by Ashley
This seems so obvious to state that I debated whether or not to even write a post about this. But I had mentioned that I was going to examine my grocery spending habits and using the money envelopes has forced me to do that and I’ve gained a bit of insight along the way.
One thing I have discovered is that: meal planning is my secret weapon for spending less and saving more!
Here’s a couple scenarios of how failing to meal plan can cost money (and these are totally rhetorical examples….certainly nothing that’s happened in my real life. heh)…
- It’s Wednesday evening, 5pm. I just go the girls from their childcare provider, and have exactly 1 hour to make, serve, and eat dinner before husband has to leave for a meeting (I have never mentioned this, but husband is a freemason and he has meetings on Wednesday evenings). I get home, have nothing planned, no time to thaw out meat or cook a freezer meal, and end up going with “plan B” (which, lately, has been a $5 Hot and Ready pizza from Little Ceasers).
- I like to compile my grocery list for the week by checking out the local sale ads. It is not unusual for me to go to multiple stores during the week (I usually hit Sprouts for produce on double-ad Wednesdays, Walmart for my staples, and Albertsons or Frys depending on the sales). I always try to buy things on sale, so I’m really building my grocery list around sales rather than meals. But if I neglect meal-planning, then I’m grocery shopping “blind.” I have no idea if we’ll necessarily have the ingredients for XYZ meals for the week at home. Then I have to make even more trips to the store to pick up forgotten items, or we end up with another $5 Hot and Ready when I realize we don’t have the items necessary to cook!
In the first scenario, my lack of meal planning costs me extra money in the form of eating out when it wasn’t planned. As nice as it is to not have to worry about cooking for a night, I’m SICK of these $5 pizzas. Yes, it’s a good deal. But I want to save that money for a “real” meal out, instead of having it wasted on a rushed dinner lacking in prober nutrition.
In the second scenario, my lack of meal planning costs me extra money in the form of time and groceries! I have to make another trip to the store, or I end up caving and telling husband to go grab a pizza. Have I mentioned I’m sick of the pizza?
Meal planning saves me all these headaches.
How I meal-plan
First, I take a look at the items we already have.
- Check your fridge to see if any food is about to turn. Do you have broccoli on its last leg? It needs to be a meal component asap!
- Note other fridge items that can often be used in foods. Do you have milk, butter, chicken stock, cheese, etc? These ingredients can be used in sauces or for a roux of some kind.
- What items are in the freezer? I actually keep a list of items in my freezer. Everything from pre-made freezer meals (when I make extra portions of food and freeze it – commonly lasagna, eggplant parmesan, and enchiladas), to fruits or veggies, to meats and other miscellaneous food items (e.g., butter, bread, yeast, etc.)
Second I look at sale ads.
- Are any items for sale that I commonly use? This can be non-food (e.g., shampoo, soaps), but might be food items too. We eat a lot of chicken, for example. Even if we don’t necessarily need chicken, I might buy some if it’s on a good sale. I always try to buy stuff on sale rather than spending full price (and I keep track of prices so I know the sale is actually a good deal, because sometimes the “sale” prices are not actually a good deal!)
Third, I look at my recipe list.
- Are these foods (things we already own and things currently on sale this week) components of meals that my family loves? I keep a little list of commonly used recipes. Sometimes I draw a blank when planning meals, so I can pull out the list of tried and true dinners and get some easy inspiration.
Now I start planning my meals! I will usually plan about 5-6 days and fill-in with freezer meals that are already prepared, leftovers from the week, or an “eating out” night. I try to plan so that food about to turn gets eaten first, and I make extra of some things to cut down on prep time later in the week. Here are some examples:
- If we’re having pizza on Monday and calzones on Wednesday, I’ll make extra dough on Monday so it just has to rise/bake on Wednesday.
- If we’re having grilled chicken and veggies on Tuesday and chicken and broccoli pockets on Thursday, then I’ll cook extra chicken on Tuesday so on Thursday all I have to do is make and bake the pockets.
- If we’re having roasted chicken on Friday, I’ll plan another meal that uses the leftover chicken (like chicken enchiladas, chicken tortilla soup, chicken tostadas, etc etc. – the possibilities are limitless!
I find that by doing things like this (that cut down on my prep-time for dinner), I am more apt to stick to the meal plan and not rely on take-out. Anything that can simplify my life (particularly around dinner time) is a winner in my book!
What do you do to cut down on the rush around dinner time and make life easier? Do you meal plan, and if so, have any tips? What are some of your favorite fast and easy dinner recipes?
Hi, I’m Ashley! Arizonan on paper, Texan at heart. Lover of running, blogging, and all things cheeeeese. Freshly 40, married mother of two, working in academia. Trying to finally (finally!) pay off that ridiculous 6-digit student loan debt!
Not sure if all Walmarts are the same, but ours will price match. If you bring in the sale ad from another store, Walmart will honor the same price on the same item. If they don’t carry that brand, you can usually get Walmart store brand. Saves trips to other stores if you’re going to Walmart anyway! 🙂
Yes! I actually do this, but our Walmart has a terrible produce section so I only go once every couple weeks and price match the pantry-staple type items.
I’m kind of weird , I love talking about meal planning and shopping :). I do a lot of the same things, meal planning around the ads. I also grocery shop once a week and we eat the fresh fruit and veg first, starting with the stuff that has the shortest shelf life. For example cucumbers get eaten before carrots. We eat canned and frozen fruit and veg when the fresh is gone. I also buy extra meat and freeze when there is a good sale, and with the price of meat getting so high I only buy when there is a good sale. Some weeks there are no good meat sales. On those weeks We don’t buy any and we eat the stuff we have in the freezer.
Grocery costs have gotten higher the last few years while our income has not increased much. Menu planning and sale shopping is a must
And I’m going to add – use coupons! I’m not an avid couponer, but can routinely save $10 on my $100 grocery bill each week. It’s not only paper coupons, digital coupons are now readily available and easy!
So YES – meal plan, organize your pantry, shop the weekly sales, and coupons all add up to big savings!
We started using emeals a year ago. Oh my gosh have things gotten easier for us. Yes, this comment will sound like a commercial but I am going to carry on none the less.
Emeals will prepare a meal plan AND a grocery list based upon sales in your area for the major stores. For example, we shop Kroger so we use their Kroger plan.
A key part to first sentence above is AND a grocery list. We buy off the grocery list suggested with very few exceptions (snacks, milk, etc.). The hardest part of meal planning for me was the grocery list bit. I like to save money and would “stock up” on items when on great sale. However, I would forget about them or they would waste away in the back of the pantry. We shop off the list and our pantry almost seems bare but that’s because things rotate through and don’t go to waste.
We are a family of three and my husband is a large guy who eats for two. We signed up for the large family size portions and easily have enough for many lunches of leftovers. Not always but fairly often.
My husband and I agree that we spend less but have been buying so much more.
Also, first one home cooks in our house. So the meals have transitioned from pre-made, store bought box things to more cooking at home since the recipes are easy to follow. My husband loves that everything is right there for him to follow.
We love love love emeals.
PS. I could send you a link for the referral program, but you don’t need it. Just search for emeals.
I’ve heard of programs like this, but they tend not to work for us because one of us (cough*husband*cough) is a very picky eater! I find that the meal ideas would never work for us.
I’ll admit, some of the recipes my husband (also picky) vetoes. But those are the nights I fill in with something he enjoys or our daughter enjoys. Sometimes we substitute or get creative with the recipes. But the plan comes out on Wed. We shop on Sat or Sun. So I review the list, he reviews the list. We come to agreement.
We just paid off my student loans (I also have my PhD). So all that is left is our mortgage. It’s possible, very very possible.
Wooo!!! Congrats – I can’t even imagine how liberating it must feel!!! Well done!
We like the Real Simple cookbooks, magazine recipes or online recipes. They are truly simple to prepare, delicious, and come with a great picture of the finished product for each recipe. Nutritional info can be found at the back of the cookbook or magazine. We are having their steak and grilled zucchini with Greek beans and feta salad tonight for dinner. A couple of years ago while on Weight Watchers, I followed their Month of 400 Calorie Recipes. ‘Think that is still available by searching realsimple.com/recipes/monthof400calorierecipes.
Thanks for the tip – I’ll have to check that out!
We use a meal planning service called The Fresh 20, which we love. It’s less than $5/month, gives a grocery list (you have to buy no more than 20 fresh items/week, in addition to your “pantry staples”) and recipes. The food is delicious, and there are vegetarian and vegan options, too. It saves us a ton of money because of the points you noted in your post, with the added benefit that it’s healthy and yummy!
I agree, meal planning is crucial. We got back from vacation on Saturday late afternoon and have not succumbed to pizza (low on cash) but I have been to the store everyday. I should get off the internet right now and meal plan the rest of the week and stop the madness. I dislike shopping with my children so usually that is enough motivation to get my act together.
Good luck!!! : )
I meal plan and coupon to save time and money. I also buy ground beef in bulk when on sale and then I cook the majority of it at one time and freeze it on 1 pound portions. This way I can just take it out and throw in spaghetti, chili, stuffed peppers or season for tacos or sloppy joes. It saves me a ton of time and eliminates a lot of the “go grab a pizza” scenarios. I also chop and freeze any left over peppers and onions which can then be thrown into the same items above, I’m not wasting them and have saved myself a little more prep time.