Recessionista: Cooking on a Budget

The Wall Street Journal has had not one but two articles on budget grocery shopping in the past two days, which is an obvious indicator of what Americans have on the brain. On an even more interesting note, the ONLY stock that didn't fall yesterday was Campbell's Soup. It rose. Without further ado, some tips for eating on the cheap:

-Stop buying those pre-cut fruits and vegetables! In fact, stop buying anything that is pre-prepared for you. Say goodbye to that shredded cheese and grate your own.

-Rethink some old standbys that you may have left in your childhood, like frozen veggies and grilled cheese and tomato soup dinners.

-Explore ethnic recipes. They are often loaded with veggies, starches, and beans, which leads to our next tip...

-Be sparing with the meat...

-But don't forget eggs. They are filling and can be paired with a variety of vegetables in the form of omelets, frittatas, etc. I made a spinach and mushroom frittata last week that was good for almost a week's worth of dinners.

-Plan out your meals. There is no substitute for eliminating impulse purchases, buying in bulk, and making enough for leftovers the next day. At the same time, don't buy more than you can use only to have it go to waste in the refrigerator.

That's all I have for now. Any other ideas?

4 comments:

Unknown said...

we just moved and discovered the farmer's market up the street from us. WAY lower prices and tastes better too! also nice to support the local guys.

Meg said...

I am the worst at that last one. I keep trying and trying to plan ahead and do larger trips to the store, but I inevitably leave things out and have to go back. But when I go back for something that we actually need for the meals I've so carefully planned, we usually end up with like, the item I went for, some good-looking loaf of bread, an avocado, and a fifth bottle of Worcestershire sauce to add to our collection because I perpetually think we're out of it.

*sigh*

Anonymous said...

I do the daily meal planning a week in advance...it not only saves us money, but I can prepare some things for the week on the weekend! I also make take out type stuff at home (like homemade pizza and burritos) so we don't feel like we're missing out by eating at home.

Anonymous said...

trader joes is great for cheap and creative options!