Shopping List

4 dinners this week + smoothies — week of Monday, August 31

Mexican Street Corn Pasta · 2. Gochujang Butter Noodles with a Crispy Egg · 3. Teriyaki Steak Bowls · 4. Half & Half Lasagna

⚠️ Check the fridge and pantry first. Almost the entire Spices section and most of Sauces & Condiments are verify-don't-rebuy. The Check First section at the bottom lists the specifics.

🥢 Tuesday and Thursday share a pantry. Soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, rice vinegar, brown sugar, sesame seeds, and scallions all get used both nights. One bottle of each covers the week.

Produce

3 ears fresh sweet corn (Night 1) ← last good corn of the year; buy it in the husk and shuck at home
1 large bunch fresh cilantro (Night 1 — ½ cup chopped plus garnish)
3 limes (Night 1 — 2 juiced and zested, 1 for wedges)
1 small head green cabbage (Night 2 — 2 cups shredded, wilts into the sauce)
2 bunches scallions (6 for Night 2 sauce and garnish · the rest over Night 3 bowls)
1 red bell pepper (Night 3 roasting vegetables)
1 head broccoli (Night 3 roasting vegetables)
1 bag carrots (Night 3 roasting vegetables + everyday smoothies)
1 avocado (Night 3 — optional but good)
1 knob fresh ginger, ~2" (Night 3 teriyaki + smoothies)
1 English cucumber (Night 3 quick pickles)
1 head garlic, ~13 cloves (3 Night 1 · 4 Night 2 · 3 Night 3 · 3 Night 4)
1 small yellow onion (Night 4 lasagna, split between both halves)
16 oz baby bella mushrooms (Night 4 lasagna) ← store in a paper bag, not the plastic clamshell — it has to survive to Saturday
1 large tub fresh spinach, 16–20 oz (10 oz for Night 4 lasagna + everyday smoothies)
1 jalapeño (Night 1 topping — optional if you have pickled)

Dairy & Cheese

Butter, 6 tbsp (2 tbsp Night 1 corn · 4 tbsp Night 2 sauce) ← likely have
1 dozen eggs, 5 needed (4 crispy-fried Night 2 · 1 optional in Night 4 ricotta)
8 oz cotija, crumbled (Night 1 — ½ cup into the sauce plus more for the table) — queso fresco or Mexican blend substitutes
8 oz sour cream (Night 1 — ⅓ cup into the sauce, rest for the table)
15 oz whole-milk ricotta (Night 4 lasagna)
16 oz shredded mozzarella (Night 4 lasagna)
1 wedge Parmesan, ~½ cup grated (Night 4 lasagna)

Meat & Seafood

½ lb fresh Mexican chorizo, casings removed (Night 1 meat plates) — shredded rotisserie chicken substitutes fine
½ lb ground pork (Night 2 meat bowls)
1 lb flank steak or sirloin (Night 3 meat bowls) — freeze on arrival, move to fridge Wednesday night
1 lb ground beef (Night 4 lasagna) — freeze on arrival, move to fridge Friday morning

Pantry & Dry Goods

12 oz cavatappi, rotini, or shells (Night 1)
1 lb spaghetti, udon, or fresh ramen-style noodles (Night 2)
1 lb lasagna noodles, regular or no-boil (Night 4)
2 cups jasmine or short-grain rice (Night 3) ← likely have
1 (14 oz) block extra-firm tofu (Night 3, vegetarian side)
1 jar gochujang, 3 tbsp needed (Night 2) ← left over from an earlier week — check before buying
¼ cup mirin (Night 3 teriyaki) — substitute 3 tbsp rice vinegar + 1 tbsp sugar if you'd rather not buy it
¼ cup sake (Night 3 teriyaki) — water works, the sauce is still good
1 (15 oz) can black beans (Night 1 — optional, bulks up the vegetarian portion)
1 jar Truff tomato sauce, or a good marinara (Night 4 lasagna)
Toasted sesame seeds (Nights 2 and 3) ← likely have
Mayonnaise, ⅓ cup (Night 1 sauce) ← likely have
Honey, 1 tbsp (Night 2 sauce) ← likely have
Brown sugar, 4 tbsp (3 tbsp Night 3 teriyaki + 1 tbsp Night 2 if using it instead of honey) ← likely have
Sugar, 1–2 tbsp (Night 3 pickled cucumbers, plus 1 tbsp if you're substituting for mirin) ← likely have
Cornstarch, 1 tsp (Night 3 sauce slurry) ← likely have

Sauces & Condiments

Soy sauce, ~10 tbsp (2 tbsp Night 2 + ½ cup Night 3 teriyaki) ← check the bottle — the teriyaki alone takes half a cup
Toasted sesame oil, 2 tbsp (1 tbsp Night 2 + 1 tbsp Night 3 vegetables) ← likely have
Rice vinegar, ~2½ tbsp (1 tsp Night 2 + 2 tbsp Night 3 cucumbers, plus 3 tbsp more if substituting for mirin) ← likely have
Olive oil, 3 tbsp (1 tbsp Night 1 · 2 tbsp Night 4 lasagna) ← likely have
Neutral or avocado oil (Night 2 eggs, Night 3 tofu and steak) ← likely have
Hot sauce — Cholula or Tajín (Night 1 table) ← likely have
Chili crisp (Night 2 table, adults) ← likely have

Spices & Seasonings

Chili powder, 1 tsp (Night 1) ← likely have
Ground cumin, ½ tsp (Night 1) ← likely have
Smoked paprika, ¼ tsp (Night 1) ← likely have
Dried oregano, 1 tsp (Night 4 lasagna) ← likely have
Dried basil, 1 tsp (Night 4 lasagna) ← likely have
Garlic powder, ½ tsp (Night 4 beef half) ← likely have
Kosher salt, black pepper, flaky finishing salt ← likely have

Frozen Items

2 bags frozen mixed berry blend (everyday smoothies)
1 bag frozen fire-roasted corn — backup only, if the fresh corn looks done for the season
1 bag frozen edamame (Night 2 — optional, extra protein on the vegetarian bowls)

Optional Toppings

Pickled jalapeños (Night 1)
Extra cotija and cilantro for the table (the 8 oz block and the bunch cover it)
Extra gochujang or chili crisp (Night 2, adults)

Check First — likely already in the house

Gochujang — 3 tbsp needed, and there's very likely an open tub from an earlier Korean night. Check before buying a second.
Soy sauce — this week wants about ⅔ cup total. The single most likely thing to run out mid-recipe.
Entire Spices section — chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, oregano, basil, garlic powder. Verify rather than re-buy.
Sesame oil, rice vinegar, sesame seeds, mayonnaise, honey, brown sugar, cornstarch, olive oil — verify.
Rice — 2 cups dry. Jasmine or short-grain; any long-grain white works in a pinch.
Mirin and sake — both are Night 3 only and both have workable substitutes noted above. Skip the trip if you don't stock them.
Butter — only 6 tbsp this week, a light one.
Garlic and onions — count before re-buying; the week wants 13 cloves and 1 yellow onion.
Parmesan — a leftover wedge may cover the ½ cup.
Garden zucchini 🥒 — nothing calls for it, but if it's still producing it roasts happily alongside Night 3's vegetables.
Last week's BBQ rub, BBQ sauce, evaporated milk, and Ritz — not needed this week, all shelf-stable.

Verified against all 4 recipes ✓

Walked Mexican Street Corn Pasta, Gochujang Butter Noodles with Crispy Egg, Teriyaki Steak Bowls, and Half & Half Lasagna line by line, twice — once more after the salad came off.

Combined: Soy sauce across Nights 2 and 3 (2 tbsp + ½ cup → ~10 tbsp). Toasted sesame oil across Nights 2 and 3 (1 + 1 tbsp). Rice vinegar across Nights 2 and 3 (1 tsp + 2 tbsp, more if it's standing in for mirin). Brown sugar across Nights 2 and 3 (1 + 3 tbsp). Scallions across Nights 2 and 3 (6 + garnish → 2 bunches). Sesame seeds across Nights 2 and 3. Butter across Nights 1 and 2 (2 + 4 tbsp → 6 tbsp). Garlic across all four nights (3+4+3+3 → 13 cloves, 1 head). Eggs across Nights 2 and 4 (4 + 1 → 5, one dozen). Olive oil across two uses (1 tbsp + 2 tbsp). Ginger covers Night 3 and the smoothies from one knob; carrots cover Night 3's roasting pan and the smoothies from one bag; spinach covers the lasagna's 10 oz and the smoothies from one large tub.

Kept separate on purpose: three different pastas on three different nights — cavatappi Monday, spaghetti or udon Tuesday, lasagna noodles Saturday. All needed. Cotija and Parmesan are not interchangeable. Neutral oil rather than olive for the Night 2 eggs and Night 3 tofu — olive smokes at the heat both need. The ½ lb chorizo and ½ lb ground pork each stay in their own pan so the vegetarian base is never compromised.

Added beyond the recipes as written: 1 can black beans, optional, to bulk up Night 1's vegetarian portion — Mexican Street Corn Pasta lists it as an afterthought and it's worth doing. Frozen edamame, optional, for the same reason on Night 2, where the egg is otherwise the only protein on her bowl. Extra spinach beyond the lasagna's 10 oz to cover smoothies. Broccoli, bell pepper, and carrots chosen specifically for Night 3's "2 cups mixed roasted vegetables" — deliberately not the mushrooms the recipe also suggests, so Saturday's 16 oz of baby bellas stay untouched.

Dropped when the Chopped Italian Salad came off the plan: 2 romaine hearts, radicchio, cherry tomatoes, 1 English cucumber, 1 red onion, 4 oz provolone, 3 oz salami, chickpeas, pepperoncini, olives, red wine vinegar, Dijon, and red pepper flakes. Parmesan fell from ¾ cup to ½, garlic from 14 cloves to 13, olive oil from ~½ cup to 3 tbsp, and dried oregano from 1½ tsp to 1 tsp as a result. Nothing dropped in error.

Dropped from the first draft of this week: tostada shells, 3 extra ears of corn, cabbage-slaw limes, chipotles in adobo, 2 cans of black beans, the second bunch of cilantro, a second cotija portion, the larger sour cream, coconut milk, Thai red curry paste, green beans, Thai basil, chicken thighs, peanuts, and the extra yellow onions — all belonged to the tostadas and the curry, both cut. Nothing dropped in error.

Timing reminders

🌽 Char the corn Monday — single layer in a hot cast-iron pan, two batches if crowded, and leave it alone 3–4 minutes.
💧 Reserve 1½ cups pasta water Tuesday before draining. The whole sauce depends on it.
❄️ Freeze the flank steak and the ground beef on arrival. Steak to the fridge Wednesday night, beef Friday morning.
🧊 Press the tofu Thursday, 15–30 minutes, while the teriyaki simmers and the vegetables roast.
🥒 Thursday's pickled cucumbers go first — 15 minutes minimum in the vinegar and sugar.
🍄 Mushrooms into a paper bag the moment you get home. Plastic clamshells turn baby bellas slimy in four days; paper gets you ten.
🌙 Assemble the lasagna Friday night and refrigerate. Saturday becomes a 50-minute meal and the layers set better.

Smoothies

Everyday: frozen mixed berries + spinach + carrots
Turmeric and coconut milk from earlier weeks keep well — check before re-buying. (The Night 3 ginger knob covers smoothie ginger too.)