At the beginning of 2018, I decided to sit down and take a look at my finances. Both a good and bad decision. I saw how much money I was spending on random grocery store trips throughout the month. I decided to end that by building a meal plan, shopping at Costco for bulk items, and switching back to shopping at Aldi. After a few shopping trips since the beginning of the year, I’ve finally narrowed in on my Aldi grocery list for two.
I shopped exclusively at Aldi a few years back when I was living on my own and it was just down the road. Nowadays I have to strategically plan my trip to Aldi during my trip to Costco or the gym. It’s important to note that I get a lot of my staples from Costco that are not included on this grocery list. These items include chicken breasts, frozen mixed vegetables, riced cauliflower, and egg whites. If you don’t have a Costco or Sam’s Club membership, then add these items to the Alid grocery list.
Besides saving money, another benefit of Aldi is their efficiency. The store has a simple layout to easily navigate the aisles – though they can be a little tight if there’s a lot of people. The cashiers quickly ring up your items and then you bag your food. Also, be sure to bring a quarter to use the carts and your own grocery bags.
I’ll be the first to admit that Aldi doesn’t have everything I need all the time. Because I follow IIFYM (flexible dieting), I’ll often seek out specific foods or ingredients that are only sold at some stores. For example, Walden Farms pancake syrup, Joseph’s low-carb tortillas, Light & Fit Greek yogurt, ground chicken, etc. For these items I’ll go to one of two stores, Fresh Thyme or Walmart. Walmart is the next best place in terms of price, if you’re trying to save money.
My Flexible Dieting Aldi Grocery List
- Ground Turkey: This is handy to have for those weekends I don’t have much time (or patience) for meal prepping. Brown in a pan with onions or bell peppers, serve with a side of veggies and rice – done.
- Fit & Active Flatbread Wraps: These are great for homemade flatbread pizzas or using for simple chicken or tuna wraps. And at 90 calories, anyone can get these to fit their macros.
- Fit & Active Frozen Waffles: At 75 calories a waffle, these are perfect for a post-workout breakfast or a pre-workout snack.
- Deli Chicken: For those days you don’t have a lunch packed or evenings you’re just tired from the gym.
- Eggs: I’ve been trying to eat more whole eggs so I’m back to buying them weekly for both myself and boyfriend. I like boiling a few at time and pack them in my lunch for a quick snack.
- Hearts of Romaine: I eat a large salad nearly every night with my dinner, and romaine is the best of the affordable options. Pick up a salad spinner and gallon freezer bags, and you’re set for the week.
- Whole Carrots: As annoying as it may be to peal your own carrots, it saves so much money.
- Bell Peppers: I like bell peppers with hummus for a mid-morning snack and in my salads.
- Cucumber: Another low-calorie, high volume food I like to add to salads or have as a snack with carrots and hummus.
- Shredded Mozzarella Cheese: Mozzarella cheese has the best macros per serving for the amount you get.
- Salsa: Pro-tip – use salsa in place of dressing on your salad to save calories. It’s usually only 5 calories per serving (around 29 grams)! I also use salsa in my breakfast egg frittata muffins.
- Spreadable Cheese Wedges: Perfect for flatbread wraps or quesadillas! One wedge is 25 calories making it easy to track.
- Turkey Bacon: Only 30 calories a slice! Perfect for a breakfast sandwich or breakfast flatbread.
- Green Beans: I always roast green beans and store them in the fridge as a side for my breakfasts during the week.
- Cilantro: $0.69 for extra flavor in salads, stir fries, flat breads, or cilantro lime riced cauliflower.
- Hummus: Pair with veggies for dipping or spread it on a flatbread wrap
- Rice Cakes: I’m still loyal to the Quaker rice cakes because they offer a much wider variety of flavors, but I’ll still grab a few from Aldi.
- Pretzels: These are my go-to evening snack with a tablespoon of peanut butter. They’re also great for dividing up into one-serving snack bags for on-the-go snacking.
Products I Buy As Needed
- 45-calorie bread: I used to purchase the Sara Lee Delightful bread, but found Aldi carries their own version.
- Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk: I use almond milk in my coffee in place of creamer to save calories and usually buy one half-gallon per month.
- Quick Oats: One huge container runs about $2.00 and will last us a good couple of months.
- Canned beans and tomatoes: I only need these when I’m making a slower cooker recipes, and you can’t beat the price of canned food at Alid.
- Cereal: I like topping Greek yogurt with cereal or having in the evenings as a sweet treat with a bit of protein powder.
- 100 calorie snack packs: Pick and choose carefully here as Aldi has many of these to choose from. For me, I like to grab items that I can easily throw into my purse for fast snacking or that are good for bringing to the movies or a friend’s house. I like the almonds, chocolate crisps, and cereal bars.
A Few Recipes
- Ground Turkey Meatballs with Zucchini Noodles
- Ground Turkey
- Quick Oats
- Egg (or egg whites)
- seasoning of choice from the pantry: garlic powder, Italian seasoning, Parmesan cheese, buffalo sauce)
- Zucchini
- Chicken Wrap
- Deli chicken
- Fit & Active Flat Bread
- Spreadable Cheese Wedge
- Spinach
I highly recommend giving Aldi a shot if you’re looking to save money. I leave with a grocery receipt 20% to 30% less than my local grocery store. The only thing that would make shopping at Aldi better was if there was one closer to my house! So Aldi, hit me up so we can talk about adding a store near me!
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