Trying to Pick Up Some Ideas

We have our food delivered from Albertson's here twice a month. We spend $600 on groceries for 3 people for a month. This time I wanted to add some new things to what we usually get. I decided to try yogurt again. We aren't really fond of it but needed something new and health. That and I got some prunes too. I am 74 and need the iron and calcium they have in them. I also get pinto beans and the amount we fix is enough for two meals. They are high in protein, and we all enjoy them. Cabbage is a good filler for any stew or soup you might fix too. Potatoes can be fixed in soups and as bakers or soup by itself. I love potatoes! We also make goulash a few times a month. It's tasty, filling and easy to fix. Another two-meal dish. Well, that's what we do here. I hope you find some new and interesting things to add to your grocery list.

Well, look through your ideams that you normally buy. If you find yourself running out of a particular item by the end of the month, look for that item in a higher volume. The price difference would be smaller than if you doubbled up. Shop for the week, instead of the month. Look at your expenses as a whole, and see where you can cuut back.

May I ask if you can cook? Cooking your own foods saves money. Buying raw veggies, cooking them and freezing them can save you money, too. I usually buy Great Value sliced turkey and ham. You can get 2 lbs of each of those for $10, split the packs up into thirds and freeze them. That way they don't spoil before you can use each section up. (Walmart does sell them by 1 lbs packs but they cost more than buying the 2 lbs packs by weight.) I buy family packs of chicken, split that up into single baggies and freeze them so you're only using/cooking what you need each time. I also cook large amounts and freeze it in single serve baggies so we have ready-cooked meals that just need to be heated up and you're meal is ready to eat. You can buy bread and keep it in the fridge to keep it fresh longer. We go through two loaves in a month and they aren't turning green by the end of the month and the end of the loaves, either. These are the things I can think off off-hand. I hope this helps.

My taste is probably different but this is some of mine. I live in a tiny town with an expensive grocery store I only go when in need of something, so usually go bi-weekly to the city for Walmart or further to Costco. First, "shop" your pantry and refrigerator/freezer seeing what you can add to for meals and check the sales at the store making menus around the sales. We eat a lot of chicken, beef Keilbasa, and ground beef. They are very versatile and usually you can find them cheap at Walmart and sometimes, the local expensive stores has them cheaper (not sure why that is but I save going to my local for those.) Get creative with the chicken. Those red and green enchilada sauces are perfect to pour over sauteed cut up chicken or bake and add the sauce the last five or ten minutes. Very simple and taste so good. Other quick meals I use teriyaki and orange sauces if they are on sale. I got lucky this week and they were. We eat broccoli, zucchini, gold potatoes, shallots, bell pepper and avocado often. Walmart is usually good on prices and they make great sides and fillers. I made a huge soup once a month. The vegetables usually depend what is on sale, but a usual one is chicken or beef broth, carrots, large diced potato or few small red, zucchini, yellow squash, bell pepper, shallots, garlic, cauliflower, frozen spinach, shredded cabbage, cooked chicken (or what leftover meat I have), seasonings, and adding in at the end, cans of kidney, baby corn, and stewed tomatoes. I freeze several for easy quick meals. I make tacos once a week and freeze (just the tortilla and meat) extras for quick grabs. I make them simple with corn and sometimes add a few flour tortillas, seasoned ground beef (no taco seasoning), lettuce (we use butter lettuce), tomato (many times can), and cheese. Simple. Walmart has cheap beef kielbasa and I slice, sauté, with bell pepper and shallots. My son came back with two from Walmart Friday and he paid $2.98. They are also great in cooked pasta and a bit of RAO's or whatever sauce you like. Just sauté the sausage as is and add in. Have can or jar peaches, rice, pasta and seasonings in your pantry. I love to crock pot cook. You can get cheap tough cuts and make them tender this way. Eggs are so versatile. My pantry is never without kidney beans, stewed tomatoes of different types, baby corn (granddaughter loves it), RAOS (I get it on sale), jar peaches, jalapenos, coffee, raw sugar, honey, onion and garlic powder, smoked garlic, sea salt, canned milk, Basmati rice, and oatmeal.

I always found my grocery bill was much lower if I was buying staples rather than made-up meals, etc.

I don't buy online for my food so I can't answer your question " What do you buy or suggest to buy?" I spent 120 $ the other day at Walmart, & that was for 5 gals of 2% milk & 4 big bags of dry cereal & some other stuff I needed & I'm good for awhile.

I find Great Value brand pretty good and occasionally a brand name will be cheaper (on sale) so I always try to compare. It's really hard to stretch a grocery budget and it does take a lot of time to get what you need, I've also found that buying frozen vegetables can be cheaper than fresh. I also freeze my bread and only take out the slices I'll need and they stay fresh and defrost fine. This way the whole loaf doesn't get stale or moldy.

As @NJChicaa says, lots of frozen and canned foods are good value. If you have freezer space then frozen vegetables and fruit are great, some work better than others but you have to try and see what you like. Canned beans of various sorts are also really good value and are also a healthy choice. Even if you don't want to go fully vegetarian, a side dish of some sort of beans really helps make meat go further and if you think a can of beans is boring, just pan fry and sprinkle with some herbs and they will be much tastier! And on that note I would add that although herbs and spices are expensive to buy, they do last a long time and they make such a difference, they can transform something bland into a real taste sensation to jazz up vegetables for example. Maybe buy some mixed herbs one month, seasoning salt (or whatever it's called) another month. Then don't buy ready-made sauces, you can do something simple with a can of tomatoes or passata and some herbs and it will work out much cheaper.

There are some good tips in the responses. Like @DaddyEvil says, it is often cheaper to buy large amounts of certain things and then portion them up. We do that with big packs of chicken pieces or chops or sliced cooked meats for example. You can also cut up a big block of cheese and freeze chunks. Bread also freezes well and in fact there is evidence that freezing lowers the glycemic index of the bread so it's actually better for you too! You can also freeze milk of course (not sure how you would get through a whole month with fresh milk).

We are in a different country so can’t say for sure as your prices are probably different to those here. However,make good use of pasta, rice and potatoes which are quite cheap and will bulk out meals very well. Chicken is cheap ish and very versatile. Mince beef is great too . If you can, buy and cook in bulk and freeze portion.

I'm probably not the one to ask. I survive on Meals on Wheels and mostly sandwiches. I can tell you some of what I ordered for today: bread, nuts, lunch meat, vegan cheese, yogurt, frozen Bing cherries, granola bars, veggie poppables, 70% dark chocolate (for blood pressure and blood sugar benefits). Hopefully you see something there that interests you.

I honestly think you would do better if you ordered your groceries every two weeks, but that's just my opinion. Plan for what you actually need first--your meals. Make a list of things you can make a meal with, and plan. Try to stay away from ready-made foods, they are a lot more costly than things you make yourself. Cook everything you are able to cook from scratch--it saves a lot of money. Ground meat stretches the best--ground beef, pork, turkey, etc. Pasta in any form can stretch meals, too. Anything you buy that's ready-to-eat is going to be more costly--french fries, tater tots, chili, snack cakes, chips, anything like that... there is not really any benefits to eating a lot of treats. Just get one or two treats and space them out over the two weeks or the month to make them last and make them a true treat--or even get some ingredients and make some if possible. If you buy sodas, etc. that is also a big money grabber that really provides no nutrition. If you have a crock pot, you can always use it to make some meals that will stretch, too.