Frugal Grocery Shopping: What works for us

I received this question a few days ago, in response to the recent blog post about Deceptively Delicious:

… I noticed that your food budget is very small and mine is way out of control. I am working on Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace plan and I was wondering if you would share with me your secrets to staying within your budget. What do you eat? Where do you shop? What kind of snacks do your little ones eat? Does your budget include eating out? Do you go out to eat ever? …

I have lots to learn and certainly every family’s budget and way of eating will be suited to them, but here’s what works for our little family:

1. Our budget: Yes, our food budget includes eating out and diapers and toiletries. However, we really don’t eat out. Our total grocery budget is $200 (and we do the envelope system as well) but Jeff and I also have a $30/month date & babysitter budget, which we usually just use for “fun money”… a run to Coldstone (2 Like-its for $5!) or Starbucks  or an occasional date at Pizza Schmizza (2 slices for $5!), or a Redbox movie. I know many people love to eat out, but it just kills me how expensive, unhealthy and fattening it can be. So, I’m cheap and vain … and I’d rather spend my money on clothes or house decor than eating out. 🙂 We all value different things.

2. Where do I shop: Winco Winco Winco. LOVE Winco.  I plan out our meals for the month (figuring I cook about 3x a week and the rest is random or leftovers or pink pancakes), then make my list, and buy the whole month’s groceries at Winco. Then I just buy meat, milk, and produce at Safeway or Albertson’s, depending upon their weekly deals and what coupons I find. My goal is to have as little packaging as possible, so I get everything from the bulk section at Winco–flour, oats, sugars, pasta, dried beans, snacks, raisins, etc. For me, toiletries are where the coupon clipping works wondrously. Rite-Aid usually has deals and online coupons for toiletries.  I’m not quite so hot on the coupon thing as much anymore, just because of time, but just today I went to Safeway and got 3 bags of groceries for $17 thanks to some amazing coupons (the grocery clerk actually congratulated me :).  It just all depends.  You can check it all out and watch for deals on Frugal Living NW.  Great local coupon blog. I check it probably once a week.

3. My quirk: I have a $2 rule. I won’t pay more than $2/pound for any food item. This obviously limits some things. The one exception I make is Parmesan cheese. Safeway often has sales on ground beef for $1.88/lb. and frozen boneless chicken breasts for $1.69/lb. I just keep my eye out and then buy tons of it when it’s on sale and keep it in the freezer.No fruit or vegetables that are over $2/lb… which means waiting until strawberries are on sale (like right now!), picking blueberries instead of buying them, etc. This includes cheese–Safeway often has Lucerne 2 lb. cheeses for $3.99 so I wait, then stock up when it’s on sale. Same with butter.  The sad part is this means no seafood, and I love seafood, so occasionally I’ll splurge on that, but for our regular diet we stick to nothing over $2/lb. Yes, this means no gourmet cooking.   Cheddar cheese and chicken instead of Brie and filet mignon.  It’s a choice like everything else.

4. What do we eat: I must say I have it easy because my husband is willing to eat anything–I know a lot of husbands have to have steak, etc. My husband is happy with whatever, so we very rarely eat beef, and actually probably only eat meat twice a week. I LOVE cooking with beans, which are probably the cheapest healthiest food out there. Buying them dry and soaking them, then cooking them in a crockpot and using them in all sorts of things is a great source of fiber and protein and they’re super cheap. We eat old-fashioned oatmeal for breakfast, every single morning, which is super healthy, super cheap, and the kids love it. I mix it with homemade applesauce and they devour it. Keeps Jeff’s cholesterol down and we’re all happy and regular :).  Also, don’t underestimate the value of frozen vegetables.  Often they are just as good or better than fresh because they are frozen at their peak, retain their nutrients, and are a fraction of the price.  I buy LOTS of frozen peas, beans, cauliflower, etc.  No worry of them spoiling in the fridge, easy to mix in with any recipe, steam quickly in the microwave for a side dish. Not fancy, but can’t argue with the price and nutrient-power.  Cauliflower puree is my new favorite things–you can hide it in ANYTHING.  Today it was egg-salad sandwiches and a big bowl of applesauce–with probably a whole cup of pureed cauliflower hidden inside them!

5. Kids’ snacks: For snacks my kids love apples, bananas, oranges, strawberries, quesadillas (stock up on wholewheat tortillas when they’re on sale and stick in freezer), homemade bread, whole plain yogurt, applesauce, raisins, dry cereal, and cheese. They LOVE (crazy love) graham crackers but I just buy one small box a month at most and make it a treat since they are pretty sugary. I do sometimes buy a big container of animal crackers and use those for treats. Or I make muffins or banana bread (like that ocean cake) and use muffins for treats and snacks. I’m definitely weak on getting my kids veggies, but I figure at least fruits and whole grains are better than a lot of things, right? I don’t obsess over it. If they’re not eating pop tarts I figure it’s a success.  Again, cauliflower pretty much disappears when mixed in with something else.

6. Stock-up Price: Here’s the last thing that’s really helped me, and this just takes time to figure out for yourself. But I pretty much know my “stock up price” for all our favorite items. That way I know when something is a great deal and I stock up on it. Cheese $3.99 or less for 2 lbs., Chicken $1.69/lb. or less, beef $1.88/lb or less, apples $1/lb or less, butter $2/lb or less, etc. etc. All other items like non-perishables and flours, sugars, beans, oats, etc. I just buy at Winco and know it’s going to be the cheapest so I don’t even worry about the price. Plus, I admit, I think like a beggar, simply meaning that we’ll eat any leftovers, happily take home any unwanted leftover food from church, I’ll take leftover taco meat and make it into tortilla soup (speaking of, learn to cook and serve soup OFTEN–soup is the cheapest, easiest, and healthiest way to eat), I’ll take old apples and make them into applesauce, pretty much just the habit of being willing to eat whatever really helps a lot.  Again I must acknowledge a very wonderful and easy-to-please husband, which impacts the attitude of our kids as well.  Very thankful for that!

7. Budget Busters:  Watch out for these things.  I think these are likely the things that drain most mom’s grocery envelope, without adding any nutritional value:

Granola bars, fruit snacks, goldfish and graham crackers, boxed cereal, juice boxes (or juice at all), frozen kiddo food like chicken nuggets or pizza rolls, individual yogurts.  In general, if it has kid-packaging, I don’t buy it.  It usually costs twice as much with no nutritional value. Maybe this sounds harsh–of course do what works for you and your family.  We just avoid it.

I also try to remind myself not to get obsessive about this. I do my best and if I “miss” a deal–life will go on.  Time is perhaps an even more valuable resource than money, so I factor that in as well!

I’d love to hear any of your Frugal Secrets.  I’ve learned so much from other friends and bloggers, and love sharing ways to help one another. I love working together to steward God’s resources, and hopefully then we will all have more freedom to give to those who actually need it.

Leave a comment with your Frugal Secrets!

K