Once you've done all of the heavy lifting and moved all of your belongings to your new apartment, it's time to get settled in and get your grocery shopping done. This isn't a task many of us truly enjoy, but it's not too painful if you go in with a plan and make a first apartment grocery list.
Most of your grocery items are at one single store and, if you know what you're getting, you can do it in no time at all. Keep in mind that it's not just about how much you'll eat, but what you have room to store in your kitchen. So, here's a basic grocery list of all the essentials you'll need in your first apartment. You can also download the checklist and take it with you when you go shopping.
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Even if you're not into eating dairy products by themselves, they're still great to have on-hand. More often than not, you'll need at least one of these items, whether you're baking brownies, making macaroni and cheese or eating tacos.
A couple of the really great things about grains is most of them are really affordable and they don't go bad quickly. You can store many of these items in airtight containers and they'll last for months on end. Plus, they taste great when you've added a little bit of seasoning!
Many of us enjoy a specific beverage every morning to start out our day. Save yourself the time and money by making your beverage of choice at home instead of waiting in line somewhere to buy one each day.
It's no secret that fruits and vegetables are an essential part of your diet. Not to mention tasty! There's a large variety of fruits and veggies you can choose from and you can easily change it up from week to week, so you'll never get bored of the same fruit or vegetable.
Fresh produce is typically better, especially when it comes to taste, but you can also purchase frozen fruits and vegetables. Frozen is great if you're worried about things going bad quickly or if you're into smoothies for breakfast.
Meat, fish and poultry are delicious as a main entrée, a side dish or as an additional ingredient in cooked dishes. Plus, they are a great source of protein, vitamins and nutrients.
While they aren't exactly necessary for sustaining life, sauces and condiments can really change the game when you're cooking and want to add some extra flavor. These will transform the taste of basic foods into something delicious and gourmet!
Like sauces and condiments, spices and seasonings can really make your food into something special. But what's even better about using spices and other seasonings is that they typically have few or no calories, so if you're trying to watch your intake, you don't need to worry much about these.
Plus, these typically are very cheap and won't go bad for ages.
Even if you're not big on baking things, these ingredients will come in handy quite often. And if you don't end up using them very much, they'll keep for a while, so it's not a waste of money to put these items on your basic grocery list. This way, you'll have everything you need in case you decide to make cookies on a whim.
Canned items are great for everyday cooking and for emergency preparedness. Some of these items will store for months, if not years, and they're a quick replacement for cooking things that would normally take hours. If you've only got 20 minutes to make dinner, you can open a can of soup and heat it on the stove instead of making it up from scratch. And if there's ever an emergency, such as a shelter-in-place, you'll at least have something stashed away that you can use.
In order to bake and cook, you'll need a few tools. These are just the basics, but you can cook almost anything with just a few of these instruments.
Before you head to the grocery store and start filling your refrigerator and cupboards, take an inventory of what you already have and make a basic grocery list. Going to the store without a plan will make it easy to buy things that you won't end up using or buying too much or too little of what you will eat.
Be reasonable when making your first apartment grocery list and know what you'll really end up eating. It's easy to say you'll eat two bags of kale, five apples, a pound of strawberries and three ears of corn, but when it comes to cooking and eating it all, you may feel differently.
So, make a plan of what meals you'll eat, what ingredients you'll need and how much of everything you'll eat within a week or two, and you won't have to worry much about food going bad or never getting eaten. Once you've done the shopping, you can start cooking yummy meals and feeling at home in your new apartment.
Morgen Henderson is a writer who grew up in Utah. She lived in the Dominican Republic for a year and a half, where she was involved in humanitarian service. Some of Morgen's work has appeared in State of Digital, The Next Scoop and TechPatio. In her free time, she loves to travel, bake, master DIY projects and improve her Spanish skills.