/or for keeping track of random meal ideas or miscellaneous grocery lists, I use EverNote (www.evernote.com). I have the program installed on my computer with various notes in list form ("summer recipes" "delicious soups" "nifty pasta ideas," whatever), as well as a running and ever-changing grocery list. When I'm at the store, I can use my phone to access my EverNote files (I use their mobile site, m.evernote.com, but there are apps available for most phones that sync with the computer version) and have my entire grocery list + recipe files right there in the store with me.

    I started doing this because I have rheumatoid arthritis that's attacking my hands pretty severely, and it was getting difficult to keep pen-and-paper recipe copies and grocery lists. I absolutely love how it's worked out, and I love that no matter where I am I can keep track of new recipes or random meal ideas to file away for later.

  14. I meant to add that one of the things I love about my system is that EverNote is searchable, so if, say, tomatoes are on sale this week, I can go into my files and search "tomato" and pull up all my tomato recipes. This really, really helps me plan several different meals around a few key affordable ingredients; my average grocery bill has probably dropped $30-40 just because I'm wasting less and able to shop sales more effectively. I know that doesn't sound like a lot, but… my kid and I live on maybe $600/month, so it's a huge deal to us!

  15. Wow, this post takes me back. My husband and I used to live in Chicago, and we would make the trek to Mitsuwa periodically. We loved it, and we still talk about it now. You could get so many interesting vegetables (baby bok choy!) and other things (15 different kinds of ramen noodles, a beautiful hunk of sushi-grade tuna). After we paid we'd go to the food court and eat sushi and talk about all the funny Japanese products with wording that didn't quite translate to English. We live in the South now, and it is really not multicultural in our town. Thanks for the post – it brought back some great memories!

  16. Going to Korean grocery stores are probably my favorite part of being back in the US or somewhere other than South Korea. I've been living here for 3 years and it's always an adventure shopping for groceries here. The price of produce is quite astounding considering how much fresh produce Korean cooking requires on a daily basis. Oh, and the pronunciation of Assi is AH-dzi. Where the "ss" is like the 's' in Asia.. Accent is on the first syllable. Hope that helps!

  17. Love Asian grocery stores. Which is why I will never live in an area that does not have at least one decent one. Luckily, right now I live in the SF Bay Area, which is full of them. I need all my Asian snacks.

  18. I try to have more fresh produce in my cart and stock up on the staples. This way I only have to spend more money one week out of the month because my cabinets are filled. When shopping I like to get things that can be used for more then one thing. I am less likely to buy a product if it is just going to sit around for a while. I love to grocery shop and can spend a good hour in whole foods just looking at all the new products.

  19. Our local Asian grocery is on my list of regular shop places. They are the only place that sells the appropriate 150-gazillion pound rice bag I have to buy for my husband (he's Asian/Pacific Islander). One thing I'd recommend checking, if you do non-homemade goodies, are their various packaged sweets. Much better ingredients and calorie counts for treats than their US counterparts.

  20. My tips…buy what you can from farmer's you know (direct, farmer's market, etc), what you can't get there strive to get organic and buy in bulk and can and freeze. Makes things less expensive and better quality as well as avoids all the junk I don't want on my food too!

    Love the bag,
    Heather

  21. It's so hard not to reach for that box of cookies when you're at the grocery store, haha! A tip for grocery shopping – keep yourself on a strict time schedule if you are trying to stay on a budget. This way, you'll run around trying to get everything you need, and hopefully you won't have time to debate with yourself about those cookies -you will just pass them by!

  22. One thing that can help (if you have a phone that can get it) is an app called OurGroceries. I can make lists either on my phone or on the web, and my husband can see them in real time. We both can shop the same store at the same time and cross things off the same list (he can see as I update.) It's awesome! Or I can send him to the store, and add that thing I forgot without calling or texting him–it just shows up on his list like magic. Can save a bunch of lists, too, including lists for recipes, or a list of staples you have at home, etc. Very handy!

  23. We always look at the ads especially for meats which my husband eats more than I do. Recently a new grocery store opened up so there were lots of items on sale and we've been stocking up on different things like cereal. We've also taken advantage of the fact that fruits and veggies have been on sale too.

  24. I wish there were more ethnic markets in the 10 mile radius of my home (in the Deep South), but I've found that just shopping the ethnic isles in my local grocery stores – even Walmart! – finds cheaper products on the same items (spices, tortillas, etc) that are on other isles. That's one way I've learned to shop smarter.

  25. As the cook and grocery shopper in the house, I have the majority control of what goes into the pantry and fridge. Obviously my wife is going to make some requests and our children have to be kept in mind, but really it's all me. I have a sweet tooth which tends to manifest itself in the form of cookies and beer. My wife loves chips. Aside from those two, junk food isn't really around.

    After our second one was born cost became an issue. I really started paying attention to what was going into my cart. I began looking at the "meat" part of the meal and planning another or sometimes two different meals to work with the left overs.

    The reality for us, or at least my style of cooking, is there are very few meals that are entirely consumed in one setting. While the wife is great at eating left overs for lunches during the week…retooling them is key to successfully clearing the fridge…and not just to the trash can.

    Plan Monday's meat to go into Wednesday dinner as well. Plan the veggie you fix on Monday to be incorporated into Tuesday or Wednesday's dinner…not just reheating left overs. Your family will appreciate it.

    Planning isn't farther ahead though than the day I show up at the store. I look at what's on sale and what looks appealing. Let your eyes be your guide…your belly will appreciate it even more.

  26. I WISH I had a nice Asian Mall/Store like that where I live. I might enjoy shopping more.

    I don't really enjoy shopping. Maybe it is just that I don't really enjoy going to the "big box" stores. Where the prices are high just so you can get a few cents off your gas at the pump out front.

    Whole Foods is fun and I do shop there for Milk (of all things!)It is the only place in town I can get milk that ISN'T ultra pasturized or homoginized and IS from fairly local cows.
    I can also buy from the bulk bins at WF.

    It is fun to go to the Farmer's Market where I get my eggs and my honey. In fact if I want I can even buy my meat from the farmers market. It is expensive to know where your meat comes from.

    I wish all these places were close so I could walk. Or at least so it would take car time.

  27. My tip is a little less grocery shopping and more veggie/fruit buying.

    Currently I work full time and am in grad school also working 16 hours a week at an internship. Needless to say, free time is slim. I would love to hit up the wonderful farmers market in Detroit, not too far from my home, but that equals 2-3 hours on a Saturday when I'm either working or catching up on homework.

    Long story short, for the past 8 or so months I have been receiving grocery deliveries every other week right to my door. Fresh fruit and veggies from local farms. Strange weird things that I really would never think to buy – turnips? Never had them until a few months ago! And I must say they are FANTASTIC fried up in olive oil with potatoes and onions. Yum to the O.

    So my tip is, for those too busy to shop the farmers market, search out a co-op or delivery service. A large size box twice a month, $35 each is well worth the time I have at home and not in line.

    (Now, I still go grocery shopping…so, uh, I still need the bags, haha!)

  28. I live in the Cincinnati area, and here we have a store/mall/experience called Jungle Jim's. It is truly an experience, with over an acre of fresh veggies, all kinds of unprocessed meats, but also lots of imported foods. On any weekend you will see people of all national backgrounds there stocking up–50 lbs. of jasmine rice, anyone? It's truly wonderful. I just wish I lived closer! I used to live 4 miles from there and shopped there regularly–now I live about 45-50 miles away. 🙁

  29. I would LOVE to shop at a grocery store like the one in this post! We don't even have a Trader Joe's around here! I make a special trip to the nearest big city about once a month to buy special items and I always go to Whole Foods Market. I buy some staples I can't find in my local stores, and then I also shop at a local butcher for most of my meat. The farmer's market is open through the end of October, and I love going there, even though there are only about four vendors at this time of the year. There are a few fruit markets with local fruit and veggies about 15 minutes away, and we try to go there at least once a week. Other than that, I shop the sales, collecting sales papers and trying to get the best bargains, plus I use coupons!

  30. I just plan my meals around what is in season, and therefore what is on sale. Joining a food coop has been great because now I can buy organic things cheap and in bulk, rather than waste all that packaging that comes from a regular grocery store.

  31. I love grocery shopping! It definitely tops clothes shopping. I can spend hours at the store but for those who are not so fond of it, my biggest tip is take inventory of what you have at home, take a look at the circular, and make a list before shopping. That gives you an idea of what is gone or running low so you don't spend money on something you don't need just yet. If you are willing to, you can also look at the circulars to give you ideas on what's on sale so you can either stock up on essentials or develop creative menu ideas while saving money. 🙂

  32. Hmmm tips…
    Plan in advance – I plan roughly what I am going to cook for the week, and create a list. I found list templates online, which I used as a base to make my own. Honestly we don't vary much in what we buy, with four kids we want to eat as cheaply and healthy as possible. We have one with a pretty major food allergy (food coloring) so that really limits what I can buy, which has actually been a good thing.
    I try really hard to stick to the list. I also try to only go to the store alone or with my toddler and not with the bigger kids, they make shopping take a long time. Most of the time I go straight from taking the older kids to school, when it's less busy, so I can just get what I need and get home.

  33. we've been trying to buy more whole foods, organic produce, and farm fresh meat. it's been kind of fun to figure out new meals and to feel the difference health-wise. i love that our kids are also starting to talk about healthier choices….it reinforces why we are making the changes!

  34. I'm one of those semi-older cooks that likes to just wing it. I buy mostly local, have a garden, buy meats and eggs from local farms and am allergic to processed foods. I get all itchy reading about what you eat at school each day 🙂 I make meals with what is on hand. For example, yesterday I had five ripe tomatoes (from the garden) so I made tomato soup. Stocks are made and kept in the freezer. Real food should not come out of a box or be microwaved with plastic wrap over the top. Keep up the good work exposing what junk the schools are serving the students … the squeaky wheel gets noticed. Hopefully longer lunch periods will come back as well.

  35. I know that we eat healthier when I shop with a plan. I try to go through the ads when they come then plan for the whole week. It gets posted on the fridge, which solves a lot of "what's for dinner". I also leave space for requests for the following week (lunch or dinner). I have recently added having each kid (5.5 and 8) choose dinner once a week. They plan the whole meal and depending on homework load help to prepare it.

  36. I shop at a bunch of different places. Most of our meat comes from BJ's – we buy frozen meat (some frozen when fresh/raw, some prepared), and they have a line of all-natural chicken that's really good. I'll go to Trader Joe's when I can – there's not one near where we live, but there is near our work and our church (about a half hour away for either), so we try to squeeze it in when we can. Most of our groceries we just buy at the closest place, though – right now, that's a Hannaford's. I love that place! Before we moved this summer, I'd never been to one. They have a much larger selection of organic produce than anywhere I've had access to before besides the delivery service we used to get. Packaged organic stuff is more limited, at least in the cheaper store brands, but the selection is growing. And they have bulk goods! We get a lot of nuts from the bulk goods section, and they also have oats, granola, even rice in bulk. The other great thing is the produce section: each food tag has information about the produce, and there's a kiosk with a book that has a page for every kind of produce in the department, and tells how to pick it, store it, and ways you can cook it. I love that – my biggest obstacle to trying new vegetables in particular is that I don't know what to do with them! I wish the grocery stores I went to when I was in my first apartment had those – I probably would have eaten a lot better. When I first started cooking on my own, I almost never ate vegetables because I didn't know how to cook them (and I wasn't fond of the canned ones I'd been raised on).

    I do enjoy grocery shopping. I don't usually plan too much ahead – I'll get what's on sale or what I need if I feel like making something in particular. I enjoy browsing the aisles and looking for new things. I wish we had one of those asian malls – they sound fantastic!

  37. I love the feeling when I come home from shopping when I actually planned out my meals before I went. So much more ready to cook dinners that way! I wish I has the energy to always do it.

    I love that now my kids are really starting to get it about why I pack them a healthy lunch (with a treat) instead of buying. What was really cool this week was there was a new Healthy item added to the listings of school lunches…"Mediterranean Meal" which included hummus, whole grain pita chips, grapes & cherry tomatoes. Now i reas this & thought – wow awesome! Still not as good as my packed lunches but I'll have to let the kids try it & see how it is. Then to have them come home from school that day to tell me "Guess what mom, there was a healthy lunch for kids to buy today & which of their friends got that lunch. So happy they notice, cared & were so happy about it!

    That is a CUTE reusable bag!

  38. I didn't grow up in a house where we learned to cook, so I ask a lot of questions. I go to the farmers market and ask how to cook that vegetable, or in the meat department – "What is the best cut for (whatever recipe)?" I have learned so much that way. I bet those chef people at Assi could answer a LOT of questions about anything in the store!

  39. First- I had lunch with my son yesterday- good things- cut up oranges and baby carrots, also pineapple tidbits. He and I ate the fish sticks- not so good. However, the other choice was waffles and turkey sausage that looked better than the fish sticks.

    Second- I love those bags!

  40. I have to say, I wish I had an Asian Market or something of the sort. I live in a small town, where a lot of people do their grocery shopping at Wal-mart. I shop at Publix. The closest Whole Foods is an hour away.
    I also set down and plan out our meals ahead of time. I found half the time if I don't plan ahead I will forget to buy something that I needed. (Though half the time I forget something anyways : )

  41. We live north of Seattle and have a big Asian population and many Asian markets including 99 Ranch Market, Boo Han, and H Mart. They are great places to get good deals on produce and meat, as well as many gluten-free noodles and ingredients (rice, bean, and sweet potato noodles). The only downside I've found is that the employees often do not speak English, so it's hard to get questions answered.

    I'd love a bag – you can never have enough!

  42. I love grocery shopping when I have a list and meal ideas planned. I like it when I have time to linger and look and when I'm not dragging a 9 year old and a husband through the store!

    I find making a meal plan and then making a list and having other meal ideas on the list, I spend much less $$ than when I don't have a list. I stick meal ideas on my grocery list in case something that I may need for the next week is on sale.

  43. I *Love* to grocery shop! I shop on Sunday mornings and take my time. I love buying different things ~ last week I bought some tomatillas and made some salsa with the last of the tomatoes from our garden. After I go to the grocery store, I come home and cook the whole week's meals. Only takes me 2 hours at the most because I am using every inch of the oven and most every burner! Best habit I have ever adopted. Makes for a stress-free (well, stress-less) week!

  44. I've always learned to NEVER go to the store hungry. You end up buying whatever sounds good which isn't always a good thing. I saw this video with an article about a year ago where this woman saved hundreds of dollars by using coupons and planing out what to eat. This isn't the same woman, but check her out!

    http://moneyning.com/video/coupon-lady-money-saving-madness/

    By just taking some time to plan meals, and make lists you could be saving that much. :]

  45. Meal planning is key, but I also think having a semi-empty fridge will save you money. what is the statistic, that we waste 40% of our food? if you buy less, you use all of what you have and none of it sits around to rot. Meal planning is also part of this. if you want to make a soup that calls for 2 ribs of celery, you'd better also plan to make a salad and snack with the rest of that bundle of celery or it will just turn to slime in the drawer.

  46. When I get my grocery list together, I always make sure that I've got enough staples like boxes of pasta; fresh parmesan; a head of garlic; onions; and tinned turkey, chicken, or fish (esp smoked fish). With those in the house and some frozen veggies, I can whip up a healthy dinner in less than 20 minutes.

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