Hello people! Now that COVID-19 and #socialdistancing is trending we are trying to make only one shopping trip per week and keeping the fridge stocked well so that we can be responsible adults.

If you know me, you know that I cringe at the sight of a poorly organized fridge (I am thinking of you #Todd! and my #Mamá!). Now that I have my own home and can control the fridge (thanks #thehubs for putting up with my OCD tendencies for some things), I will!

First we focus on what is inside the fridge:

Drink essentials:

• Filtered water (though I am starting to like the taste of tap water with ice)
• #thehubs coke cherry zero (or is it cherry Coke Zero?) and mini-cans of ginger ale for me (in case I am feeling sick to my stomach)
• A few cans of coconut water (refreshing and a nice pick me up with lots of ice during a day when I need a drink with body)
• Sparkling water (If it is flavored then I prefer lime or grapefruit, my absolute favorite non-flavored sparkling water is The Mountain Valley that comes in a big green glass bottle) for when you are tired of plain water and of course to make my cocktails
• Random drinks that we bought at specialty stores. Currently there are some mango drinks, Gatorade (because #thehubs was convinced he needed more electrolytes for his shoulder pain/spasms), a canned English tea
• Milk: Usually 8 oz packages of almond milk for me(because it mixed with protein shakes and is also less calories and lighter for overnight oats and cereal). Because of COVID-19 we also got regular milk and #thehubs got Strawberry milk (as a special dessert snack).
• An assortment of alcoholic beverages (1. We don’t drink like we used to 2. They stay in the fridge just in case).

Produce (Welcome to my Joytalk which is basically like a TEDtalk but not as cool: The grocery stores still have fresh produce…so buy it! you know it is better and healthier for you. Don’t start eating like crap just because there is a pandemic…get the good stuff now…because there may come a day when you can’t get it!)

• Green onions (I slice them immediately and place in a plastic container with a paper towel on the bottom, keeps them fresh for at least a week)
• Limes!!! As I was growing up I don’t even remember my mother ever using a lemon or buying a lemon…not sure if it is a thing as a Mexican-American…but we don’t usually use lemon (unless the recipe calls for it). Also limes for my cocktails.
• Sometimes parsley or cilantro
• Bell peppers (usually red and orange)
• Two or three different types of fruit (whatever I feel like). This week it was all about mangos and sumo oranges. Could be plums/peaches/apricots or apples or strawberries/blueberries. Usually something that is in season.
• Green stuff (asparagus, salad spring mix, broccoli, or green beans)
• Avocados from Mexico! (they just happen to be from Mexico, also did anyone sing out that jingle from the commercials when you read that?!)
• Mushrooms (not this week as we had some last week).
• Today, artichokes were on sale, so I got one.  I will have to google search to figure out what to do with it. 🙂

Condiment essentials:

• Sriracha (this pairs very well with ketchup and mayo to make a chicken nugget dipping sauce)
• Cholula
• Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
• Soy sauce
• Liquid Amino acids (from when I was doing an extreme nutrition plan that made me miserable and didn’t work for me)
• Ketchup
• tabasco
• Green hot sauce
• Whole grain dijon mustard ( I used to hate mustard but really like whole grain mustard now)
• BBQ sauce (varied)
• Pizza sauce
• crappy grated parmesan cheese in a bottle
• prepared horseradish
• Dion’s ranch (because I refuse to buy any other ranch #sorrynotsorry)
• pickles
• real mayo (If you like Miracle Whip, we probably aren’t friends)
• Kewpie mayo (bought this for a very specific egg sandwich recipe and never made the recipe but use this Japanese popular mayo all the time and love it)
• syrup (#thehubs picks this out)
• Various jams/spreads

Dairy:

• Always EGGS! They are a great source of protein and can be made a dozen ways and are easy to make and last a long while. I LOVE EGGS!
• An assortment of cheese: string cheese (because it is a great snack!), little Tillamook cheddar blocks (because Costco had them and I could not resist and also they are a great snack), shredded cheese (ok I know they have anti caking agent but also I am lazy), sliced cheese (currently white cheddar and also American), small block of muenster, small block of an aged gouda (I ALSO LOVE CHEESE), a small leftover piece of parmesan (for grating over dishes and especially for pasta), individual cottage cheese cups (#thehubs likes these as a snack, they go well with pepper and potato chips)
• All the BUTTER! Unsalted butter, Salted butter, cultured salted butter, Ghee (because I am trying out some Indian food recipes), butter from different brands    I love butter: 1) it is great for eggs 2)I need it for baking 3) I love it on toast. There is nothing worse than running out of butter in the middle of baking/cooking!
• At least one of the following: creme fraiche/sour cream/yogurt/mexican crema

Miscellaneous Snacks

• peanut butter (specifically the grind your own honey roasted PB from Whole Foods)
• hummus
• random refrigerated snack item from the store

Meat

• Usually we have mostly chicken (but we can’t seem to get to the store before they run out of chicken)
• Currently it is all beef. Skirt steak (for tacos/fajitas), stew meat (guess for what! A stew), steak.
• Don’t worry, we have frozen pork and other meat in our freezer…saving that for a sadder tomorrow.

There you have it. Now you know what we will be eating this week (don’t worry, we also have bread and stuff but normally don’t keep that in the fridge). 

NEXT: How I organize it.

It all depends on what layout of fridge you have. We have the top split door fridge with freezer door on the bottom. Here is what I decided to keep in the fridge:

Top shelf: drinks and eggs

Next two shelves down (front and center, the most obvious that you need to eat): some drinks, dairy, leftovers/lunches; peanut butter, foods I need to use up before they go bad **the shelve on the middle right can be moved so we made space for our water pitcher and milk/tall drinks there

Bottom: One drawer for fruits/citrus, one drawer for the more serious vegetables

Most bottom drawer: divided into cheese and meat section

Left door, top: BUTTER

Left door, middle: Condiments

Left door, bottom: More condiments (we are crazy about condiments!)

Right door, top: mini-liquor bottles and maraschino cherries and chocolate bars

Right door, middle: almond milks, random drinks, some condiments

Right door, bottom: very tall drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic), where cilantro lives

I would like to hear from you! What do you always have in your fridge? What do you dislike from my fridge? How many drinks do two people really need? Type in the comments below 🙂