Ever wonder why a quick stop to the store for “a few things” can cost as much as a small appliance? Back to basics, traditional homemaker tips can help you lower your food budget.
With a husband who takes my culinary prowess for granted, two ravenous teens and a very snack aware goldendoodle by the name of Gigi, I’m always looking for ways to save on groceries. Here are some ideas that have stood the test of time.
1. Shop Your Kitchen Before You Shop the Store
Make a game of checking your food situation before you go to the grocery store. Open your refrigerator and freezer.
Raid your pantry. Look at the back of the cupboards and on the high shelves.
Get a sense of what you have on hand. This will prevent impulse buys (like that jar of mustard when you already have too much), and will jog your memory as to what you need to pick up (like the fact that you are actually out of coffee and eggs).
After taking stock, make a list of what is needed, so you are spending your money wisely. Stir-fry with the bag of frozen peas (only about half remaining) and pound of ground beef; garlic toast with the last loaf of bread.
2. Plan Meals Around What Needs Using First
Traditional homemakers saved money by planning meals that utilized foods that needed to be used. Rather than creating a meal plan from scratch, flip the process on its ear and decide what needs to be used.
Create your meal plan from there. Those bell peppers are getting a little leathery?
Make fajitas. Spinach got a little sad in the crisper drawer?
Add it to eggs. Made too much chicken?
Create chicken soup. Wasting food was tantamount to throwing money in the trash and planned meals helped to alleviate this problem.
3. Keep a Running Grocery List
The old-time homemakers always kept a list of groceries on hand that was updated as items were used up, which was reviewed before heading to the store. This prevents you from spending money on things like flour and other staples, while also avoiding overbuying items “just in case.” My phone has a grocery list app that I find useful, though a regular notepad will work fine too.
Leaving it near your fridge, pantry, or wherever else is convenient will serve you well. Trust me on this one: I’ve wasted money because I thought I had everything I needed…but didn’t, or vice versa.
Additions add up fast.
4. Never Shop Hungry
Never ever shop hungry. Hunger leads to emotional decisions that result in impulse purchases of chocolate chip cookie dough, exotic cheeses, and all manner of snack foods.
Have a piece of toast or a banana before heading out if needed. Hungry shoppers are also more likely to give in to sale items they may not necessarily need, but…hey, it’s on sale!
5. Check the Unit Price
Did you know bigger is not always better? Larger sized items are not always the cheapest.
Check the price per pound, ounce, number of items, and so forth. It will let you know how much a pound/ounce/etc. of an item will cost and save you money in the long run.
It’s amazing how many times the bigger item costs more per ounce/pound/etc. than its counterpart. Especially with name brand items.
This tip is especially helpful when shopping for staples like cereal, rice, pasta, paper products, cleaning products, and the like.
6. Buy Store Brands When They Make Sense
Not every store brand item is comparable to its name brand counterpart…but a surprising amount are. I’m talking paper towels, aluminum foil, frozen fruits, peanut butter, canned goods, and many other items here.
Try out the store brand. If you like it, keep using it.
If you don’t…well, at least you tried. You might be surprised.
You can save a few bucks here and there by using store-brand flour, sugar, oats, canned tomatoes, frozen veggies, etc. I’ve never noticed a difference in these items.
Nor has my family. No one’s noticed when we’ve substituted store-brand ingredients in their lunch, soup, casserole, etc.
If anyone complains about store-brand items at my house, we’ll gladly assign them cooking duties next time and see if they have complaints after that.
7. Stretch Meat Instead of Making It the Whole Meal
Stretching meat, fruits, vegetables, etc. isn’t new. In fact, past generations of resourceful homemakers stretched foods to make them go further.
Meals were frequently comprised of meat + rice/pasta/potatoes + vegetables, meat + beans, meat + vegetables, meat + broth, etc. instead of a giant helping of meat. These days, meat is an ingredient in chili or tacos or stuffed peppers or pasta sauce or soup instead of being the focus of a meal.
One pound of ground beef goes a long way in any of the aforementioned dishes. Especially helpful when trying to feed growing appetites of your teenagers.
8. Use Leftovers on Purpose
This goes hand-in-hand with stretching foods. Roast chicken?
Save the carcass for soup. Have extra chicken?
Pot pies. Have extra-extra chicken?
Chicken sandwiches. Cook rice?
Save some and turn it into a side or fried rice another time. Soups and casseroles can be stretched with leftovers, too.
In our house, I’ll usually put the leftovers in a container I can see so it’s not lost in the depths of the fridge, label it and pray. Usually, they make their way into a lunch.
Other times they mysteriously vanish. Teenagers have huge appetites and bedrooms adjacent to the fridge, so…
9. Cook Once, Eat Twice
You can cook extra chicken, rice, roast veggies, soup, beans, etc. and save half of it to make another meal down the road. It takes some foresight to make sure you’re going to use what you’ve saved, but it does help with cooking, cleaning, and budgeting.
Roast extra potatoes if you’ve got your oven on anyway. Freeze them.
You’ll be thankful for them later. Same goes for browning extra meat to freeze for another use.
10. Keep a Price Memory
Old-school homemakers kept track of what they spent. If you’re into spreadsheets, have at it.
If not, that’s ok. But try to have an idea of the regular price of groceries.
Then, when you see an item you use on sale, you’ll be able to tell if it’s a good price. There may be times when something is marked down, but it’s not as low as you’ve seen it before.
By having a sense of the regular price of things, you’ll be able to tell if an advertised sale is a true sale. You can go as far as keep track of sale prices on items you use frequently – eggs, butter, coffee, chicken, pasta, certain produce items, etc.
But you don’t need to keep track of everything. Just try to have a general price awareness.
11. Stock Up Slowly
How many times have you cleaned out your pantry to find expired foods you never use? Instead of going on a food-buying spree and stuffing your pantry with things, consider stocking up little by little.
That can of soup on sale, that carton of eggs or that loaf of bread goes beyond your family’s current need? Buy one and put it away.
Soon enough, you’ll have a food reserve to call on when the budget is tight, life gets busy or you’re in need of a quick dinner. Stock up on your family’s favorite staple foods.
Some ideas include pasta, rice, beans, chicken, canned chicken, broth, canned tuna, oats, frozen veggies and flour. Just remember: Only purchase foods your family eats.
Buying foods you’ll never use doesn’t save money… It wastes it!
12. Shop the Sales, But Do Not Let Sales Boss You Around
The old-fashioned homemaker used to meal plan with the sales, but not to the extent that the sales dictated the menu. So, when the chicken thighs are on sale at your local supermarket, take the sales flyer home and look through it for a few things you can cook this week that make good use of chicken thighs.
Don’t buy the chicken thighs if your family won’t eat them! It’s not a bargain if you’re not going to use the item.
Ditto if there’s a sale on fancy crackers you’ve been meaning to try, but you’ve got to buy milk and laundry detergent this week. Pass on the crackers.
13. Learn the Markdowns
Some stores mark down dairy, meat, baked goods, and produce at certain times. Veteran shoppers know the drill.
If you can use discounted items right away or freeze them, you’ll save some serious money. Banana muffins when the bananas are discounted and brown, space in your freezer for that mark-down roast, a pot on the stove for a veggie soup using discounted veggies…
14. Freeze Food Before It Turns
Old-school homemakers relied on their freezers, and you should, too. Berries, bread, butter, broth, cooked beans, casseroles, meat, cookie dough, many foods do well in the freezer.
You can stretch your dollars by freezing food that’s getting nippy, but the key is freezing it while it’s still good and not when you’re not really sure if it’s still good. Slice that loaf of bread before it goes in the freezer.
Separate meats into portions. Label things so you’re not playing kitchen roulette later.
15. Save Vegetable Scraps for Broth
Many home cooks kept celery ends in the fridge and added them to soups and stews for flavor. Take her idea a step further by saving carrot peels, celery ends, parsley stems, onion pieces, clean, good parts of veggies, in a plastic bag in your freezer.
When you fill a bag, cover the pieces with water in a large pot and add salt and pepper, plus other seasonings if desired, and simmer. Strain the broth and use in place of packaged broth to add flavor to soups, rice, casseroles, sauces, etc.
Freeze any extra broth. This is an easy way to stretch your food budget.
Don’t add anything rotten or gross-tasting, like excess cabbage that would make for funky stock, to your bag, but Gigi would eat anything so the sky’s the limit for her!
16. Buy Whole Ingredients Instead of Too Many Convenience Foods
Old-school homemakers made a lot of things from scratch because they knew how and because that’s just how they did things. Cooking skills aren’t required to make money-saving purchases.
Flour, eggs, oats, potatoes, rice, beans, meat, fruits, veggies, many more examples, whole foods make multiple meals and stretch farther than pre-made foods that are convenient but costly. You can’t and shouldn’t prepare everything from scratch all the time, but it’s helpful to keep an eye on your budget.
Buy a variety of basic ingredients and enjoy a variety of foods for less.
And no, this does not mean you have to make every single thing from scratch. Some nights we still heat up a frozen pizza, which is perfectly okay when it’s paired with a salad.
It’s just that using basic ingredients instead of packaged foods stretches the budget and increases meal options.
17. Make a Few Meatless Meals
Many traditional homemakers served several meatless meals a week, such as baked beans and cornbread, a big baked potato, vegetable soup with bread, macaroni and canned tomatoes, eggs and toast, grilled cheese and tomato soup, etc. Meatless meals are easy ways to save money each week, as long as everyone is satisfied.
My teens are extremely aware of foods that are “too light” so we make sure there is enough protein/fat/seasoning/etc. so everyone is satisfied and doesn’t feel deprived.
18. Keep a Pantry Meal List
I’m terrible about forgetting all of the meals that can be made with items we typically keep on hand. And because deciding on dinner is one of life’s most pressing questions I’ve written down a few examples to refer to when needed.
Some of our go-tos include fried rice, chili, loaded baked potatoes, bean soup, pasta with canned tomatoes, pancakes, and tuna melts. Write down a few options that utilize items you keep on hand or in the freezer and post them where you’ll be able to see them often.
19. Use Cash or a Firm Budget
It’s amazing how much easier it is to spend only what’s necessary when paying with cash. Once the cash runs out, spending stops.
Cards, Debits, and other forms of payment make money an amorphous concept. If you prefer to shop without actual cash, plan exactly how much you’ll be spending and round-up prices as you walk the aisles to keep track of spending.
20. Avoid Too Many Last-Minute Store Runs
Traditional homemakers planned meals based upon items they had on hand because it was easier to avoid additional shopping excursions. It’s amazing how many unplanned items get added when we return to the grocery store for an overlooked ingredient.
Plan ahead as much as possible to avoid additional and more expensive store trips.
This happens more than I would like to admit. You go to the store for milk and end up with chips, a candle, shampoo, seasonal mugs, grapes, etc.
Save yourself the expense and guilt-trip of wasting food by having powdered milk, veggie soup in the freezer, broth, bread, etc. to tide you over until your next regularly-scheduled shopping trip.
21. Use Every Bit of the Chicken
If you’re not one of those people who thinks nothing of buying a rotisserie chicken from the store, this tip is probably old hat to you. However, if you’re anything like me, you’ll be surprised how satisfying and convenient it is to buy a whole chicken, or even just leg quarters.
Not only will you have plenty of meat for dinner, but you’ll have leftovers for chicken on top of rice, chicken salad, chicken in a casserole, etc. Then, after picking the meat off the carcass, you’ll be able to make homemade stock.
Nothing goes to waste, and it’s a project that is completed quickly.
22. Store Food Properly As Soon As You Get Home
The key to making your food last is to “put away” your groceries in a timely and appropriate fashion as soon as you get them home. Some fruits and vegetables need to be washed and dried before they’re placed into the refrigerator.
Dry goods are best stored in airtight containers. Take advantage of your freezer.
Sort through your pantry and put older items in front of newer ones to make sure everything is used in a timely fashion. Divide meats into easy-to-grab portions before freezing.
By implementing a few of these tips, you’ll find yourself tossing rotten veggies less often.
23. Keep a Soup Night
Old-school homemakers did this regularly, and it’s an old-fashioned tip for saving money on groceries because it can be done with ingredients you probably already have. Use up random veggies in the refrigerator.
Have some chicken stock on hand. Find a few of your family’s favorite soup recipes and designate a certain night as Soup Night.
Serve with some crusty bread and dinner is done!
We love soup in our family. Soup night is a great way to use up leftovers, make a little meat go further and incorporate those veggies that have been hanging on by a thread.
It’s easy to feed a family with soups and stews, and they can be combined with bread or crackers, rice, potatoes, etc. for a complete meal. Even on nights I’m looking for something really simple, soup is perfect.
Chicken, some broth, chopped up carrots, noodles, salt, pepper, done.
24. Bake Simple Treats Instead of Buying Them All
I’m sure we’re all aware that it is less expensive to bake at home than purchase packaged goods. Besides, your house will smell wonderful.
However, you don’t want to turn your home into a bakery. Simple items like cookies, muffins, quick breads or an easy cake will save money, and a batch will last “a few days” if your teens can be stopped, as we’ve known teeners that will inhale a batch of cookies in one afternoon.
Bake one batch and use for snacks throughout the week. There’s no need to bake everyday.
25. Repurpose Stale Bread
Old bread can be made into breadcrumbs, croutons, bread pudding, french toast, casseroles, used in stuffings, etc. Keep a bag in the freezer for bread ends, odd pieces, etc.
Then, when you have enough in the bag, pull out what’s needed and run through a food processor for breadcrumbs, or dice up and transform into croutons.
26. Know Which Foods Are Worth Buying in Bulk
The old-school homemakers knew which foods were worth buying in bulk. Yes, it is less expensive to purchase some items in bulk, but only if you actually use them AND have room for them.
Buying rice in bulk sounds good if you actually use that much and have room for it. Stock up on foods like rice, oats, flour, sugar, pasta, beans, toilet paper and certain frozen items.
Choose only those things your family uses on a regular basis. Bulk buys make sense only if they’re staples.
There’s no savings in a giant bag of lentils if lentils aren’t a staple.
27. Make Do Before You Buy More
This one’s my favorite. When something’s missing from a recipe, use what’s on hand.
Plain yogurt in place of sour cream. Milk with a dash of acid in place of buttermilk.
Dried herbs when fresh are called for. Crushed-up saltines when it calls for breadcrumbs.
Do everything in your power to avoid a special errand to the grocery store for something you might use only once, if that.
In addition to saving money on forgotten ingredients, this saves you from overbuying and wasting. Imagine a stay-at-home parent investing precious energy into a large-scale cooking project, only to find herself short of an important ingredient.
Rather than don her best blouse and brave the drizzle to make a special errand to the grocery store, she rummaged around the house, found a solution, and was on her way. That’s the spirit.
Smart homemakers are creative; they’re able to make do. This means less waste and a manageable pantry even as food costs escalate.
These are only a handful of the many money-saving food ideas that previous generations utilized.
And that’s the idea, right? Saving money shouldn’t be miserable.
It should make sense.