Grocery Lists | Imamother

rosezee

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 10:22 am

Does anyone actually know how to make a proper grocery list?

It’s easier to go to the store and see what I need in the aisles, but then I forget some things

If I write a list, I go to the store and get what’s on the list, but come home and realize I forgot to add to my list something I needed!

This is one major inconvenience in my life I can’t figure out.

I’m pretty organized otherwise.
Groceries and me, are like math to some people.

Any tips?

groovy1224

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 10:24 am

If I just sit down to make a grocery list, then I will inevitably forget things. But I keep a list in my drawer and add items as I realize I am out of them, and then before I go to the store will add the items I know I'll need for upcoming meals and shabbos and that sort of thing.

Having a running list definitely helps with forgetting things.

TravelHearter

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 10:35 am

Whenever I think of something I need to get I write it down in the ‘Notes’ folder on my phone. My phone is usually around and if I open the fridge and realize there are only a few eggs left etc I just grab my phone and write it down or tell someone to remind me to. Not foolproof but my list usually does contain everything I need.
I also try to buy extra to have around just in case I forget (2 things of mayo, cheese in the freezer, a bunch of tuna cans, etc.)
One last thing I do- I try to buy BEFORE I run out. If I know it takes me a few days to finish half a case of eggs, or I don’t have a lot of flour left, I try to write it down at that point, that way even if I don’t go shopping immediately I’m still fine.
One last thing, before I go shopping for shabbos I go through all the meals etc and try to think about all the things I’ll need.
If you shop by going down aisles and looking around, you’re likely to spend so much more money...

Last edited by TravelHearter on Wed, Sep 02 2020, 10:38 am; edited 1 time in total

Rubber Ducky

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 10:38 am

You can create a "Recurring Shopping List" — a list for items frequently purchased at a particular store. Add to it whenever you realize you forgot something. If you use this in conjunction with a weekly shopping list, it will help keep your shopping more organized.

Note: Recurring Shopping Lists and Weekly Shopping Lists are both features of The Balabusta's Daily Organizer, a Jewish women's day planner which I co-produce, and it's advertised right here on Imamother.

Link: http://balabusta.us/index.html The Balabusta's Daily Organizer

Saralle

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 11:20 am

I make my menu for the next few days, and make my shopping list along with it. Then I add breakfast and lunch foods (bread, eggs, tuna, fruits, veggies...)
Also, whenever I run out of anything I write it on a list on the fridge. And when I make my shopping list, I add whatever is on that list as well.

mha3484

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 11:22 am

I have two parts to my list:

The first part is our regular staples for breakfast/lunch like fruit, milk, bread, eggs, cream cheese, yogurt, wraps nut butter, as well as school snacks. We usually go through that stuff fast enough that a grocery trip always requires it.

The second part is ingredients for dinner. I use a paid service for my weekly menu that gives me the grocery list but you can also do it yourself. Sit down one night a week, decide what you are cooking and then write down all the ingredients you need. Each week is different. I just take my list and check it off as I go through the store.

zaq

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 11:43 am

I start with the week's sale flyer, paging through it and marking the items of interest. Since the pantry is small and it's easy to see what's in stock, I have a fairly good handle on what we need. I try to replace things before we run out, and also try to buy on sale rather than full price. Soon as I see we're low on mustard or have one tube of toothpaste left in the closet, my eyes are peeled for a sale. It may take a few weeks, but when it goes on sale, I pounce, buying in quantity when practical. Some things never go on sale, so I replace those shortly before we run out.

I keep a little wall pocket with scratch paper in the kitchen, and during the week as anything occurs to me, let's say we're getting company for Shabbos so I know we'll need an extra chicken or cholent meat, or I want to make something that requires an ingredient I don't have, that'll get jotted down. To this list I add the sale flyer items.

There are certain items that are cheaper or more readily available elsewhere than my main grocery. Most days I make a to-do list based on geography. For example, if I know there's a branch of a particular store near where I'm going to be on any given day, I make a list of things I like to buy there.

I'm not fond of recurring shopping lists because for me they're a waste. Most grocery items go on sale roughly every six weeks, so that's about as often as I buy them. I need no reminder to buy milk, and it's no big deal to write it on my list every time.

ChanieMommy

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 12:21 pm

In general, I don't do grocery lists. I mostly remember what I need.
But when I plan for a series shabbat or yom-tov meals, I first do the meal planning and then convert it into grocery lists. specially for pessach shopping...

I try to eat before I go grocery shopping, because otherwise I buy all kinds of weird stuff just because I'm hungry...

MiracleMama

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 12:35 pm

Once upon a time when I had a lot more free time on my hands, I created a customized shopping list that was divided by category and had all the most common items listed and I kept it on my fridge with a magnet and circled/ checked everything I was running low on or out of and then took the list shopping with me (and there were blanks to add unusual items not listed). It worked really well but life got hectic and I just stopped. If you had the time to set it up it really helps.

shmosmom

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 12:36 pm

Two things that have worked for us:
Keep a paper on the fridge. Anytime something gets used up, cream cheese, plastic goods, any spice, or something is running low, we add it to the list. You need to be strict about adding the brown sugar you finished even if you're in middle of baking, otherwise next time there won't be brown sugar when you need it. Before leaving to the grocery, make sure you have enough chicken, potatoes, rice or whatever else you use often in your meals, and if it's not enough for the week, add to list. I also check my grocery's weekly email for sale items, and add the ones I want to the list as well.
Other option: text your spouse or other person in your household that helps with grocery shopping every item that you need. When either of you do the shopping, they open the chat and get everything on it.
When you menu plan, add whatever you may need to the list.
It's really not that complicated once you get used to it.

Rutabaga

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 12:40 pm

I keep a magnetic pad on the fridge so that if I notice that I'm running low on something I can add it to the list immediately. Some things I buy automatically as soon as I open a new container, such as mayo or vinegar or ketchup or anything else that's pantry stable and we go through quickly. Certain things I keep on hand at all times, such as tomato sauce or pasta or rice or chicken broth and I'll stock up when they go on sale.

Otherwise, I sit down once a week and plan out my meals and write up a grocery list. I organize my list by section in the store: dry goods, meat/chicken/fish, produce, dairy, frozen, bakery, etc. That way it's easier to make sure I get what I need. Even so I will go up and down each aisle to see if anything is on sale and I can adjust my menu accordingly.

Some things I don't even bother to put on the list because I buy them automatically each week, like milk or eggs.

ra_mom

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 2:46 pm

Make a menu for the week, listing breakfast, lunch, supper ingredients, shabbos meals, and snacks for all members of the household, and buy accordingly.

Meat, chicken, fish, cheese, eggs, milk, yogurts, bread, pasta, oatmeal, cereal, tuna, rice, potatoes, vegetables for 7 days of lunches and suppers, fruits for every day.

Snack bags and drinks for the week.

Condiments, tomato sauce, onions, garlic, spices and baking ingredients.

Frozen pizza for Friday afternoons or motzei shabbos and frozen French fries for emergency side dish.

Ingredients for dips and challah.

Paper goods, bags, foil, soaps, detergents and cleaning products.

Keep a list on the fridge and jot down every time you see something that you're running low on. Use that list plus your menu as the base for making the shopping list.

mig100

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 3:24 pm

rosezee wrote:

I can relate.

Me and grocery lists just don't get along well.

MiriFr

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 3:48 pm

I’m the queeeeen of lists!
My shopping list is a google doc that I share with my husband. We can each access and edit it on our phones. When we remember an item, we just open the doc and add. When we go shopping together (literally once every 5 yrs or something), we take 2 different shopping carts, go around the store on our own, and delete the item as it’s added to the cart.

silverlining3

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 4:20 pm

Whenever I see I'm low on a product I jot it down on my list. The night before I go to the grocery, (I go in the morning ) I open fridge, cabinets, and write whatever I may have forgotten. I then rewrite according to grocery aisle, like that, even I missed writing something, I pass, well usually, every aisle.
Sometimes, when writing according to the aisles I remind myself of more things.

leaf

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 4:25 pm

I keep a running list on a magnetic pad on the fridge and before leaving the house I check to see how much milk I have left, etc.
But my real trick for not forgetting things when I shop is that I DON'T actually look at my list when shopping. I just go up and down the aisles and only look at the list right before I'm about to get on line to checkout. Inevitabily there are one or two things that I need to go back for before getting on line, but if I were to blindly follow my lists while shopping I would probably miss a lot more...

avrahamama

Wed, Sep 02 2020, 4:26 pm

I have a list for each store. Target, KRM, etc. In my notebook that I leave on the kitchen table. Everyone adds to it as we go.

If I'm about to do a big shopping I'll make a list for just that store and do a mental image of each aisle. So for example at krm the entryway is bread/bakery and then meat, then paper goods aisle, and so on.