Taking the fear out of trying new ingredients

We get stuck eating the same things over and over…

It is very easy to walk around the grocery store and only see the things that we’re used to. We walk through the produce aisle and see carrots, onions, kale, spinach but we miss the Chinese long beans, eggplants, and bok choy. We wander through the meat section seeing chicken, beef, and pork but miss the lamb, rabbit, and game hens. It’s even hard to believe that the seafood counter has things other than haddock, salmon, mussels, and lobster. We get stuck eating the same things over and over when there is an abundance of new and exciting ingredients out there for us to try.

It is often nerve-racking buying new ingredients.

It is often nerve-racking buying new ingredients. We’re not sure if we’re are going to like it. We don’t know how to prepare it. And the last thing any of us want is to buy it, and then just let it sit in the fridge or freezer until it’s time to throw it away. Luckily, there is something that we can use to help us understand the ingredient before we buy it. We can know everything we ever wanted to know about that ingredient in seconds. How is that possible you ask?

If you are an adult in Canada there is a 71% chance that you have a smartphone on you all the time. Which means that you have instant access to the internet where ever you are. And that means you can look up any ingredient and in seconds know multiple ways to cook it and other ingredients to pair with it. What it tastes like and even what to look for when buying it.

To some of you, it may seem obvious to use your smartphone to look up ingredients in the grocery store. However, I guarantee that a large percentage of people reading this can’t believe that they have never thought to do that. I’m even willing to bet that the people who have thought to do it haven’t really used it to buy new ingredients that often or at all.

There is no reason for any of us to get stuck buying and eating the same things over and over.

Here is my point. There is no reason for any of us to get stuck buying and eating the same things over and over. Before you say anything, I understand that the offerings at the grocery store are in fact limited to a large extent. But, there are ingredients in every grocery store that you, myself, and most people walk by every day. All I’m saying is that it is worth taking a few seconds to look up an ingredient you have never tried. It may become your new favourite.

The next time you’re in the grocery store take a little extra time and actually look around. Look at the ingredients you have never paid attention to before and if you find one of them interesting, look it up. It’s probably worth trying. There is one thing you have realize about the grocery store. They generally only bring in things that they can sell. So, someone is buying these ingredients that we all walk past. What are we missing? I know I want to find out. Don’t you?