Self-Challenge

[tortoise]

I want to reduce the grocery budget. Honestly, my SO keeps track of all the finances, so I don't know what it is. It must be just over $400 per month.

I've already noticed that when I am cooking and we aren't eating so much convenience foods, we spend less money.

He gace me a credit card so I can help out with shopping. I know he isn't particularly thrilled about grocery shopping, so I thought I would gently take that over for him. (Since I'm mostly the one cooking.)

I know there are a few things that he considers ESSENTIAL, like Doritos, that will never go off the list. But I'm going to try to spend less, hopefully without comprimising what we eat - at least so SO doesn't notice!

We also spend a little bit more to buy local foods. I like knowing where my food comes from!

I'm going to start by seeing how long we can go without shopping for groceries. We have gone every week, but I don't know if that is necessary. We probably spend more by going every week if we only need to go, say, every 10 days. There is a local IGS type store I can go to when we need a gallon of milk or something in between shopping trips.

We're not being exactly frugal now, so I bet any of your tips could make a difference. Ideas?

 

[patandchickens]

One thing to try, if you don't do it much already, is to challenge yourself to learn to put together meals from whatever's already around. Did you ever watch the Food Channel show "Ready, Set, Cook" or some of the cooking competition series that have a similar setup? They would hand the contestants a basket with, like, 5 sort of random food items and have them make a dinner with just that plus a basic normally-stocked pantry.

It gets you to improvise and substitute, and apply what you know about general cooking processes/combinations/etc rather than follow a specific recipe...

...and the better you are at it, the more you can save (sometimes REALLY save!) on your food budget, because you can creatively utilize whatever happens to be available or on sale or seasonally-cheap.

Really, this is how most people in the world cook, i think -- this business of a) following precise written recipes and b) cooking what you decide you want to eat rather than what happens to be readily availalbe is a modern Western aberration. And costs a buncha extra money

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[miss_thenorth]

A good way to save is to eat less meat. Normally, we ( and I say that collectively as Cdn and American)eat more meat than we really need to. One good way to cut back on meat is to combine it in your other foods, such as in casseroles and salads, etc. Instead of having a chicken breast with salad on the side, put the chicken in the salad--it stretches father, and it is not noticed that you are eating less meat. Soups are a must in an SS kitchen. That stretches out eh meat farther also, and is a good way of using up leftovers.

When you are going grocery shopping--check out the store flyers and plan your menus around what is on sale, and also stock up if prices are great. Also, figure out how much milk you will need to go two weeks, so you don't have to run into town for it, which usually makes you buy other things -since your already there.

make a ist and stick to it. when you have about 5-10 items on the list, a trip to the store is in order. Until then, see if you can make do with what you have in the house. As you run out of stuff, write it on the list, and see if you can buy two, if non perishable--such as baking soda, salt etc.

also make a list- either a mental list or on paper, of what you already have in the house, so you can put together some type of menu plan. also, one that helps me out alot is to actually write out a menu for one or two weeks. That way you know what you will be eating, and you will know if you need to buy for those meals, without impromptu visits tot eh store.

 

[abifae]

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[Dace]

You already got great suggestions!

I will second the suggestion about meal planning based on store sales. Building your meals for the week based on what is on sale is a great way to keep a varied diet.

When non perishables are on sale buy two or more so that you don't ever have to pay full price.

 

[tortoise]

OK. I have TONS of pasta. How do I not bore my SO to death?

 

[abifae]

*

 

[Dace]

Break up pasta for soups too

 

[tortoise]

I cleared out the fridge and found a bunch of meat I didn't know was there. Plus we'll be getting A LOT of venison back from being processed soon. So I want to empty out the freezer a bit.

What would you do with:

~5 lb chicken drumsticks
~7 lb chicken breast (individually frozen)

I cooked a whole chicken today, so I will have bone for making broth. I might add chopped chicken breast to the soup? I was going to throw the rest of the frozen veggies in there. We had a bag of frozzen corn that was truly AWFUL, so we're a little gunshy about frozen veggies now.

How many meals for 2 adults and a toddler can I squeeze out of that much meat?

 

[miss_thenorth]

You mean the meat from the roated chicken? depends on how bigit was. I usually cook 6ish pounders, and I can get three meals plus soup from it.
First meal is the actual roasted chicken, with roasted potatoes, and salad or whatever.

Second meal is chicken enchiladas, made with cut up leftover chicken breast, onions, tomatoes, tossed in sour cream and rolled into a tortilla with salsa poured on top with shredded cheddar. Served with salad and rice.

Then hot chicken sandwiches.--cut up meat, in gravy served on bread with home fries, made with leftover roasted potatoes.

boil the bones down, pluck the meat off the bones and make chicken noodle soup.