The Savvy Life

Keeping your grocery expenses in check doesn’t mean that you should have to live on bread and water. Eating well is a vital part of living a healthy and enjoyable life! In order to keep your food bills from gobbling up too much of your budget, consider the following suggestions:

Take Stock of What You Have
A good way to keep your grocery costs down is to make sure that you are efficiently using everything that you already have. Before making a trip to the store, take a peek in your pantry, refrigerator, and freezer. Don’t let good items go stale or get freezer burn. Plan meals around these ingredients.

Make Substitutions
Think of creative substitutions. Need caffeine? Brew some iced black or green tea. Crave carbonation? A tablespoon of sugar dissolved in the juice of one lime or lemon, mixed with seltzer, makes a refreshing citrus soda. Use dried herbs instead of fresh. Make your own salad dressing with olive oil, vinegar or citrus juice, and seasonings. Substitute crushed crackers, cheese snack crackers, or even plain cereal for breadcrumbs. Need an ounce of unsweetened chocolate for baking? Use 3 Tbsp. cocoa powder combined with 1 Tbsp. of butter or vegetable oil. How about semi-sweet chocolate? Also add 4 Tbsp. of sugar to the mix. Try swapping applesauce for oil in baked goods. Out of butter? Serve your bread alongside a dish of seasoned olive oil, just like restaurants do!

When it’s finally time to go shopping, remember these tips:

Check the Specials / Make a List
Take a few minutes to check your store’s weekly specials, either in the newspaper or online. Build your menu around what’s on sale. In addition, be sure to take advantage of your store’s member card for instant discounts.

Shop Less Frequently
Making fewer trips to the store will help you save money. How many times have you run into the store for milk and come out with five other items that you didn’t really need? A weekly trip with a focused list will help keep you on track.

Stock up Smartly
Most store sales are cyclical. If you get to know the sale patterns of your store, you never will be caught running out of something and paying more than you should for it. When prices are low, buy enough of items like butter, toilet paper, or dish detergent to last until the next time it goes on sale.

Be Flexible with Your Weekly Vs. Monthly Budget
Consider maintaining both a target amount per week and a firm amount per month that you may spend on groceries. That way, if your store has a sale on family-size packages of chicken breast and ground beef one week, you can stock the freezer. The next week, you will only need to purchase fresh items like milk and produce.

Shop and Cook in Season
Produce in its peak season is often sold for low prices. In addition, meats can be “seasonal” as well, with great prices being offered on steaks at Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, turkey at Thanksgiving, corned beef around St. Patrick’s Day, and ham and leg of lamb at Easter.

Eat Your Vegetables
You don’t have to go totally vegetarian to gain the benefits of a meatless meal once or twice a week. Vegetables generally cost less than meat and offer a lot more health benefits. Try a vegetable stir-fry, a meatless chili loaded with tomatoes, peppers, and red and black beans, or a Greek salad studded with feta cheese and Kalamata olives.

Explore Ethnic Cuisines
Many international dishes are inexpensive and fun to make. Like Indian food? Make a chickpea and potato-filled Chana Saag Aloo. Italian? Simmer up a pot of hearty minestrone soup or roll your own dough for pizza or calzones. Favor Asian flavors? Try easy homemade fried rice or make your own potstickers with wonton wrappers from the produce section.

Great food can be affordable, nourishing, and delicious! Making good use of your existing pantry items and utilizing a handful of money saving techniques at the grocery store will ensure that both you and your wallet remain full and happy!

Rachel Mari is a writer and copy editor who resides in the Garden State with her husband. Her current interests include organic gardening, the French language, and building the perfect chili cheese dog. Rachel Mari can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .