Saving $$$$$$$$$$$$$$ !

[Boaz]

Ok ! Realizing regional prices , marketing , demand , availability , selection preferences , cuisine diversity (Dang I hate the word ..diversity !) and many other variables . How do you save a buck ($$) at the grocery store , on line , butcher shop , using wild game , canning/putting up , drying/gardening/growing .....etc . LOL , lot of us ain't got the big bucks and got to eat to the best of our financial ability !

Tips , tricks , hints , ideas ? Methods you have found successful ? Heck ! Coupons ! Eating road kill...It's wide open ! Thank you before we even get started !

[toallmy]

This should be fun.

[GRUMPA]

This should be fun.

I'm with you on this. A couple of weeks ago I was reading an article about how the Venezuelans were loosing weight because they had to change there diet due to the poor economy and no supplies. After reading the story aloud to the wife we both looked at each other and kinda laughed.

Her and I have had to learn to make things, less meat in our diet, more veggies, and have done without for years. And here we're supposed to feel sorry because they have to eat less meat and more vegetables because of there declining economy. Give me a break.

[historicfirearms]

We buy our beef from a farmer usually by the half-cow. Lots cheaper than going to the grocery store for beef and the flavor is better.

[308Jeff]

I was going to say buying corncob media from drillspot.com, but what cost me $17 delivered 3 years ago is now $73!

[Freightman]

Thankfully there is a "Salvage" store here a part of the Affiliated Food chain ther soon to be out of date food. The veggies are not as pretty but still good, meat is like huge pork butts for about $1 a# but they weigh 30-50# and you have to butcher them yourself. What would cost $100 at the other stores run $35 there but it is never the same stock.

[skeettx]

EASY, I do NOT go to the grocery store, wife ONLY goes and she is a wizard with coupons!!
Mike

[JimB..]

Look at the cuisines from third world countries. Lots of rice, some vegetables, and a bit of meat for flavor. Buy rice in 50lb bags, and learn to cook the stuff.

Gardening, hunting and fishing all depend upon what you enjoy doing and how much time you have. Smaller critters like squirrel, rabbit, bluegill, and catfish take a bit more cleaning per pound but are more consistently available and a lot less expensive to harvest than say deer or tuna. In the garden leafy greens, beans and potatoes always seem easier than corn, carrots and beets, but of course squash and zucchini produce by the ton and when you get tired of the fruit you can start frying the flowers.

Then again, depending on circumstances you may be able to arrange for business lunches most days.

[Grits]

We make our own laundry soap. We save about $200 a year.

Sent from my SM-J320V using Tapatalk

[Soundguy]

I make my own soap too. Havnt bought commercial soap in 7 ys.
Every few weeks WalMart puts 10# bags of legs n thigh chicken on sale for 49 cents per pound. I buy it and repack 2 per bag for meal making.

I have no brand flavored taste buds, so whatever store or generic canned foods are cheapest, I get. Even soda is available for 2.25/12pack in cheap brand, and .49-69 cents per 2-3 litre.

Bulk flour, rice, etc, saves you some.

Every little bit helps.

[buckwheatpaul]

Never go to the store hungry and have a list of what you really need.....dont trust your mind to remember what you need. Coupons are good and bulk buys work for us as well. We do garden and shoot and trap a lot of hogs....fishing is coming up....just seems like the dollar dont go very far when you retire....

[jcwit]

Wife and I shop at a local, 4 blocks away in our small town.

Ball Park All Beef Bun Length Franks 15 oz pkg.-------$1.29
Salsa Dip, Sabra Brand 1 lb.------------------$ .99
Choc. Chip Cookies 12 inch in dia. 2/ $1.00
Private Label Chicken Soup----------------4/ cans $1.00
Eckrich Smoky Links-------------------------$1.49 pkg.
Del-Montie Peaches in a jar, 19 oz. ---------$ .99
X-Large Eggs---------------------------------$ .50 a doz.
Potatoes--------------------------------------$1.99 5 lb. bag

Then there is always Aldie's

Milk -------------------------------------------$2.79 "thats high now"

Meat from the butcher

Prime Rib-----------------------------------$3.99 a lb.
T-Bone & Porterhouse----------------------$3.99 a lb.
Fresh Brats home made-------------------$2.39 a lb.

Factory bread outlet stores---------------$1.29 for the GOOD Breads, maybe even less.

Having 2 freezers is a good thing.




It's good to live in the upper midwest, and in Amish Coutry.

We also shop at the dented can stores, but you need to be careful.

[Love Life]

Having 2 freezers like Jcwit said is a great thing. Buy in bulk and freeze. Buy stuff on sale, buy generics, and use coupons. I could go 2 months without grocery shopping, and I built that stock up over time so no huge bill to freak you out. A little here, a little there, etc.

[Hickory]

One of the best ways to save money, is to not spend it.

[jcwit]

One of the best ways to save money, is to not spend it.

Right! But by and large most of us like to eat!

[garym1a2]

The local Publix has a 10$ off coupon on $50 gas cards. Just buy $50 of grocerys to get it.
My mom also saves coupons and uses them when the store has sales. Last time out we got $160 in supplies, plus 3 $50 gas cards and saved over $50 with coupons.

[Boaz]

We got a food saver and vacuum pack lots of sale stuff , saved us lots of bucks ! On sale or discounted meat is a BIG savings !

[dverna]

I buy almost nothing at regular price, except fresh items. Buy bulk and when items are on sale. Recently, chicken leg quarters at .30/lb, detergent $2/jug, canned veggies .39/ can etc etc

Begin stocking items and learn to rotate stock. Part of that is using what you stock. Learn how to safely stock items for long term storage.

Food is a necessity. At a minimum, 3 months supply for your family. Start somewhere, and add ONLY when you find deals

[nagantguy]

Never pay full price with coupons and price matching and bulk deals! We hunt or raise most of our meat, huge gardens chickens fruit trees can pickle and preserve all we can! A huge key to saving is not to waste, what little food we do throw out goes to rabbits chickens pigs or into the traps for critters! Don't seem so wasteful when you use it that way! We also trade slot, we trade for our honey and syrup when I don't have the time like this year to make it, we have bees coming though! We buy lots at yard sales and second hand stores and we sell stuff that we buy at a cheap price! Don't make any unnecessary trips to town ; no cable tv no credit cards!

[rancher1913]

when we go to the grocery store( maybe 3 times a year) we go to either an Mennonite bulk food store in Kansas or a scratch and dent grocery store in loveland. have not bought meat in the store in years, we butcher 50 or 75 meat birds every year that we raise, butcher a couple of hogs that we raise and butcher a steer that we raise, milk comes from the neighbors bulk tank at their dairy. huge garden every year and my wife cans everything from homemade ketchup to soup.

[country gent]

Another thing that helps a lot is learning to cook for the number of people normally at your table. A lot of people throw a lot of food away. We fix a beef roast taters and carrots one night the next is beef and noodles then the third night beef gravy or hot beef sandwiches 3 meals from that one beef roast. Learning to cook in the right quanity and using left overs helps a lot.

[Soundguy]

Another thing is cost offset. We raise hogs, cattle and have dogs, rabbits and chickens. and No food product hits the trash can, we offset feed costs this way. Feed bought in bulk I cheaper too.

I dont run new expensive tractors, I have 2 fords from mid 50's to mow and load hay.

Being able to cook saves plenty $$

[GhostHawk]

When we buy, we buy in bulk, on sale, take it home, split it up into meal sized portions for the 2 of us, vacumn seal it and freeze it. Ideally with contents and date plain and easy to read.

We do eat a fair amount of rice, pasta. We will buy for example a 2 lb package of spaghetti, a jar of Ragu, a package of Mushrooms, and my prefered meat is half a pound of Mild Italian Sausage mixed with half a pound of ground beef. Cut and chop an onion, fry with the meat, slice and brown the mushrooms, combine all. I like to add extra fennel, a 1/3 teaspoon of sugar (helps cut the acid in the tommato) and all the garlic you can stand. Makes a nice big pot of sauce.

When your done eating package up remaining sauce, put in sandwich size zip lock bags for single servings, or larger for larger, freeze.

You can get 8 or more meals for the cost of 2. But, it does take some effort.

We buy a ham when the price is good, either have the butcher slice it into thirds or take it home and do it myself. (Bone saw, sharp knife) So you thaw a chunk of ham, have a slice of ham and baked potato for one meal. Maybe have a nice ham sandwhich out of it. Whats left I'll turn into from scratch scalloped potatoes.

Take a medium sized pot, fill with all the small potato's rolling around the potato bin, wash, cover with water, set to boil. Walk away for 45 min.

Come back drain, cool the spuds. Now I boil mine skins on, then use a paring knife to slip the skin off. Take your chunk of ham left, cube it up. Place in a bowl, I like to cook some of the juice out of the ham or it curdles your sauce. So couple tablespoons of water, place in microwave, heat on high for 1-2 depending on how much. When done drain, set aside.

When your potatoes are all peeled, ham is ready, take a large cassorole dish. Mines big, but not too tall. Pam it, slice potato's 1/4 inch thick into a layer that covers the bottom. Add a handful of ham, sprinkle it around into the cracks. Repeat until all is in there.

In a large sauce pan or high sided fry pan I put 1/2 stick of butter, turn on the fire, add flour until it is like wallpaper paste, starting to get sticky, and turning a light biscuit color.

Whisk in a bunch of milk. How much is always a guess. The good news is if your short you can always add more milk on the top of the casserole. Heat until the flour starts thickening. Salt and pepper to taste. Pour onto the layers in the dish, clean it out with a rubber spatula, use same tool to wiggle things around in the dish to remove any air pockets. Add milk if needed so all is covered.

Place in the oven for an hour minimum at 400 ish or until the whole top starts turning golden brown.

Left over ham, 4-5 pounds of small spuds, a dab of flour and a quart of milk just made 2-3 days of the best eating known to man. Your living high off the hog on penny's.

Plan ahead, only buy what you know you like. Try to plan shopping trips for when you have a little extra.

Stay away from frozen fast food, with possible exception of Turkey/chicken pot pies found on sale.
Most of it is loaded with stuff you don't want, does not taste great and does not fill you up, and costs too much. Your paying for convenience. That's expensive.

[44deerslayer]

Lots of stripped bass and walleye the wife and I depend a lot on deer meat and our garden can do well with that. We eat lots of left overs soups stews homemade pizza i even raise ducks for the eggs . it's milk bread toilet paper laundry soap dog food chesse that costs the most it's tuff even for two

[Blanket]

ramen noodles, rice and beans. Get some laying hens and free range them so you do not have to feed, an egg apiece per day. Get to know hog confinement managers and get the blind pigs or runts, ruptured hogs they will give them to you. Plant vegetables in a garden. Run trot lines for fish. Gig carp and coldpac it. Forget about hunting for meat unless you get landowners tags. Offer to work for a rancher or farmer in exchange for produce or an animal to butcher after said work is done. Barter work for what you need.

[Boaz]

Lots of stripped bass and walleye the wife and I depend a lot on deer meat and our garden can do well with that. We eat lots of left overs soups stews homemade pizza i even raise ducks for the eggs . it's milk bread toilet paper laundry soap dog food chesse that costs the most it's tuff even for two

A big reason I put this topic up is that food prices continue to climb , many of us are encouraged or hard put to make ends meet . Many are limited to available funds . Sharing saving ideas could help many of us . Good cheap meal recipes or meal plans might be a real help to many . Limited income is hard to deal with a lot of times . Been there -done that ...time will come back around .

[toallmy]

I'm not a preper but growing up in the country side we just always seem to stock up on things , buying in bulk , and not being wasteful goes a long way . As mentioned above leftovers are always eaten and creativity at that and they are delicious . There is so much I want to say , but I have to get ready for work I will be back .

[54bore]

I picked up a small buck a few years ago that i witnessed get hit, it looked like a straight on head/neck shot with the ladies right front fender. I threw him in the back stil kickin, ran him home and peeled the guts and hide from him, one front shoulder turned out to be bruised up, but i was able to save most of it. This happened early one summer morning, it was getting hot during the day, letting it hang was NOT gonna be an option, i quartered it and we made room in the refrigerator. I decided to make summer sausage out of him, made right around 50 pounds.

Elk and Moose are a big deal around here if road killed, people go get them in a hurry! Not so much the deer, i see lots n lots of deer go to waste. Been about 5 years ago that Idaho allowed picking up road kill game. If its fresh and not twisted into a pretzel, why not?

[William Yanda]

Locally, Aldi's and Save-a-Lot offer less expensive alternatives to Wegman's and Tops. Additionally, cooking from "scratch" and avoiding ready to eat offerings are less expensive and sometimes healthier choices. There are also choices like soups and casseroles that are cheaper alternatives to meat, potato, vegetable and salad for a meal. No dessert helps the budget and my waistline.

[dragon813gt]

If it's not on sale I don't buy it. I've built up a good stock over the years so I can afford to wait for it to be on sale. I should use coupons but I don't. You can save a lot of money if you're willing to spend the time to clip and use them.

For meat I buy from local farmers in fairly large chunks. It all gets sealed in food saver bags and put in the deep freezer. Lasts well over a year this way. I don't like to keep the freezer completely full in case of a power outage. I figure a few months worth of food is good enough.

Canned goods can be hit and miss. Sometimes the generic brands taste better than the name brand. Other times it's worth paying a few extra cents for the name brand. Regardless I only buy when on sale.

I don't buy bread. I will make a loaf a day when I'm home. I really need to cut it out of my diet but it tastes to good. And making it is a lot cheaper then buying it. Downside is it doesn't last. It's only good until the day after.

The main way I save money is I do the shopping myself. If I let the wife do it she comes home w/ bags full of junk and nothing was on sale. I don't even let her go w/ me. I ask for her a list and may get one or not. No list means she doesn't get anything she wanted. And make sure you shop w/ a list. Seems very basic but many people don't. Go through the pantry first and see what you actually need. This way you don't waste money on items you already have.

[castalott]

quote:

[COLOR=#333333]I don't buy bread. I will make a loaf a day when I'm home. I really need to cut it out of my diet but it tastes to good. And making it is a lot cheaper then buying it. Downside is it doesn't last. It's only good until the day after.

Guy I met at a hamfest claims bread has ground (powdered) glass in it now. ( Southern Illinois) Something is up for sure as the bread does not go stale in weeks... But it is not edible either. I try different brands and throw it away missing one or two slices...

Potato chips taste good but one small bag having a potato in it costs $3.29 to $4.29 around here. Can't afford stuff like that but rarely. I have seen people with a cart full of soda, chips, and other frozen and non frozen junk food and the bill is way over $100. And they have no good food at all.

The closer you eat to God's garden, the more money you will save and the healthier you will be. Being healthy will save A LOT of $.

I also find I feel a lot better " the less I eat" ( within reason).

Eating healthy to save money could take up this entire website.....

Dale

[EMC45]

Prices do keep going up! I am feeding 5 on one income. My 11 YO son eats like an adult and is almost as tall as me. What I like to buy is Ramen, rice and pasta. You can doctor up those just about any way. Avoid processed foods. Not the best for you and cost ineffective. When I was in Ga I was shooting squirrels in my MIL's yard and my own yard and eating those. Fishing, hunting and gardening are all ways to make the dollar stretch. Aldi's, bread banks, scratched and dented, etc. I like store brand for a lot of items. Doesn't have to be name brand on a lot of stuff for me and my family. I know what ever you decide Boaz, you will give thanks and be grateful.

[jcwit]

I've noticed Ramon Noodles mentioned more than once. I also like them, but a word of caution, check out their sodium content.

Same goes for most all processed food.

Per Dr. orders, I'm only allowed one (1) hot dog or brat a month. "Sodium again"

[runfiverun]

I probably shop a bit weird.
if stuff is on sale I calculate how much we could use by the expiration and buy that much.
we might go to 2-3 different stores when we are down in town and sometimes go back to the first to pick up those 3-4 things they had cheaper.

our shopping can be a bit on the weird side where i'll buy 3 cases of corn, a box of ketchup, a cooler full of frozen veggies, and 4 cases of mac-N-cheese because it was all on sale.
I won't have to buy any thing like that again for a whole year, and can buy 40 lbs of chicken or pork, or 50 packages of Bacon, when it comes on sale next month.
it all rotates through.
the bulk buying can present a umm slight variety problem at times but there is always food down stairs.

[Boaz]

I probably shop a bit weird.
if stuff is on sale I calculate how much we could use by the expiration and buy that much.
we might go to 2-3 different stores when we are down in town and sometimes go back to the first to pick up those 3-4 things they had cheaper.

our shopping can be a bit on the weird side where i'll buy 3 cases of corn, a box of ketchup, a cooler full of frozen veggies, and 4 cases of mac-N-cheese because it was all on sale.
I won't have to buy any thing like that again for a whole year, and can buy 40 lbs of chicken or pork, or 50 packages of Bacon, when it comes on sale next month.
it all rotates through.
the bulk buying can present a umm slight variety problem at times but there is always food down stairs.



Yep ! Totally agree , we do bulk (within reason) buying on common items . I have always said tolit paper is a good investment as an example .

[pete501]

I see a lot of people saving their money by using EBT card (food stamps). They buy name brand stuff, the high price snack/junk & processed food while our family pinches pennies looking for close-out close-dated food. I tell the checkers that EBT stands for EveryBodys Taxes.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I think we found a topic that everyone can agree on...that's kind rare here, LOL.
Buying in bulk seems to be the theme of most posts so far...which is very logical and I do the same for the most part.

I have a different situation about to arise...it's a story about opportunity...but still on track with the OP's theme of saving money.

Three years ago, my City started a long term project (10 year plan) of rebuilding the utility infrastructure (streets, sewer,water,storm sewer). This summer, my neighborhood is about to rebuilt. The assessments will be high, nothing I can do about that. While they do the streets, there may be opportunities to have those crews do sides jobs, like rebuilding private driveways. I'd like a new cement driveway and maybe a new cement parking pad. That'll be expensive. I've been waiting to hear which construction company wins the bid. Since I am recently retired, I'm thinking of contacting the winning bidder and offering my services for security or just plain old part time help of running errands or whatever (but obviously not hard labor)...with the intent of swapping, my labor for cement work. Most of these construction companies are from out of town, employees are from out of town, even just having a friendly connection in the middle of the neighborhood, to watch over their equipment over the weekends would be worth something?

[Der Gebirgsjager]

This is a great thread subject, something that is of interest to almost everyone. I have some random thoughts:

Living like some of these fellows do, on a farm or ranch, is really the way to go if you have the land and the youth to work it. I was raised that way, the livestock, garden, fruit trees, and I ate and helped provide so much venison that I can't stand to eat it today.

But some of us older--well just old--guys are dependent on the supermarket. So when I buy one can of something I buy two and set one aside. As most canned goods are edible for 20-30 years you save money over the long haul just by virtue of the fact that prices continue to go up.

Lots of times they'll have a sale like "buy 4 of this item and get this price." If you're familiar with what the price of 1 is, then that may be a saving.

A peculiar thing I have encountered several times is that when you buy more of something it is supposed to cost less, but sometimes when you look at the smaller unit it figures out to be less expensive to buy two or four of them. Usually it's because they raised the price on the larger quantity item and forgot to go back and adjust the price of the lesser quantity item.

I've got a goodly reserve supply of rice and beans, but I occasionally see a doctor who is of Chinese origin. He told me that diabetes is becoming an increasingly serious problem in China because they eat so much rice which is mainly carbohydrate. So beware and aware.....

So called "loss leaders" can be good. "2 lb. blocks of medium cheddar cheese, regular $6.99 on sale for $4.99, limit 2 per customer." So I buy my 2 blocks and have my daughter stop by and get 2 more blocks. It freezes well.

There are a few items like pasta that are still very inexpensive, keep for a long time, and can be fixed in hundreds of different ways.

Bulk is good, but savings at Costco are questionable. Still, I always get a package of their all beef hotdogs that they serve at their lunch counter and four of their four lb. butter packs.

I'm just not much of a coupon person, but I observe the ladies in the checkout line that use them seem to do quite well. But, it also seems like a lot of the stuff they get a savings on with the coupon requires a bulk purchase of something that I wouldn't like or use.

[bob208]

we grow our own. plus we have not been in a large grocery store in years. we go to aldi which a discount grocery store. also go to grocery outlet which has discontinued and buy outs. we stock up on meat when they have the one and 2 dollar off on packs that are getting near the sell by date. then there is the b&b which is run by Mennonites. they have a lot of bent and broken lots. in the summer they have a lot of fresh off the farm.


also the wife had bariatric surgery. she does not eat much. me I went to a smaller plate and only use it twice a day. so we are not eating as much. some weeks we spend more on dog and cat food.

[opos]

Living where I do near the lovely village of Tijuana and having a huge number of illegals and minority folks on welfare and food stamps in our area...and looking at the "girth" on most of the welfare recipients...I'm sure buying food that other people pay for through taxes is the answer to living a large life....ever notice while they are blabbing on their Obamaphones that there isn't a skinny or needy looking one in the bunch? Look at the protesters carrying signs wanting us to trash the Constitution and give them more "entitlements"...all fat as hogs at the slop trough...they got the way to beat hunger.

[EMC45]

Found a 10lb bag of chicken the other day at Food City for 7 bucks. Kind of a good deal I guess. Wife cut it up and made dinner. Froze the rest.

[shooterg]

IF YOU'RE NOT USING COUPONS - START !! My wife never used 'em before we got married, I always have. Most grocery stores have some type of savings card, get 'em and use 'em. Between those and coupons(some printed off line) we probably spend $100 a month less than we would've. Heck, I won't even go to Hardee's for a biscuit with the other old farts w/o a coupon for my $1 biscuit and gravy - and ALWAYS ask if there's a senior discount - heck with the kids working nowadays, you'll get it if you're over 40 !

[dragon813gt]

A peculiar thing I have encountered several times is that when you buy more of something it is supposed to cost less, but sometimes when you look at the smaller unit it figures out to be less expensive to buy two or four of them. Usually it's because they raised the price on the larger quantity item and forgot to go back and adjust the price of the lesser quantity item.

They didn't forget to adjust the price. This is a normal sales tactic. You have to check the cost per unit before buying. These costs are required to be on the shelf price tags here. For instance cereal is listed in cost per ounce. But when there is a sale it won't have the unit cost on it, not required by law. They are expecting you to buy what's on sale, not the cheaper per unit. I run into this all the time w/ cereal. They will have the small boxes on sale but it costs more per ounce then the regular price large box.

Have a calculator w/ you. I'm saying that because I know most of you are older and don't have smart phones. I've never been able to perform math quickly in my head and rely on my smartphone for figuring out unit cost.

[gwpercle]

Store brands and I eat a lot of inexpensive stuff .
Dried beans , store brand spam , vieanna sausage, hot dogs . Stuff like liver , gizzards anything that's cheap I will eat it. My brother is a butcher and saves me anything that's edible. They once got a truck load of whole goats , by mistake, they didn't sell so he got two at below cost, we butchered , wrapped and stocked our freezers. We have access to 300 acres of land where we can take outlaw and nuisance game like armadillo , nutria and hogs with no limit .
Canning , freezing and preserving. Buy from farmers market , grow it , have friends that give you fruits and vegetables when in season and put it up . Make your own jams jellies and preserves . Make your own Jerky.
Having a freezer is almost a requirement to take advantage of hunting , whole goats , stuff that's in season and cheap , mine stays full .
Gary

[HangFireW8]

Canceled all cable service except Internet. Got 2 antennas (VHF & UHF) and a booster & cable for less than $100 total. Got 3 set-tops for $40/ea. Got 3 streaming services for $10 or 12 a month.

I have all major networks, all local stations that cable wouldn't give me ("sorry you're outside the service area"), HD OTA is less compressed and a better picture than cable, and I can drop or pick up a streaming service at any time. Netflix rules. I already had Amazon Video with Prime, now I use it.

OTA works great even in bad weather, and I'm in a rural area outside the ideal 30 mile range. It's all about picking the right antenna and putting it in the right place in the right direction. For me that meant a highly directional UHF and a simple dipole VHF. Your needs may differ.

Best part cable bill doesn't go up every year. I save about $100 a month.

-HF

[HangFireW8]

I bring a calculator with me to every supermarket. It's called my brain.

A usual tactic is to give one unit price in oz and another in lbs. Sorry but I'm a Computer Scientist. Base 16 math is easy.

-HF

[Soundguy]

Found a 10lb bag of chicken the other day at Food City for 7 bucks. Kind of a good deal I guess. Wife cut it up and made dinner. Froze the rest.

4.90 at WalMart sometimes

[Soundguy]

They didn't forget to adjust the price. This is a normal sales tactic. You have to check the cost per unit before buying. These costs are required to be on the shelf price tags here. For instance cereal is listed in cost per ounce. But when there is a sale it won't have the unit cost on it, not required by law. They are expecting you to buy what's on sale, not the cheaper per unit. I run into this all the time w/ cereal. They will have the small boxes on sale but it costs more per ounce then the regular price large box.

Have a calculator w/ you. I'm saying that because I know most of you are older and don't have smart phones. I've never been able to perform math quickly in my head and rely on my smartphone for figuring out unit cost.


Also, many times whatever sells best may have the best unit price. Odd sizes that move slow may cost more per unit.

[Soundguy]

Brewing tea as a drink option is also cheaper than just about anything else other than tap water.

[dragon813gt]

A usual tactic is to give one unit price in oz and another in lbs. Sorry but I'm a Computer Scientist. Base 16 math is easy.

-HF
It is not for me. My mind works great in metric [emoji2]

[adcoch1]

Spend $150 a year on the garden and pull about $1000 worth of veggies out, make and can our own salsa, pickled beans and carrots, canned peppers for toppings on food. Make chicken soup to stretch a chicken for about three meals instead of one. Only buy meat in bulk and repackage to save a few bucks a pound. Buy oats in 25# bags, sugar, flour, rice, and beans in bulk. We don't drink soda, we make our own kombucha, almost never eat out, bake almost all our bread products, and make large meals and package to eat later. A little work, but we save about 50% over how we used to do it. Plus I reload to save money...... If only that worked. All kidding aside though, gas is about the only thing we can't cut back costs on. I do all our own auto and house maintenance and repair,truthfully I don't see how most people afford to live when they won't/can't do for themselves...

[jonp]

Buy bulk and split into mylar bags with an oxy tab. 20lb bags of rice, beans etc. Can from the garden. Shop on Sunday morning when the meat is half price to make way for the next weeks. Either make our own bread or shop at the outlet bread store. When we were home we either bought a calf or went in half with someone and raised on a farm them slaughtered it ourselves. Bake a chicken, strip it for sandwiches, boil the carcass for soup. Same as most on this site i guess. We grew up without any money but always ate well. Fished year round, hunted in the fall and winter, gigged frogs etc. Still put up a garden and buy like I said even though we can afford not too. My wife jokes that every fall we fill our freezers and pantry out of shear panic we will run out of food but it's just what our parents did. Kills me when there is a snowstorm down this way and everyone runs to the store to buy out the milk and bread.

We always buy groceries on sale or clearance. Rarely do we pay full price then only for dairy products for the most part.

[jonp]

4.90 at WalMart sometimes

$.49/lb like that here too. Cut it up and freeze it.

[labradigger1]

If you want to save money stay out of swapping and selling

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I bring a calculator with me to every supermarket. It's called my brain.

A usual tactic is to give one unit price in oz and another in lbs. Sorry but I'm a Computer Scientist. Base 16 math is easy.

-HF
I find base 16 troublesome, I much prefer Hexadecimal.

[Boaz]

Huh ?

[Thin Man]

I do all of our grocery store shopping. SWMBO hates going into the store so I took on the job early and learned one reliable fact - if I do the shopping I get to eat a lot more meals that I enjoy than if someone else does the shopping. This has been our routine for 47 years and counting. I watch newspaper circulars for special and bulk price deals. With "buy 1 get 1 free" I always calculate the final actual cost of the single item, then compare that against the lowest priced similar product from all choices. Yes, I have seen some stores elevate the price on their "buy 1 get 1" items just before the sale and respond accordingly. My $$ goes where the price takes me. On bulk package buys I break down and re-pack the contents for single meal use, then put all pack in the freezer. Use what is needed when needed. I will "buy ahead" favorite foods that are seasonal (packaged Corned Beef" - St. Patrick's Day item) for later use because it comes around only once a year and we enjoy it more often than that. Same for turkey, lowest prices are seasonal and they freeze very well. Put 3 deer in the freezer last season and love watching the volume of it shrink from the freezer. Wish we had garden space but don't. Farmers markets are popular here, but prices can jump because this is the "campy-trendy" thing to do. A place to "see and be seen". I learned there is a real difference in package notices between "best before" and "use before". Quality and flavor are nice, safety is mandatory. Lots of left-overs from the refrigerator. Sometimes a meal looks like a sampler plate from the local mall food court. A bit of this and a drop of that. If I enjoyed it when it was fresh and new on the table, odds are I will enjoy it again. And for versatility, we enjoy many different cooking styles - Southern, Cajun, Hispanic, Asian, Italian, etc. etc. The list goes on and on. With the way I love to eat I should weigh 400 pounds or more but metabolism and daily activities keep the waist line in check. This encourages me to look for new recipes and hone my skills on the outdoor grill. Got a sourdough starter from a friend about 30+ years ago. Still make bread and supply the daughters and their families with bread. With this recipe I can make 3 loaves of bread for what the market asks for one. Yup, I ought to be a pork barrel. Maybe some day, but not yet.

[dragon813gt]

I find base 16 troublesome, I much prefer Hexadecimal.


Huh ?

Funny thing is that hexadecimal has 16 digits. They are 0-9 then A B C D E F. Binary is much easier to understand :laugh:

[redriverhunter]

This is a bit off topic but it reminded me of a conversation with my grandmother. We were talking out my great grandmother, and she said that woman could cook, I asked something about the flavor. My grandmother responded by telling me "she could go into that with kitchen and the cabinets that were next to empty and she would have a meal for a family of 8 fed, I never knew how she did it" I was young when I was told of this account it took years before I was able to appreciate the point my grandmother was making, that a good cook is one who and make a meal with little or not much to work with.

stuff I do is think about how one meal can go into the next. IE roast chicken with mixed vegies (boned before going onto plates) second meal boil bones a some of the dripping not used for gravy from meal one make a chicken soup with left over mixed vegie and what ever else usually rice. speaking of rice we eat quite often here cheap and stores well.

I remember when I was going up my mother would cook rice and I hated it what ever that rice was that was in a pound plastic bag, I always felt sorry the Asians because they ate rice a a lot. I went to Japan while in the navy I now understand why they eat a lot of rice its good.

[Half Dog]

This is a great and helpful post. Can anyone recommend a place to get a half- cow in the Dallas area?

[rancher1913]

This is a great and helpful post. Can anyone recommend a place to get a half- cow in the Dallas area?

if you are knowledgeable you can go to a local sale barn and pick one up but it would be easier to find a local rancher that would deliver it to a local processor, you will need to find someone to go in with you on the other half. sometimes the local processor knows people that have a cow to get rid of or know of a person that bought a whole cow and only need half.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Funny thing is that hexadecimal has 16 digits. They are 0-9 then A B C D E F. Binary is much easier to understand :laugh:
yeah, binary is simple, but BCD is much easier.

[waarp8nt]

I can honestly say we do not save a ton of money on food. We shop at Save-a-lot instead of the big box stores and of course use deer meat /small game. Our savings comes from doing our own automotive and home repairs.

[starmac]

This is a great and helpful post. Can anyone recommend a place to get a half- cow in the Dallas area?

Most smaller proccessing plants will sell you a side or half of beef, or hog. Some have better reputations than others. I can't say for the Dallas area, I used Eades in Amirrillo for years, they even kept our info on file so they would cut and process it the way we wanted it. There should be several in the Dallas area.
There should also be some local butcher shops that deal in halves, but they are getting few and far between these days.

[Half Dog]

yeah, binary is simple, but BCD is much easier.

They say there are 10 types of people. Those who understand binary and those who don't.

[Boaz]

Uuhh ..what is binary ? lol I can only add , multiply subtract and divide in my head ! BUT ! I do know how to bind broom straw stalks after cuttin ! Been there and done that . Heck to get old I recon ?

[dragon813gt]

Uuhh ..what is binary ?

Number system based off 0 and 1. Here is a chart.
http://web.alfredstate.edu/weimandn/miscellaneous/ascii/ASCII%20Conversion%20Chart.gif

[Boaz]

LOL ! No disrespect but too old to change . I'm doin ok with the old way . Can still sipher and do basic figuring . Thank you !

[starbits]

Not exactly about groceries, but we shop at Fry's (Krogers or Fred Meyers in other places). Fry's gives points for each dollar spent and 100 points is $0.10 off per gallon of gas at their station. In Fry's they sell gift cards and give double points. Yesterday I needed to spend $400 at Lowes for a new water heater and some other stuff. Stopped by Fry's and bought $400 worth of gift cards and got 800 points or $0.80 off a gallon of gas the next time we go for gas. I was going to spend the money at Lowes anyway and this way I saved about $12 on a tank of gas. Occasionally they will go quadruple on the points for gift cards which would double the gas savings. They must have 50 or 60 different places they sell gift cards for.

[toallmy]

Have a friend that enjoys growing a vegetable garden , and another that has a boat and likes fishing . Hahahy

[randyrat]

Another thing that helps a lot is learning to cook for the number of people normally at your table. A lot of people throw a lot of food away. We fix a beef roast taters and carrots one night the next is beef and noodles then the third night beef gravy or hot beef sandwiches 3 meals from that one beef roast. Learning to cook in the right quanity and using left overs helps a lot.
This is the best way to save a lot of money! Shop wise and learn to cook, learn to utilize a large meal and make it several meals..You can always freeze in meal size containers so your variety can change more. By doing this you save energy and time also.

[MT Gianni]

We have a grocery store in town, the two nearest towns don't. We can go to the city 35 miles away which has three grocery stores or drive 60 miles to a Montana metropolis with 5 grocery stores and a Costco. We gave up on coupons 30 years ago, in most cases for us the national brands with discounts ran more than store brands.
We make a Costco run once a month for staples. We also cook food instead of heat it up, no canned or frozen premade stuff in the freezer. Most purchased meats get bought at the butcher by the half, beef or hog. We will pick up on sale pork loins. We eat game and fish.
Our growing season is about 100 frost free days, not uncommon to spend $200 on a garden to gain $150 worth of food. What there is of it is fresh and tasty. We buy bulk lettuce heads for salad and aadd celery and carrots, tomatoes and cukes are only bought in season. Bountiful baskets used to be a good deal @ $17.50 for a lot of fruit and vegetables but they have not been able to arrange delivery locally for almost 2 years. My biggest tip is to learn to cook staples and not heat up premade "foods".

[smokeywolf]

Costco is our main source for most everything with a local chain grocery store filling in the gaps. Executive Costco membership means the annual rebate check we get pays our membership fee plus a little. Living in a suburb to the L.A. metro area, there's no place within a 3 hour drive to hunt. Nearly all meat is from Costco in bulk packages. Bulk meats are repackaged at home in vacuum sealed bags and frozen. I make some of our sausage at home.

I cook a hot breakfast for the family at least 5 mornings each week. When I make pancakes (always from scratch) I make enough batter to produce an extra dozen or so pancakes. Those extra pancakes get put in ziplocks and go in the freezer. On weekends kids can yank a bag of pancakes out, throw them on a plate, microwave them and have breakfast in about the same time it takes to make a bowl of cereal.

We buy most food in bulk, we garden and do some home canning. Like jonp, we repackage dry goods in mylar with O2 absorbers. Buy much of our seasonings like pepper (black, white, cayenne), chile powders, granulated garlic and onion, paprika and others in bulk over the internet.

Like many have mentioned, we plan meals around being able to use leftovers in the next meal. I smoked two tri-tips a couple of nights ago. Ate one for dinner, the other was used to make beef and bean burritos for dinner last night and same for school lunches today. Cooking larger batches of food at one time shaves your energy (electric, gas, wood or charcoal) consumption.
Mrs. smokeywolf makes nearly all of our breads and makes all of our yogurt and kefir.
Although we make our own salsa and refried beans, we also buy jarred and canned when on sale for backup on the shelf.

A couple of years ago I needed a package of Gillette razor cartridges. At Costco is was over $50 for I think 14 cartridges. That was it. I remembered that I had a straight razor that I'd inherited from Granddad. It was his granddad's. I studied up on shaving with a straight razor, invested in several more, plus bought three 1960s vintage Gillette adjustable double edge razors. In good shape they run about $60 to $80 per/ea. Wife and I share one and one each for the teenage sons. For about $300 I bought enough Gillette "Silver Blue" double edge blades to last the wife and I for the rest of our lives (and she's only in her 40s). 56 cents (3 blades) worth of double edge blades do what one $3.75 cartridge used to do.
I shave about once a week with a straight razor and twice a week with the Gillette adjustable double edge. Still use an electric maybe 3 time per month to fill in the gaps.
No more cartridges!
I use a brush, cup and shaving soap/cream (not the overpriced canned junk) most of the time, but have also found out the wife's hair conditioner works pretty well when I'm in a hurry.

[wch]

2 freezers definitely help. There's a town not too far away where Amish raise foods of all types and we can and freeze as needed or available.
Coupons save money (look for stores that double them). There are two "discount" groceries in this area and the savings are very good when we shop them.

[kingstrider]

I buzz my head using my dog clippers so haircuts are free. Each time I do it there is less to cut so win-win there.

[EMC45]

Found the same chicken 10lb bag at Food City, but for $3.90 each this time. I bought 3. I also do my boys haircuts and my own and shave with a Gillette and a straight razor with soap and brush. Do my own mechanic work when I can and hire no one for nothing. You'll be surprised what you can figure out or are able to do when you know what the cost is to hire someone.

[Ole Joe Clarke]

Make a shopping (grocery) list and stick to it. Develop a budget and use it, right after you have cut up your credit cards. I have one CC but when we use it, we pay the balance in full so we don pay interest.

[blackthorn]

We use credit cards quite a bit, but only to the extent we can pay them off as they come due. About 19 or 20 years ago I forgot to pay the card and the following month I got a bill with $3.46 interest added. Still aggravates me to think about it! LOL I only keep the card(s) that do not have a yearly charge for the privilege of using them, and one I have has a small percentage "refund"/"reward" when we use it. That card will get used for sure whenever we have to put out a big outlay, i.e. tires, new appliance, etc. Credit cards are great things to have as long as you are disciplined enough to not get carried away.

[WRideout]

I am finding that here in SW PA there is an abundance of wild food that is never harvested. In a couple of weeks, there will be dandelion coming up through the lawns everywhere. I have never eaten the leaves, but harvest the flowers every year to make dandelion wine, which has gotten good reviews. The leaves appear to be very much like lettuce, and can be eaten cooked or raw. Other wild fruits I have harvested include apple, mulberry, wild cherry, blackberry and raspberry. In the South, poke weed is commonly eaten, but it is a lot of trouble to prepare. I have never heard of anyone up North cook it, but it is found above the Mason Dixon line.

One year, when I lived in TN, I was between jobs, and money was tight. We ate fried brim (bluegill) for Easter dinner, and I was glad to have it.

Wayne

[Boaz]

Brim , perch , bluegill are primo eating as well as polk greens . polk greens are dang good , the old folks said the stems were poison , I don't think they are poison just taste sorry and no good but the greens (leaves) are great ! Look around downed trees ..they grow good there late spring ..early summer in the south . Lord knows as a child we stopped the car and picked a ton of em . Bluegill , perch , sunfish are hard to beat ...just got to catch a lot to make a mess but they are easy caught .

[GhostHawk]

When I smell fish frying, country style potatoes cooking with onion. Or have a taste of Bourbon whiskey in coke pepsi I am transported back by the magic of memory.

I am five and a half, it is summer, Grandpa and I were just out fishing. He taught me how to move the boat with oars and hand signs for what he wanted. He then stood in the front with a casting rod and cast for bass. If I messed up and slurped water with the oars his head would swivel and his blue eyes would spear me clean down to my soul. Never a word, just that look.

He caught 2 large bass that night, at least 3 lbs plus both of them. Then he took us to a small cove and anchored up. Taught me the essentials of how to run a 9' fly rod, cane, with an automatic reel with the button right there under your little finger.

Then he sternly reminded me. If you go try to get wild and crazy, casting and making a mess. Either you will fall in, or knock me in, or you will hook one of us. And this here, will never happen again.

You sit there, keep your seat planted in the middle where I can watch you. Lift the rod like this, bobber swings in towards you, drop the rod tip, bobber swings out, set it on the water nice and quiet. When the bobber is gone, hit the button and hang on boy.

Wow, 30 seconds later I had my hands full of fly rod, and the biggest bull bluegill I had ever seen.
Made those ones we catch on the dock look like babys. We must have caught 10 to 15 each, cleaned them, then grandma cooked them.

Mighty fine eating and still one of my all time favorites. Nice fresh clean bluegills rolled in cornmeal and cooked up golden brown.

In the last 2 years I have almost drunk a whole half gallon of bourbon just reliving that memory.
I don't reckon that's too much. Happens maybe once a month.

IMO the only thing better than those bluegill are black crappie caught in winter through the ice, out of 35 degree water into 31 degree snow and kept there until cleaned.

[Boaz]

Bluegill ! These small fish are a blessing ! Dang good eating and easy to catch , Not unusual to catch a one pounder . I have been thinking of fishing for them heavy this week although in my country most are gearing up for crappie., Lot of fun to catch , not hard and good eating

[C. Latch]

If you want to save money stay out of swapping and selling

Shhh! My wife is reading this thread.

[EMC45]

Red ear, bluegill, yellow belly, sunnies, sunfish, crappie etc... ALL GOOD! Cornmeal and flour and hot oil. Dash of Texas Pete on the fish. Side of okra or handcut french fries and you are set.

I cut up 30lbs of chicken last night. Was getting worn towards the end, but I kept thinking "39 cents a lb".......

[Boaz]

Yep ! Chicken is a good deal in bulk ! We buy double packed pork shoulder and cut it into pork steak and soup/stirfry/stew/curry meat . Save quite a bit for some work .

[toallmy]

Yes ham goes a long way with just me and the misses , we pick up a few when on sale just get the fellow behind the glass to cut them in half for us . It turns into 2-4 meals rather easily . + a doggy treat . My doggies get cut short when the wife picks up pork loins no bone . That's another place to save money dog treats .

[trooperdan]

All kidding aside though, gas is about the only thing we can't cut back costs on. .
I've been wondering if going to diesel and making your own bio-diesel would be an option. If you had a source of used fryer oil the chemistry to convert into diesel isn't difficult. I suspect that most restaurants have a contract in place with someone already to take their excess oil.

[jeffkopf]

We make our own laundry soap. We save about $200 a year.

Sent from my SM-J320V using Tapatalk

We do this too! Shaved Laundry bar, borax, washing soda and a little bit of oxy clean!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dragon813gt]

We use credit cards quite a bit, but only to the extent we can pay them off as they come due. About 19 or 20 years ago I forgot to pay the card and the following month I got a bill with $3.46 interest added. Still aggravates me to think about it! LOL I only keep the card(s) that do not have a yearly charge for the privilege of using them, and one I have has a small percentage "refund"/"reward" when we use it. That card will get used for sure whenever we have to put out a big outlay, i.e. tires, new appliance, etc. Credit cards are great things to have as long as you are disciplined enough to not get carried away.

You have to do the cost benefit analysis in regard to annual fees. I average $150 cash back per month on the card I use for work. This card carries a $450 annual fee. But it has a $300 travel credit. So as soon as I buy an airline ticket or hotel room I get $300 back. That brings the annual cost down to $150. One month of spending pays for the fee. The cards yields an average of $1,650 cash back per year.

If I'm traveling internationally all month I bring in closer to $300 cash back. And in my case this is literally free money. All my expenses are reimbursed and I'm paid a per diem. The fee that I pay for this card is well worth it. It yields triple points on travel and dining which are my two biggest expenses. Everything else is 1%. The card I had prior was 2%/1%, no travel credit w/ an annual fee of $150. It was a no brainer to switch.

I know many here are against credit cards. But paying w/ cash doesn't yield any benefits/points. Before my current job I was using a different card to pay as many of my monthly bills and expenses as possible. Getting a few hundred dollars cash back per year is a good thing. I never carried a balance and paid no interest. Getting paid to pay your expenses doesn't happen w/ cash. And getting paid is always a good thing.

[Love Life]

I pay for dang near everything with my Cabela's card. Gets me mucho free stuff at the end of the year.

[blackthorn]

You have to do the cost benefit analysis in regard to annual fees. I average $150 cash back per month on the card I use for work. This card carries a $450 annual fee. But it has a $300 travel credit. So as soon as I buy an airline ticket or hotel room I get $300 back. That brings the annual cost down to $150. One month of spending pays for the fee. The cards yields an average of $1,650 cash back per year.

If I'm traveling internationally all month I bring in closer to $300 cash back. And in my case this is literally free money. All my expenses are reimbursed and I'm paid a per diem. The fee that I pay for this card is well worth it. It yields triple points on travel and dining which are my two biggest expenses. Everything else is 1%. The card I had prior was 2%/1%, no travel credit w/ an annual fee of $150. It was a no brainer to switch.

I know many here are against credit cards. But paying w/ cash doesn't yield any benefits/points. Before my current job I was using a different card to pay as many of my monthly bills and expenses as possible. Getting a few hundred dollars cash back per year is a good thing. I never carried a balance and paid no interest. Getting paid to pay your expenses doesn't happen w/ cash. And getting paid is always a good thing.

To each his/her own. Depends on your life style/wants/needs. What works for you would not be good for me. Your way sounds great for someone in your circumstances.

[dragon813gt]

Which is exactly why I said you need to do the cost benefit analysis. If an annual fee is going to cost you money and you gain no benefits it's worthless.

[runfiverun]

Dan it's pretty easy to make.
unfortunately you end up with glycerin as a by product and that stuff is about impossible to get rid of.

[DerekP Houston]

If you have them in your area look for "Aldi" or "99 cent only" stores. 99c is one of the few dollar store discount type places that stocks fresh fruit and vegetables. I do almost all our grocery shopping via Zaycon Fresh (bulk order meat supplier) and Aldi. Occasionally I go to the nicer stores if I can't find what I need or really want a particular thing (good quality sausage for example).

2 Adults + 1 kid, our food budget is roughly 50 a week