Starchy foods

Store cupboard starchy foods are good to buy in bulk, especially if they are on offer and you have room.

If you can take advantage of a multi-buy offer, you could keep different types of starchy foods in the cupboard
  • Starchy foods don’t usually come in pre-packed portion sizes, so you can use as much or as little as you need
  • Most starchy foods (except bread) have a long best before date, so you don’t have to use them all up straight away
  • Potatoes will keep for a couple of weeks in a dark cupboard and can be used in lots of different meals

Buying wholegrain pasta and plain pasta in the same multibuy offer is a good way to introduce yourself to wholegrain pasta.

  • You can mix white and wholegrain pasta together, so that it’s not such a big change
  • You can try the same with rice, but different types of rice might have different cooking times
  • World food aisles in the supermarket often have different types of starchy foods, like noodles, polenta and couscous. Some of them can be swapped for your usual starchy foods
  • You can get lots of frozen starchy foods as well, mainly potato products.
  • If you choose these, check that they can be oven cooked, toasted or boiled, rather than fried and check the label to choose options which are lower in fat.

Porridge, smooth porridge oats or cornmeal are healthy choices for breakfast.

Boxed breakfast cereals can also be a good choice for the start of the day
  • If you are buying boxed breakfast cereals, choosing options which are lower in salt and sugar is important
  • Breakfast cereal can also be a good place to get fibre, so choose a cereal that is higher in fibre too

Eating more wholegrain foods

How to eat more wholegrain foods.

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