5 Meal Planning Tips for Saving Money

May 30, 2023

Planning your meals in advance has many advantages, you can make a grocery list that includes only the items you need, and you're less likely to make impulse purchases or buy items you don't need. In addition, meal planning can help you use up ingredients you already have on hand, reducing food waste and saving you even more money. With a little bit of planning, you can create healthy and delicious meals that are also budget-friendly.

Here are five meal planning tips to help you save money on your grocery bill.

Start by cleaning out the fridge/freezer. Do you have a roasting chicken in the freezer you forgot to use? Throw it in the slow cooker with some carrots, celery, onion, and garlic, and cover with water on LOW. Let that cook all day for the richest-tasting chicken stock you can use in soup.
Choose recipes that use the ingredients you already have on hand. If I need cabbage for one recipe, but only one cup or so, I’ll try to find another recipe that will use the remaining cabbage - $ saving and no waste!
Choose recipes that you can repurpose for another night's dinner. I’ll make a double batch of taco meat - one night we’ll tacos or nachos, the next it’s taco salads! What could be easier?!?
Look out for sales on pricey items and let these ingredients guide your meal planning.
Buy only what you need. This is something I swear by. My mom laughs at me every time we’re at the store and I buy one tomato, 4 potatoes, etc. Unless it’s something you think you can use elsewhere, stick to what the recipe calls for and forgo buying a 5lb bag of potatoes, only to throw about 4 lbs that you never got around to using. It saves you money and saves on food waste!

I could go on forever about grocery shopping on a budget. The key is, to know your prices! This may mean that you’re going to visit upwards of 5 stores that week to get what you need, and sometimes that is just not feasible. It’s all a juggling act. Do what works for you each week. Keep it simple and stress-free!

All the best,

Lisa

xoxo

Planning your meals in advance has many advantages, you can make a grocery list that includes only the items you need, and you're less likely to make impulse purchases or buy items you don't need. In addition, meal planning can help you use up ingredients you already have on hand, reducing food waste and saving you even more money. With a little bit of planning, you can create healthy and delicious meals that are also budget-friendly.

Here are five meal planning tips to help you save money on your grocery bill.

Start by cleaning out the fridge/freezer. Do you have a roasting chicken in the freezer you forgot to use? Throw it in the slow cooker with some carrots, celery, onion, and garlic, and cover with water on LOW. Let that cook all day for the richest-tasting chicken stock you can use in soup.
Choose recipes that use the ingredients you already have on hand. If I need cabbage for one recipe, but only one cup or so, I’ll try to find another recipe that will use the remaining cabbage - $ saving and no waste!
Choose recipes that you can repurpose for another night's dinner. I’ll make a double batch of taco meat - one night we’ll tacos or nachos, the next it’s taco salads! What could be easier?!?
Look out for sales on pricey items and let these ingredients guide your meal planning.
Buy only what you need. This is something I swear by. My mom laughs at me every time we’re at the store and I buy one tomato, 4 potatoes, etc. Unless it’s something you think you can use elsewhere, stick to what the recipe calls for and forgo buying a 5lb bag of potatoes, only to throw about 4 lbs that you never got around to using. It saves you money and saves on food waste!

I could go on forever about grocery shopping on a budget. The key is, to know your prices! This may mean that you’re going to visit upwards of 5 stores that week to get what you need, and sometimes that is just not feasible. It’s all a juggling act. Do what works for you each week. Keep it simple and stress-free!

All the best,

Lisa

xoxo

Planning your meals in advance has many advantages, you can make a grocery list that includes only the items you need, and you're less likely to make impulse purchases or buy items you don't need. In addition, meal planning can help you use up ingredients you already have on hand, reducing food waste and saving you even more money. With a little bit of planning, you can create healthy and delicious meals that are also budget-friendly.

Here are five meal planning tips to help you save money on your grocery bill.

Start by cleaning out the fridge/freezer. Do you have a roasting chicken in the freezer you forgot to use? Throw it in the slow cooker with some carrots, celery, onion, and garlic, and cover with water on LOW. Let that cook all day for the richest-tasting chicken stock you can use in soup.
Choose recipes that use the ingredients you already have on hand. If I need cabbage for one recipe, but only one cup or so, I’ll try to find another recipe that will use the remaining cabbage - $ saving and no waste!
Choose recipes that you can repurpose for another night's dinner. I’ll make a double batch of taco meat - one night we’ll tacos or nachos, the next it’s taco salads! What could be easier?!?
Look out for sales on pricey items and let these ingredients guide your meal planning.
Buy only what you need. This is something I swear by. My mom laughs at me every time we’re at the store and I buy one tomato, 4 potatoes, etc. Unless it’s something you think you can use elsewhere, stick to what the recipe calls for and forgo buying a 5lb bag of potatoes, only to throw about 4 lbs that you never got around to using. It saves you money and saves on food waste!

I could go on forever about grocery shopping on a budget. The key is, to know your prices! This may mean that you’re going to visit upwards of 5 stores that week to get what you need, and sometimes that is just not feasible. It’s all a juggling act. Do what works for you each week. Keep it simple and stress-free!

All the best,

Lisa

xoxo