One of the most common comments I get from people looking at my insta feed is some sort of assumption that we must have a lot of money for me to cook all of the food I do. Let me stop right there. We. Do. Not. Our entire marriage (11 years!) we have always had a strict food budget. Over the years this has fluctuated anywhere between $400 and $600 a month- not the tightest budget ever, but not so elaborate that we are popping champagne or eating brie and caviar at every whim over here.
First, I need to mention that we are all eaters. We eat. A LOT. I have growing boys that seem to be able to eat all day long and not gain weight because they are barely keeping up with the calories they are burning with all of their energy. My boys alone will crush a whole pizza between them and eat 2 grilled cheese or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in one sitting. Said boys have been known to eat as many as 10 pancakes in one sitting. So in case you think we eat like birds or graze, you are wrong. We EAT, with a capital E.
Our grocery budget is what it is because we don’t eat out. Like, almost never. At most, we eat out a total of 5 times in one month between all of us. That includes all meals, snacks, coffees, fast food, sit down dinners etc. That means that EACH (of 5 total) members of our family eat about 90 meals a month in our home. Not to mention we have guests over for dinner at least once a week, every week. All of that is a lot of meals coming from our budget. We do this because eating at home really is less expensive than eating out.
Over the years I have developed some strategies that I am going to share with you that help me stick to our budget while consuming delicious and nutritious food. The list below is the strategies that I currently follow. In different seasons of life I took the time to cut coupons and shop sales and go to multiple stores in one week, but due to this busy season of life I have streamlined my shopping to two stores a week- one grocery store, and one bulk shopping trip.
Bulk Buying
I do one bulk shopping trip a week at Costco and buy as many items as possible in bulk and then spread them out as necessary. Oftentimes this involves me sticking some beef, bread and/or chicken in the freezer to be used the following week and stockpiling bags of snacks, nuts, dried fruit and canned goods in the pantry until we need them.
Look at the Price per Ounce when shopping
When trying to compare the price between two products or name brand vs generic, sale vs not on sale etc. it can often be confusing if the packaging is in different increments. Rather than comparing the price for the package I compare the price per ounce of each product to understand what is really the better deal.
Reduce Waste
According to this article the average American household throws away over $2,200 worth of food a year. Because we are on a budget I do my best to use everything we purchase. This means we eat leftovers for lunch until they are gone. It also means that I plan meals each week around whatever produce, grains, cheese etc. I have lying around that need to be used up. I do my best to ensure that we absolutely minimize that amount of food that goes bad in our home and needs to be thrown away.
Stretch the Meat
I almost never serve a piece of meat on a plate with one or two sides. I tend to stretch the meat by combining it with rice, pasta, beans, vegetables and other ingredients that aren’t as expensive. Serving stews, chilis, pasta salads, quinoa bowls etc. can stretch a little bit of meat and still leave the eaters feeling satisfied.
Buy some organic, not all
In an ideal world I would buy all organic, but our budget and food consumption don’t allow for that. Because of this I focus on the dirty dozen and organic items I can buy in bulk and then count the rest as grace.
Cook from scratch
I try to make as many convenience foods from scratch as I can to save us money. I make my own granola, muffins, pizza crust, pasta sauce, BBQ sauce, salsa, artisan bread, cakes and more. It isn’t always cheaper to make things from scratch, but when you have a stocked pantry from cooking regularly it is usually cheaper to make things from scratch.
Do a Breakfast for Dinner about once a week
Breakfast meals tend to be less expensive than most dinner meals because bacon and eggs and cheaper forms of protein. I try to cook about one breakfast for dinner a week switching it up from pancakes and bacon, quiche, shakshuka, quinoa grain bowls and more.
Do one (or more) vegetarian meals a week
Many vegetarian dishes are less expensive options than a protein based dinner. I try to do one (or more) vegetarian bean based meals a week to give our budget a break. Beans and/ or quinoa are a great way to still get protein when skipping the meat for dinner.
Here are a few of my favorite budget friendly dinners;
Grilled cheese and tomato Soup
