Last year, we spent way too much on groceries.
We eat an exclusively grass fed meat and organic produce diet. Because we put a high priority on quality food to heal our leaky guts, we skimp on other areas so we have more money for groceries. (Our car is nine years old, for instance, and besides lap tops and Trac Fone cell phones and a Nook, we don’t have any tech gadgets).
Because we have many food intolerances, we can’t consume some of the cheaper healthy foods like beans and bread. (We can only have gluten free bread, which isn’t cheap.)
Those are our parameters, so my husband and I both accept that groceries will be our highest monthly bill after rent. However, now that we’re more familiar with this way of eating than we were last year, we’re on a mission to lower our grocery bill. Here’s how we plan to do it:
1. Look at alternative produce sources.
I spend a small portion of my grocery money at Whole Foods and a larger portion at Trader Joe’s. I’ve also used CSAs. This year, I’ll still do that, but I’ve heard that Aldi has an organics line, so I plan to check that out. I also plan to take advantage of the uber cheap frozen organic veggie staples like peas, beans, and corn at Costco.
2. Begin freezer cooking again.
A few years ago, I used to have a freezer cooking session every month. I slowly dropped that habit, but I plan to start again this year. (I already had my first session on New Year’s Day!) This should save on groceries because I’ll buy all my ingredients for dinners in one shot at the beginning of the month.
3. Shop every other week.
Shopping is getting to be a drag. I think I’ll save money and time if I only shop every other week. My only concern with this is that we eat A LOT of fresh fruit. Those of you who already do this, how do you handle fruit and veggies? What do you do for the second week?
4. Buy produce in season in bulk and can or freeze for the rest of the year.
We did this last year with grapes, plums, apples, strawberries and blueberries. I’d like to find a way to expand this and process even more fruits and veggies. My challenge is finding reasonable sources for organic produce near us that I can buy in bulk. I’m also not the world’s best canner, so that’s another skill I have to work on.
5. Serve filler items with the rest of meals.
My husband is Japanese, so his go-to filler is rice. I’ve also learned how to make Gluten Free Banana Bread, which isn’t that expensive. Still, I need to find more fillers that are allergy friendly.
By using these strategies, I hope to keep my grocery bill for our family of 5 between $700 to $800 a month, instead of the $800 to $1000 a month we paid in 2013.
What are your favorite grocery savings tips?
Thanks! Just a question. ..with the gut issues, have you looked into the low oxalate diet? Im on it for kidney stones, but most are on it for leeky gut, autism, and other issues. Google Susan owens and join her yahoo group and facebook group for the most current research(food lists). Also the vp foundation has some tips.
I haven’t heard of that before. Thanks for the tip! I’ll look it up.
Good tips. We also go shopping at Trader Joe’s to pick up affordable organic items.
Actually, this year I’m trying to cut down on fillers. They are all carb and I need to reduce them to get leaner.
I don’t see how you can shop every other week for fruits and vegies. Maybe just go for fruits every week.
I don’t like using fillers too much, but my husband really doesn’t want the kids to go Paleo, and I respect that.
Frozen fruit helps stretch out our fruit situation. I do run in for extra fruit only if I happen to drive by a grocery store w/o kids.
Frozen fruit is a good idea. We use it for smoothies. Trouble is the kids and hubby still like fresh, too.
A good way to do that would be to buy more perishable fruits and eat them the first week then switch to longer keeping fruits such as citrus, apples, kiwis, ect. That way you can have a variety of fruits to keep you going.
Thanks, Cindy. I’ll try that.
I agree with Cindy. When I shop every other week, I plan on us eating the berries, bananas, etc the first week and the apples and oranges the second week. I do always have to make a little run in between the two weeks because we eat a lot of salads with spinach, and it just does not last for two weeks.
I agree with Cindy. Carrots, bell peppers, celery, cucumbers all last well beyond a week. On the fruit side: apples, oranges, plums. Eat your greens, tomatoes, grapes, cherries, bananas in the first week and fall back on the staples and frozen for the second. Frozen spinach is good in cooked items, I love frozen fruit cooked into my oatmeal, canned tomatoes into sauce, etc.
I just found your blog this morning so I’m not up on your food intolerances, but hopefully some of that was helpful!
Are you eating millet? It’s gluten/ allergen free and much cheaper than quinoa or other gluten free grains. We use it often in place of rice, and for kids breakfasts or even sometimes lunches I make porridge from leftover cooked millet heated with coconut milk and add whatever they like to it – nuts, raisins, dry fruit, its naturally sweet, healthy and my littles (1.5 and 2.5 yo) love it…
No. I should try it and see how the kids like it. Thanks for the suggestion.
You know another thing that I like to do is pick a meat and use it for several meals. For example, with your family of 5, if you roast a large chicken or two smaller ones, have a nice chicken dinner for the first meal. Pick the bones clean and put the meat in the fridge for a stir fry or casserole for 2 days later. Put the bones and skin and anything else you didn’t eat into your crockpot and make bone broth. After you strain it, you can add a bunch of vegs that aren’t so great for fresh eating but still have life left in them and you have a nice veg soup. Add a loaf of fresh baked bread and you have a nice, almost free meal. Have a dessert made with fruit that is losing it’s fresh appeal and make a cobbler or something like that. You get the idea. It works with beef as well although you have to make sure you get a bone-in roast or beef bones to go along with it. My daughter freezes the little bits and pieces of leftover meat from meals in a container and when she has enough, she makes homemade pasta sauce with it. Although it’s just me and the hubby now, we raised 3 kids, 2 of which were eating machines,, er, boys! lol
~ Cindy
Great tips. We already do make broth from the bones, but we could definitely try to stretch the meat further.