Posted in Simple and Frugal Living
Stretching your family dollars can be a challenge regardless of family size. There are times when I have read books, blogs, websites, listened to radio programs, etc and come away with a tidbit of knowledge that I can use. Having been at this so long, you would think there is nothing more to learn, but there always is! We find that stretching our food dollar can be the most challenging. One way that I am able to combat the rising cost of food is to stretch what I have.
This week our menu includes Chicken & Dunplings, Stir Fried Rice, and Grilled Chicken Salad. Each dinner meal must provide at least 6 servings, preferrably 7 so that the hubby can take some for lunch the following day. If I still have leftovers, they are used for lunch the following day. For these 3 meals I use 2 whole chicken breast (4 halves) to make all 3 meals. I have 2 very large eaters, so skimping on portion size or content normally doesn't work. However I can make those breasts s...t...r...e...t...c...h by one simple process...............a food processor. 
Here's how I do it. Take all the chicken and cook it in a pan or dutch oven, just until cooked, on the day of the first meal. Remove from pan and place on cutting board or plate until cool enough to handle. Now cut 1/2 of chicken breast into 3-4 chunks and run through your processor. (Since Chicken & Dumplings is my first meal I process 1 whole breast, because it better suits my family needs. Smaller families and/or different recipes you can actually stretch 2 whole breasts into 4 meals.) Place that into the pot which you will be cooking that night's meal in. Now, cut the next 1/2 breast into a few cubes and process. Since you will be using the chicken in the next few days, you can ether store it in a small plastic container or sandwich size bag. Continue until all chicken is processed and placed in a container. The chicken will likely still be warm, so do not cover (or seal bag) until the meat is completely cooled. Not only have you stretched your food dollar, but you also have made cooking more easy for those nights when you will need the chicken.
Want to see how this saves my family in dollars? Those 2 breasts cost me $10.76. If I had used the breast in chunks or strips for our meals I would have use at least 2 per meal, costing me $32.28 for meat for 3 meals. By processing the chicken, each meal costs me $3.59 for meat. That is a savings of $21.52 over 3 meals or $7.17 per meal! Now, bare with me. Let's say you eat chicken opn avg 3 times per week and you could use this method for a total of 3 weeks of the month. By using this method I would save $64.56 for the month! Now that's what I call stretching your food budget! This is Frugal Family Living at a peak.
If you are curious about the types of food processors that you can work this magic I have included a few pics of ones that I have used in this post. Except for the Bullet. I have a friend who has had her jaw wired shut and has not been able toeat solid food for the last several months. She uses the Bullet with great results.
These are my thoughts.
Leslie Valeska
~Contributing Writer~
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