To keep my groceries organized so I know what I have and don't have, I have been doing the following:
I placed my groceries into plastic containers that I can pull out like drawers to check so nothing gets forgotten on the shelves. It also helps me to keep rotating my stock.
I designated certain rows or shelves in cabinets or even the freezer for distinct items, like the soup, vegetable, or canned fruit row, meat drawer in the freezer or the quick meal shelf.
I create a list of what potential meals I already have in the house and distinguish lunch or dinner meals so any of us can check it quickly know what's available and what we have to make a meal.
Example of list:
Lunch- peanut butter, tuna, soups, grilled cheese, ravioli, veggie burgers, ramen noodles, lunch meat/burritos.
Dinner- 6 hamburger patties, 8 drumsticks, 2 lbs. ground beef, turkey breast, pizza dough, and 2 lb. ham
This helps me to rotate my foods and not let something sit in the freezer while I continue to purchase meals.
It seems like our grocery bill (family of 2) is growing out of control. We shop off a list and get only what is needed, generic mostly, and also split our time between the surplus store, farm market, discount stores and our regular grocery. We've also gotten into a great habit of eating our leftovers and not wasting. However, it all adds up at the check out line!
I love going to the grocery store, just wish someone else would want to pay for it!! Isn't it getting outrageous??
I, like you, go to surplus stores, Dollar General, Save-A-Lot, and the local flea market and farmer's market.
Used to be able to rough figure how much you would spend before you left the house, but not anymore.
Do you use coupon's at all? Our grocery store here, once in a while, will triple the mfg. coupons. We also have sometimes, a special in the meat dep't. where you get a big brown bag, and all of the meat that you put in it will be like 10-20% off at the register.
I have a family of 5, and have learned a lot of strategies over the years. Probably the one that is most helpful in regard to groceries is making a lot of casseroles, and ground beef recipes. I also try to have eggs or omelets one night on the weekend. Not only is that easy to make and nutritious, but it's much less costly than meat. The added advantage of casseroles is that you can freeze the leftovers and have an easy supper ready some night in the future.
Kelly, are you near a Trader Joe's in New Hampshire? I know that there are some in the Boston area. They have some very good deals, especially on produce. I also like to buy meats, cheese and canned goods at Costco and plan ahead. This is only a good deal if you get stuff you would buy anyways and avoid the frozen convenience foods and snacky stuff. I usually get home and prep meals: cut meat up for meals and freeze them, freeze cheese in usable packets (I get shredded as it is even cheaper than the big block), etc.
I also try to cut up and freeze any veggies that I get but don't have time to use them up before they go bad. I usually make up stir fry veggie packets and ones ready for soup. I also freeze leftovers if I don't think I can get the family to use them while they are still good.
There are a lot of great tips on this site as food and the grocery budget are a favorite discussion topic. Keep it up and good luck.
Jess
maybe several of you could go into together and buy from sams in bulk?
sometimes its cheaper there sometimes not
worth thinking about
It sounds like you may already be doing a lot of things to keep your bill down. You didn't mention if you cook from scratch a lot, so that may be something to try. You can even make bisquik and creamofwhatever soup from scratch.
Are there other areas in your budget that you could cut back on instead? My husband and I spend about $250 per month on groceries for the two of us here in TN and we don't feel guilty about over spending or feel deprived. I used to focus on buying what was on sale and then I realized we weren't eating a lot of fresh veggies and fruit so I started buying that, sale or no sale, and our food bill went up a little, but it's healthy, so I don't feel bad about it, but when the food bill went up I did look for other areas to cut back on.
So, I guess my belief is that if cutting back on food expenses means cutting back on nutrition, it's not a good idea. Good nutrition is worth the money. Like, some people on here talk about eating mac and cheese for dinner every night to save money, and that just sounds like a bad idea from a health standpoint.
As long as you are eating healthy, non-processed foods and not tossing out lots of leftovers, you're probably doing just fine in the grocery department, in my opinion.
ive always had the same problem. my cabinets are full, my freezers are overflowing, yet i was still spending oodles at the check out. then i learned to make a menu. i have a months worth of menus on my icebox, recipes starting with what i already had on hand. then i look to see what else i need to finish those recipes and make a list. as long as i stick to my list, i should only spend $50 for this week, as opposed to the $150 i usually spend.
You didn't say if you buy convenient-type meals instead of making meals from scratch, but that is one area that really adds up fast. Do you eat out at lunch time or take your lunch? Do you make large quantities? If it is easier to make a large amount, make sure you are freezing part of it so that you don't get tired of the leftovers before they are gone! That also gives you a meal that is already made and paid for to enjoy later! Hope some of these ideas help.
You don't say how much you spend every month, so it's hard to guess, but a couple of ideas you might try are, 1) have a baking day. Bake your bread, treats, etc and freeze what you will be eating next week. 2) when you make out menus, do you see what's already on hand first, and plan to use it up first? 3) When a good coupon comes out, save it until the item goes on sale. 4) Do you own your own place? Can you plant some fruit trees, garden, etc? I know it sounds like work, but there's nothing quite like looking at those shelves of preserved food and knowing you don't have to go buy that stuff. Dried fruit is really easy to do. We dry tomatoes, too. I wish you the best of luck!
my husband and i are both disabled, i just recently lost the use of my right hand and arm up to the elbow, dh is diabetic, back problems, and has had one kidney removed for cancer. i have 4 crock pots, and have to use them often. do you have a scratch or dent grocery, save a lot,or other outlet near you? with the price of gas now, i'm not sure going for the sale items makes as much sense as it used too either. we eat alot of dried beans, peas, fresh veggies. a staple in my home seems to be tomatoes, which i can get the large cans for 4/$1.00, paste 10/$1.00. we eat also a lot of one pot meals. cook a double batch at once and save on electricity, plus have an extra meal when you don't feel like cooking! guess i am lucky, dh would eat a rock if it is cooked and what we consider clean foods, which is our preference.
i am thinking about cooking in bulk on the days i fell up to it and then avoiding the stress when we both feel so tired.
you didn't say if paper products and cleaning products are included in you food bill, if so, check out the dollar stores or the everything's a dollar stores. i use the spray foam bathroom cleaner to clean alot of things, including my oven, also a product called alsome which is great, both for only a dollar each. also recenty bought some microfiber cloths that you wash and resuse, sure cut down on paper towels.
good luck with all the wonderful info you have been given to your request.
Over the past few months I have stuck to a simple rule: Grocery shopping once a week. If you are not in the store, you cannot spend money, you can't fall prey to slick marketing and "buy more, save more" types of incentives.
Since the New Year is only a couple of days away, I need help saving money and really becoming frugal, especially when it comes to food shopping. Any ideas? I am only shopping for one, but money is really tight!
By Lynda from Kearny, NJ
Does anyone have suggestions for ways to save money these days? I am particularly interested regarding things like, food, pet products, lotions (dry skin in winter)?
By drew from Piedmont, AL
I usually have my grocery list and check off items as I put them in my basket. Instead of a calculator, I just put a slash mark on my grocery list, for the price of the item, rounded out to the dollar.
When shopping for groceries and household supplies, having a well organized list is one of the best money savers (and time savers) that we've tried.
Through the years, I've read at least one hundred different articles with tips and tricks on how to cut your grocery bill. With a large family, I've followed most of the advice at one time or another.
Shop alone. It cuts down on distractions and curbs impulse buying. Make a list and stick to it. Allow yourself only a certain amount of unplanned purchases.
