Ideas for saving money on food

[woolybear]

Please tell me what you do to save money on food. What do you grow, make yourself, and anything else. What about natural food coops, csas, and more.

 

 

I'd love to hear all about your farm, but I don't have one. I'm looking for things I can do. I live in the northeast and we have about 4-5 month growing season. I'm wondering what gives us the most bang for our buck in terms of gardening but also in making things at home.

 

If I have to buy milk, is making my own yogurt saving a lot? What about baked goods? We do quite a bit of baking now, but I'm wondering if anyone has actually costed it out--buying versus making your own. Also, what do you all recommend in gardens/

 

Any other thoughts appreciated.

[texasmama]

Bountiful Baskets is a good organization for fresh produce.  I have ordered the organic basket for over a year, and it is a good quantity and quality of food.

[Rosie_0801]

I find that making my own ricotta (which I don't do often) is about half the price of buying it. I don't know anything about your local prices, of course.

 

I buy beans and grains in bulk. That saves quite a bit.

 

 

[texasmama]

Rosie talking about bulk items made me remember that when I was beekeeping I learned of a restaurant supply store which sells to the public.  I bought sugar in 40 pound bags.  It lasts forever and it quite a bit cheaper than 5 pound bags at the store.

 

I also shop quite a lot at a salvage grocery store and get good food items for about a quarter or less the grocery store cost.

[ocelotmom]

If I have to buy milk, is making my own yogurt saving a lot? 

 

I'm looking at the Safeway site right now. A quart of milk costs $2.19. A quart of yogurt costs $3.79. For the first batch, you also have to buy some yogurt with active cultures for a starter, but you don't need that for subsequent batches. There is a cost for whatever heat source you use, but that should be very negligible. If you get a gallon instead of a quart, the price per ounce is even cheaper.

 

So it is significantly cheaper. Assuming you get good results. Not everyone does.

[Um_2_4]

I make my own yogurt. BIG cost savings. I priced it once. I make 1 gallon a week at least. Buying that much yogurt would run $9-10. Making it costs $2.50.

 

I bought 25# of flour when we used to used flour off Amazon. It was 100% WW and organic and at a very cheap price. 

 

Those produce co-ops are over priced here for what you get. (I think marketing here in CA has ruined them, kind of like t he "Farmer's Markets" that sell very little from actual Farmers.)

 

I shop produce at either an outlet or, if your family is large enough, look for the local produce distribution center. Here  this is where the trucks pick up the boxes for distributing to stores each am. On Saturdays after a certain hour they open it up to retail customers and you can buy whole boxes of _____ for cheap.  I'm talking 25 pound boxes of cucumbers, tomatoes,  etc.

 

Also if you live in a big town, look for ethnic stores. The middle eastern store I shop at always has cheaper and fresher produce than the large markets (safeway, ralphs, etc.). Also if we wanted they would sell us a whole box of _____ for a great price. I used to get whole flats of strawberries for $4, box of green beans for like $10, etc.

 

The main thing comes down to know your prices and look at unit cost so you don't get sucked into buying the BIG package because "that must be cheaper right?".

 

I joined Sam's which is great for cheese (Around $4 for 2 pound brick), butter (around $6 for 4 pounds), bananas ($1.32 for 3 pounds) and a few other items (milk, tortilla chips, apple juice, trash bags, laundry detergent, clorox, vinegar, rice, gasoline for the car). But everything else seems overpriced to me there and too much temptation to over buy.

[tm919]

I live in the NE with a rather shady 1/4 of an acre -- gardening doesn't take us far but it does MOSTLY eliminate buying snacks in the summer.Outside in the summer, I do tomato plants each year (ugh, they are prone to everything but still produce) and hot peppers (EASY because nothing but me seems to want to eat them), and this year I'll probably do beans or peas as well. I ordered a flat of alpine strawberry plants (can grow in part sun) but I won't know until next year whether they really take and are worth the initial investment. I never got into zucchini because I feel like, when I would be able to harvest them, they are SO cheap at the farmer's markets that I'd rather just buy there.

 

 I also grow herbs on the windowsill in old mason jars year round... not that cilantro and chives are a necessity of life.

[woolybear]

So much helpful advice! Keep it coming. For those that grow indoors, do you have cats and how do you keep the cats from nibbling on the herbs. :)

[Ottakee]

For a garden try to grow things that are expensive to buy. We focus on tomatoes esp as the garden fresh ones are so much better.

[Ottakee]

For a garden try to grow things that are expensive to buy. We focus on tomatoes esp as the garden fresh ones are so much better.

[Ottakee]

For a garden try to grow things that are expensive to buy. We focus on tomatoes esp as the garden fresh ones are so much better.

[Amira]

We make our own bread, pasta, yogurt, ice cream, applesauce, tahini, tofu, and peanut butter.  Those are all unquestionably much cheaper to make at home than to buy, especially comparing 100% whole wheat bread, yogurt with no added stuff, whole wheat pasta, and peanut butter without extra junk.  The extra stuff makes prepared foods cheaper to buy, but leaving it out makes them cheaper to make at home. 

 

I don't can/bottle anything, but I do freeze tomatoes and peppers in the summer to use during the winter when I live in a place with winter.

 

We only drink milk and water almost all the time.  If we want something special, I make horchata for much less than I could buy it and it's much better quality.

 

Gardens are great but we usually haven't been able to have one.  I've always been able to find sources for produce that are less expensive than the regular grocery store no matter where I've lived. We eat in-season produce because it's better quality, cheaper, and tastes better. 

 

Bulk beans and grains make a huge difference for us.  And I make some simple cheeses too to save some money.  

 

In my opinion, a good spice cupboard, even though it's a little expensive to get started, saves a lot of money overall because it makes so many boring foods delicious. 

[gardenmom5]

I would recommend the frugal gazette by amy dacyczyn.  (she made a decision to marry a guy with Ukrainian ancestry). she lives in the northeast, and wrote a newsletter when her children were young.  it's been compiled into book form.  she has many tried and true methods for saving money - including on food items.

while she gives lots of tips, she helps people to realize what works *for them* to prioritize for their lifestyle and budget.

 

one thing we did - was seriously reduced what was considered a necessity/staple and what was a luxury item.  there was a time yogurt was a luxury.  ice cream and chocolate chips were *definitely* luxuries. even OJ was a luxury.  we cooked from scratch - it's cheaper, and healthier. 

[MrsBasil]

I don't do this, but a friend has found that having groceries delivered via Amazon, a local dairy and Door to Door Organics, buying half a cow, and stocking up on chicken and pork at Sam's Club every 3 months saves her money because she is rarely in a grocery store so there are few impulse buys or last minute trips to the store.  She was telling me about it last time I talked to her and she says she's seen a noticeable drop in her overall food spending in the past year doing it this way.   

[cjzimmer1]

 

 

We only drink milk and water almost all the time.  If we want something special, I make horchata for much less than I could buy it and it's much better quality.

 

 

I've only had it a couple of times but I loved it.  Do you have a recipe for it?

[cjzimmer1]

We have an Amish community about an hour from us.  They have an auction where they sell produce.  I get things dirt cheap there, especially if I go for the seconds.  I have found that it's cheaper and more convenient to drive the hour buy 5 bushels of tomatoes and can for 2 days and be done with tomatoes than to raise them myself and have to can a batch or two every week.  I still grow a few for fresh use but I no longer try to grow for bulk because I can get a bushel for around $10.  I can get misshaped peppers for $2-3 dollars a bushel and zucchinis $1-2 a half bushel.  50 pounds of onions for 10 or less (I like the softball size super sweets which are more expensive than little storage onions) and bushels of potatoes for $8-15 depending on the kind.

 

So in the summer, I can, freeze and dehydrate as much as I am able and then use those for most of the winter. 

 

I also check the discount bins first as the grocery store and snatch up whatever is a good deal.

 

At Thanksgiving time, when Turkeys run 40 cent a pound (occasionally I will find them for less), I will buy 4-6 of them (more if I have freezer space at the time), and use them in place of chicken.  I buy 20+ pound turkeys and between roasting, soups, casseroles and quesadillas, one turkey will provide our meat for the entire week.

 

Ham is now on sale for 99 cents a pound.  I will buy 6-8 and stick them in the freezer.  They will last us until Christmas when they go on sale again. I can't quite do a whole week an one ham half but I can easily do 4 days worth (and there are 8 of us eating every meal).  We seldom eat meat alone, it's always put in soups casseroles, fried rice, stir fry etc to make it go further.

 

I make most of our bread products but I buy wheat berries, oats, and brown rice through a food co-op that orders from Country Life and it's much cheaper per pound than getting those things from the store.

 

And then there is Aldi.  They have a lot of processed food which is expensive no matter where you buy it but I go there almost weekly and stock up on whatever their weekly produce specials are.  Pineapples are $1.29 this week.  I went today and bought 10 and I will get another 10 next Tuesday before the sale is over.  We love dried pineapple and it's super easy to make and so much better tasting than the sugar laden stuff you buy in the store.  A new one opened a couple of months ago and for their grand opening butter was 1.49 a pound (plus a $5.00 off coupon for spending $30 or more).  SInce butter was selling for about $2.50 everywhere else at the time I went and bought 60 pounds.  I but half in the fridge (it keeps for months) and but the rest in the freezer. 

 

Basically my strategy is to buy lots of whatever is cheap/great price at the store but keep a variety of things in the house.  Then we eat whatever we have on hand. 

[Amira]

I've only had it a couple of times but I loved it. Do you have a recipe for it?

Here's a quick but fairly chalky version http://amiralace.blogspot.mx/2014/10/quick-just-rice-horchata.html

 

Here's a longer version, but still quicker than the traditional version. I definitely prefer this one. http://amiralace.blogspot.mx/2014/12/horchata-again.html

 

My mom makes it with equal parts of rice milk and coconut milk with some cinnamon and sugar, or you can do equal parts rice, almond, and coconut milks, but those are obviously a lot more expensive.

[cjzimmer1]

Here's a quick but fairly chalky version http://amiralace.blogspot.mx/2014/10/quick-just-rice-horchata.html

 

Here's a longer version, but still quicker than the traditional version. I definitely prefer this one. http://amiralace.blogspot.mx/2014/12/horchata-again.html

 

My mom makes it with equal parts of rice milk and coconut milk with some cinnamon and sugar, or you can do equal parts rice, almond, and coconut milks, but those are obviously a lot more expensive.

 

Thank you.

 

I'm assuming the rice is white rice and not brown rice, correct?  This looks pretty easy to make.

 

Since both almond and coconut milk are permanent staples in my fridge due to dairy allergies, it wouldn't take much to get a container of rice milk to go with it.  May have to try that some morning for a special treat for the kids.

[Amira]

Thank you.

 

I'm assuming the rice is white rice and not brown rice, correct? This looks pretty easy to make.

 

Since both almond and coconut milk are permanent staples in my fridge due to dairy allergies, it wouldn't take much to get a container of rice milk to go with it. May have to try that some morning for a special treat for the kids.

I've only ever seen it made with white rice and I've only used white myself, but I think brown would be good too. A lot of people strain horchata and I'd imagine you'd need to with brown rice. Now I want to try it with brown rice.

[Tanaqui]

People in the West throw out a *ridiculous* amount of food. Cutting down on waste can effectively boost your budget by 25% or more.

 

For example: Lots of people throw out the tops of beets and carrots and radishes. Well, beet greens can be used like spinach or chard (they're the same species), carrot tops can be used in place of parsley (parsley and carrots are also close relatives to each other), and radish and turnip tops can be used wherever you'd use kale or mustard greens (because they're all brassicas - seeing a pattern here? Related plants, related purposes.) Heck, I've been known to get bags full of those things free from the farmer's market or supermarket - they're happy to give them away.

 

Plenty of people throw out broccoli stems. If you don't want to steam or roast them with the crowns, you can grate them and use them where you'd use raw cabbage, such as in a salad.

 

People throw out the bones and skin of chicken. Bones = broth, skin = schmaltz. Fry it until it releases its oil. Chicken skin is something else you can source free from your supermarket, just ask the butcher counter. Unless you have a large Jewish population, they'll be glad to let you take it off their hands!

 

I know people who only eat the whites of scallions (spring onions), or who only eat the greens. Needless to say, if they ate the whole thing they'd get twice the bang for their buck.

 

And then, of course, there's more prosaic ways to cut down on waste. This doesn't apply to you if you already budget carefully, but if you frequently find yourself tossing rotten apples and moldy peppers, you can see where you can save. Plan your menus carefully, buy only what you will use to cook each week.

 

I have found that it's cheaper and more convenient to drive the hour buy 5 bushels of tomatoes and can for 2 days and be done with tomatoes than to raise them myself and have to can a batch or two every week.

 

Well, doesn't it depend on what sort of tomatoes you grow? Determinate tomatoes that all ripen at once are the ones you use for canning. Indeterminate ones, which ripen throughout the summer, are the sort you grow when you like salads.

 

Gardening is something different. The best things to grow are things that you CAN grow and that your family enjoys eating.

 

[cjzimmer1]

 

 

Well, doesn't it depend on what sort of tomatoes you grow? Determinate tomatoes that all ripen at once are the ones you use for canning. Indeterminate ones, which ripen throughout the summer, are the sort you grow when you like salads.

 

Gardening is something different. The best things to grow are things that you CAN grow and that your family enjoys eating.

 

To a point, but even determinate plant don't ripen all their fruit in a couple of days, more like a couple of weeks to a month.  So I'm still hauling my canning equipment out every few days instead of just hitting it hard for 2 days and being done with it.  My parents own a greenhouse and I get all my plants for free but even figuring in fertilizer, soil amendments and water, it's still cheaper to buy the tomatoes.

 

[Tanaqui]

Gotcha.

[foxbridgeacademy]

For making Tomato sauce or even diced Toms I skin them (blanching) then chop or puree then freeze in meal sized portions.  My mom does this too but then when she has enough she'll pull them defrost and can them all in one day.

[foxbridgeacademy]

We save a lot by rarely eating meat as a main dish.  Also I sometimes skip cooking dinner, the kids will wander in asking what I'm making for dinner, and I tell them it's "fend for yourself" night, which means microwave some leftovers. 

[Laura Corin]

Aldi was my saviour when things were tight - I saved about 25% compared to standard supermarkets.  That and eating a lot of beans/lentils and little meat.

[Carrie12345]

Short growing season here, too (also NE.)  I still have snow on the ground and probably won't turn my soil until well into April.  Snow again in October isn't out of the ordinary.  When we first moved here, I called my mom crying b/c it was snowing before Halloween.

 

Peas and beans are the easiest, but I also have a respectable history with tomatoes and cucumbers, though I'm still working on getting the hang of peppers.  Those are 3 of our budget breakers in the grocery store.

 

Growing berries (and freezing) would save us a TON!  Unfortunately, I just don't have the set up for that right now.

 

I have so much sun that it's difficult for me to manage salad greens, but that would also be a big savings for us.  I like to eat a lot of salad, but hate the price of organic clam shells in the store.

[kewb]

Also in the northeast with a black thumb and shady yard. I have success growing tomatoes, hot peppers, and basil.

I have to plant enough tomatoes to feed the squirrels and us.

Once I had some success with lettuce.

It definitely helped a little with grocery costs and at the enf of the season I made delicious pickled tomatoes.

[Pippen]

Please tell me what you do to save money on food. What do you grow, make yourself, and anything else. What about natural food coops, csas, and more.

 

 

I'd love to hear all about your farm, but I don't have one. I'm looking for things I can do. I live in the northeast and we have about 4-5 month growing season. I'm wondering what gives us the most bang for our buck in terms of gardening but also in making things at home.

 

If I have to buy milk, is making my own yogurt saving a lot? What about baked goods? We do quite a bit of baking now, but I'm wondering if anyone has actually costed it out--buying versus making your own. Also, what do you all recommend in gardens/

 

Any other thoughts appreciated.

 

One thing to factor into gardening costs is water, if you pay for it. We live in town and they raise water rates substantially in summer--it's cheaper for me to buy on sale than to grow veggies here.

[kiana]

I haven't really found gardening to save much money on anything other than things like bell peppers. For things like broccoli that I can buy frozen and already chopped at a dollar a pound it's just not worth it. 

 

Honestly the biggest thing I did to save money was to cut beef and most pork out of my diet (occasionally I buy pork when it's on sale for a dollar a pound) and eat chicken instead. I eat the dark meat cuts, save the fat and use it instead of butter, boil the bones for broth and use them as a base for vegetable soup + lentil soup. 

[Artichoke]

Come up with a few new ways to use the odds and ends in your refrigerator. I almost never buy anything specific for fried rice, soups, or veggie pizzas. My family likes cheese so I'll use whatever's in the fridge to make mac and cheese. I'll also echo others that the Tightwad Gazette is a great read.

 

When we had a house full of teens, I'd set out cut veggies before dinner along with some deviled eggs. In the winter months, we'd have homemade tomato soup ( quick and super easy ) before some dinners to take the edge off their appetites. The kids always enjoyed their "dinner courses ".

[kubiac]

http://www.amazon.com/Make-Bread-Buy-Butter-Scratch-Over/dp/1451605889

Bake the Bread, Buy the Butter

 

Tamar Adler

http://www.amazon.com/An-Everlasting-Meal-Cooking-Economy/dp/1439181888

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/04/dining/tips-to-reduce-food-waste.html

 

http://www.patternliteracy.com/books/gaias-garden

[Amira]

I liked Bake the Bread, Buy the Butter, but I didn't feel like it was really good at comparing prices because the author wasn't trying to buy the ingredients for her homemade things very cheaply.  I was cooking from scratch in Seattle at the same time she was, but I never bought a 1-pound bag of beans at QFC because there were much cheaper ways to get those beans and the same goes for a lot of ingredients the book calls for.  I think there are more things worth making at home than that books admits.  But it really depends on how and where you're shopping.  Cooking from scratch with pricey ingredients really doesn't save much money.

[Jennifer132]

I have costed it out, but I don't have the papers handy now...

Yogurt--costs $3 to $5 dollars for a gallon of milk (that is all you need to make yogurt once you have made it one time because you can use your own yogurt as the starter). A gallon of store bought yogurt costs about 20 dollars. So it is a huge savings if you eat a lot of yogurt.

 

Bread costs about $2 a loaf store bought. Homemade costs me .44 cents a loaf or less depending on the recipe.

 

Homemade granola can replace cereal. It is cheaper. I just don't remember how much.

 

And let's not forget the amount of chemicals and sugar you would be skipping in making your own foods.

 

Bone broth is also cheaper than canned broth, if you eat the chicken meat as well as use the bones for broth.

[bethben]

You just have to know who has the best price.  I live in a small town with two grocery stores that don't compete with each other, so we tend to pay a little more than a more metro area.   I buy grains (oatmeal, rice, wheat berries) from a natural food co-op (clnf.org) and figure out what Costco has cheaper than the grocery store (cheese, big bags of white flour, some meats, frozen strawberries, etc.).  I buy produce from Aldi's.  They sometimes didn't have what we wanted produce wise, but overall, it was pretty good and the savings were significant.  I make my own bread (honey whole wheat) for around 75 cents a loaf and make my own yogurt for a little more than the cost of a gallon of milk.  I tend to make all our baked goods also.  I'm not sure if I save money, but I know they are healthier.  I have also made bone broth.  That too is a super healthy food and a lot cheaper than store bought.  

[ElizabethB]

Ethnic food stores. Asian for large bags of rice, Hispanic for tortillas, quail, etc.