Food and Groceries Guide
Here we share with you our top finds that are easily accessible at your local supermarket, or right here at our convenient locations.
The Basics
Apple Cider Vinegar: It is important to get a strong vinegar that is opaque and has plenty of the mother left in it, meaning there is
sediment at the bottom of the bottle. We stock Coral Tree vinegar at both our Miramar and Central offices.
Eggs: Organic eggs from Common Sense Organics or the FRENZ organic eggs from Countdown.
Vegetables and Fruit: Organic fruit and vegetables are preferred wherever possible, however, if you are unable to eat completely organic, then we recommend following the Clean 15 and Dirty Dozen guidelines for the produce with the highest and lowest pesticide content. Organic produce is available at Commonsense Organics, Moore Wilsons Fresh, various supermarkets (with lesser selection) and the Hill St Farmers Market on Saturdays from 8:30-12:30.
Condiments
Mayonnaise: Home-made mayonanaise is preferable. Try this Avocado-Mayonaise recipe from GAPS Diet Journey or Sabato whole egg mayo from Moore Wilsons Fresh.
Aioli: Home-made aioli is ideal. As a retail outlet option, try Sabato Garlic Aioli.
Salad Dressings: Ready-made salad dressings are usually filled with rancid oils or refined vegetable oils, sugar, malt or wine vinegar and preservatives. These things encourage inflammation while stressing the body in numerous ways. Some homemade examples of gluten, dairy and sugar free recipes that fit into a primal or GAPS diet are listed here to get you started:
Homemade salad dressing – Cultured Palate
Garlic and Herb Vinaigrette – Real Food 101
Tomato Sauce: The sugar content on most retailed tomato sauces is very high up to a level of 40%. So it best to either avoid using tomato sauce or make your own. This recipe from Nourished and Nurtured includes honey, but this can be left out or replaced with birch xylitol.
Homemade Tomato Sauce – Nourished and Nurtured
Dairy Products
Yoghurt: Look for yoghurts that contain only milk and cultures. Biofarm acidophilus yoghurt can be found at most supermarkets in Wellington.
Kefir: Kefir is similar to yoghurt but is cultured at room temperature and can be made from home. Kefir grains (the starter culture) can be purchased seasonally from Deb Gully of Nature Foods in Kilbirnie, or online from Natural Abundance.
Raw Cheese: Le Marche Francois on Thorndon Quay stock a large variety of imported soft and hard raw cheese. You can also find them at the city market on Sunday mornings. Raw cheese is also available from Moore Wilsons Fresh, or The Pantry at Kirkcaldie and Stains.
Raw Milk and Cream: Wind River Organics offer 100% organic raw milk and cream. Their milk is unpasteurised, unhomogenised with no cream skimmed off with beneficial bacteria and naturally occurring food enzymes, which make digestion easier. They have an easy order system where you buy online, and you collect from a local delivery site, find more information here: https://www.windriverorganics.co.nz/
Fats and Oils
Coconut Oil: Coconut oil Can be found at numerous supermarkets around Wellington. Commonsense Organics has available the biggest range of brands. You can also find it at Moore Wilsons and various New Worlds. Remember to look for cold-pressed virgin coconut oil.
Duck Fat: Moore Wilsons Fresh.
Ghee: Moore Wilsons Fresh and at Commonsense Organics when available. Did you know ghee is very simple to make at home? See our recipe section to learn how!
Lard: Commonsense Organics stock lard from Havoc Pork. It can also be found at Moore Wilsons.
Olive Oil: Look for a quality cold-pressed virgin oil in a dark bottle.
Sunflower Oil: This is a relatively heat sensitive oil and it is likely to be rancid unless the oil is cold pressed and stored in a dark light-proof bottle. This oil is usually only recommended in cases where better options aren’t available or when people are salicylate sensitive and the animal fats aren’t available to them.
Fermented Foods
Sauerkraut: Did you know that we stock the Be Nourished range of cultured vegetables at our Miramar practice? These can also be found at Commonsense Organics and Moore Wilsons Fresh. Cultured vegetables can also be easily made at home. See Youtube for some good tutorials on how.
Coconut Kefir: A therapeutic probiotic drink made from coconut water and kefir cultures. Stocked at both Commonsense Organics and Moore Wilsons Fresh. You can also purchase it online directly from the kefir company at http://www.thekefircompany.co.nz/.
Kombucha: Kombucha can be purchased from both Commonsense Organics or Moore Wilsons. Look for varieties kept in the refrigerated section as these have not been heat treated and still contain all of their probiotic goodness. Kombucha can also easily be made at home using a SCOBY.
Flours
Coconut Flour: Available from Commonsense Organics.
Almond Flour: Available at Commonsense Organics.
Brown Rice Flour: Available at various New World and Countdown stores throughout Wellington, Commonsense Organics or Moore Wilsons Grocery.
Chestnut Flour: Available at The Mediterranean Food Warehouse.
Meat products
Pork and Bacon: We recommend Havoc Pork stocked at Commonsense Organics as this is free range and fed non-GMO feed.
Chicken and Beef: Free range organic is ideal for both chicken and beef, which is available at Commonsense Organics. However for those unable to fit organic into the budget, look for non-organic free range options at your supermarket.
Bones: Organic chicken frames used for making mineral rich bone broth are available in the freezer section of Commonsense Organics. They also occasionally have in stock organic beef bones. Moore Wilsons Fresh also stocks free-range, non-organic chicken frames.
Offal: Commonsense Organics stocks organic chicken livers, lambs fry, beef kidneys and heart when available. Moore Wilsons Fresh also stock free-range, non-organic lambs fry.
Salt and Spices
Love Thy Curry: There are a range of flavours available at Moore Wilsons Fresh.
Jonathan’s Spice Mixes: Available at Moore Wilsons Fresh. Check the ingredients as some of the mixes contain sugar.
Celtic Sea salt: (Grey colour) is preferred to regular white sea salt or iodised refined salt. Organic sea salt is available at Commonsense Organics.
Natural Sweeteners (discuss your options with your practitioner)
Birch xylitol: this is preferable to regular xylitol which is typically made from corn. This can be substituted into recipes in place of honey or sugar. Birch xylitol can be purchased from our Miramar or Central offices.
Honey: It is best to buy Unpasteurised (raw) honey so that it maintains all of it’s beneficial natural properties. This is available from various health food stores. If it doesn’t say raw/unpasteurised on the label then it most likely has been heat treated in the pasteurisation process.
Stevia: This is sweetener is available in three forms;
- Whole leaves
- Powder
- Liquid extract
Stevia is available at all health stores and in various Countdowns and New World supermarkets throughout Wellington.
Snacks
Home made snacks from our Recipes section should meet most of your snack needs while providing you with less processed and more fresh snacks. Where these aren’t enough, there are a few further ideas below;
- Muso green pea chips – Commonsense Organics
- Muso Mungbean chips – Commonsense Organics
- Ceres Rice crackers – Commonsense Organics, Chaffers New World, Moore Wilsons Fresh
- Rice wafers – available at supermarkets and health stores
- Nuts and Seeds unsalted (you can add your own himalayan or celtic salt) and unroasted – brazil, pine nuts, almonds, pistachio, hazelnut, cashews, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds.
- Celery sticks with aoili or mayo
- Carrot with aoili or mayo
- Dried kale chips using oven or dehydrator – available ready made at Commonsense Organics
- Boiled egg preferably with a soft yolk
- Smoothies – nutrient packed drinks or snacks will fill you up nicely. Organic fruit and veges are ideal where available.
- Vegetable Juices – Organic fruit and veges are ideal where available.
If there is any further information you require, please feel let us know. Call Be Vital Chiropractic to find out more about how we can help you live your best life!