The Joy of Grocery Shopping

One of my favourite pastimes is grocery shopping. I love to browse aisle after aisle in the supermarkets and admire the odd and pretty packages sitting on the shelves, always seeking out something that may delight or surprise me.

I am the kind who reads ingredients and nutritional label of every can or packet I pick up and would imagine the delicous meals I can create. On my 'off-days', I find myself often wandering back into a supermarket somewhere, seeking new inspiration.

When I was living in London, I always looked forward to my supermarket trips like a kid excited about her zoo outing. I still remember how I spent hours loitering around Sainsbury, Tesco, Marks & Spencer and Harrods (I am only interested in the food section of the last 2 supermarkets), taking my time to examine all the new arrivals, ethnic produce and imported goodies. I get some kind of a high whenever I filled my large trolley and E and I could easily spend over S$300 per trip.

There is one trait which I love a lot of my husband - his generosity. He never batters an eyelid regardless what I put in the basket. He never cares how much it costs, as long as I like it. If I don't know yet because I have never tried the item before, it is always okay to try regardless of price. Actually, his generosity applies to not just food, but in all areas of expenditures. :D

We both love to eat well, so it is not surprising that we love our fridge and freezer full of goodies. He prefers to have lots of ready-cooked food which he can just pop into his mouth whenever he is peckish and fancies a snack. I like that too, but I must admit I love the idea that my freezer stash is bountiful which means I can whip up speedy meals that are wholesome and fun whenever I like.

I do take this fetish a step further. I am a hoarder when it comes to stocking up my pantry. Hence the 15 types of pasta (per my last count) and 9 types of rice (Thai jasmine rice, basmatic rice, Japanese calrose rice, organic wild rice, red rice (also known as forbidden rice), organic shortgrain brown rice, long grain brown rice, risotto and seven grain 'rice'). A bit excessive, I know, but they are really the basic ingredients which can give an otherwise mundane dish the variation it needs.

I also keep fancy stuff like white truffle oil, walnut oil and various types of chutney, curry pastes and sauces so that I can experiment on a whim. Canned goods and dried produce like chopped tomato, tuna in olive oil and dried herbs are excellent store-cupboard standbys which I count on, though I wish I can stock my pantry like Nigella Lawson's as seen in her TV series.

Well, I think I do alright for now as I can easily cook 2 wholesome meals a day for 14 days straight to feed my family of 4 without grocery shop, if I have to. Not that I would really want to do that.

This should answer the interesting queries I received recently from a few new readers of this blog. Many are keen to know how I could do so much with the kids and still find time to grocery shop and cook a varied diet daily, all without a maid. Well, I think with some planning, one can achieve a lot.