PCOS Grocery List Staples to Reverse Insulin Resistance

Just because you have PCOS doesn't mean you need to cut carbs or follow a restrictive meal plan.

If every trip to the grocery store feels like a test you're failing, this is for you. You want simple, easy to prep meals that are going to keep you feeling satisfied and actually taste good. You need a PCOS grocery list with pantry staples that are actually foods you already eat and enjoy.

I'm going to show you exactly what you should have stocked in your pantry so you can stop guessing, start healing, and make every meal a step towards supporting your hormones and easy weight loss, instead of feeling like your symptoms control you.

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The Biggest PCOS Myth You Need to Ignore

Let me clear this up right now: you can eat carbs with PCOS. Hands down, one of the biggest misconceptions out there is that PCOS means having no carbs ever. That's not true, and it's not sustainable.

What we actually want to do is optimize our meals to support insulin sensitivity. When you have PCOS, blood sugar balance is one of the most important foundations. Every time your blood sugar spikes, it can cause the ovaries to produce more testosterone. Too much testosterone impairs ovulation, which is obviously not what we want.

So the goal isn't to eliminate carbs. The goal is to choose the right carbs and pair them correctly with protein and fiber to keep your blood sugar stable.

How to Build Every PCOS Friendly Meal

Before we get into your actual PCOS grocery list, you need to understand how to plate your food. This is what's going to help you build out your pantry staples. And guess what? You get to pick most of these staples. I'm giving you categories and you pick what you actually like to eat.

Here's the formula for every meal:

Half your plate non-starchy veggies.

This is your fiber source, and fiber is non-negotiable for PCOS. It slows down glucose absorption and helps eliminate excess hormones.

Quarter of your plate protein.

We're aiming for 30 grams of protein minimum at every meal. Protein stabilizes blood sugar and reduces cravings.

Quarter of your plate fat and carbs.

When you have insulin resistance, focus more on low glycemic carbs. These are carbs that won't spike your blood sugar and send you into that crash-and-crave cycle.

Higher glycemic carbs are things like pasta, bread, and white rice. Lower glycemic options are things like berries, squashes, and resistant starches. Keep in mind that bread is a type of carb, but not all carbs are bread. Fruit is a carb. Rice is a carb. Quinoa is a carb. Carbs are good. We need carbs to support ovulation.

When we're dealing with insulin resistance, we want to sensitize our cells to insulin. That means focusing on lower glycemic options. We're looking for rolling hills in our blood sugar, not peaks and valleys. As you increase your sensitivity to insulin and make improvements, you can start adding more of those higher glycemic carbs back in.

Check out this post on PCOS Breakfast Ideas for some simple, blood sugar friendly recipe options.

Creating Your PCOS Grocery List

Low Glycemic Carbs

Let's start with the carbs section of your PCOS grocery list. These are the options that will keep your blood sugar stable while still giving your body the energy it needs.

Potatoes (Cooked and Cooled)

Potatoes are a starch, and once they've been cooked and fully cooled, they become what's called a resistant starch. This lowers the glycemic index and feeds the good gut bacteria in your gut, becoming a prebiotic.

My hack: chop them up, put them on a tray, bake them with some avocado oil or tallow or coconut oil with seasonings, then let them cool. Put them in your fridge and you can just pull them out whenever you need them. You naturally have your resistant starch ready to go.

Berries

Berries are a lower glycemic fruit and they're packed with antioxidants. They can get pricey when you buy them fresh, so frozen organic berries are a great option. Berries are definitely one of the fruits I always buy organic.

Kiwi

Another fruit that sits in the lower glycemic category is kiwi. It's also really high in vitamin C, which supports your adrenal glands and stress response.

Squashes

Pumpkin, acorn, and spaghetti squash are all better low glycemic options. They're filling, versatile, and easy to prep ahead.

Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes can be an okay option for some people, but it will depend on you individually. Everybody responds to things a little bit differently, so pay attention to how your body feels after eating them.

Protein Sources

You're looking at 30 grams of protein minimum for breakfast and honestly for all your meals. Here's what to keep stocked.

Eggs

I'm an egg person, but if you're not an egg person, you don't have to eat what I eat. You can eat whatever you want. You can have dinner for breakfast. Nobody said you have to have breakfast foods for breakfast. You can have leftovers from dinner.

Chicken Sausage

One of my favorite brands is Amylu chicken sausage to have with breakfast and eggs. They have really good ingredients.

Animal Proteins

Fish, any animal meat, like chicken, beef, turkey, pork. Whatever you like and can afford. These should be staples in your freezer or fridge.

Dairy Options

Greek yogurt and cottage cheese are both high in protein and versatile. You can use them for breakfast, snacks, or even in cooking.

Non-Starchy Veggies and Fiber

This is the biggest category on your PCOS grocery list because fiber is absolutely critical for hormone balance. Fiber helps eliminate excess estrogen and keeps your blood sugar stable.

My biggest hack when it comes to making sure you have enough fiber: batch cook your veggies. Get a bunch of veggies, chop them up, put some avocado oil or tallow on them with an amazing seasoning, and roast them. Pull them out, and there you go, you have veggies you can just add to every meal.

One of my favorites for this is from Redmond Sea Salt. It's called the everything seasoning or versatile seasoning. I put that stuff on everything. Chicken, fish, potatoes, broccoli, Brussels sprouts. It is fabulous. That is one of the most necessary pantry staples.

Another one I like buying is broccoli slaw, which is chopped up broccoli with cabbage and carrots all shredded. I will just use it as a base and add a type of dressing with some meat, with some fat, add a carb, and there you go. I'm all about simplicity.

Veggies to stock up on:

• Broccoli

• Brussels sprouts

• Spinach

• Kale

• Cauliflower

• Bell peppers

• Zucchini

• Asparagus

• Green beans

• Cabbage

Mineral-Rich Food Staples

Minerals are the spark plugs to every function in your body. When you have PCOS, making sure you're getting enough minerals is critical for hormone production, stress response, and insulin sensitivity.

Redmond Sea Salt

I'm not going to use mineral-depleted table salt. Redmond sea salt is packed with trace minerals and it tastes better. Use it on everything.

Coconut Water

This is high in potassium, which is your stress mineral. Potassium also helps sensitize your cells to thyroid hormone. I'm not recommending supplementing with it, but bringing in foods high in it is really helpful.

Bone Broth

Bone broth is mineral-rich, supports gut health, and counts toward your protein intake. Keep some on hand to sip on or use in cooking.

Dates

Dates are really mineral-rich. They're not low glycemic, but they are high in fiber, so it does kind of work in your favor. One or two here and there is a great option.

Teas

Teas are phenomenal and we kind of forget how mineral-rich herbs are. If you're someone who hates drinking water but you also want to support your hormones and your overall health, teas are the answer. You're killing multiple birds with one stone.

Spearmint tea is very helpful at lowering androgens, so that can be helpful when you have PCOS. Nettle tea is super high in potassium.

One thing to mention: tea bags are very high in microplastics and you're heating them, so you're basically drinking microplastics, which is disgusting. Just get loose leaf tea and get a metal strainer.

Seed Cycling for PCOS

Seed cycling has actually been shown to help support PCOS. Strangely enough, of all the things they've finally done studies on, this does impact PCOS positively.

Here's what you need for seed cycling:

• Pumpkin seeds

• Flax seeds

• Sesame seeds

• Sunflower seeds

From your period to ovulation: one tablespoon each of pumpkin and flax seeds.

From ovulation to your period: one tablespoon each of sesame and sunflower seeds.

Buy them whole, buy them organic, grind them before you eat them. They go rancid a lot quicker once you grind them. I wouldn't eat them without grinding them because then you're not cracking that shell and getting all of the nutrients.

You can sprinkle them on anything - yogurt, smoothies, salads. I typically make seed cycling energy balls (my recipe here).

To make this even easier, I love to order seeds from Funk It Wellness. They've created pre-measured seed blends for each phase of your cycle. They grind all the seeds right before shipping to you, so you get all the freshness without any prep work.

Use code LEAH15 to get a discount on seeds at Funk it Wellness!

Smart Snack Options

When you're dealing with PCOS and trying to balance blood sugar, you cannot skip snacks. Going too long without eating will crash your blood sugar and spike cortisol.

Homemade Protein Balls

Make these ahead and keep them in your fridge or freezer. You can control exactly what goes in them.

Hard-Boiled Eggs

Batch cook these at the beginning of the week. They're portable, high in protein, and keep you satisfied.

Homemade Energy Balls

Similar to protein balls, but you can use your seed cycling seeds in these too. Here’s my seed cycling energy ball recipe again.

Nuts

Keep a variety on hand. Just watch portions because they're calorie-dense, but they're great for stabilizing blood sugar between meals.

Baking and Cooking Staples

If you want to make something and you're trying to keep things low glycemic, regular flour is high glycemic. Here are some better swaps:

Cassava Flour

This is one of my favorites. It's cheaper than coconut flour and almond flour, and it's very versatile. I use it for so many substitutions.

Tapioca Starch

Another one to keep on hand because you can make most things you're looking for with this.

Seasonings

Seasonings are going to make things not boring. Make sure you're seasoning all your food. Garlic powder, onion powder, and honestly that Redmond Sea Salt everything seasoning I mentioned, you can literally put that on everything. It is so good.

I know you probably think Redmond Sea Salt is sponsoring this post. They're not. I just really like their salt and their seasonings are truly that good!

What NOT to Have on Your PCOS Grocery List

Just as important as what you should buy is what to avoid or swap out to support your hormones and prevent PCOS symptoms.

Sugar Bomb Sauces

Do you know how much sugar is in regular ketchup? There's about four grams of sugar in a tablespoon of ketchup. And when you have ketchup, how much do you actually use? Probably not just a tablespoon.

It's crazy how much sugar is in things like barbecue sauce and most dressings. Either make your own dressings or look for brands that don't have added sugar. Also please don't use ones sweetened with sucralose, that's a topic for another day, but just don't.

Primal Kitchen is a great brand that has no sugar added barbecue sauce and all sorts of dressings. They're a great place to start!

Your PCOS Grocery List Shopping Strategy

Every time you're going grocery shopping, just look through these categories and check them off:

• Low glycemic carbs

• Protein sources

• Fiber sources (non-starchy veggies)

• Mineral-rich staples

• Healthy fats

• Smart snacks

• Sugar-free sauces and seasonings

Batch cooking is going to save you so much time. Cook your potatoes, cook your veggies, even batch cook your protein. I am a batch cooker. I find it much easier than meal prepping because I don't know about you, but I don't want to eat the same thing every single day for lunch and dinner. With batch cooking, you can easily mix and match throughout the week.

You can balance your blood sugar with PCOS without restricting calories or cutting carbs. 

It's all about setting yourself up for success with blood sugar balance so you feel nourished and you feel better. Then you can hit the rest of your goals. If you don't have these kinds of pantry staples on hand, you're not going to be able to do it.

Then you're going to get hangry and you're not going to be able to reach your goals. Having this PCOS grocery list means you're always prepared to make a hormone-supporting meal, even when you're tired, stressed, or short on time!

Stop skipping breakfast. Stop restricting carbs completely. Stop buying sugar-loaded sauces and thinking they won't affect your hormones. Start stocking your pantry with real food that supports insulin sensitivity, provides the nutrients your body needs, and actually tastes good.

If you covered these bases and you’ve got all these staples ready to go, you are already off to a great start to supporting and taking care of your hormones!

Want PCOS friendly recipes? You need my Cycle Syncing Recipe Ebook!

This hormone-friendly recipe ebook is packed with tasty gluten and dairy-free recipes (including desserts) tailored to each phase of your cycle so you know exactly what to eat and when.