Going to the market these days is like sitting through the latest Scream movie. every corner holds some kind of horror, whether shortages or exceptionally high prices. how can home chefs navigate through these tough times.
I wondered this as I shopped at my local Stop & Shop today. There were certain shortages, not as bad as what's in other stores but still sobering.Many groceries such as those in Pennsylvania have reported empty shelves in the cat food section, frozen food and drinks and meat department. People may gave to wait a long time to get such basic staples as orange juice an ground beef. Luckily store CEOs predict that these shortages will be taken care of by early February - a little over two weeks from now. These current problems are caused by losing workers to the Omiron variant along with weather snarls. Heavy snows have screwed up truck routes from vital ports to stores across the country.It's not as bad as last year's where even Lunchables and Ben and Jerry's ice cream were at short order. The other bad part are the prices. Stop & Shop is selling a large twenty-four pack of Bounty Paper towels for a whopping $21. It's good if you can stretch them out for two to three months however these last much less in messy households. In this sense it pays to shop around for them if you have the time. It's worse in the cities where lamb chops can go for almost as high as fifty dollars and tea for ten dollars a box.
What to do? Plan and plot.It's actually not too early to plan out your veggie and berry garden. There may be shortages this summer thanks to the unpredictability of both the Covid virus and the supply chain.You won't have to worry if you have most of your ingredients in the backyard. start researching what works best in your area of the county and also what kind of soil is in your yard. If it's sandy then think about growing asparagus, strawberries and lettuce. A hardier soil can yield potatoes and turnips along with melons, kohlrabi and turnips. Fruit trees are a bit trickier because the harvest comes a few years after planting. You could forage , especially for wild apples, plums peaches and blackberries. What about meats? Go for the cheapest but also look into where you can get bargains. Aldi and its' sister store Lidl where even the pricey grass fed beef is a few dollars less than what other grocery stores offer. Even their seafood is not above twenty dollars. Also think about going meatless, using beans or pasta to sub for meat based dinners.
It is a scary time to shop. However smart planning can help ease the horror of grocery shopping right now. It's just knowing how to get the best deals and shopping around until you get them.
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