Tips to help you save Money at the Grocery Store
Providing nutrition meals for
your family is important, but the cost of the groceries it takes to prepare
them can certainly affect what you are able to do. To help offset the cost of
preparing meals, you need to plan well for it. Too many items we use to make
meals end up going in the trash. If you only need ½ a head of lettuce then plan
another meal to use the rest of it so it doesn’t end up in the trash.
While it does take longer to
prepare home cooked meals, it is less expensive than buying frozen products
that offer you more convenience. They will generally run you twice as much as
the ingredients you need to prepare the foods yourself. If time is an issue,
consider using one day a week to prepare various meals that you can freeze for
later in the week.
It is understandable that
everyone wants to cook with the ingredients that will make foods taste the best
they can. Yet most of us purchase items at the grocery store based on a name
brand we are familiar with. Have you ever stopped to compare the price with
store brand? If not, you really need to as you will be shocked at the price
difference. Yet in most cases the store brand of a given item is every bit as
good as the name brands.
A couple good examples of this
include cereals and sodas. Name brand boxes of cereal can cost you around $4
per box. When you purchase the store brands that come in plastic bags instead
of the boxes you will find you get twice as much cereal for less than ½ of the
cost. I pour those larger bags into airtight storage containers so they stay
fresh.
Popular soda like Pepsi and Coke
cost over $2.50 for a six pack. You can purchase the store brand Cola for about
$2.50 per case. Yet they taste every bit as good as those name brand sodas we
often associate with. I guess mentally we think that the higher price means
better quality but that isn’t always the case.
Many people like to cook with
various herbs but the cost of them can really add up. Since they aren’t
necessary it is a common area where people choose to eliminate from their
shopping list. For very little money you can grow your own herbs in your yard
or even in a small kit that sits on your kitchen window. It can be a fun
process to do with your children and you will have the different herbs you want
to cook with but not the expense associated with them.
You can also grow your own
vegetables in a small garden area of your yard. It doesn’t cost very much to
purchase the seeds. You may even find tending to your garden offers you a place
to relax and reduce your stress levels. My family eats lots of strawberries but
they are one of the most expensive fruits at the grocery store. We now grow our
own so we can enjoy these delicious berries all we want when they are in season.
If you decide to purchase fresh
vegetables or fruits from a grocery store, get those that you have to chop up
on your own. While purchasing those that have already been sliced for you is
more convenient they will cost you more for the same product.
Meat is one of the most expensive
items you will find in a grocery store. Unless you live with a family of
vegetarians, you will have to pay the price they are asking for it. Look at the
per pound cost of meat before you purchase it. You will find the larger packages
offer you a lower price per pound. Buying these larger portions and then
separating them into the right sizes for your meals once you get home is an
excellent way to lower the amount of money you spend on the meat your family
eats.
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