Grocery Savings Ideas. Lots of meat and produce.

[ShirikiUtundu]

Do you have a CSA location nearby that you can use? Ours runs from June to December and the farm stand opens in April so we are only at the mercy of imported grocery store produce during the winter.

 

[Dakota731]

I switched to Aldi recently and have saved a ton of money. We have a nice store nearby and I supplement with fresh produce at the farm stand until October. I refuse to stop at a store midweek so I’ve learned to substitute and use what I have on hand !

 

[imbatman]

Earlier this year, we saved up and bought a meat package from our local butcher. Individually priced out, it would've been double. Plus, their meat is local.

Do you have room for a veggie garden? Even containers? I grew tomatoes a couple of years ago (ran out of time this year) and ended up with maters out the ears. Used my instapot to can several jars. Also, zucchini can be shredded to freeze well. Corn too. Growing my own is the cheapest way for veggies for me, otherwise I support the local farmer's market and buy there.

 

[LMLFlorida]

I use Walmart Grocery Pickup. It is easy to stick to a budget when the actual total is right there as you add items to your "cart". You can avoid the temptation buys that so often happen when you are actually in the store shopping. You don't even have to go inside the store, you just place the order and then they bring it out to your car. They also have the Savings Catcher price matching thing so you get a refund for the difference of anything you bought that is on sale elsewhere.

 

[littlemichelle16]

I also use the Walmart Grocery app and savings catcher. Cuts way down on impulse buys and saves me time. I add pantry items as I realize I need them and I don't forget to grab stuff like Worcestershire that I only need a few times a year.

 

[Hiitsme]

Recently I "stocked" up on lobster and scallops. Lobster was $4.99 per lb. The store steams them for free, I shucked then froze the meat. This will be used in the winter for lobster casserole and lobster cakes. The scallops were $3.99 per lb. I filled freezer bags with about 3/4 lbs and froze these too. I'll throw these into a casserole for a baked stuffed scallops dish. I know these prices seem extravagant, but they're way cheaper than out of season and taste pretty darn good. When I'm gifted with friend's garden bounty I make zucchini breads, will slice and dice peppers (both for freezer) and make tomato sauce. The sauce gets frozen too. Ground beef is used in meat loaf with the leftovers cut up and thrown into spaghetti sauce. My recipe is the same for both the meat loaf and meatballs. I try to grow herbs every year. Some of the plants I move into the house for use in the winter. Others I'll dry and store for winter. Herbs don't need a lot of attention and are easy keepers. Turkey and chicken left overs are tossed in yet another freezer bag with gravy to be used in pie. Left over mashed potatoes are used for potato pancake batter. Yup, I freeze this too. I would be so lost without my freezer.

 

[robinb]

Recently I "stocked" up on lobster and scallops. Lobster was $4.99 per lb. The store steams them for free, I shucked then froze the meat. This will be used in the winter for lobster casserole and lobster cakes. The scallops were $3.99 per lb. I filled freezer bags with about 3/4 lbs and froze these too. I'll throw these into a casserole for a baked stuffed scallops dish. I know these prices seem extravagant, but they're way cheaper than out of season and taste pretty darn good. When I'm gifted with friend's garden bounty I make zucchini breads, will slice and dice peppers (both for freezer) and make tomato sauce. The sauce gets frozen too. Ground beef is used in meat loaf with the leftovers cut up and thrown into spaghetti sauce. My recipe is the same for both the meat loaf and meatballs. I try to grow herbs every year. Some of the plants I move into the house for use in the winter. Others I'll dry and store for winter. Herbs don't need a lot of attention and are easy keepers. Turkey and chicken left overs are tossed in yet another freezer bag with gravy to be used in pie. Left over mashed potatoes are used for potato pancake batter. Yup, I freeze this too. I would be so lost without my freezer.

Extravagant? Lol. Those are bargain prices.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Recently I "stocked" up on lobster and scallops. Lobster was $4.99 per lb. The store steams them for free, I shucked then froze the meat. This will be used in the winter for lobster casserole and lobster cakes. The scallops were $3.99 per lb. I filled freezer bags with about 3/4 lbs and froze these too. I'll throw these into a casserole for a baked stuffed scallops dish. I know these prices seem extravagant, but they're way cheaper than out of season and taste pretty darn good. When I'm gifted with friend's garden bounty I make zucchini breads, will slice and dice peppers (both for freezer) and make tomato sauce. The sauce gets frozen too. Ground beef is used in meat loaf with the leftovers cut up and thrown into spaghetti sauce. My recipe is the same for both the meat loaf and meatballs. I try to grow herbs every year. Some of the plants I move into the house for use in the winter. Others I'll dry and store for winter. Herbs don't need a lot of attention and are easy keepers. Turkey and chicken left overs are tossed in yet another freezer bag with gravy to be used in pie. Left over mashed potatoes are used for potato pancake batter. Yup, I freeze this too. I would be so lost without my freezer.

I had the same experience today. I ran out of chocolate milk and ran to the store and saw they were clearancing the vacuum packed angus grass fed/no antibiotic/no hormones 85-15 ground beef that normally runs $7/lb. It was $1.99/lb, so I bought 8lbs and tossed them in my freezer (saving 2 in my fridge for tomorrow's dinner b/c my spouse LOVES beef over chicken if they are the same price, so no need to dethaw my chicken breasts for tomorrow). They also clearanced specialty black pepper bacon (all the "no" stuff again) for $2.50/lb, so I grabbed the single 3lb pack left (someone must have grabbed this one), bought it, and tossed that in the freezer, too.

If I see a great meat/frozen seafood bargain, I stock up. Therefore, in some of my weekly trips, I actually buy nothing from the meat department b/c I can rely on what I have if all the prices are lousy that week...I probably only buy meat on half my weekly big trips...but when I do, I'm usually getting 10-12lbs for my family.

The only thing I won't stock up on is fresh salmon - I'm a snob that can't eat this frozen if it's been fresh (it just loses something), but if I ever see it clearanced, I always buy and make it that day b/c it's another family favorite, so it's always a "happy surprise" those days...

 

[neatokimmo]

I put limits on the per pound price for stuff. Vegetables are $1 pp or less. If I pick up a more expensive item, I will balance it out with cheap fresh carrots or cabbage to be close to the pound. Same thing with fruit.

With meat I try to keep it at $2 pp but some weeks that is tough. We are working through half a cow in the freezer. So I buy bone in chicken to average out the cost. It’s pretty common to find chicken quarters for 40 cents a pound. They bake really well and make great stock.

I try to keep starches at $1 pp or less. I recently bought a 25 pound bag of jasmine rice from sams for sixty something cents a pound. We can also get pinto and black beans for about that price.

I also have a garden but I really only excel at growing cucumbers. I hope to improve that.

 

[barkley]

meat-

if it's a great sale and you've got the freezer space STOCK UP. i recently bought 40 pounds of ground beef b/c it was a bogo of the family packs that brought the 93% down to less than $2.50 a pound. brought it home and broke it into 1 and 2 pound packs (god bless the inventor of the vacuum sealer).

remember that different cuts of meat can be used to create OTHER cuts of meat. stew/soup meat is overpriced and fatty so i wait until little roasts are on sale (right now there's a promo for $3.99 a pound) and dh cuts it/portions it/air seals. i've had the butcher at chain stores grind a roast into ground meat when it's running less than the going price of pre-ground, cut london broils into strips for strogganoff when it's on sale....i can regularly get pork loins for less than $1.50 a pound which is MUCH less than ground pork costs (i use a kitchen aide grinder attachment but the butcher will do it as well), loins can be easily cut into chops (i've not done it but i've heard of people having this done at costco all the time b/c of the price difference).


produce-

it's hard b/c it's so freaking expensive these days but i would say-

shop the sales, eat what's seasonally lower in price, price compare (i swear costco is cheaper on some but much higher on others so i only get a few items of produce there-crimini mushrooms, baby bells and cherry tomatoes), if you don't mind canned/frozen-stock up when on sale (i bought 24 cans of water packed artichoke heart quarters when they were bogo recently-a few on top of our salads makes simple greens more enjoyable), and try to reduce waste (i used to throw away too much of the salad greens in those bags/boxes then i found that i can get bags of romaine hearts at walmart that last a LONG time-i just chop them up as needed for salad greens).


if you are into fresh herbs i HIGHLY recommend an aerogarden-the initial cost will be recouped in no time with the herbs you will no longer have to spend several dollars only to see the bulk of go bad in the fridge within days.

 

[Lmans77]

for someone like me who isn't great at meal planning and shops often but ends up making impulse buys, or buys things that don't translate to actual meals... this is what I've been trying.

start by sticking to your normal store. if you want to go nuts later by shopping multiple stores sales, by all means. But start slow.
Then start by meal planning for 3 meals only (goal of shopping twice a week). My brain overloads on meal planning for 1-2 weeks at a time. Make a list for only those 3 meals and other necessities (milk, breakfast, usual snacks, etc). Thats IT. Be discliplined. Go and buy only those things which should be quick. I do meal plan based on my store's ad because it gives me ideas of what to cook. Plan then to do it in a couple days so you can get the items for the second half of the week.

Even better, if your store has curbside pickup, do that. That keeps you OUT of the store. If you have a job where you can "grocery shop" at work..do that. Meaning make your list, fill your cart and do a pick up where you can get it on your way home. Do that twice a week, cook and eat what you plan for and you'll save money.