Here's a list of pantry items that are either recommended by me or by other South Beach dieters. I will include processed and unprocessed foods. Unprocessed is better but processed is easier to manage in terms of getting correct nutrition info. I will also list next to the food item if I have a brand preference.
Pantry Items -- This is a list of my favorite pantry items. I will mark Phase 2 items in fuchsia. You can go ahead and purchase Phase 2 items ahead of time but don't eat it until you get past Phase 1.
Meat/Protein:
Turkey bacon
Turkey/chicken breakfast sausages
Eggs (Try to buy vegetarian fed and/or cage free eggs. I but a lot of Eggland's Best.)
Tofu
Turkey
Chicken
Chicken
Ground turkey/chicken (I prefer chicken for some items and turkey for others. I like Jennie-O turkey and Smart Chicken brand for chicken.)
Shrimp ( E-Z peel IQF shrimp.)
Fish
Tuna (Whole Foods brand Tongol Albacore tuna.)
(Notice that this list is missing a lot of red meat. I don't eat much red meat and the first time I did South Beach, I didn't eat it at all.)
Vegetables:
Lettuce/salad mixes (avoid iceberg, it doesn't provide enough nutrients)
Cucumbers
Avocados
Broccoli
Asparagus
Onions
Endamame (Whole Foods shelled endamame)
Broccoli
Asparagus
Onions
Endamame (Whole Foods shelled endamame)
Snap peas (Costco sells the 2-lb bags.)
Sweet potatoes **
Summer squash
Mushrooms
Garlic
Shallots
Green beans
Artichokes
Beans:
Dried or Canned (chili is a great item to eat in Phase )
Fruit**:
Berries (Freeze a bunch during the summer to use through the winter.)
Melons
Bananas
Apples
Tomatoes
Dairy:
Milk (Buy local milk. I get mine in the glass half gallon bottles.)
Plain fat free yogurt (I like Fage Greek Yogurt)
Soy milk, no sugar added
Cheese, low fat (My favorite are 2% cheddar and Laughing Cow brand Swiss cheese)
Nuts & Seeds:
Cashews
Almonds
Pistachios
Pine Nuts
Nut mix (Planters makes a mix called Nut-rition.)
Peanut Butter, natural (Adam's brand)
Flax seed or flax meal
Almond flour (basically ground almonds)
Grains**:
Irish oatmeal
Oatmeal (This is not on the list of recommended but I found an instant oatmeal that is actually pretty good for you. It's Better Oats brand and it's the Oat Fit line.
Cereal, whole grain (Uncle Sam's, Hi-Lo vanilla almond, shredded wheat, Special K Protein)
Flours, whole grain such as whole wheat and buckwheat
Whole wheat/whole grain pasta
Wheat berries
Brown rice
Brown basmati rice
Quinoa
Misc:
Van’s multi-grain waffles**
Whole wheat pita**
Whole grain breads, no sugar added**
Unsweetened cocoa powder
Sugar free chocolate syrup
Sugar free pancake syrup (Walden Farms makes a line of calorie free condiments)
Sugar free flavored syrups (Torani brand)
Mayo -- look for no sugar and no high fructose corn syrup
Spreads (Brummel & Brown or Smart Balance brand)
Salad dressings -- Look for no sugar and containing olive oil or canola oil or make your own.
Turkey pepperoni
Hummus (Sabra and Tribe are two supermarket brands that I like. I prefer getting it from a local restaurant but it's not always convenient.)
Jell-O, sugar free
Jams, no sugar added**
Candy (Werther's sugar free and Russell Stover Turtles are really good but limit to only when you're craving some candy. I once had a whole bag of Russell Stover Turtles and had a nice stomach ache.)
Sugar substitutes (I've tried Stevia but I think Splenda tastes the best. This is really tough for me because I love honey. I use to eat it with Greek yogurt every morning.)
Here are some meals ideas to get starting. If you're like me, you can't eat based on a meal plan. I like to be able to look at a list of options. So if it's breakfast time, I refer back to my breakfast items list and pick something from the list. The items below are ideas for Phase 1. I didn't prepare one for Phase 2 since it is a lot easier to do.
Breakfast:
- Turkey Sausage
- Scrambled eggs
- Omelet
- Almond Pancakes
- Coffee w/ creamer & splenda
- Herbal Teas
- Green Tea
- Quiche (no crust)
- Hard-Boiled Eggs
- Flax Muffins
Lunch/Dinner:
- Salads w/ Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Turkey Chili
- Chicken Paprikash
- Turkey Vegetable Soup
- Tuna salad on Lettuce
- Rotisserie Chicken & steamed veggies
- Boca burger w/ 2 % cheese
- Tom Yum Soup
- Satay Chicken & Cucumber salad
- Steamed Fish
- Grilled Salmon w/ steamed veggies
- mussels with a mayo-siracha sauce
- chicken/turkey with sugar free barbeque sauce
- Eggplant lasagna (use eggplant slices instead of noodles)
- Tuna & White Bean Salad
- Tandoori Chicken/Turkey
- Turkey Sausage w/ sugar-free tomato sauce and spaghetti squash
- Black Bean Soup
- Salmon Burgers
- Lettuce wraps
Snack:
- Nuts
- Turkey Jerky
- Cucumbers or Sugar Snap Peas w/ Hummus
- Cheese Cubes
- Turkey Ham Cubes
- Jello (Sugar Free)
- Avocado w/ splenda
- Fudge pops, sugar free
- Deviled eggs
- Endamame
- Laughing Cow cheese (light)
- Hot Chocolate/Chocolate Milk made with 1% milk and sugar free Chocolate
Veggies/Sides (no carrots, corn, potatoes):
- Cauliflower (mashed, “rice”, steamed)
- Broccoli
- Spinach
- Brussel Sprouts
- Cabbage
- Asparagus
- Green Beans
- Brown Rice/Brown Basmati
- Curried Garbanzos
