I don’t know about you, but I cringe when I see the total at the grocery store every week.
How, I ask myself, does shopping for a family of 4 cost me almost $300 every week?
I can’t say for sure, but I’m going to assume a lot of you spend around the same amount. We don’t splurge a lot, either. It’s just…what things cost.
But as I’m seeing prices rise even more, and paying $15 for 18 eggs seems more and more ludicrous, I want to take a moment to write down some tips for cutting down costs at the store.
These are just ideas. With kids, it’s sometimes hard to eat frugally (berries for example — the insane cost of berries!). And allergies and food sensitivities also make it hard to stay on a budget, but maybe you can take one tip away and save a few bucks, right?
Make a list when you go shopping. Don’t stray from the list. Buy only what you wrote down that you need. Impulse buys add up quickly.
Don’t bring your kids shopping with you, or order online. Every single time I bring them, my bill is exponentially larger at checkout. Because…either we deal with a tantrum, or we finish our chore by buying into those apple juice bottles that have characters as the spout.
Buy less meat. I plan two meals each week that have meat in it. Chicken is cheaper than beef!
Frozen foods are cheaper. Our veggie consumption is all frozen, except cucumbers. I also buy frozen fish like tilapia and salmon.
Buy in-season fruit. I had to stop buying berries all-together. The amount we were paying for blueberries and strawberries was outrageous, and honestly, they would be moldy in a few days, or a hidden berry was moldy in the bunch. In the winter, I stick to apples. In the summer, I will plan on buying berries at the farm. I just cannot justify spending $25 on berries every week.
Don’t purchase individual snack packs. Out of convenience, I was buying snack bags to pack for snacks, but I have slowed that significantly. Instead, I’m using re-usable snack containers and pouring the snacks into that from larger bags. This will save you quite a bit of money.
Bake or make your own treats. If you have time, baking or making your own sweets and treats will save you a lot of money. And you’ll be putting less artificial stuff in them, too.
Eat your leftovers. This one is SO hard for me sometimes. In general, I don’t love leftovers. Some meals don’t reheat very well. If I can, I try to use leftovers in a different way. Like we’ll make tacos, and I’ll re-use the taco meat to make taco quesadillas. If I have a bag of meatballs, one meal it’s for spaghetti and one meal it’s for meatball subs.
Don’t buy pre-chopped anything! It’s so convenient to buy pre-chopped veggies and fruits, but holy moly are you paying for that convenience big time. Take the time to chop up your own food. Get the kids involved in chopping. They’re obsessed with chopping things and love to feel helpful.
Stock up. Buying in bulk is cheaper. If you have the space, stock up on things when they are on sale. This can be a tough one, since it involves planning. Also, I find it to be a pain to thaw out frozen meat. But my mom used to do this trick to save money.
Buy a rotisserie chicken. I love this trick. We don’t usually buy the rotisserie chicken to eat by itself, but we chop it up and use it inside other dishes like pad thai or chicken salad. Rotisserie chickens are affordable and can often be stretched to be the protein in two meals.
Cook what’s already in your pantry and freezer. Food goes bad! Cook what you have already.
Instead of pre-made meals or pizzas, make your own version. I’m thinking specifically of bagel bites. I usually do have emergency bagel bites in the freezer for nights that I’m totally spent, but instead, make English-muffin pizzas. Those convenient foods that you have in the freezer should not be go-to stuff every week. Think of them as treats or when you go out and have a babysitter.
Cook yummy meals with cheaper ingredients. Sometimes this is hard, but most of the time, you can make kid-friendly meals that are on the cheap. Cheap ingredients that last a long time and can go in lots of meals include: pasta, rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, beans, and tomato sauce.
Do you already do some of these tips?
The rising cost of things is a struggle with a lot of people right now. Eggs used to be the staple food that I could buy for cheap and use in so many dishes. And now, it’s a staple food that costs more. I’m not willing to cut out eggs, and I think a lot of people feel that way about certain other items they’re buying, too.
I’m also struggling right now with the reliance on big corporations like Walmart, Target, and Amazon to fulfill some of my grocery needs. It’s so easy and convenient to use these stores. Some of my goals for the summer are to try and cut down my reliance on these stores for some things. I don’t think I can stop going to them entirely, but I don’t have to do all of my shopping there.
Summer goals:
Start a vegetable garden. This might completely tank, (because we have so many bunnies in our neighborhood), but I want to try to grow zucchini, tomatoes, and carrots.
Buy from farm stands. I have a few local favorites, and I want to go to them more so I support them, and get my berries in.
Look into a meat share. I am not sure if this will happen this year, but I’d like to look into a meat share. This also might not be a cheaper option, but again, would support local business.
Tell me how you save money and what your goals are in the comments!
Also, anything you don’t eat, please compost!!
<3
Megan
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