What's in my fridge?
Have you ever just stood in front of the fridge, door open, staring at its contents as if, at any moment, a magical feast could appear?
Me, too.
This is a sign of uninspiring-fridgitis and it’s running rife in kitchens all over the world.
So, how can you deck out your fridge to send your tastebuds into a frenzy? Read on to find out how I do it.
Healthy Fridge Hacks
Alright, the soggy veg at the bottom of the crisper and the 5-year-old tub of whatever-the-hell-that-was-once stops now.
One of the most common reasons my clients find it tricky to eat well long-term is actually quite simple - they’re just not inspired. You can have all the motivation in the world but it can die pretty quickly if you aren’t inspired.
It’s similar to when you have a wardrobe full of clothes, but “nothing to wear”.
This is how I make my fridge contents appealing:
Buy yummy stuff. Sounds simple but if you are all about grapes, or berries or peppers….put them in your fridge. Don’t restrict yourself from eating fresh foods if you really like them! Love bananas but someone told you they’re high in sugar? Stuff them, and eat the bananas.
Eye level. Keep all your convenient, appealing foods at eye level so they’re the first thing you see when you open the fridge.
Keep it colourful. We eat with our eyes first and our mouths second. Aim for a rainbow in the fridge.
Prepare goodness. Have some yummy things ready to go in the fridge that require little to no effort to make it to your mouth.
Hard boiled eggs
Chopped up vegies in a jar with hummus at the bottom
Chia seed puddings
Avocado chocolate mousse
Cut up fruit pots
Yoghurt with berries
Just like our pantry staples, I try to keep my fridge staples fairly wholefood based (that means with as little processing as possible or necessary). So, that also means I often need to keep things as fresh as I can for as long as I can (I’m a once-a-week shopper and, often, we go to the farmers market every other week…meaning I gotta keep things fresh for a fortnight!).
Here are some tips:
Herbs. Keep them upright with stalks in water in jars in the fridge. Simply put, treat them like flowers. Same goes for asparagus! If space is an issue, just keep them wrapped in some damp paper towel.
Celery & carrots. Feel like your veggie stick and hummus snack is just too hard because it means you need to wash and cut the veg? Keep them fresh by chopping them up and keeping them in airtight containers covered in water. I replace the water every 2-3 days but prepping in bulk always saves me time and inspires me to eat well.
Bananas. These buggers ripen stuff sooo quickly. So, don’t keep them near the avocadoes (or do, depending on where your ‘cados are at!).
Swag Bags. I have these and yes, they do keep things so fresh, especially if I prep in advance (like chopping florets of cauliflower or broccoli). I don’t use them all the time because I do prefer to be able to clearly see what I have in the fridge…but do they work? Oh yes.
Want to know exactly what my staples are and make sure your fridge is stocked with the key things I recommend for a balanced diet? Download my pantry checklist for free here. There’s also a bunch of tips and specific product recommendations in my eBook, The Healthy Cart.
Gemma is Australia's "Real Talk" Nutritionist helping Australians achieve healthier, sustainable modern lifestyles while cutting through the BS we are surrounded by on a daily basis. She has a Bachelor of Health Science (Nutritional Medicine) and a Bachelor of Arts (Communications), so she's more than capable when it comes to health and explaining the geek-speak in your terms. Gemma has naturopathic training, which means she takes into account all of the puzzle pieces that make up our health – our history, diet, lifestyle, emotional health, physical health, vitality. Gemma practises the “non-diet” diet approach, where focus is on whole food nutrition and happy and healthy relationships with food.