49 items I always have in my pantry, fridge and freezer

So, you want to start eating intuitively, but you’re not sure where to start? Maybe you live off of take-out and delivery, and you want to start cooking for yourself more?

We’re all on different journeys with our relationships to food. But sometimes, it’s hard to know what steps to take first. Today I’m sharing my fridge and pantry staples with you, because it might inspire you to try something new when it comes to food — and it might show you a simple way to start somewhere.

Pantry

Things I cook with:

Olive oil

  • Olive oil cooking spray

  • Balsamic vinegar

  • Kosher salt

  • Black pepper

  • Lemon salt or lemon pepper

  • Old Bay seasoning

  • Raw sugar

  • A baking mix (i.e. Bisquick)

Other goodies:

  • Honey

  • Peanut butter

  • Granola

  • Cereal

  • Chocolate chips

  • Chopped nuts (usually pecans or walnuts)

  • Dried fruit (usually cranberries or cherries)

  • Avocado (when I can get them)

  • Noodles

  • Rice

  • Tomato sauce/paste/just tomatoes

  • Beans (usually black beans, chickpeas/garbanzos, and something refried)

  • Sliced bread (sometimes a small baguette)

  • Bagels and/or English muffins

  • Cookies

  • Crackers

Fridge

  • Berries

  • Apples

  • Yogurt (brands like Noosa, Siggi’s or Fage)

  • Butter (though sometimes I’ll keep a stick on the counter in a dish to make it easier to spread)

  • Cream cheese

  • Cheese (i.e. brie, an aged cheddar, and maybe more kinds if I’m putting together a cheese plate)

  • A head of lettuce

  • Tomatoes

  • Sliced deli turkey

  • Carrots and hummus (I almost always end up not eating these, but I like to have them on hand just in case)

  • Ketchup

  • Mayonnaise

  • Mustard (like, four different kinds)

  • Pickles

  • Maple syrup

  • Jam or preserves (right now it’s a fig jam!)

  • Soy sauce

  • Milk (we use Lactaid’s whole milk)

Freezer

  1. Waffles

  2. Chicken sausage

  3. Chicken breasts / tenders (from Blue Apron recipes I haven’t made yet)

  4. Fish filets (from Blue Apron recipes I haven’t made yet)

  5. Fruit popsicles

  6. Mochi ice cream (sometimes! they go quick!)

Diet culture would rip this list apart. Diet culture would say that there are too many high fat condiments, or too many snacks just laying around in temptation. But with Intuitive Eating, all foods are allowed — we can be trusted around food, and we can trust all food.

So while it may seem silly at first to you to list out the “basic” items in my pantry and fridge, I think it’s eye-opening for some people who are still stuck listening to diet culture to realize that some of these items are fully allowed and embraced as part of a balanced diet.

I’m not cooking each meal I eat every day — I’d say about 1/3 of my meals are made at home, because sometimes we order dinner (and that usually means enough for lunch and/or dinner the next day) and sometimes I pick up lunch/a snack while I’m out. I’m not saying that you have to cook all your meals in order to be a happy and healthy person; quite the opposite!

What I’m saying is this: you have the freedom to cook what you want, order what you want, and eat what you want whenever you feel like it. And if that means breaking “diet culture” rules by having cookies in your house at all times, then so be it! You deserve to live a life free from worry.

diet culture, intuitive eating, nutrition, resourcesSami MainComment