Groceries = $$

I got some great comments and emails from my last post, thank you for all of them!

Mollie sent me an email and asked a great question:

I love love love getting recipes off of your blog!! Now I have a question, with being a newlywed and on some sort of a budget, how do you make budget friendly grocery lists? Because I love to cook like you, I find I spend a lot more money cooking for two people when I try to make a nice meal. Do you run into this problem? Do you try to coordinate recipes with the same ingredients so you don't double purchase?

Awesome question!! So, I'm going to fill you all in on my answer and maybe get some ideas from you guys, too...

Disclaimer: I'm SO not an expert, like, at all. I know I could do a lot more to save money at the store, so I'm always looking for advice! My strong suit is not budgeting. Ask Keith, hah! Because I think with my stomach, I often have a tendency to like and want just about everything! So, here's what I do to keep my weekly Kroger bill under control:

Plan my week - Y'all know I do this because of my menu postings on Mondays. I plan my weekly menu on Sunday by going through my recipes (which can take forever) and I pick out what I'm in the mood to fix. I also think about any plans we have at night to figure out how many times we'll be cooking versus eating out. Typically, we only eat out or get take-out once a week.

I typically make sure we have a balance of beef, chicken and/or fish and I also try to avoid duplicating meals that are Asian, Italian or Mexican-themed, just to give us lots of variety. For example, I wouldn't make two pastas or two casseroles in one week. There are other factors that may play into my meal selections (see a few items below), but usually it's based on my mood, the season and convenience. Keith and I have been going to the gym almost every week night, so I've got to stick to things that take less than 40 minutes.

There are a variety of notepads out there, and I've been seeing more lately in stores, for planning the menu. I have a couple of different kinds and I love posting this on our fridge door.

Find a way to repeat ingredients - Once I've picked out the recipes, I read through the ingredient list on each to evaluate any repetition. For example, if I only need 1/4 cup celery for one dish, I'm still going to have a lot from the bundle I bought at the store. So, I try to make sure I'll have another way to use it during the week. I don't always do this, but it's nice to find a way to avoid wasting half of a bell pepper, or partially used ingredients from a canned good or something.

One thing that helps here is to have plenty of plastic storage containers for leftover ingredients. I have an onion and tomato keeper that comes in handy, too.

 

There's also this great website, StillTasty.com, that will help you figure out how long items will last in your fridge.

Use what's on hand - Sometimes, before picking out the menu, I'll check the kitchen for any items that I've got a lot of or that need to be used up. For example, last week I realized we had a bundle of bananas that were turning brown, and we had some strawberries left over, so I planned to make Glazed Strawberry Banana Bread simply because I had the basics on hand. Right now, I've got 2 big blocks of Parmesan cheese in the fridge, so I see something Italian in our future.

Lots of recipe and cooking websites will allow you to search by ingredient, and I've found that tool to come in handy. Try MyRecipes.com:

Herb garden - I love having just a few herbs in my potted planters out back. I don't have much, but I have found it so convenient and cheap to be able to snip off as much or as little basil, rosemary, parsley, chives, etc. instead of buying it at the grocery store. Fresh herbs are worth the small $ amount initially and the time it takes to keep them going. You won't be sorry you've got them! Next year, I'm hoping Keith will build me a raised vegetable garden so I can really grow some goods!

 

Keep the kitchen stocked - It has made me crazy in the past to buy everything I've needed for a recipe only to realize I had run out of something simple, like olive oil, the week prior. It's easy to look at a recipe and assume you've got what you need on the basics (spices, oils, canned goods, etc.). I hate running out of those things and being caught off guard! I also don't want to have to check my whole kitchen before making a list to see if I have what I need.

So, I keep a magnet list on my fridge door with a pen. When something runs out (or is low), regardless of the next time I'll need more of it, I replace it the next time I'm at the grocery store. I just add those items to my list that I make on Sunday. I don't even worry with whether or not I'll need them anytime soon. As a result, my pantry is always stocked with the basics and I never have to worry about having them when planning my menu for the week. I apply the same rule to cleaning, laundry, and bathroom supplies, too.

I've never actually researched this, but I feel like this keeps my grocery store spending at a steady average. If you obliterate everything and then have to re-stock all at once, it can be an expensive trip to the store.

At the store, stick to the plan - Once I have determined what is needed for the week, I make my list in order of the store, from the entry in produce, all the way through the aisles, and then ending with dairy. I know my Kroger well enough that I can do this. It keeps me from running all over the place and getting tempted with things in aisles that I don't need to go down.

I also ONLY buy what's on the list. I may see cereal that looks yummy, but if it's not on the list then I know we aren't out at home and we don't need it. The only time I break this rule is in the produce section when they have a special on a certain fruit, or if they look particularly delicious and in-season. Produce is cheap and fresh fruit is a great snack. So, I don't mind picking up things I hadn't planned on when it comes to fruit. On the contrary, if I went down the snack aisle or ice cream section, I would see a billion things that look good. So, I stay away and stick to the plan!!

Go once for the week - Quite simply, plan the whole week and only go once. The less frequently you go, the less you buy. Easy!

Coupons - I'll admit, I'm not awesome at this. We don't get a newspaper here and I'm just not that great about printing and cutting. I am trying to be better!!!

I have no clue how helpful the above info is to everyone! I really feel like I could be doing a lot more to save $$ at the grocery store, but I do always feel very confident that I went in organized and had a plan. And no matter how you slice it, eating at home is much cheaper than eating out. Unless you are eating nightly meals from the dollar menu at a fast food joint, there's no way eating out is cheaper. Even 'inexpensive' places like McAlister's Deli or something similar can rack up $20 easily for two people. Also, having leftovers that I can take to work save me money during lunch, too.

(nothing like eating at home, anyway!)

Also, the more frequently you cook, the more stocked your kitchen is. Then you'll spend less at the store! When I first started cooking, trips to the store were pricey because there was so much I didn't have. So, don't get discourage, girls!

Tell me your secrets...Do you have any?