“I spent that much on groceries?”

By Sandra Gordon on June 18, 2010 12:01:00 pm

Back in February, you might remember that I wrote about how I was going to save all my family’s food receipts for one month to figure out how much my husband and I were spending on food. I was inspired by Beverly Mills, the co-author of “Cheap. Fast. Good!” (Workman Publishing, 2005) and the blog, Kitchen Scoop. 

Beverly contends that determining this magic number is the first step toward creating a food budget and sticking to it. I guessed that we spent about $250 per week. After actually saving all our food receipts, including those for restaurants for 30 days, I now know where my family of four stands. And I’m happy to report that I wasn’t too far off.

Ta-da! My husband and I spend an average of $296.50 per week on food, or $1186 per month. I thought that wasn’t too bad but Beverly says that we can do better, trimming as much as $300 from our monthly tab without feeling deprived.

Here are three things she suggested I try to whittle our food bill that might work for you, too.

1. Watch what you throw away. “The most expensive food you buy is the food you don’t eat,” Beverly says. So take note of what goes to waste and try to reduce it by either preparing less food or using stuff up, such as veggies before they go bad. Now that I’m keying in on this, I am surprised by how much I toss from my kids’ plates, even when I make stuff they love, such as lemon chicken, which is one of their favorite dishes. Note to self: Make fewer chicken breasts from now on.

2. Cook simpler. My husband and I love to cook. On the weekends, for example, we might try to replicate a delicious curry dish we had a local Indian restaurant. Beverly says that’s a good way to pad our food bill. “Look for recipes with a limited number of ingredients, particularly specialty ingredients and condiments that you might not use up,” she says.

Beverly adds that if you're going to make an Indian curry that calls for 10 spices that you had to go out and buy and that might languish in your fridge, it would probably be cheaper to go eat the curry in a restaurant! She suggests that when making ethnic recipes, either commit to making them once a week until you've used up all the condiments, specialty ingredients, and spices, or stick to less exotic (and costly) recipes. “Use up what’s on hand before buying something new,” she says.

3. Take stock of your frozen assets. Finally, to save the most money, Beverly says to consider freezer space valuable real estate. "Your freezer shouldn't be filled with old hotdog buns and half-eaten cartons of ice cream,” she says. (Guilty! How did she know?) Instead, stock it with big-ticket items such as meat, butter, and shredded cheese that you buy in quantity on sale. She even suggests investing in a small, standalone freezer so you can take advantage of great meat (and butter and cheese) deals.

I’ve never been freezer-friendly, probably because my Midwestern Home Ec mother worships her standalone freezer and I’ve always been a little rebellious. But I’m warming up to the idea, especially if it’ll slash big bucks from my family’s food bill. There definitely could be a freezer in my future.

Sandra Gordon

Posted at 12:01:00 PM in
Cooking | Food | Sandra Gordon | Saving money | Shopping

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