Japchae (pronounced jap-chay) is a savory, umami Korean noodle dish I always get whenever I visit a local Korean day spa. It is one of my favorite things to eat and always conjures feelings of healthy, relaxed self care for me. 🙂 Typically, japchae is made with sweet potato glass noodles (you should definitely try it that way also!) but I’ve made this spaghetti squash version because I have piles of spaghetti squash in my winter food storage left over from my summer garden.
It’s also a great dish to practice your chopstickin’ skills on! Enjoy – and let me know in the comments if you tried japchae for the first (or 50th) time!
Japchae-Inspired Spaghetti Squash
Japchae is a delicious, umami Korean dish typically made with sweet potato glass noodles. This spaghetti-squash version is a great seasonal option since spaghetti squash stores great throughout the winter. Serve with a scoop of brown or white rice and enjoy!
1/2 large spaghetti squash
3 stalks celery (chopped)
3 carrots (cut into thin strips)
4 garlic cloves (minced)
1 medium onion (sliced thinly)
3-4 mushrooms (sliced)
1/2 head cabbage (shredded)
3 chicken thighs (sliced)
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 Tbsp brown sugar
3 Tbsp sesame oil
2 tsp sesame seeds
sesame seeds, green onions, cashews (optional – for garnish)
Carefully slice spaghetti squash in half and scrape seeds and pulp. Place half in a microwave for 15 minutes.
While squash is heating, mince garlic and slice onions, carrots, celery, mushrooms, cabbage, and chicken.
In a heated skillet over medium-high heat, brown chicken pieces on all sides.
When cooked through, add garlic, onions, and celery. Cook for 2-3 minutes until onions begin to be translucent.
Add carrots, cabbage, and mushrooms, and gently stir fry until cabbage is softened.
Add soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Stir until mixed through.
Remove cooked spaghetti squash from microwave with a towel or pot holder (it will be very hot). Place paper towels or a kitchen towel on the spaghetti squash and press the extra water from the squash.
Use a fork to scrape the spaghetti squash strands into the skillet with the rest of your ingredients. Stir to combine.
Optional: garnish with sesame seeds, chopped green onions, and cashews
This recipe may contain too much sodium if you are on a low-sodium diet. To reduce the sodium by about half, exchange the soy sauce for coconut aminos.
1 serving contains 271 calories, 14.3 g protein, 22 g carb, 15.8 g fat, 742 mg sodium, 123% DV of vitamin A, 44% DV of vitamin C, and 33% DV vitamin K.
Today we’re continuing our series looking into what food and nutrition experts typically eat. If you haven’t read part 1 or my What I Eat in a Day as a Registered Dietitian post, be sure to check those out too! Altogether, you’ll see 10 days worth of dietitian food. Hopefully it helps you to see how varied and delicious a healthy life can be – everyone’s healthy life looks different! Enjoy!
Kayci Sterzer, MSN, RDN, LDN, CEDRD
Kayci is from Washington State but currently lives and work in Chicago, IL. She works as a Registered Dietitian specializing in eating disorder treatment in both outpatient practice and higher levels of care. Outside of nutrition and cooking, her passions include cycling, rock climbing, tending to her 70+ plants and 2 cats, and making ceramics.
Best Nutrition Advice: Aim to find a pattern of eating that’s nourishing (for your body but also for your spirit) and feels good vs. trying to find the perfect diet. We are meant to enjoy food. Rules and restrictions are unsustainable and take away from the joy and connection that is an integral part of eating.
What she ate in a day:
Today is a little atypical for me as I’m ending my day getting on the Amtrak for a 2-week vacation. For budget reasons, I don’t often eat out multiple times in a day unless I haven’t pre-planned well or I’m on vacation, but this week groceries and meal prep were not my top priorities. I value being able to make the best of the situation you’re in, so even though this might not appear to be an “ideal” day when someone conceptualizes what a dietitian eats, I don’t feel stressed about it. There is space for flexibility in healthy eating.
Starting my day off I love to do a combo of sweet (butter + jam) and savory (avocado + hot sauce) toast, which I have with a latte for a combo of protein + caffeine and some fruit (ataulfo mango today). For lunch, I splurged and bought up some sushi with edamame, miso soup, and a salad. For snacks I had yogurt and kombucha in the morning and later some chocolate-covered cherries. This yogurt is a pretty generous portion, which I did finish today since I biked to work and was hungry for it. For dinner, I intended to buy something in the dining car of the train, but essentially all the “meals” were sold out. I ended up picking a cheese and cracker plate and added some hummus with pretzels. I ate most of that, plus I split a single-serve Chardonnay with a friend I’m traveling with. It’s not the most normal meal, but met my macronutrient needs for the start of my trip tomorrow.
Allison Davies, MS, RD
Allison lives in Vancouver, WA. She worked as a primary practice RD for about four years but has stayed home with her 14-month old son for the last year. She loves going for walks and reading historical fiction books. Her favorite foods are tacos and Thai red curry and her favorite candy is Skittles.
Best nutrition advice: Make a meal plan for the week before grocery shopping. It’s a good way to make sure you’re eating a variety of different foods and also cut down on food waste.
What she ate in a day:
My typical day usually revolves around my son’s nap schedule and some sort of outing in the afternoon. On this day, I packed a lunch to eat at my parents’ house. There are a few things I do every week that keeps the stress off of meal prep while trying to tend to my son. On Sundays I sit down and meal plan every meal. There are definitely meals that repeat, especially breakfast, but it takes the guesswork out of what to make and ensures that I buy enough ingredients at our weekly grocery store stop. I will also prep veggies and cut up meats in the evening after my son goes to bed to be ready for the next day. My son and I eat at the same times and primarily the same foods, except for choking hazards like nuts (and I do cut his foods differently). One part of this day that is not so typical is actually the cup of coffee! I only have coffee drinks once or twice a week and it’s usually a vanilla latte. 🙂
For breakfast at 7 am I ate scrambled eggs with 1 slice turkey bacon (the bacon was cooked the night before), an apricot, 1/2 bagel with cream cheese, and a cup of coffee with splash of whole milk. My lunch was around 11:30 am and included a turkey and Swiss sandwich on Dave’s Killer thin sliced wheat bread with 1/2 avocado and some sour cream and onion Pop Chips. Around 2:30 I ate a snack of homemade trail mix made of walnuts, almonds, peanuts, sunflower seeds (all unsalted), and dark chocolate chips. I prepped the trail mix earlier in the week.
We ate dinner around 5-5:30 pm. The dinner included chicken sausage and zucchini I had prepped the night before, as well as red beans and rice. Around 7:30 I snacked on one or two clusters of these dark chocolate nuggets from Costco.
Diana Reid, MPH, RDN
Diana currently lives in Europe with her husband and three children, in the tiny country of Luxembourg. She provides nutritional counseling and coaching both in-person and online or via telephone to clients throughout the world through her practice The Global Dietitian. She also spends part of the summer (and often the December holidays) in the Seattle, WA area. Diana holds a Masters of Public Health degree in nutritional sciences from the University of Washington. Additionally, she has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Western Washington University in the field of marketing and business administration.
Best nutrition advice: Focus on what you can add to your diet rather than always worrying about what to take out. Can you add more fruit and veg? Can you drink more water? These are underestimated, powerful tools.
What she ate in a day:
My day started with fruit, Greek yogurt, granola, and a bit of cottage cheese for breakfast. I was on the run during lunch and ended up eating lentil salad with some sriracha sauce for extra flavor. Later for an afternoon snack, I had cherries and a protein bar to get me through until dinner. Dinner was shrimp, rice and quinoa salad with tomatoes and avocado. Finally, to top it all off, ya gotta have dessert! Tonight’s was a fruit plate topped with some chocolate sauce for good measure. 🙂
Jessica Forsman, RD, CD
Jessica Forsman has her bachelor’s degree in Food Science & Human Nutrition and has been a Registered Dietitian for 11 years. She initially practiced as a clinical dietitian before transitioning into hospital dietary management and later into healthcare administration. She is currently an Executive Director over Physician Services at a hospital in western Washington. Outside of work, she loves having downtime at home with her husband and spending time with family.
Best nutrition advice: Keep it simple. Focus on fruits and vegetables. Don’t go to extremes or overly restrict. Enjoy what you eat!
What she ate in a day:
I chose a fairly typical Monday to highlight. I woke up late, but had prepped lunches the night before and had blueberries and almonds on hand for an easy breakfast. I’m not always motivated to prep our lunches a day ahead, but I’ve found that it makes all the difference when it comes to getting out the door on time and eating well throughout the day. Plus, it just feels good to be organized.
Breakfast included blueberries & roasted almonds and coffee with half & half. Later for lunch I ate ½ sandwich with 2 slices of smoked turkey, 1 slice cheddar & a thin layer of mayo on Dave’s Killer Bread. On the side were fresh veggies, kettle cooked chips, cherries and sparkling water. Nutrition tip: when buying deli meats, I usually look for natural brands without added nitrates/nitrites and where I can recognize all of the ingredients on the label. I especially like Applegate Naturals.
Later in the afternoon I ordered a double tall iced white chocolate mocha without the whipped cream. It’s important to choose foods that are satisfying – and for me, that usually means opting for the real thing. I rarely eat light or diet foods simply because I don’t enjoy them. By not restricting the foods that I enjoy, I find that I’m usually content with less. For an afternoon snack I ate string cheese & the rest of the cherries that I didn’t finish at lunch.
After work I snacked on seasoned tortilla chips. I do my best never to get too hungry and will frequently opt for snacks. In this case, dinner was only about 20 minutes away, but I still felt like I would be too hungry by the time dinner was ready if I didn’t eat something. Snacks are a tool that I use to avoid overeating.
We had company over the day prior and had two crab cakes, asparagus and roasted potatoes left over. Not enough on its own to feed two of us, so I added salad with Annie’s Papaya Poppy Seed Dressing, ½ piece of toast on Dave’s Killer Bread with a 50/50 butter/canola oil blend, and blueberries. I usually only have time to cook 2-3 nights in a given week, but I try to leverage (and even plan for) leftovers whenever I can. I also try to keep easy dinners on hand for those days when things don’t go as planned. Finally, I topped the night off with an evening snack of chocolate peanut butter granola with milk!
More to come?
I would like to sincerely thank each of these dietitians who were willing to take the time to help me with this project and allow us a peek into their day-to-day. This is a series I would love to continue to show the variety of options out there in regard to healthy eating. Within the community of Registered Dietitians, there are men, women, vegan/vegetarians, dietitians with food intolerances, dietitians from all different cultures, and more. If you or someone you know is a Registered Dietitian who would be willing to share their “what I eat in a day,” I would love to feature it! Let me know with this contact form.
My last two posts covered the basics about what dietitians are (and do) and what I eat in a day as a Registered Dietitian. In the latter I talked about how everyone’s healthy life looks different. It’s important to find what works in your own life, not to follow a random diet plan or copy what someone else does. Along those lines, I thought it might be fun to explore what a normal day looks like for other dietitians. This two-part series will feature several different dietitians working in different areas and what they ate in a given day. You’ll read about three different dietitians below – stay tuned for more in an upcoming post!
Molly Koczarski, MS, RDN, LDN
Molly is a Registered Dietitian located in Whispering Pines, North Carolina. She has been a dietitian for 11 years and she recently graduated with her Master’s Degree from Central Michigan University. She is just about to start a new position as an outpatient dietitian for First Health of the Carolinas where she will be working with a wide variety of medical conditions including diabetes, obesity, heart disease, food allergies, etc. When Molly isn’t working she likes to spend her time with her husband, 4-year-old daughter, and dog. She enjoys fitness, cooking, and coming up with new recipes. She is an avid peanut butter lover and loves a good glass of wine.
Best nutrition advice: There is no “one size fits all” diet. Focus on moderation and mindful eating. Food should be enjoyed, not restricted. Building a healthy relationship with food is the key to success!
What she ate in a day:
The day started at 6:30 with a hearty breakfast of eggs (1 egg + 2 egg whites) mixed with some arugula, a side of fresh strawberries, and a Birch Benders protein waffle with slices of avocado on top. After seeing a few patients at work I found myself pretty hungry and snacked on this delicious Greek Yogurt by Light and Fit with a serving of Trader Joes “Just a Handful” trail mix. Hit the spot!
After going on a 30-minute lunch walk I found myself ready to eat again. I prepped a macro bowl for lunch today and it consisted of spring mix and some raw vegetables, some instant pot shredded chicken, and a side of brown rice and quinoa mix. I added some oil and vinegar on my salad for some healthy fats, as well as sprinkled some hemp seeds on top. At 3:30 with an hour to spare at work, I found myself once again ready for a snack so I chomped on a yummy and delicious apple to hold me over until dinner.
After a good workout it was time to eat dinner. With the weather being so nice lately we decided to grill some turkey burgers. We had a salad on the side for our veggie. I added some avocado on my bun (but you can’t see it in the photo). Before getting settled for the night I wanted to have a little “dessert” so I had some chamomile tea (not pictured) with one of my delicious homemade protein muffins. My dog Izzy wanted some too, as you can see.
That’s a typical day for me. I usually eat 3 meals plus 2-3 snacks throughout the day. I always try to balance out my carbs, protein and fat and really focus on getting in my vegetables. I also opt for healthy fats and definitely don’t deprive myself of any particular food or food group.
Anne Corley, MSM, RDN, CD, LC
As a Life Coach and Registered Dietitian with over 26 years in clinical practice, Anne is passionate about promoting wellness (physical, mental, emotional and spiritual) with her clients. She loves helping people have “A Ha!” moments in improving their life and their health, and moving their dreams into the realm of the possible. She has partnered with clients who have made significant, meaningful changes in their lives in many areas; health, career, relationships, etc. through her practice Nourish Your Wellness Now. In all areas she has truly enjoyed the opportunity to share her knowledge and experience through coaching, training and instruction in order to help improve the well-being of her clients/patients.
Best nutrition advice: Listen to your gut, literally and figuratively. Eat when you are hungry and stop when you are satisfied.
What she ate in a day:
Today I woke up in Dingle, Ireland on a long-awaited trip with my 3 sisters. We’ve been staying at Bed & Breakfasts all along the way; today was no exception. Breakfast was a fairly typical offering of Continental and hot breakfast. Always there is the push for the traditional Irish breakfast which is bacon, eggs, sausage, black & white “pudding” (blood sausage), tomatoes, (optional sautéed mushrooms & baked beans), and brown bread & toast with butter & jam. Also fruit, yogurt, cereal, croissants, etc. along with tea and coffee. My normal breakfast is a Shakeology smoothie on my way to work, but I figured “when in Ireland…” Plus, have you ever tried to tell an Irish woman who is your host, “No, thank you”? Apparently you just don’t do that here. 😉
So up to this point I have been ordering the bacon, eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms (and once the beans…I’ve never been a fan of baked beans but I thought somehow these might be different. Nope. Not doing that again!) I have not tried the “pudding” at all; I just can’t bring myself to do it. Today I ordered bacon (Irish bacon is more like our ham or Canadian bacon), tomatoes and mushrooms, and I had Muesli and plain yogurt with berries. Also, lots and lots of tea using part sugar/part stevia and milk (not sure what type of milk, but it was at least 2% if not whole). I ended up eating two bowls of Muesli and only one of the pieces of bacon.
After breakfast we packed up and left for our Air B&B at the Cliffs of Moher (about a 3 hour drive) with a trip by ferry included. When we stopped at a “quickie mart,” as we frequently do, I got a sparkling water and I added True Lemon to it (I drink a lot of water but have never learned to like it plain, so I usually add True Lemon, True Orange, or fresh lemon or lime).
Because the breakfasts have been so big and usually later than I normally eat, we have had “linner” most days and then something light or fun later. Once we got into town, we stopped at a restaurant to have “linner” (lunch/dinner) before our hike on the cliffs at 4:00pm. I had the most delicious salad! Here’s the quote from the menu: “mixed leaves, sundried tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, caramelized onion, shredded carrot and honey roasted sunflower seeds with Spanish goats cheese, a hint of pesto and grilled chicken fillet.” I had soda water and lime to drink. Normally I would have also checked out the dessert menu, but we didn’t have time. We had to hurry through “linner” because we were running short on time. We started the hike a little after 4:00pm; it was 10k distance and about 850 feet of elevation gain and it took us about 3 hours. It was very windy, but we were blessed with some of the most breathtaking views I’ve ever seen!
When we returned from the hike (around 7:00pm) our host had made fresh scones for us, with jam and butter and tea or coffee. I had one scone with jam and a nice sized cup of tea, with milk and sugar/stevia. And then chugged a big glass of water!
Danae Shelley, RD, CDE
Danae is a dietitian and nutrition supervisor at a nonprofit group of medical clinics based in South Seattle. In July of 2019, she will have been a dietitian for 6 years. For Danae, the years of being an RD have really flown by!
Danae got married in September 2018 and lives in Renton with her husband and their min-pin, Max. They love spending time together and going out and meeting new people. They also enjoy traveling (both around Washington and elsewhere), taking Max to the dog park, dancing (especially salsa and bachata), and trying out new ice cream places!
Best nutrition advice: Just aim to make one small positive choice every day toward improving your health!
What she ate in a day:
During the work week, I tend to get up with just enough time to shower, get ready, and feed the dog, etc., so I don’t normally leave a whole lot of time to make breakfast. Breakfast is usually on the go and usually eaten on my way to work or when I get to work as I prepare for the day ahead. This morning I whipped together a strawberry protein shake made with 1% milk for some added protein that keeps me full all morning, along with my much needed cup of coffee with a few tablespoons of creamer.
Due to a meeting I had at my normal lunch hour, I had to have a little snack to tide me over until I was able to eat. I had forgotten I had an English cucumber in the fridge, so last night I sliced it up and portioned half of it into a Ziploc bag.
In my house, we are the king and queen of leftovers (when we have them)! My husband is tall and eats a lot, so sometimes he eats all of the meal and there isn’t any for leftovers. Today was left over vegetable burger soup (I know it’s too hot outside for soup, but it’s cold in my office with the a/c, so it’s not that bad). The soup has lean ground beef (93/7), stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, mixed vegetables and onion soup mix. I also had a small cup of strawberry yogurt. It’s hard to find yogurt that is low in sugar, but this one has 2 grams of sugar and 12 grams of protein. I originally had the fruit cup planned to go with my lunch, but I was feeling a little full after my soup and yogurt, so I decided to hold off and have it for a snack later. I normally don’t do a lot of canned fruit, but I had a coupon for this product and thought I would give it a try. It was a mixture of mango and chia seeds, which are a great source of omega-3. It was a burst of fruitiness to get me through the rest of the work day!
For dinner, Queen of the Leftovers strikes again! After a bit of a longer of a commute that normal, I got home later than I usually do, and therefore was hungry. The night before, I intended to make some enchiladas, however due to a tortilla malfunction, I had to turn it into enchilada lasagna, made up of ground turkey, chili beans, seasonings, layered with whole wheat tortillas and topped with Monterey jack cheese and enchilada sauce. I had a square of that with a little helping of sour cream on top. I washed it down with a glass of water. After doing some stuff around the house and yardwork outside, I was feeling a bit hungry, so I reached for a small bag of popcorn with light sea salt and green tea. Its low calorie and high in fiber. You can see from the picture, it’s so yummy even Max wants a taste!
I recently wrote a post called What I Eat in a Day as a Registered Dietitian. Some of you may be wondering what exactly a Registered Dietitian is, and probably even more of you are wondering if or how it is different from a nutritionist. I can help! Here are some of the basics about Registered Dietitians and what we do.
What is a Registered Dietitian?
Registered Dietitian is the designation given by the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics (at least in the US) to people who have completed certain requirements to be considered nutrition experts. Here are the requirements from the Academy to become an RD:
Complete a bachelor’s degree – The classes you take must meet nutrition-related requirements set forth by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics, a brand of the Academy. Some course requirements include anatomy, physiology, chemistry, biochemistry, basic nutrition, macronutrients, micronutrients, clinical nutrition, food science, weight management, and medical nutrition therapy.
Complete nutrition internship hours in a variety of settings – Since dietitians work in so many different types of roles, internships need to include several of those experiences. My internships included clinical inpatient nutrition, outpatient nutrition counseling, food service management, dialysis nutrition, childhood nutrition at a WIC clinic, and senior nutrition with Meals on Wheels.
Pass the RD exam – This test covers all of the required competencies put forth by the Academy
Registered Dietitians must also complete 75 hours of continuing education every 5 years to maintain their registration.
How are dietitians different from nutritionists?
Simply put, “nutritionist” is not a protected term, while “dietitian” is. Nutritionist is a term for anyone who teaches about nutrition, while dietitian is reserved for those who have met the criteria described above. So all dietitians are inherently nutritionists, because they teach nutrition, but not all nutritionists have completed the requirements to become dietitians.
This obviously creates a bit of confusion for consumers – I get these types of questions all the time! A few years ago, the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics also coined the term “Registered Dietitian Nutritionist,” and allows their RDs (or RDNs) to use that term if desired to help clarify their roles as nutritionists.
Where do dietitians work?
Dietitians are working all around you, and you may not even realize it! Dietitians may do all of the following:
Calculate recommendations for tube and IV feedings and nutrition supplementation for critically ill patients in hospitals
Plan nutritionally balanced menus for large food service operations at long-term care facilities and schools
Teach nutrition for general health, managing and preventing chronic medical conditions, and navigating food allergies/intolerances in private practices, hospitals, medical clinics, and chiropractic offices
Provide nutritional guidance to low-income populations in WIC clinics and community health centers
Teach specialized diets for clients in dialysis centers
Monitor the nutritional health of residents in long-term care facilities
Provide nutrition information to the public via social media, blogs, websites, newspapers, etc.
Support athletic performance with proper nutrition in health clubs, gyms, on military bases, and with sports teams
These are just some examples of roles that dietitians fill. Stay tuned, because I plan to make a post soon featuring “a day in the life” of several different dietitians who all work in different settings, to give you an idea of what all kinds of different dietitians eat!
To round out this series on fitness for backpacking, I thought I would offer you a little bonus post on nutrition for the trail.
Good choices for trail foods are:
lightweight
do not require refrigeration
are nutrient dense
may or may not require cooking – while either can work if you bring a stove, this is a factor to consider!
Some of the parameters you might look for in your day-to-day food might be a bit different when hiking or backpacking. Your needs for calories, carbohydrates, and sodium are higher when you are active (especially if you’re carrying a pack). Don’t worry if some of the foods you eat are higher in these nutrients than what you normally eat. Here is a list of ideas for meals and snacks while hiking or backpacking:
Breakfast
Oatmeal – Portion oatmeal, dried fruits, protein powder, cinnamon, and brown sugar into individual packets or zipper plastic bags.
Breakfast bars – Homemade or store-bought bars that contain whole-grain carbohydrates and protein can be great options. Oats, nuts, seeds, honey, and dried fruits are all good potential ingredients. Here is a recipe for homemade breakfast bars that I’ve made before and enjoyed!
Instant Breakfast Packets – While these are probably not sufficient by themselves to prep you for a day of hiking, you can mix these packets into your oatmeal, coffee, or water for some added carbohydrate and protein.
Lunch
Wraps – Whole-grain tortillas with peanut butter and a banana or a pouch of chicken with spinach are easy to whip out for a quick lunch break.
Hummus “plate” – Depending on how long you’re hiking, you can sometimes get away with some crunchier veggies (carrots, broccoli, cauliflower) in your bag for a day or two. Toss in some pita bread and a container of hummus and you’ve got a nutritious and delicious no-cook meal.
Dinner
Pasta- Particularly if you’ve hiked all day, do not fear the carbohydrates! Pouches of pasta sides are convenient and easily cooked with a camp stove. Add a packet of chicken or tuna or some slices of summer sausage for protein, and toss in some dehydrated veggies.
Beans and rice – Find a mix of rice and beans to which you can add some dry ranch dressing or onion soup mix and some dehydrated veggies. Boil it up!
Freeze-dried backpacking meals – These guys can be super-light and very convenient, but sometimes expensive. Watch to make sure they have the right amount of calories, carbohydrates, and protein for you after a long day on the trail. Unless you’ve been sweating a lot throughout the day, aim to keep the sodium under 40% DV.
Snacks
Dried fruits – These make excellent snacks, loaded with carbohydrates for energy and are quite light with all of the water dehydrated from them. Try dried peaches, strawberries, kiwis, or bananas.
Trail mix – Sorry to state the obvious, but this high-calorie, high nutrient density snack is really in its element in the out-of-doors.
Harvest Snaps – These crunchy puffed snacks made from peas, lentils, and other legumes have carbohydrate (important when hiking), protein, and a decent amount of fiber. Plus they are very light!
Whole grain crackers – Light and nutritious, these help provide necessary fiber and energy.
Jerky – Buy it or marinate and dehydrate some yourself.
Treats – Pack a little something to treat yourself after a long day of hoofing it! Choose individual packages of a favorite cookie or candy to enjoy around the campfire.
To kick off my series on Eating Well on a Budget, I’m going to start off by showing you how to meal plan on a budget. The easiest way to do that is to show you as I do our meal planning for the week! I’ve been feeding a family of 4 (2 adults and 2 currently 15- and 12-year-old boys) on an average budget of $100 per week for about 4 years now.
At first, it was a struggle and required a lot of work, but after a few months it became much easier and now I would venture to say it’s second nature. Don’t feel like you have to incorporate every money-saving tip all at once. Add in one at a time. Every little bit helps, and taking it on all at once can be overwhelming.
There are a few clarifications I should give on this:
This does notinclude non-food household items (toilet paper, aluminum foil, hygiene products, etc) – we have a separate budget for those.
This does not include our boys’ school lunches. That comes out of a separate budget. During the first couple of summers, we stuck to the $100 per week budget during the summer without much trouble, but in the last couple of years we’ve had a teenage boy so…we upped it to $125 per week. 🙂
Some of the things that help make this budget easier require a bit of advance planning (canning and freezing food in the summer, for example). At first, I only dabbled in these (and still stayed within budget – it just took more work to do so). I have a decent routine for these now and hope to add more (garden, here we come!) in the future. When you first start, it’s unlikely you will have these benefits right off the bat, so keep that in mind. It’s a little easier for me now for these reasons, but throughout the course of the next few weeks I’m going to teach you how to do all of the things I do to save money on food. Yes, we’re going to talk about canning!
Previously, I did a post on how to meal plan (including a free printable template!). That is an excellent supplement to this article – in fact, you may want to start there, read through step 2, then come back here and continue on. This post will be a much more in-depth look at using your budget as a jumping point, as is mentioned in that article.
So here we go! Follow along with my budget-conscious meal planning process this week:
Know your budget
You can’t very well eat on a budget if you don’t know what your budget is! Decide how much you’re going to spend. For us, I tend to alternate between “stock-up weeks” where I go to Winco and buy regular groceries as well as bulk dry goods to top off our supplies, and “top-off weeks” where I fill in the gaps with produce/meat/whatever else we need. Winco is the cheapest option in our area, but it’s a bit farther away from us than some other stores, so my top-off weeks are sometimes done at a closer store like Fred Meyer. I spend more on stock-up weeks (typically about $120-125) and less on top-off weeks (about $75-80).
This particular week is a top-off week, so this week’s budget will be $85.
Look for food distribution programs in your area.
I’m not referring to food banks or need-based programs (though please seek out those valuable resources if you need them), but rather food waste prevention programs. In my area, for example, there is a large warehouse where loads of nearly-expired food and produce collects every week. From there, people deliver it to different food distribution locations around the area. These programs are a win-win-win. Grocery stores have a place to send food they can no longer sell, landfills avoid thousands of pounds of food waste, and we get the benefit of free nutritious food! Search for food waste prevention programs online to see what might be available in your area.
Since this food source is not predictable (some weeks there is a lot, and other weeks, nothing at all), I do my meal planning after I go, so I know what I will have. Here is this week’s food distribution haul – totally free!
There was quite a bit available this week, so this will help my grocery budget a lot! Keep in mind though, this food is nearly expired, so you’ll want to plan to use it soon. Don’t dilly dally with this stuff – it’s on its way out!
Shop Your Cupboards/Pantry/Fridge/Freezer
One of the greatest contributors to high grocery bills is buying duplicates of things we already have, then trashing wasted extras. You’ll notice that a lot of money-saving tips are also food waste-prevention tips because, well, food wasted = dollars wasted.
Do a quick skim of your fridge, produce, cupboards, and freezer before even starting your meal plan. Take special note of the things that need to be used up soon, particularly meat and produce. Here’s my list for this week (not counting my food distribution goodies):
Need to use up:
cilantro
avocado
apples
cauliflower
spinach
fall harvest muffins (leftover)
chicken breasts (4)
mushrooms
Available:
dried grains: pasta, rice, quinoa, oats
baking stuff (flour, sugar, etc)
dried chili beans
clementine oranges
yogurt
trail mix
whole grain crackers
mozzarella cheese sticks
lots of canned goods
cheddar cheese
lunch meat
eggs
2 gallons milk (we go through 4 per week usually!)
fresh-pressed apple cider (YUM)
I don’t usually write them all out like this, but for the sake of walking you through the process that happens in my head, here it is. Be aware that since this is a top-off week, I have more available than I will on stock-up weeks.
Check for sales and coupons
I’ve provided a lot more detail about this step here, (definitely check it out if you wanted to get started with strategic couponing). Either find a store that puts out a weekly ad, or a store that has killer prices all around (yay Winco!). If there’s a weekly ad, check for the best sales, especially on meat and produce, and make a list of those. What’s on sale and healthful is what you’re making! Use any coupons you have to create more good deals.
Take stock and decide what to make
Look at the list of what you’ve got available and what’s a great deal at the store. What can you make with these? If you’re struggling to come up with ideas, use a search-by-ingredient database to help you find recipes.
This week, we have several Mexican-type ingredients (tomatoes, cilantro, avocado, green pepper, onions) so I think I’ll make an enchilada quinoa casserole with those. My kids have been requesting mac and cheese (I have a recipe that uses an entire head of cauliflower and a butternut squash in the sauce!) so I’ll put that in there too. My husband loves Vietnamese steak sandwiches that use the cucumber I got from the food distribution, so I’ll include those. I’ll round out the week of dinners with pork chops and chicken parmesan.
Make your shopping list
Go through your planned meals and add to your shopping list anything that you don’t already have and need to buy. I like to divide mine roughly by sections of the grocery store just to save time wandering. Include a rounded-up price estimate next to each item.
For us, lunches are typically dinner leftovers, and/or salad with canned chicken, so I’ll put salad and chicken on the list. I usually make sure we have two different types of breakfast options besides eggs, and oatmeal. This week, I have the bagels from food distribution and my fall harvest veggie muffins, so I’ll just make sure to pick up another type of breakfast protein to pair with those. We have quite a few fruits, veggies, and snacks already, and plenty of smoothie ingredients. I also typically plan to have dessert once or twice a week, so I’ll toss in some ice cream as well. Here’s my completed list:
Click here for a copy of this shopping list/meal planning template. And to answer your question, no…my grocery list is never this neat. I used my best penmanship and avoided using too much of my made-up shorthand for your sake. You’re welcome. 🙂 Also, if you’re wondering what “scrounge” and “whatever” are all about – they can seriously help decrease your food costs and waste! Click here to read more about those.
Quickly tally your estimated prices to make sure you’ll be within your budget. If not, drop off unnecessary ingredients (garnishes, extra snacks/desserts, etc) until your estimate is within your budget. You’ll notice that there are a few ingredients on my list that are not particularly “low cost” items, like flank steak, Dave’s Killer Bread, and vermouth for my pork chop recipe. Regardless, we want to eat these and my estimate is still at budget. If I cut those or swapped them for cheaper alternatives, I could bring the cost down even further!
Shop!
Take your budget-conscious shopping list to the store and get the goods! If my estimate is very close to my budget, I like to keep a quick, rounded-up tally on the calculator on my phone as I put items in my cart to avoid overspending. If I have a bit of a buffer, I don’t bother with this. You’ll notice that I underestimated the costs of some things (hello, $13 PER POUND flank steak! Sheesh!), but rounding up on my estimates usually gives me some wiggle room.
So here’s my haul and the receipt for it – I spent $81.06 on all of my “top-off” items.
Combined with (most of) the ingredients I had from food distribution and my pantry/refrigerator, here’s a look at our food for the entire week.
Even if it seems overwhelming at first, this process gets easier with more practice. Now it only takes me 10-15 minutes to make my meal plan and stay in budget. Plus, we eat healthful, tasty food – all for an average of $100 per week!
Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for more tips on eating well on a budget – I have a lot of exciting posts planned to share with you! I walk you through a stock-up week in this post, so click there to see what my other weeks look like. Comment below with your favorite ways to keep grocery costs down!
Need some help with an anti-inflammatory diet? Here are my top tips and my two favorite recipe websites from my experiences:
1. Look for Asian, Indian, and Mexican recipes made with lean meats. They will usually contain plenty of anti-inflammatory spices and avoiding fatty meats means avoiding inflammatory saturated fat.
2. Can you put veggies in that? Sure you can! It helped me to have a container of cut-up veggies in the fridge or freezer all the time to put in pretty much whatever I was making to make my fruit + veggie quota for the day.
3. Snack on fruit. Fruit makes a great stand-alone snack and adds a nice dose of anti-inflammatory antioxidants throughout the day.
4. Evaluate each meal for the possibility of an anti-inflammatory “add-in.” By that I mean something you can put in it or on it to boost its anti-inflammatory properties (like cinnamon, turmeric, chia seeds, flax seeds, or walnuts). Most dishes will do nicely with at least one of these guys, and often more than one. Sneaking little bits into each meal and snack will increase the overall anti-inflammatory power of your diet. Read this post for more tips on add-ins.
5. Find at least one fish you like, and eat it a few times a week. Fish is an excellent anti-inflammatory protein that is also low in saturated fat. Experiment – maybe you prefer whitefish like cod or tilapia, or maybe you prefer pink fish like salmon. Tuna? Mackerel?
6. Cook with an oil that has a high omega-3 content and tolerates high heat well. Canola oil is my favorite! FYI – olive oil contains a much high ratio of pro-inflammatory omega-6s to anti-inflammatory omega-3s (1:11) than canola oil (1:2), plus it is not stable at high heats. Save olive oil for low-temp sauteing and salad dressings.
7. Recognize when you tend to crave sweets and have a plan to avoid excessive sugar intake. Find anti-inflammatory alternatives, like an enjoyable exercise, social activity, or tasty fruit-based snack.
8. Seriously and honestly assess your stress relief practices. Stress relief is more than just functioning in spite of stress, it’s making an intentional effort to work through and eliminate mental and emotional stressors. Stress can wreak havoc on your body through many ways besides inflammation!
Looking for Anti-Inflammatory Recipes? Check out these websites for great information and inspiration.
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