Besides menu planning, there are some simple things you can do to lower your grocery costs. One of the most important concepts of saving money on groceries is buying MORE than you need when prices are lowest. At first, it seems counter-intuitive to save money by buying more than you need but if we are talking canned food, cereal, or meat that can be frozen, you will save so much in the long run.
Let's look at meat for example. My family likes to eat 93% lean ground beef. If I bought a 1 lb package every time I needed ground beef for a recipe, I would be spending $3.99 - $4.99 per lb. Yikes! Instead, I wait until 93% lean ground beef is on sale for around $2 a lb (sometimes even less) and purchase one or two large packages.
Then, I divide the meat into 3/4 lb portions and freeze them in little sandwich bags. I use the cheap ones, so I double bag them, but if you buy the freezer bags you won't have to do this. Most recipes call for 1 lb of ground beef, but I usually use about 3/4 lb, as a cost saving and waist slimming measure!
So here I have enough meat for 8 dinners, about 6 lbs of meat, that I purchased for about $12. If I had bought 1 lb packages at full price 8 times, I would have ended up spending anywhere from $30 - $40. If you do this with just your meat (chicken breasts, bone-in pork chops, even steaks), you will save so much money.
Another plus about having the freezer stocked with meat is that I have a harder time making excuses to eat out when I know I have plenty of meat at home waiting to be used.
I will expand on this principle in other posts as we explore more ways to save money but, in the meantime, tell me what your favorite money-saving tip is!
Let's look at meat for example. My family likes to eat 93% lean ground beef. If I bought a 1 lb package every time I needed ground beef for a recipe, I would be spending $3.99 - $4.99 per lb. Yikes! Instead, I wait until 93% lean ground beef is on sale for around $2 a lb (sometimes even less) and purchase one or two large packages.
Then, I divide the meat into 3/4 lb portions and freeze them in little sandwich bags. I use the cheap ones, so I double bag them, but if you buy the freezer bags you won't have to do this. Most recipes call for 1 lb of ground beef, but I usually use about 3/4 lb, as a cost saving and waist slimming measure!
So here I have enough meat for 8 dinners, about 6 lbs of meat, that I purchased for about $12. If I had bought 1 lb packages at full price 8 times, I would have ended up spending anywhere from $30 - $40. If you do this with just your meat (chicken breasts, bone-in pork chops, even steaks), you will save so much money.
Another plus about having the freezer stocked with meat is that I have a harder time making excuses to eat out when I know I have plenty of meat at home waiting to be used.
I will expand on this principle in other posts as we explore more ways to save money but, in the meantime, tell me what your favorite money-saving tip is!
