A Holistic Nutritionist’s Guide to Healthy Pantry Staples: How to stock your pantry. A must-read if you want to know: 1) how to reorganize your pantry, 2) which healthy essentials to buy, and 3) which unhealthy ingredients to avoid.
One of the best ways to super fuel your healthy habits is to stock your kitchen with healthy pantry staples. In this world of “low-fat”, “cholesterol-free”, and “all-natural”, labels can get confusing. No worries, today I am going to teach you all about healthy ingredients, nutrition labels, and my top picks. By the end of this post you will know: 1) how to reorganize your pantry, 2) which staples to buy, and 3) which ingredients to look for.
Reorganize your pantry!
Before we dive in, let’s start at square one. You can have the healthiest foods you want, but if they are shoved back into the nooks and crannies, you will forget they’re even there! Here are my top three tips for organizing your healthy pantry staples:
- Out with the old, in with the new – It’s time to kiss that 4-year-old hot sauce goodbye. Toss it out and make space for something fresh. This is step one when I work with my 1:1 nutrition clients and it’s an important one. Make a list of “no thanks” ingredients like high-fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors/colors, and hydrogenated oils like corn, soy, canola, and cottonseed.
- Create space – Pick a space in your kitchen and dedicate it to your new healthy pantry staples. This can be a built-in cabinet, already existing drawers, or a new baker’s rack. Whatever it may be, wipe it down and set good intensions for your new space. Remember, this space is going to fuel your healthy habits!
- Stock up on storage – Choose your favorite organizational tools like baskets, bins, or wooden boxes. Maybe you have glass jars hanging around the house? Grab a sharpie and label them to hold nuts, seeds, and flours. Stick with glass or stainless steel; let’s agree to skip the plastic.
My top 7 healthy essentials:
Now we’re at the fun part because who doesn’t love shopping for something (for me, it’s food!)? All items listed below are organic or local and do not contain preservatives, gums, artificial ingredients, or GMOs. One more thing, I am not telling you to get all of these items at once. I want to give you options so, pick 2 from each category and start there!
- Snacks – nuts, dried fruit, grass-fed meat sticks, plantain chips, sweet potato chips, nut butter, coconut butter, grain-free granola
- Canned Food – wild fish, coconut milk, olives, pumpkin
- Protein Powder – grass-fed collagen, pea protein, bone broth protein
- Spices – cinnamon, cumin, paprika, sea salt, curry, Herbs de Provence, coriander, black pepper
- Fats – avocado oil, olive oil, hemp oil, flax oil, ghee, mayo
- Gluten-Free Flour – almond, tigernut, coconut, oat
- Supefoods – cacao powder, mushroom powder (reishi, chaga, astragalus), spirulina, gogi, açaí
Ingredients to avoid when stocking:
Don’t panic! Choose 5 and make those your non-negotiable “no thanks” ingredients next time you’re in the market.
- high-fructose corn syrup
- hydrogenated oils (cottonseed, soy, corn, canola, sunflower, safflower)
- artificial colors and flavors
- caramel color
- natural flavors
- “modified” anything
- GMOs (corn, soy, canola, sugar)
- sugar (cane sugar, sugar beet)
- artificial sweeteners (sucralose, sucrose, aspartame, saccharin, acesulfame potassium, sugar alcohol)
Summing it up:
- Reorganize your pantry. Create a clear space to store your healthy pantry staples. Use organizing bins, baskets, and glass jars to store everything at home.
- Choose healthy options from the list above. Pick two from each category each month and you’ll have a healthy pantry in no time!
- Pick healthy ingredients that will add to your health instead of robbing you of it. Choose 5 “no thanks” ingredients and stick to your guns!
We hope you find this Holistic Nutritionist’s Guide to Healthy Pantry Staples from SoFabFood Home Chef, Ashlee from Simplholistic, helpful in your quest for a happier, healthier you. Good luck with your journey to health! For daily recipe inspiration and more healthful tips and tricks, subscribe to our newsletter, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Pinterest. Enjoy!
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