Help with grocery budget

asteadyheart · 2017-04-10T21:36:42+00:00

It's actually surprisingly easy to get your grocery bill down! The first thing that should go is alcohol, or at least name brand. My husband likes to drink beer, but not the canned beer or anything generic. He likes the more expensive brands. I finally convinced him to try the Kirkland brand from Costco and he was shocked to find that it was actually very tasty. That was a $10 save right there ($29 for a large pack to $19 for a large pack).

We also eat a lot of eggs, and you can get those very cheap if you buy them in bulk. I get ours from an Asian super market, along with any fresh meat or fish I might need. A lot of American markets have very overpriced seafood and meat, without a lot of the variety and it's not always the freshest. At an Asian market, I can buy fresh meat, fish, and dairy for a very low price thanks to the fact that they have such a high turnover rate. I'm almost guaranteed that it will be good and cheap.

There is also a Grocery Bargain Outlet near us that I love to shop at. Their stock depends on what foods were overflow from the main markets (artisanal almond milk, organic fruits and veggies, etc), but you can get a huge discount on a lot of stuff, including home supplies and OTC medicine. I probably save about 50% of what I would have paid at a regular grocery store, every single time I go there.

Do you guys eat any meat? We really love sausages, but they can be pretty expensive as well as full of unhealthy fillers and chemicals. I've started to make my own sausage patties that I freeze and keep on hand. They last about a month in the freezer. It's very, very easy to make.

I do 2 pounds of lean ground pork and 2 pounds of fattier ground pork. I mix it with any seasoning I'd like, do a test patty, and if I like it I make them into little disks and then lay them on a cookie sheet and pop them in the freezer. By the next day, they should be frozen solid. This is where it can get time consuming. To prevent freezer burn, you need to wrap it in plastic wrap very tightly and then store it in a plastic bag.

You can have a quick meal whenever you need it, as you don't need to defrost them and can cook them right on the pan. Eggs will be a good, cheap source of protein, and you can always remove the egg yolk if you're worried about cholesterol.

It's very possible!!

Landry86 · 2017-04-10T19:47:35+00:00

Here are a list of some healthy go-to cheap foods I always went for when I was in college:

Chicken (It's nice to get a whole one and stick it in the oven with seasonings... you can even make chicken salad out of leftover white meat
Brown rice: stuff is amazing... low cal and very filling! Cook it in large quantities with other cheap things and it will last forever: beef, frozen veggies, chicken breast, pork, etc.
Cabbage: I cannot tell you how much I love cabbage. It's less $1 for a giant head of it... It's good sauteed with olive oil, salt, pepper...if you want to get fancier, you can smother it tomato paste and mozzarella or even beef
Carrots: so cheap! So yummy! And if you have a food processor, I highly recommend dipping them in homemade hummus
Frozen vegetables. My favorite is California blend. I buy a giant bag of it and it seems to last forever
Gumbo or soup: the ingredients for almost any gumbo/soup/stew is usually cheap and you can make large quantities of it
Beans and rice. My favorite is slow cooking ham hock in white Lima beans... yum!
Eggs: perfect for breakfast
Turkey chili (use white beans and ground turkey)
The southern "holy trinity": onion, bell pepper, celery... this blend is always cheap and tastes great in literally everything

Hope this helps!

Leftylooo · 2017-04-10T21:24:31+00:00

You could easily save that much by putting in a little work collecting online coupons. With just my Kroger app with downloaded coupons I save 50 a week feeding my family of 6 people/ 2 dogs.

testmypatience · 2017-04-10T17:21:43+00:00

/r/budgetfood

/r/frugal

radioactivities9 · 2017-04-10T17:59:35+00:00

how big are your dogs? for treats i buy beef or chicken liver and cook/chop/freeze it in baggies. soup bones are good for chews, they have all the natural bone and meat a dog needs, last a long time and are 3-5$ a pack. I give those raw frozen to avoid bacteria, but they're not much a worry since not ground. avoid raw pork for dogs.

the happiest dogs are ones eating raw meat and bones, or green tripe.

teaandtalk · 2017-04-10T21:23:38+00:00

A cooked rotisserie chicken will provide protein for two for a few days, and is easy to use in different meals - yesterday we had chicken and rice for lunch, and chicken sandwiches at dinner, and we'll probably do the rice again today but sushi style. Once the carcass is bare, I chuck it in the freezer and when I have two or three, I slow cook them for stock.

est-la-lune · 2017-04-10T22:54:06+00:00

I buy store brand basics. Pasta, orange juice, cheese, etc. They're always cheaper and go on sale more often.

Buy bulk pet food and non-perishable/canned food. I also suggest using a broth base (something you can refrigerate or freeze) instead of buying store bought.

BudgetBytes has a great freezing guide and storage time chart. She also has some pretty yummy cost-conscious recipes.

In case you haven't, reorganize your pantry and invest in a good set of storage containers. Use them to keep cereal, pasta, snacks, baking supplies, etc. fresh so you don't throw them out as often. I also second the person who suggested baking your own bread. :)

atlogan · 2017-04-11T02:32:50+00:00

Meal planning and cooking from scratch saves us a ton of money. I also try to make sure to have several easy meals that takes minimal effort to throw together like spaghetti and canned sauce or sandwich supplies, to keep us from needlessly eating out. We pretty much only eat chicken breasts and deli meat which saves us a lot on meat. I don't buy many snacks either. Usually a bag of tortilla chips and chips and maybe a special treat like Oreos once in a while . Everything else that's snacky (and expensive) I make a homemade version.

Starletblonde · 2017-04-11T05:40:57+00:00

$450 a month for food AND toiletries is going to be tough so meal planning and toiletry planning is a must.

Daily Breakfast: 2 eggs, bowl of oatmeal and a banana (buy weekly: carton of eggs, plain old fashioned rolled oat in the big container from Walmart and a bunch of bananas).

Lunches: leftovers from prior nights dinner

Dinner: Meat seasoned with dry spices from pantry, carb such as potatoes/pasta/beans/bread and vegetable.

Meat: Factor a pound of meat raw (it loses weight after cooking) - shop your local grocery store sales - keep it less than $3.99 a pound.

Carbs: buy the 5 pound bag of potatoes that are on sale that week or sweet potatoes/yams. Bake them in the oven or boil and mash them with a bit of salt, butter and milk. Or buy the $1 Italian Loaf in the Walmart bakery - eat plain or make garlic toast with butter, dried parsley and minced garlic - bake 400 for 9 minutes. Or bulk dried beans and cook according to package - same for pasta.

Vegetables :buy what is on sale that week that is fresh and cook accordingly (blanch string beans n sautéed in olive oil n minced garlic; halve brussel sprouts toss in olive oil, salt & pepper and roast in oven 400 degrees 40 mins; carrots roasted in same fashion; zucchini in same fashion; tomatoes slice brush with oil salt pepper herb of choose and roast, etc. - basically google the vegetable with the word roasted or sautéed or simple and recipes will be abound.) Also, Walmart has a basic no frills bagged salad that has lettuce carrot and cabbage for about a $1.50 per bag - add cheapest dressing at store and that's a fresh veggie. Worst case go canned vegetable.

I don't know how stocked your pantry is with vinegars, oils, herbs/spices, soy sauces, fish sauce, teriyaki, Worcestershire, mustards, honey etc. so you may have to buy an item per week to build your pantry up since some of these things will last weeks if not months. Once you have a stocked pantry you will be able to do more with your food like Korean ground beef, honey mustard glazed chicken, teriyaki chicken, taco seasoning from scratch, etc.

I manage to do about $100 per week on food alone. It pains me to see you adding toiletries to about that much money. Lots of simple - low # of ingredient cooking will be had - and sales.

Websites that will help: www.grocerysmarts.com (identifies/rates how good a sale really is in your area) www.thekrazycouponlady.com (matches coupons to sales to stretch your dollar) www.coupons.com (printable coupons)

Smart Phone Apps that give rebates: Ibotta Checkout 51 MobiSave

For toiletries don't be brand loyal. Use The Krazy Coupon Lady website or app to get what is cheap to build a stock pile instead of risking paying full price when you run out because it may not be on sale that week.

TL;DR You are probably pretty fucked and eating Raman and spaghetti every day. :-P

Willow-girl · 2017-04-11T12:10:18+00:00

Do you have an Aldi store nearby, by any chance? If you do, give it a try. You'll love it!

bettsdressed · Tue Apr 11 12:22:47 2017 UTC

Tim Ferriss in 4 Hour Body talks about the slow carb diet being the cheapest healthy diet. It's basically sorta paleo--meat, vegetables, beans. No fruit, alcohol, and I can't remember if dairy is included. I think he's right. It's cheap to use as much rice and beans/lentils in your menu to save.

Also, I have a higher grocery budget for health concerns...basically I prioritize it because my diet and health promote better physique, complexion, mood, sleep, and less health bills. My teeth are awesome since my diet improved.

Anyhow, The Paleo Mom has articles on how to save money when eating paleo, and principles are applicable to non-paleo:

Ground beef or sausage cheaper than most roasts/steaks
canned salmon and sardines cheaper than fresh fillets
buying only the foods that are Dirty Dozen as organic and buying Clean Fifteen as non-organic.
Prioritizing organic meat and dairy as those are highest in hormones if not.
And I'm growing the most expensive but easier to grow in a garden--organic zucchini, tomatoes, and that's it for this non-gardener. :)

Good luck! Food is important but most people can eat healthy and even organic without realizing it is not expensive.

radioactivities9 · 2017-04-10T17:36:18+00:00

Baking saves some money. For easy-made delicious bread I like this:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/16947/amazingly-easy-irish-soda-bread/

If you cook/bake things which have similar ingredients and are easy to buy bulk it is simple to save some money. There are also lots of options for 'healthier' flours (heritage grains, gluten-free)

Vegetables are cheap. You can blanch and freeze seasonal veggies yourself to save a bit of money and retain those nutrients in them. Farmer's markets rule!

Beans, lentils, chickpeas, etc. are an inexpensive source of protein. You can buy dried ones and soak them to save a bit there too.

I also drink a lot of soy milk (unsweetened) because it is a complete protein and it doesn't expire fast like milk.

itsfullcircle · 2017-04-10T20:52:28+00:00

Meal prep and a slow cooker are amazing things. A big slow cooked roast and maybe one other dish for variety will work wonders. We eat for a week on about $60-70 (keep in mind that's just food, no toiletries or pets). This week is pulled pork, cauliflower rice and sweet potatoes and tortellini alfredo for our switch meal.

SouthernAthena · 2017-04-10T21:33:03+00:00

This is a tip, not a recipe, but planning the meals for a week, making a list and sticking to it saves a lot of money. If you have trouble sticking to a list, a lot of grocery chains have Click List options where they shop for you, avoiding last-minute cart add-ons and saving a lot of money. Things like prepared foods, sauces, and meals are often expensive for what they are. You can very easily learn to make hummus and Alfredo sauce from scratch.

I'd also recommend building up a solid pantry. If you buy one or two bulk items for every time you go shopping, eventually you will have a solid repertoire of beans, rice, flour, canned veggies etc. Or you can buy up a bunch of canned tomatoes for example when they are on sale. Buy meat on sale (turkeys the day after Thanksgiving for example) and freeze it if you have a good sized freezer. That way you really only have to buy fresh ingredients each week. And if you don't already, try out store brands, because most foods are just as good generic. Also ethnic grocery stores also have really good prices and sizes on items like rice or spices that could be very expensive at a regular grocery. You will also be able to whip up soups last minute.

5_somewhere · 2017-04-13T13:39:29+00:00

If you can swing it, hit Costco. Not for everything, there's no need to buy costco size fruit and veggies for 2 people, but for your dry goods, paper products, cleaning supplies, and dog food. We live in an expensive grocery area, but I've cut our grocery bill from about $1000/month to $500/month for a family of four + dog + cat (who's a piglet). I buy chicken at Costco, but can usually find all other meat on better sale at my grocery store. You don't have to buy everything all at once either, stock up for a few months, and pretty soon you'll be amazed at how much you don't need!

LowKeiB · 2017-04-11T15:38:29+00:00

I have two words for you: canned tuna. It is super cheap, tasty, versatile and very healthy (low calorie, high protein) as well!

cynicalhousewife · 2017-04-13T14:39:41+00:00

I'm probably going to offend someone when I say this but if it were me I wouldn't keep the dogs. I would personally find them a new home. I think you and your husband need to put yourselves first. This is only a suggestion and i am not too attached to animals so it's easy for me to say. I can imagine you are walking them and burning calories, de-fleeing them, paying vets bills, paying for their food when you and your husband seem to be going without. Just doesn't seem a worthy sacrifice to me personally to make for an animal. Then again that's me. It's probably not you. I feel that people should always come first and I would never put a dog before myself. I find peanut butter really inexpensive and filling. That's if you are not allergic to peanuts. Bake your own bread and have peanut butter on toast every morning. I also find that cooking with legumes is cheap. Then again I am not a huge meat lover at all. A lot of people hate legumes. My husband thinks they are vile so it's only me and the kids that eat them. Eggs are cheap, so is rice and pasta and porridge oats and potatoes. You can grow your own potatoes if you have a garden.

atlogan · 2017-04-13T13:04:42+00:00

Thank you for the advice everyone! I should have mentioned that where we live has a very low cost of living. When we first moved here, we were spending about $300/mo on groceries, household items, etc. But over the years, we've been able to bump that up, and now that we eat clean, we've obviously had to move it up as well! But tbh, I haven't been keeping our budget as well as I should have because I KNOW we have so much extra and so I'm like, oh yeah we can eat tonight! I just gotta stop doing that haha. I'm going to try to reply to all the responses now, but wanted to give a group thank you - these are very helpful!

Title	Help with grocery budget
Author	atlogan
Upvotes	15
Comments	59
Date	April 10, 2017 5:14 PM UTC (9 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/RedPillWomen
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/RedPillWomen/comments/64kwuh/help_with_grocery_budget/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/RedPillWomen/help-with-grocery-budget.87160 https://theredarchive.com/post/87160

Comments