I am on a budget and need help with the grocery/food shopping. Do u have any suggestions?
I tried to buy in bulk, but, what I throw away from being spoiled in the fridge from the bulk buying, kills whatever I thought I saved from buying in bulk.
Do u have any tips when going to the supermarket for food and/or home items?
Does planning or making a shopping list in advance work for u???
It really depends on how you eat each day. If you make something new for dinner each night, buy extra for lunch the next day. If you don’t eat breakfast, don’t buy cereal. If you tend to eat out at lunch, don’t buy lunch meats like turkey and ham.
This is a good article that might help:
Sure, we all have our favorites when it comes to brand
name products. The trick is to shave that grocery budget,
without even noticing. Here are a few ideas to save you
money without compromising taste or quality.
1. The baking aisle is a great place to purchase store brands.
Can you really tell the difference between two brands of flour,
sugar, baking soda, or salt? I know I can’t. Even chocolate chips taste similar when baked into a cookie.
2. Buy store brand condiments for use in recipes. You may
be accustomed to a specific ketchup or mustard brand on your hot dog, hamburger, or fries, but a store brand tastes
just the same when used in your favorite meat loaf or
barbeque recipe. The same goes for mayonnaise and oils.
Experiment a little and save big.
Continue with the article here:
http://bargainanimal.com/buyinggrocerystorebrands.html
I make a list of things that I’ve run out of, and a few ideas for menus during the week… but I’ll usually plan meals around what’s on sale when I get there (or check the ads in the newspapers) …….. There will usually be a very small area at the end of the meat counter, where meat with an expiration date of that day will be drastically reduced – but you can still freeze it. Or ask the butcher at the grocery store for items with that date’s expiration date. …. Woman’s Day Magazine will have a month’s worth of menus on a calendar in it; and alot of them use a main dish that’s recycled as another main dish a day or 2 later. You might be able to see it on their website. All of their recipes are cost-conscious too. …. Farmers’ markets usually have better produce, and at cheaper prices … Try not to go to the store more than once a week:) You’ll just buy things you don’t really need when you’re there:)
put down the fork!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
buy meat in bigger pieces – whole chickens are much cheaper than parts. Cut them up yourself. A pork loin is usually less per pound than pork chops and you can cut them as think as you want.
But also cut down on your meat and eat more vegetables – they’re cheaper and healthier.
Shop produce stands, farmers markets or specialty markets for better vegetables at cheaper prices ( the Asian and Persian markets near me have much better produce for less money than the big chains).
Watch you dates and freeze things before they go bad to save against spoilage.
Buy anything you can in as close to a natural state. it’s cheaper and healthier. It means you have to do more work and know how to cook, but convenience costs a lot.
Make sure you are using coupons. The Sunday paper is full of them, and they can help you save a bundle. Also, look in the store ads for triple coupon day and things on sale. If you do a little online research before you shop, you can save money on practically everything.
For budget shopping buying in bulk only works for Dry goods and canned goods but only a few weeks at a time and no longer.
1 clip coupons and check different grocery stores for the best deals and pick 1-2 stores to do that weeks shopping from. Or see if you have an Aldi’s in your area with 100$ you can do 2 weeks worth of shopping if you get only WHAT you need instead of buying what you THINK you need. And unfortunatly they dont accept coupons since its so low cost already.
2 Stock up on pastas, rice, canned soups and veggies, and if you do get roasts make then big enough to get at lest 2-3 dinners out of them. And yes once cooked they can be frozen again. Buy ground turkey or ground chicken instead of grnd beef all the time. Both have great benefits to cooking and are low in fat.
3 Cut out all takeout dinners to 1 per week or at most 1 per 2 weeks. Making dinner at home 1 saves you money, and 2 you get time to spend with your family.
I do have my own business but I still budget shop for both family and my shop. I clip coupons watch the grocery store ads and shop quite often for my family at Aldi;s I reccomend though not buying alot of produce unless your lucky enough to get there when they have a fresh truck bringing in a good load. Other wise its alot of hit and miss and spoilage which in turns means lost money.
Be smart about your shopping and it will last you for a life time.Good luck and if theres more questions Im here if you wanna ask.
Planning works. For meats and poultry, check out the websites of your local markets for weekly sales. Supermarkets tend to have excellent sales on meats. Buy what is on sale and freeze it.
Some veggies must be fresh (onions, potatoes, salad stuff), but many frozen veggies are good and retain much of their nutritional value (sometimes more than the slightly stale “fresh” stuff we get in the market). Frozen veggies are inexpensive.
Roast whole chickens, then make a hearty soup with the leftover bones and meats. Add some beans to fill it out. Tip: Put the chicken remains in a ziplock bag in the freezer if you don’t want to make soup right away. You can save up a couple of bags before making a big batch of soup.
Flexibility is the key. Instead of shopping on impulse for whatever you are in the mood for, shop for what is on sale, then plan your meals around it.
i cant take $20 and go to the store and make a HUGE pot of chilli to feed my family for a week!