You only need to learn two things to beat the rising food prices in todays economy. learn what they are in this episode!
You only need to learn two things to beat the rising food prices in todays economy. learn what they are in this episode!
It’s no surprise anymore that food prices are going through the roof. And although they say it will go back down over the next few years supposedly, we really need to start saving money on our food bill. In todays episode, I will teach you 2 ways you can do just that.
Hi and welcome back to the Prepping Positively Podcast! I’m Annie and today we are talking about 2 ways of cutting costs on our food bill.
There are very few people who can provide all of their own food for their families. Some of us have livestock, poultry and so on which helps. Some people have the ability to get milk from cows and/or goats. Some get eggs from chickens, ducks, or even quail. Some people grow their own vegetables, herbs, and even fruit.
However many people do not have these opportunities so they must rely on outside sources such as grocery stores or farmers markets.
Even those of us who can provide a good bit of our own food still have to depend on outside sources for things like salt and other food items.
But with food prices escalating, we need to start doing 2 things. Do you know what those two things are?
Become frugal and start getting creative. Let me explain.
First let’s talk about being frugal. Frugality means spending the least amount of money as possible. In other words, buying what is necessary at the best price and not necessarily what is just wanted.
It means buying food when the price is at a lower point, or on sale maybe. This is where those BOGO’s come into play. A BOGO means Buy One Get One in case you didn’t know.
To buy food more frugally means to look for the best deals and at the best value for your money.
Let’s use chicken as an example.
If a family sized pack or boneless chicken breast are $12.00 for the package, you need to look at how many pounds the package is. Let’s say it is a 3 pound pack. Dividing the $12.00 sale price by 3 pounds means you are paying $4.00 per pound.
Now let’s look at another package of chicken breasts that are bone-in breasts. Let’s again say it is a 3 pound package. But the bone-in breasts are only $10.00 for the pack.
Spending $10.00 seems cheaper right? Well, not so fast. In the package with the bones remaining in the chicken, some of the weight comes from the bone. Now if you use the bones to make stock or soup, there won’t be waste.
However, if you throw the chicken bones away, you are throwing away money. That’s because the bone was taken into consideration in the overall weight of the package. So if all the bones weigh 1 and a half pounds you actually only have one and a half pounds of chicken. $10.00 divided by one and a half pounds of chicken is now about $6.60 per pound. That is no deal.
Another way to be frugal is to shop the ads. But again, pay attention. Do you really need that item that is on sale? If so, when it is on sale is the best time to buy it and even stock up on it.
However, before you buy a popular brand, check the store brand price. Usually, the store version is cheaper and is usually the same size as the name brand. Compare the coupon too. Make sure that with the coupon, the brand you are buying is less than the store brand.
Another way to be frugal when shopping is to buy more “from scratch” items. A great example is brown sugar. I simply add molasses to my white sugar when I need brown sugar. When I see molasses on sale I stock up so I always have it available.
Further examples of frugal shopping would include buying potatoes and making your own scalloped or mashed potatoes instead of buying the boxed, dehydrated versions. You can even make hash browns like this and save some money by not having to shop for remade hash browns in the freezer section.
Cooking from scratch can save a lot of money at the grocery store. Make your own spaghetti sauce, your own DIY Mac and Cheese, or your own rice sides.
Remember that family pack of chicken breasts we talked about? Instead of feeding your family of four each a separate breast, why not use two breasts cut up into bite sized pieces and add veggies for a stir fry, or rice for a casserole instead. By doing this you can get more meals out of a package and therefore stretch your money when it comes to the food bill.
And as far as being frugal goes, buy only what you need and at the best price possible.
So now that you understand how to be frugal, let’s talk about being creative.
Being creative with your food means adding things to your meals to make them go further, yet introduce a different taste and variety at the same time.
Try using a homemade tortilla shell to make a sandwich. Even a large lettuce leaf makes a good wrap!
If you make a pot of chili, freeze the leftovers in small baggies. Then instead of serving plain hotdogs, use the left over chili to make chili cheese dogs. I, myself can eat 2 or 3 hotdogs on a bun, but when you add chili and cheese, I am lucky to finish one. Add some fries and voila, a package of hotdogs goes even further.
One the night you make spaghetti, don’t put the sauce on the noodles. Instead keep the sauce in a separate bowl from the noodles and let everyone put the amount of sauce they want on their own noodles. When dinner is done, take the leftover noodles and use them to make scampi, or buttered garlic noodles the next day. Heck, you can add the noodles to some cut up chicken and some sauce and make a whole other meal..
Another creative way to be creative is to make your own spice mixes, rubs, condiments, salad dressings and soup starters. There are tons of recipes on the internet, especially Pinterest to make just about anything I just mentioned. Making these yourself will save a ton of money at the grocery store.
One idea I want to mention also is buying bulk. Now I am not a fan of buying large quantities of everything. Paper products like toilet paper, paper towels, foil, storage bags and even garbage bags often offer a better deal when you buy a larger quantity.
Laundry soap, cleaners, and soap can be a great deal in bulk also.
However when it comes to food, check the price first and then think about what you are buying. I can buy these super sized cans of vegetables at Sam’s Club. Even though the price for the amount of food you get is good, we never eat all of the contents before it goes bad. Therefore, I save money by waiting for a smaller can to go on sale and then buy a case instead of buying the biggest cans.
The exception to this is if you can freeze the rest of the contents or dehydrate them. Then you will get your money’s worth usually.
So the key to saving money on increasing food prices is to be frugal and by all means be creative.
Make your own bread and muffins, make those pancakes from scratch, create your own salad dressings and spice blends. By what you will use up, and consider the cheaper store brands.
Of course the ultimate way to save money on food is to grow as much as you can yourself.
Well that’s all I have for you this week. Do you have some great ways to beat the rising food prices? Email me at annie@roadtoreliance.com and share your ideas with me.
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Until next week, stay healthy and happy and remember to be frugal and creative too.