By: lauren B.
The food bill is one of the biggest challenges for me. It’s tough when there is such a variety of food and so many temptations. Our budget is tight with 13 mouths to feed so when you don’t have a choice it’s amazing what you can come up with.
First of all, it will take a lot of determination, especially if you don’t really have to budget. There are a lot of things you probably think you need to buy every month, or you have to have, but you’d be surprised at how much you buy that you just don’t need. Be willing to look at what you buy and evaluate it with an open mind.
Another thing that helps more than you might think is searching for the best prices, which means you need to have a good idea of what your basic items go for at different stores. Is it a good price for tuna when it’s 50 cents a can? Or can you get it for 40 cents somewhere else? You do have to consider gas money too. If you find a sale at Walgreens for tuna at 35 cents a can, but it takes you 15 minutes extra to get there and that’s all you plan to get, it would probably average out if you bought it at Kroger and saved yourself a trip. (Unless you buy enough to last for a year or two which I’ve been known to do) For me, I’ve found that there are about 10 items that are less expensive at one store vs. another. I keep my eyes open for more too. Just because some things are less expensive at one store doesn’t mean everything will be. Make sure you check that tiny number on the price that will tell you how much per ounce or pound you’re paying. Something may appear to be a little less expensive than another brand, but it very well could be more. That’s how I figure out what brand to buy if you’re ever assaulted by 15 different choices, which is the case a lot of times. Generic isn’t a bad thing and name brand isn’t necessarily better—I know from experience and lots of trials!!
Always be on the lookout for a better price. Maybe even keep a notebook with you when you go shopping so you can write down prices. Make sure you also write down how much you’re getting for that price, i.e. 16 oz sour cream for $1.88. Little by little you’ll figure out what’s a good price and where to buy it at. It is a bit tedious, but it’ll pay you back later on. Keep the notebook in your purse or diaper bag…whatever you take with you everywhere. That way, when you see a sale, you can check to see if its really a better price!!
And now the toughest one: Disciplining yourself to spend more time in the kitchen instead of money at the store; making biscuits instead of buying them by the tube. It costs pennies to make them yourself whereas it costs over a dollar to buy them, and you get half as many. Instead of buying mashed potatoes by the box, go to the kitchen a few minutes earlier and make them yourself! Canned foods like soups and such are usually more expensive than if you made them yourself. As a general rule, I hardly ever buy canned food. I do buy corn, tomatoes, occasionally green beans, olives, spicy tomatoes, tuna, tomato paste and sauce. My canned goods are very limited and they usually help make a meal instead of being “the” meal. So, if you see something in a box or a can, try recreating it for much less. After a couple of tries, you’ll find that you can make things from scratch and that they do taste better!!
It doesn’t kill to have a repeat of the same meal in a month; if it’s inexpensive and tasty and everyone likes it, why not? Maybe even try for three times? We eat basically the same things each week—boring yes, but inexpensive. Eating leftovers is a real budget saver, even if you have the same thing for the next day’s dinner (leftovers are rare in my house, but I have more than the average number to feed). Something I’ve been working on is trying to find uses for leftovers in a dinner. For example, if you have leftover rice, you can throw it into a batch of chili or a soup to make it a bit hardier. If you have leftover soup, and you’re tired of it, freeze it. Keep quart and gallon zip-type bags on hand so you can easily do that.
Keep to basic foods. The fancier you make it the more odds and ends you have to buy that may be expensive. Try to use a lot of beans, potatoes and rice. It’s amazing how many different ways you can use a potato! The internet is swamped with recipes. I like to try and find a couple new things every month to add to my inventory of recipes; things that have several items that I would normally buy or that I have on hand.
Replace food or snacks with less expensive things! I am amazed how many mothers feed their children little individual containers of Jello and yogurt, boxes of fruit snacks and just plain costly foods that are not that healthy. Whatever happened to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches? Bananas? Raisins? Oatmeal? Of the food items that I buy, I have found that meat, cheese and milk are the most expensive. For meat, if your husband won’t object too much, try to cut down on the amount you use. I use the same amount of meat, but just more veggies to stretch my casseroles and homemade pot pies. We hardly ever have roast or pork chops or steak unless it’s on sale. I guess I just can’t fathom paying a heap for it and then having it cook down to something that’s as thin as paper and as long as a new pencil.
Cheese is also something that has gone up in price. A lot of recipes use a lot of cheese. Most of the time, I don’t use the full amount that they call for. Another food that is fast rising in price is milk. I now use powdered milk in all my baking (and don’t tell, occasionally I mix some up to use with breakfast cereal)….I’d never drink it as “real” milk, but the kids have never noticed the difference!
And now lastly, drink water! My recent trip to the store surprised me. Orange juice and lemonade are fast becoming the only juices that are under a dollar. I only buy about 5-6 cans of juice a month, if that. For the most part we drink water and the kids drinks milk—we also drink unsweetened tea. I’m actually quite perplexed when I hear people say they don’t like water. No offense, but that’s not a very healthy dislike or a cheap one. Drinking water helps keep you hydrated and aids in keeping everything working properly, and it’s the most inexpensive drink!
I hope you find these tips helpful!!