One thing about an ADHD brain is that getting a plan out of our heads and onto paper (or the notes app on our phones) provides immediate relief. It allows our busy minds to take a breather, and for a brief moment, we can bask in a sense of peace knowing we have a roadmap to reference when our thoughts get swirly.
This absolutely applies when it comes to cooking dinner. But unfortunately, none of this eases the mind-numbing pain of making a grocery list.
The following is part confessional, part professional advice. I’m writing this as a pledge to myself—and as a plan for you. Hold me accountable, and I’ll share what I’ve learned. Deal?
After almost 20 years of personal cheffing and nearly a decade as a mom and our family’s primary meal-maker, I can tell you with absolute certainty that cooking will be easier, your grocery budget will shrink, and your sanity will be, well, saner if you sketch out the bones of a plan before hitting the grocery store.
Duh. Obviously. Says every neurotypical person in the room. But as your dopamine-seeking self may have noticed, making a list for future meals provides neither urgency nor novelty which can make it feel infinitely harder than simply winging it with your cart and whims down the aisle.
The first step is admitting you have a problem, right? In this case, the issue is that logic and experience continually fail to convince us to sit our butts down, peek into the fridge and pantry, and write out what we need before scrolling through Instacart or chaotically heading to the store on a whim.
But we can break the cycle. At least mostly! We’re not going to white-knuckle our grocery shopping this week; instead, let’s return to my core tenets of being a successful cook with ADHD:
1. Spark Creativity
2. Calm the Chaos
First, I’m giving you permission to take 10-20 minutes to find your cooking inspiration for the week. If you’re thinking, "Catherine, I don’t have time for this," trust me—this will save you so much anguish down the line. Browse a cookbook, scroll through your favorite TikTok creators, search the New York Times app, or check out the Food & Drink tab on Substack.
Jot down some ingredients or recipes that catch your eye and choose at least one dish you’re excited to make this week simply because YOU want to eat it.
Now let’s filter this through real-life practicality:
1. What do you already have? Take inventory of what’s in your fridge and pantry that you can use up. Do a little mental math on the cost of each ingredient, and remind yourself that cooking something delicious instead of letting it go to waste is like getting that money back.
2. What will your family want to eat? There’s hardly anything more crushing than investing time, effort, and money into a meal only to have everyone reject it. If that dream meal you picked at the jump isn’t universally appealing, consider serving the rest of the family some buttered noodles one night while whipping up a smaller portion for yourself and your partner—presumably, they’re not the picky eaters.
3. Get real. Do you have late meetings? Book club? Soccer practice? The first week of school? Get serious about which nights it makes sense to cook dinner, and slot in takeout or make-your-own sandwiches (or more noodles, this time with jarred sauce). We're playing the long game with feeding ourselves well, so why overload and risk burnout?
4. Make the list. There’s no getting around this one. I often bribe myself to do it—whether it’s a dog walk followed by a relaxing moment in the park or promising myself a cookie or a cold IPA once it's done. Sometimes, looming deadlines create the urgency I need to knock it out as a form of productive procrastination. This week, we’re making a list, incorporating two structural strategies that will work for you and support our pillars of sparking creativity and calming chaos.
a. Leave room for inspiration. If you planned to make tortellini soup with kale but see some fresh, on-sale baby spinach, grab that instead! If local peaches are in season, allow yourself that splurge. Think in terms of categories like fruits, proteins, and greens, and let spontaneous inspiration guide you.
b. Organize your list by sections of the store. The first thing I do is write out: produce, dairy, meat/seafood, pantry, freezer. Then, I fill in each section in the order I’ll walk through the grocery store (or scroll through a delivery app). I usually do this on my Notes app, but there are techy app alternatives out there; sometimes I even jot it down in a notebook with a cup of coffee to romanticize this task.
Grocery shopping is a reality of adulthood, and can be a slog even for us food lovers, but there are solutions that can make it more efficient, effective, and—dare I say—fun! This way, you won’t come home with yet another jar of mayo only to forget the eggs (again).
Now go forth, shop, and eat well this week! And please, share your tips in the comments so we can all benefit.
The GET REAL part is so, so key. We are not cooking in a dream world!
Yes! List by section is key or I alway forget something🤦🏻♀️