6 Ways to Make the Most of Your Grocery Budget

 

Whether inflation is increasing the cost of your normal trip to the grocery store or you’re suddenly buying a lot more food for growing athletes, you may be looking for ways to save some money while buying food. Fortunately, you don’t need to sacrifice nutrition or taste in order to slash your grocery budget. It takes a bit more planning, and in some cases, a bit more work on your part. But it also can lead to the discovery of new favorite foods, new recipes, and enjoyable meals.

Here, TrueSport Expert Kristen Ziesmer, a registered dietitian and board-certified specialist in sports dietetics, shares a few simple ways to drop your grocery budget this week.

1. Challenge Yourself to Empty the Kitchen

The fastest way to save money is by using what you already have at home—which also helps empty out your cabinets in the process! If you’re out of your normal dinner staples three days before your normal grocery shopping day, Ziesmer suggests challenging yourself to actually use what’s left in the fridge and the pantry. “As soon as you run out of something, don't run to the store to get it. If you've run out of yogurt, you can go a few days without it. Set a time for when you go to the store and stick to it. Most of us have plenty of food still in the fridge or in our cabinets, we’re just not used to using it,” she says.

“You may not have your normal meal, but do you have frozen broccoli and some frozen chicken? Then you have a meal! Start with what you already have: Not only will you use up those extras that have been languishing in your cupboards, you may discover some new recipes in the process, and you’ll save money by avoiding yet another grocery store trip. I think many of us are used to just buying X, Y, and Z, and not looking at what we already have at home.”

She recommends the app Super Cook, which allows you to input the ingredients you do have on hand and then generates recipe options that use those.

2. Spend Money to Save Money

It might seem odd to consider spending money when talking about slashing a grocery budget, but one-time spends can actually save money in the long run. Ziesmer recommends kitchen appliances like a pressure cooker, which not only speeds up meal prep, but can also make it easier to use dried beans versus canned—which is much cheaper. It also allows you to use scraps to create nutritious broths. Ziesmer recommends using vegetable scraps from a salad and the carcass of a whole chicken to make a chicken broth using the pressure cooker.

An extra chest freezer is another great tool, since it allows you to store bulk frozen meat, fruits, and vegetables. And depending on the amount of space in your kitchen, options like a Soda Stream can replace buying cans of seltzer, while a bread machine can save you from buying bread from the store on a weekly basis. Ziesmer notes that the bread machine is especially helpful for those with a gluten intolerance, since gluten-free bread is often extremely expensive to buy, but can be easily made in a bread machine.

Finally, investing in glass food storage containers (like mason jars for yogurt parfaits or trail mix) and silicone reusable bags can take the place of buying new plastic sandwich bags and cheap plastic storage containers.

Ziesmer suggests finding second-hand items if you’re on a tight budget but are interested in a pressure cooker, bread machine, or chest freezer.