Frugal Meals

Posted on Tuesday 8 August 2006 at 10:57 AM in In The Kitchen - Post Comment

One of the biggest budget monsters I have found is the grocery budget. As a manager of my home I believe it's my responsibility not only to make sure my family is eating good, healthy meals but to also make sure that I'm spending my grocery budget as wisely as possible. I am amazed at how easy it is to spend a lot of money at the grocery store and get little for it. I can spend lots of time clipping coupons for things I don't normally buy. Coupons and sales make it really easy to stock up on convenience foods that are full of preservatives, sugars, trans fats etc. Not really healthy or frugal.

Here are some of the things that I've done to help tame my grocery budget.  I know there is more, but these are all that I could think of right now.  I'd love to hear what you do too!

* Get organized. I'm still working on this. Make your kitchen a place that you enjoy being in. If it is messy and disorganized, you won't want to be there.
* Plan a menu. You can plan a week at a time, two weeks, one month...what ever works best for you. Since I shop once a month, it works best for me to plan my menus a month at a time. I plan for all three meals including snacks. I even add a couple extra meals in case I decided I don't want what is listed on the menu. If you haven't made a menu before, start by making a list of all the meals that your family enjoys. You can add meals with recipes that you have wanted to try. It also might help to designate certain days for certain types of meals. You might have Tuesdays as "Breakfast for dinner days" or Wednesdays for Italian meals.
* Plan a couple meatless meals into your menu. Meats usually put the biggest dent in the grocery budgets.
* Learn to cook from scratch. It's cheaper and healthier to make your own rice-a-roni than to buy it from a box...expecially if you have lots of mouths to feed.
* Drink more water and stop buying soda/pop.
* Develop and use a price book. This will help you determine when things are really on sale. It will also help you compare prices especially if you are buying from bulk warehouse clubs.
* Stop eating out. Pack lunches. You will be amazed at how much money you will save.
* Plant a garden. Even if you only have room for a couple pots on your patio, you can still enjoy a bit of savings and the blessing of a harvest.
* Stock your pantry when things you use regularly go on sale.

1 Corinthians 10:31
Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Untitled Comment

Posted by clairebear on Tuesday 8 August 2006 at 6:00 PM - Link

That was an EXTREMELY helpful post! :o) Thanks so much!