A Dietitian’s Foolproof Grocery List for When You Completely Forget to Meal Plan (or Don’t Want to)

In theory, coming up with a list of things you want to eat should be easy. But in practice, I’m always surprised at how much time it can take. Also, meal planning requires you to make—ew—decisions, and sometimes you just can’t decide which slow-cooker dishes you want to try this week. But going into a grocery store without a list is both chaotic energy and a recipe (ha) for disaster. Thankfully, registered dietitian Steph Grasso, RD, recently took to TikTok to share her go-to healthy grocery list guidelines that are perfect if you lack the will to meal prep, or if you just completely forgot to do so.

Her healthy grocery list template

3–4 protein sources3–4 veggies2–3 types of fruit2–3 whole grains2–3 multipurpose dips/spreads/sauces2–3 snack items

What’s great about the template is that you can adapt it to your lifestyle and your individual taste—plus, it’s simple. If you’re looking for the specific things that she chose during the grocery run in the video, her picks include: chicken breast, mild italian sausage, cannellini beans, and canned tuna for protein; asparagus, broccoli, zucchini, and bell peppers for veggies; oranges, bananas, melon, and apples for fruit; brown rice, whole-grain spaghetti, and whole-wheat bread; and cheese, pretzel crisps, and Skyr, an Icelandic yogurt. While she didn’t show exactly which spreads she chose, a few healthy options are these sauces from Trader Joe’s, hummus, and this vegan cream cheese. Now, the only questions is: What will you do with all that reclaimed time?

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