Grocery shopping in the time of Corona
Anyone else sick of the news? Ready to throw their phone out the window? Well, home cooked meals are getting us through. How about you?
The problem is: everyone is stockpiling and panic buying like mad. Which means the shelves of the supermarkets are looking pretty bleak. The good news is that there is enough food for everyone, we’ve just got to be smart, conscious and thoughtful shoppers. And there is a wealth of sustainable food delivery services that you can order from while we’re on lockdown that will give you good, healthy, tasty and planet-friendly meals that will last longer than that tin of baked beans.
We’ve rounded up our five top tips to see you through – and how you can make your food last.
Say no to stockpiling!
We’ve all seen the news of people stockpiling tins of beans, hand wash and toilet roll. Try not to buy into the fear. There’s enough food to go around – and supermarkets aren’t the only answer (we’ll get to that in a bit).
Remember vegetables? You can still make them last.
You know what’s not flying off the shelves? Fresh fruit and veg. There’s tonnes of it. Bonus: it’s healthy and yes, you can make them last. Kind of like nose-to-tail cooking, use up every last bit of the veg. Save onion and garlic skins for stock, replant the bottoms of lettuce in soil and grow some more, chuck the stalks of herbs into salads or whizz them up in a dip. If you want to keep herbs and leaves fresh AF, place them in a clean tupperware with an old cut up (washed) tea towel, pour 2cm of water to wet the bottom, add the washed leaves, pop a lid on and keep it in the fridge. They’ll last for weeks.
Shop local
If you’re struggling to find things in the bigger supermarkets, now’s the time to support local veg shops and independents. Sustainability means helping out the little guys too, so how about checking your nearest off-license or that veg shop you keep meaning to drop into? The likelihood is that their veg is fresher, not wrapped in plastic and they’ll have way more options for all your quarantine cooking needs.
And if you can’t, there’s always delivery
But we also know it’s a game of luck to find these veg shop and grocery store gems that are close enough to you. Not everyone can get to these places, so how about getting on that delivery train? Look for independent shops who have had to shut their storefronts but have pivoted to online. Search for farm drops near your local area. If you’re in London, hot tip: Borough Market is still operating an online delivery service from most of their suppliers.
Go for the nutritious things that people aren’t stockpiling
We love baked beans as much as the next person, but when it comes to nutrition they’re not exactly the picture of health. Depending on where you are and how many shops you’ve got near you, there’s going to be different levels of empty shelves. So how about reaching for those slightly more obscure long shelf-life foods? Sure chickpeas are great and you might be quinoa connoisseurs but there’s plenty of other options that will fill you up and make a tasty and healthy meal. See that tin of black beans? Heat ‘em up with paprika and chilli for a Mexican refried beans situation. How about swapping quinoa for giant couscous or cracked bulgur wheat? No pre-cooked tinned beans? The dried stuff has more nutrients! Just soak them in the morning and you can make a beany broth in the afternoon.
Hi, have you met Hemp?
Sure, we would say that hemp is the answer, but it’s true. And it’s safe to say it’s not as popular as chickpeas so you’re likely to find it on the shelves (or here on our website). All our products are super nutritious, allergen free and long-lasting. Keep our Good Hemp Milk in the cupboard for cereals & coffee, our CBD milk ready for chill-out emergencies (great in a smoothie), store our hemp seed hearts somewhere cool so you can add some crunch onto salads or granola; reach for our protein powder when you need a little boost or stock up on our Hemp oil to batch roast some vegetables for your virtual Sunday lunch.