My Shopping List While Living Abroad
Old Sean’s Extended-Stay Shopping List
The following is my shopping list while living abroad. It contains what I generally purchase when staying in one place for a longer period of time (three days or more). These foods tend to be good for making quick and easy meals anywhere. Additionally, these ingredients can be found in stores, markets and bazaars almost anywhere in the world.
Bear in mind, many of these goods are only bought if I have cooking facilities and/or a refrigerator. Many of them can’t easily be carried to a new location. They may be too heavy, too delicate or require a sealed container.
Many of the foods I purchase while traveling are chosen to be very healthy. I usually eat like glutton at restaurants, so to counterbalance this, the food I make for myself is health-oriented.
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The List
This list is a baseline. Usually, when traveling, I add in many local foods and specialties to my diet. For example, I love getting fresh fruit in Thailand and a morning baguette with my eggs in France.
Generally, I use the app Listonic for my shopping list while living abroad, but virtually any list app works fine.
Dry Goods
- Brown Rice
- Chickpeas
- Lentils
- Dried Beans (pinto, red, black)
- Steal Cut Oatmeal
- Day Bag Snack Foods
- Nuts (almonds, cashews, unsalted peanuts)
- Seaweed
Common Fruits
- Berries (regional: blackberries, blueberries etc.)
- Grapefruit
- Kiwi
- Bananas
- Apples
- Oranges
Common Veggies
- Sweet Pepper
- Asparagus
- Bell Pepper
- Kale
- Snow Peas
- Mushrooms
- Onions
- Bok Choy
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Carrots
- Brussel Sprouts
- Turnip
- Watercress
- Watermelon
- Sweet Potatoes
- Tomatoes
- Garlic
Affordable Meats and Fish Options
- Chicken
- Turkey
- Eggs
- Herring
- Mackerel
- Salmon
- Tuna
Dairy Products (somewhat more expensive in Asia)
- Cottage Cheese
- Yogurt
Extra Ingredients
- Honey
- Sugar Free Peanut Butter
- Chia Seeds
- Sugar Free Almond Butter
Spices and Seasonings
I travel with a sealed pillbox. This lets me pinch out some flavors and sprinkle them on meals and snacks. It also means I don’t have to buy a new set of spices for every place I visit.
- Salt
- Black Pepper
- Paprika
- Cumin
- Ginger
- Mint Leaves
Food Abroad at Home
As a reminder, this list is for food I buy when staying in one location for more than three days. Having food that’s easy to cook makes it easier to make meals regularily. This lowers the expenses of traveling drastically.
I still enjoy eating out while traveling, but I try to make this a treat instead of a habit. For me, this reinforces healthier eating habits.
Extra Food
Often, when it’s time to move on to a new town or city, I sometimes have some food leftover. Perishable, non-travel-friendly food, such as cooked meats, I try to cook and then share with friends, neighbors or hosts before I leave. Foods that travel well, such as nuts and apples , I usually pack as snacks for my upcoming trip.
Foods where are too heavy to bring or I won’t be able to cook, such as large bags of dried rice or unopened jars of peanut butter, I recommend donating. There are usually less-fortunate people in every town and city. Donating food to them is far kinder than simply throwing it away or leaving it forgotten on a shelf.
Overall, eating healthy while making a new city my home is a great way to see the world. Having a healthy shopping list while living abroad simplifies the process for me. I use a different shopping list when rapidly traveling from location to location.
For my On The Road Shopping list, click here
Best regards and excellent trails,
Old Sean
Want to see all the places you could be cooking? Read about them at Leftfade Trails Blog Posts
Favorite Day Bag Option
Most of the food I carry around during my explorations fit in my day bag. My absolute favorite day bag option is the Skog Å Kust DrySåk Waterproof Floating Dry Bag. It’s an incredibly useful piece of equipment since it’s tough, easy to pack, watertight, pickpocket-proof and can be taken swimming. When I’m bringing meals around town, this is the bag which carries them.
Favorite Cooking Gear
While a big part of traveling involves eating out, I still spend a lot of my time cooking my own meals to save money or learn new recipes. My cooking pot of choice is the Fire-Maple 1L Hard Anodized Aluminum Pot. It’s light, sturdy, works for camping and stovetops and cleans easily. I prefer this cooking pot since it’s rather narrow and tall, meaning it easily lays down in my backpack and can be used as a mug in mornings. (I need my morning hot chocolate during treks.) While traveling, I this pot with a pair of screw-together chopsticks I picked up from an Asian market. Overall, it’s an extremely lightweight travel-cooking system.