Color, convenience and food

Mondays are trash day at the dome, and my usual fridge cleaning opportunity. I was motivated when I got home last week. I had gone to the grocery store over the weekend but wasn’t thinking about color at the time. I found a large stack of white: tofu, shiratake noodles and rice cakes; and an equal array of mushrooms: shiitake, woodear, enoki...brown, white and beige. The dairy section was also white: yogurt and labne, white cheddar, blue and Parmesan cheeses. There was a variety of greens: a salad mix, basil, cilantro and mint, dandelion greens and broccolini. Red was scarce: in the drawer a tomato and a pepper, red miso paste, some old salsa... could the miso count as orange instead? Odds and ends included a bag of avocados, lemons and limes, garlic and green onions, blueberries, cheddar cheese and pickled ginger. It was an odd array. I haven’t ordered a meal kit or produce box in weeks. I was craving mushroom stew when I chose the Koreans Plaza to shop that week. 

The freezer was a little better: berries and mixed veggies, frozen meats, potstickers and broccoli, shredded cheese and gluten free bread. 

The topic of meal kits came up again last week. I’m surprised it’s such a hot-button issue. to me it seems like an obvious choice - I choose convenience first. I’ve had a really good time experimenting with different meal kits and comparing them based on quality, cost, serving size, eaze of preparation, and variety of food choices or special diets. 

At no point was I looking for a cheaper option than meal planning and shopping for myself. Convenience comes at a cost. 

For me the benefits outweigh the cost difference.  Inwould up wasting far less food, cooking for myself more often, more satisfied with the meals that I consumed and the leftovers that I had available to me, I also found making better choices easy when I had to buy food out in the world. Often lunch becomes a quick snack, a small salad, vegetable or juice. Knowing there is a well-balanced dinner waiting for me to prepare at home make lunch less crucial, and having leftovers for breakfast is sweet! 

I read more into the program in the south for senior citizens. It was mentioned as a meal kit approach, but what I found documented looked more like a food pantry box being delivered. I like the boxes were created with specific nutrient and calorie requirements, ensuring that the recipients got something like 50% of a standard monthly nutritional allowance for an adult. The boxes would have canned vegetables meats grains fruits vegetables and juices. More shelf stable items would be included than fresh. I thought it sounds like a pretty cool pilot program and the target audience of senior citizens is right. Those folks often find it more difficult to get to the store. It exist as a pilot program and there is no plan for it to completely replace cash assistance in the form of ebt cards (food stamps).

I also really enjoyed the rest of the article “The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food.”