Welcome to the first steps towards creating a healthier pantry. It can appear daunting, so if you need assistance or someone to do it for you, I’m here to help.
The first step in creating a healthy pantry is to get rid of any unhealthy foods, such as the following: white sugar, white flour and all those processed sugar and chemical-laden foods.
Read ingredient labels. A rule of thumb I follow is that there should be a minimal number of ingredients, and everything on the label should be recognisable.
Do you have foods with high fructose corn syrup, artificial colours, artificial flavours, natural flavours, hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils? Toss them in the bin.
Ingredients are listed in order of dominance, so if sugar is listed first, that is the most predominant ingredient.
The next step is to refill the empty shelves with unprocessed, whole foods. Once you have some basic ingredients on hand, you will find that it becomes easier to prepare healthy meals.
Here are some basic ingredients to keep in stock:
Brown rice, rolled oats, quinoa, wild rice
Dry legumes such as black beans, kidney beans, cannellini beans and red lentils
Oils such as cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil, sesame oil, coconut oil
Apple cider vinegar
Sea salt
Black pepper
Spices such as cinnamon, cumin, oregano, thyme, turmeric and curry powder
Soy sauce (gluten free)
Pure vanilla extract
Nuts and seeds including walnuts, almonds, cashews, brazil, pistachio, chia, pumpkin and sunflower seeds
Sweeteners such as raw honey and coconut sugar