Shopping Essentials

Time for a rare non-recipe post. My shopping essentials, something I get asked about quite a bit so I thought id share my weekly buys and where I buy them from! I love a bargain so always have my eyes peeled in the supermarkets 😉

Now guys just so you know, im no clean eater 😂 Flexible Dieting and Balance always for me ⚖ My basket is always 80/90% whole foods with some room in the corner for the "slutty foods" 😂 I follow a High Carb, High Protein, lower/moderate fat plan so my shopping list is based around this! So its not going to suit everyone but hopefully you can get some ideas from it.

Most of my shopping is done in Aldi, i'm forever preaching about the place as those who are following my Instagram will be aware of! They have seriously stepped up their game over the last 12 Months when it comes to healthy food! (I hate saying "healthy" and "not healthy" because there isnt such thing 😂 but you get my drift) Obviously the basics were always available fruit meat eggs veg etc but they have lately introduced things like raw cacao powder, 0% Greek yogurt and almond milk which is major for me as it means less trips elsewhere to get my weekly shop in! And being one of the cheaper supermarkets out there this is a win win situation for everyone!

Unless your an Aldi snob of course? Do those people still exist? haha

So ill start with Aldi, here's how my trolley normally looks

The basics

Fresh and frozen fruit and vegtables
Eggs 🍳
Oats

Bacon medallions 🐷
Slimline Milk 🍼

Turkey steaks/mince

Turkey rashers - new on the scene in my local Aldi

4% Beef Mince
3% and 5% Beef Burgers 🍔 - more newbies

Ham fillet or a Whole Chicken (slow cooked each week for week worth of lunches)
Beef Medallions 🐄 - I slice these into strips for my Sizzling Beef Recipe 

Nuts 🌰 Almonds and Cashews are my FAV'S!!

Coffee ☕ The Alcafe Barista Americano is identical to Nescafe Azera!

Star Finds you need to buy!

0% Greek yogurt - 1/2 the price of Liberte and Glenisk

Unsweetened almond milk - cheaper than any other brand
Falafel's - Moroccan and beetroot are my fav, great lunchbox filers!

Light cheese triangles - love these on my toasted oat bread and great macros for cheese!
Skyr yogurt pots - another new find for me, less than half the price of the skyr yogurts in Tescos although carbs are high so might not suit everyone.
Flavoured greek yogurt pots, macros in these proabbly suit more people than the Skyr, fat free with a nice protein hit in there too. The Coconut and Vanilla one is my fav 😍

Extras
Beef Stock cubes - the only one of the flavours (unfortunatley) that are Gluten Free
Spices, Tinned Tomatoes, Passata, Tomtoe Puree
Gluten Free Treats - Their All-Butter Cookies are just ✋😍
Gluten Free Wholegrain Rolls, they freeze pretty well so are handy to have for back up
Fat Free yogurts - basically a copy of muller light, The Dark Chocolate Mint and Custard & Banana Flavours are WOW
Pickled Gherkins and Beetroot
Relish
Babyfood Section - Apple puree, great in oats or for baking in recipes that call for apple sauce. Raspberry Rice Cakes - great for those looking for low carb sweet snacks 🍪

Sweets/Treats
Popcorn
Caramel Rice Cakes
Peanut Crunchers (peanut m & m's)
Chocolate Peanuts
Fizzy Seaworld Jellies 🐟
All kinds of Chocolates 🍫 Some of my favorites though are from the bubbly range which would be their copy of Aero, a very good copy at that! They do white, orange and a mint one! Roisin's handmade Irish chocolate which comes in similar flavours is fab too! If anything new comes in I just have to try it, I reckon i've made my way through the majority of their confectionery isle 😜

Lidl

Cottage cheese - Light

Light cream cheese - The nicest one i've ever come across!

Flavoured dark chocolate

Skyr yogurt pots - Macros much better than Aldi Version (lower carb)

Supervalu/Tesco/Dunnes

Mallons GF Sausages

GF Bagels, Wraps, Fruit Loaf 

Freeist Sugar Free Strawberry Jam 🍓
Few other GF bits/treats I like to pick up now and then - Nakd bars,Trek Bars, Aero/Milkyway Mousse pots, Nairns Breakfast Biscuits,the list goes on, more so wants then needs 😉

Dealz
I reckon Dealz is the reason behind a lot of peoples Flex Bowls every night - because it plays a big part in mine 🤣 So a large part of my nightbowl sweets and treats are bought here!

Rice cake bars, pombear crisps

John west tuna - often do 3 large cans for 3euro

Pepsi max - 4 cans for 1.50 - absolute barg 😉

Holland and Barret/Full of Beans(local health store)

Both can be quite expensive but Holland and Barret is great for sales - like their buy 1 get one for a cent sale that they run every now and again is brilliant! When this is on I pick up a bottle of sweet freedom choc shot, goji berries, Apple cidre Vinegar and 1kg tub of meridian peanut butter. Anything else bought in these shops is never a need always a want 😉 Protein bars etc.

Meat varies for me, my local butcher does the best steak around and you know me I love my meat so i'm lucky to have such easy access to great steak at a great price! My chicken fillets I normally get from Scallons food factory where you can buy in bulk and they work out around a euro each or less depending on size. Every couple of weeks i'll put in a turkey burger order with Kerrigans or else Dublin meat company and ill normally order a few extra bits from them while im at it 😜, Kerrigans chicken burgers are to die for and their steak is fab! Dublin meat company do really good cajun turkey steaks which id highly recommend if placing an order!

So that's all I think anyway guys, its hard to put a price on what I spend each week on food as you know yourself some weeks you need more than others! Some weeks I need meat, others i don't need any etc!
One thing i have been working on though lately is sticking to one shopping trip per week, I had an awful habit of popping in just 'cause' and spending another small fortune on stuff I really didn't need! Now when we do our shop on a Sunday that's us done for breakfast lunches and dinners for the week. Best feeling ever having a house full of food on a Sunday night 😅 Who doesn't love the look of a full fridge 🐷

Any questions as always just ask, on macros of any of the above, flavors to try etc! 

Thanks for having a read 💓

Happy Shopping,

Pops x

Fakeaway - Sizzling Beef in Black Pepper Sauce

This dish is up there in my top 2 own creation Fakeaways - Along with my Chicken Satay 😋 I only came up with the recipe a few weeks back, and like I said on my Instagram that night boy did I blow my own trumpet after it! 📯📯 It didn't even need any tweaking, just somehow turned out fab on the first go! To my taste buds anyway! It's got a good spicy kick to it so adjust the recipe as you please! Don't leave the amount of ingredients put you off, 30 mins max is all it will take to make, and worth every minute, promise!! A great one to make at the weekend if your the type that finds it hard to stay clear of the Chinese! Once you give this a go you will never look back and you will have it whipped up quicker than the delivery guy can make it to your door 🏃

So lets get cracking.....

Serves 1 -

Beef of Choice - I use Aldi's Beef Medallions and cut them into strips
As many veggies as you like - The more the merrier 🌈 Onions and peppers are my daily staple! But I always have at least 3 different veggies at dinner so whatever else is in the fridge, carrots, green beans, broccoli, red cabbage, white cabbage, peas etc.

Start by frying off your Veggies - I don't like my beef over done so I allow the veggies to soften first for a couple of minutes while I get the sauce ready

Below is what you need

1/2 tsp chili
1/2 ts ginger
1 crushed garlic clove/garlic seasoning/grauales etc
3 tsp soy sauce
3 tsp oyster sauce
1 tsp worcester sauce
1 tsp stevia sweetener
1/2 beef stock cube

As much or as little black peppercorns as you like - I like a lot so a good handful for me 🤗

Add all the above into a cup with about 30-60mls of water, 30 if you like a thick sauce (like me) and more if you prefer it a bit more runny!

Add beef to the pan with the softened veggies and brown either side before adding in your sauce! Turn up the heat and watch it sizzle! After 3-4 mins of sizzling fun turn it down to med-low heat until sauce thickens and your veg and beef is cooked to your liking!

I'm an amazing photographer I know 😂 - pictures don't do this dish justice at all, but like I said earlier you have to trust me on this one! I love it with chips🍟 (like most of my meals as most of you will know I need my daily spud dose 😉 ) but try it with noodles or rice, with salad for a lower carb option, in a wrap, it will go with anything!

Cant wait to hear what everyone thinks, as always be sure to let me know! Feel free to use Chicken instead of Beef, just swap the stock cube for a chicken one! Any other questions on ingredients, substitutes etc just shout!

Enjoy Beauts,

Pops x