Food Prices are Just Getting Out of Hand - Tips on How to Save

[Fudd]

Everbody notice how food prices are just spinning out of control. It's getting harder and harder every day to feed your self heathy nutricous food when prices just keep going up. But there are ways of saving money and eating well you just need to know how.

One tip is to buy bread in bulk at places like Costco. You can get a 3 pack of 9 grain or whole wheat bread, take 2 and put it in the freezer and use 1 for the week. Then the following week take the 2nd pack out and it will still be fresh.

Any body have any other tips?

 

[violetblake]

Making actual meals! Not buying TV dinners, or other such stuff that in one dinner you get a month's worth of salt and tons of trans fat to boot. Just doing like it the ol' days, lol, where people actually took time out of their busy schedules to prepare a real meal with all the food groups. It's so ridiculously cheaper than buying frozen foods, TV dinners, etc, it's not even funny! Going organic and such is probably the most healthy, but very pricey. Just making things from scratch is absolutely the best way (and also be sure to check and compare nutrition labels).

 

[lenny]

Eat water for one meal or day instead of solids. A 4L jug of distilled h2o was about $1.29 at my local Shoppers Drug Mart the other day. After 24 hours see if you lost any weight. Don't pig out after!

 

[PlayfulAlex]

Most of us spend too much money feeding ourselves once we're out of the house. We buy things on the run that are quite pricey (we'll save the non-healthy aspect for another thread!), like bagels, muffins, coffees, sandwiches, granola bars (think Starbucks), and hot lunches (think KFC and Timmies). Get out and buy some groceries, and throw things into your cart that are good substitutes. Then, as has been suggested, find creative ways to make stuff at home and always take something with you when you leave the house.

Brown Bag It:
Keep good containers around and a good lunch bag. Cook extra (follow Miss VB's advice) and always take leftovers to work.
Buy a few of your favourite bagels and freeze them (following Fudd's advice). The night before, take one out of the freezer and, in the morning, fix it up with your favourite spread and Zip loc it on for way out.
Sandwich lovers can do the same; always have mayo, bread, lettuce, tomatoes, and lunch meat in the house. Muffins too.
Always have your favourite coffee around the house (or tea bags) and invest in a good to-go mug.
Buy granola bars by the box, and throw a couple in the lunch bag, glove box, back pack, or purse.

Caveat: don't buy too much of anything that can't be frozen. You won't be saving money, if you end up throwing the perishables out...

I could go on and on, but I'm sure you get my drift!

 

[sevenofnine]

actually i enjoy cooking,

its funny but the cheapest cuts of meats, have the most flavor

you just cook them slowly,
i rarely buy the prime cuts of meat, because im into healthy and enjoy cooking,

soup, winter time you can make some marvolus soups. with bread,
when i cook a roast or a bird or something get it big enough to make leftovers,

you can make some reallly intersting meat pies or beef broccoli

ah cabbage roles, i love cabbage rolls, but there cheap to make,
maybe i will make some today

watching a show on drugs, sex and food, or two of the greatest natural pleasures give us the most high
i love to eat, and cook,
kind of like sex to

 

[WWTDD]

On average Americans (probably Canadians and Europeans also) waste up to $700.00 a year on wasted food. I never make more than I can eat for one meal. I never have leftovers and I never freeze any food. I also never throw away any food because nothing has a chance to go bad. I never buy any food that I can microwaved. Processed food is more expensive for what you get. Also if you shop more often you'll see the food you buy on sale more often. When I see one of my regular purchases on sale, I will buy than one. I'm not a vegatarian but I don't meat for than once or twice a week. Also look at portion control. Use smaller plates, have a salad. Eating less and snacking on fruit will also save money plus it's better for you. If the choice is betwen junk food and fruit I always choose fruit. Just what I do.

 

[sbill]

Too true. I made some excellent leak/potato soup with bacon.
C1

I'm sure leek/potato soup is delicious, and I'm really hoping this was a typo!

 

[SFMIKE]

Eat water for one meal or day instead of solids. A 4L jug of distilled h2o was about $1.29 at my local Shoppers Drug Mart the other day. After 24 hours see if you lost any weight. Don't pig out after!

Or, a 4 liter jug of tap water. There is nothing wrong with Vancouver tap water. It seems that most people buy it for the same reason they buy Starbucks, but I do not know what that reason is.

The only times in my life that I have bought bottled water was in Mexico, to do otherwise could be sickening; the other time was about 5 years ago when you guys had a ton of rain and the water was declared to be unsafe for drinking. My buddy and I drove to Richmond for our morning coffee. Worth the trip as we conducted other 'business" while we were there.

 

[vancity_cowboy]

Or, a 4 liter jug of tap water. There is nothing wrong with Vancouver tap water. It seems that most people buy it for the same reason they buy Starbucks, but I do not know what that reason is.

The only times in my life that I have bought bottled water was in Mexico, to do otherwise could be sickening; the other time was about 5 years ago when you guys had a ton of rain and the water was declared to be unsafe for drinking. My buddy and I drove to Richmond for our morning coffee. Worth the trip as we conducted other 'business" while we were there.

hi mike. well that shows you that even though there was a warning, the water was still safe to drink, because richmond gets all the same water as vancouver does!

 

[Gentle-man]

Bake your own bread... it's not that hard
http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/ and your kitchen smells awesome!

Instead of going to a restaurant for dinner, take a cooking class
(often you get a meal out of it and you build your skills to)
Cook your own meals... taste better, healthier, cheaper and often can be incorporated into a nice romantic gesture
Also as your culinary skill improves you can build a meal from a base ingredient that is on sale this week rather than knowing I can make these 5 things and being forced to buy those ingredients

Instead of cooking a meat portion per person, cook fewer and use slices to stretch (ie 1 large chicken breast with tender for 2 people or 2-3 for 4 people)
Buy in season Fruits and Vegetables as much as possible

Always cook for more portions than you need, leftovers are easy to grab for tasty lunches

 

[CJ Tylers]

Step 1: Buy a turkey or a chicken
Step 2: Cook as desired
Step 3: Bust out your slow cooker & make a soup out of the carcass that most people chuck once the meat has been peeled off.

I'm in the middle of making up some kick ass turkey soup right now

 

[storm rider]

Make you own type of processed foods entrees......a tray of the lean ground beef from Costco is perfect for this...mix it up into a giant batch of meatloaf and make mini individual meatloafs (you do have to buy the little loaf pans but they can be reused over and over....freeze after portioning and seal with plastic wrap...remove 1 or 2 from the freezer when desired in the morning to thaw on the counter.....another variation of this is mini shepperds pies but it is a lot more work.

Make your own Spaghetti sauce....Costco sells those gigantic Prego sauce bottles in a 2 pack....break out the dutch oven and go to town by adding some tomatoe paste and your fave veggies and spices and some browned ground beef....portion it in some of those plastic snap lid containers you can buy for cheap at a dollar store and freeze it.....take out a container in the moring if you want to have pasta that night.

Buy in bulk..perfect example is a whole striploin/tenderloin at Costco...carve it into steaks/roasts as you desire...seal/wrap well and freeze...a typical striploin will cost you $70 and yields 16-20 steaks....a single striploin at the fancy Safeway meat counter that has optional BBQ rub & sauce applied will cost you $8-$12 each.

Costco ROCKS....even the guys at EpicMealTime know that.....cause their smart.

SR

 

[InnocentBoy]

If you think food prices are high now you ain't seen nothing yet. People have been spoiled by cheap food. 50 years ago people spent 25% of household income on food now it's down to 10%.

 

[luvsdaty]

Houses where a lot cheaper 50 years ago.Price of housing has gone up something like 150% since 1981!!!! If you have the space, growing your own veggies fills the freezer pretty quickly.

 

[Smilf]

Maybe you should start a pooner community kitchen, go over to one of the pooner's houses one week, then another the next week. You all agree on some recipes that can be made in bulk (pasta's, perogies, cabbage rolls, stir fry's, scalloped potatoes, meat loaf, chili, soups, stews etc. are just a few I can think of, off the top of my head) every person buys an ingredient(s), then you make it and divide it up amongst yourselves so you have enough meals for the week. And in the summer time you can start a community garden

 

[let's review]

Be super nice to your hunter and fisher friends. I've had a bunch of moose and venison cuts, and over the summer sockeye ruled the kitchen. Now the smoked comes out for the holidays.
It also pays to kiss the asses of all your mum's friends so as to snag their canned goods.

If you can't be that nice, try this: Go to Safeway, buy the best baron roast you can find and cook a beautiful meal to savor and save. Next day, take the receipt and wrapper off the roast in and cause a big scene about how their shitty meat ruined a beautiful family dinner. Bingo, free roast. Not my style, but I've seen it work several times.

 

[luvsdaty]

Or you can go into a restaurant, finish 80% of your meal.Then pick a fly off the window & mix it in with your meal! Guaranteed you'll get a free meal:nod: My buddy back in the 80's did that, i still raz him about it to this day.

 

[toolong]

reply

Cook your food instead buying from starbuck or fast food joint
I usually buy my meat from smaller store because they are cheaper
There different grade of meat. When you make it you do not know the difference
When I buy something I look at the flyer and I tried to buy those item in the flyer.
I tired not to impulse buy at supermarket. I bring my list to the supermarket.

 

[Fudd]

This talk about meat is making me ill. Doesn't any one have any tips on cost savings with tofu or vegtables.

 

[InTheBum]

This thread is a joke...if anyone is feeling like they are "just getting by" they should stop pooning and continue to spend money on good quality foods...

Pooning is a luxury...food isn't!!!