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Insights on money, career and trading

3 Tips for Saving Money On Food Each Week

Posted on July 27, 2016 by Daniel at 8:21 am

Buying food for yourself or your family each week can get expensive. While many of us love the price of the questionable-looking foods we see from the brands we know nothing about, we’d also like to avoid getting food poisoning from eating sketchy food. Because of this, we’re left to spend a little more money to get foods that we’ll enjoy and that are also healthy. And although this is better for our bodies, it’s not necessarily better for our pocketbooks. So to help those looking to eat well without spending a fortune, here are three tips for saving yourself some money on food each week while still being health-conscious.

Avoid Pre-Made and Pre-Packaged Foods

For many people, time is just as precious as money. But if you’re looking to save money—or if you’re concerned about what exactly goes into the food you eat—you may want to skip over those pre-made or pre-packaged foods. Oftentimes you can create the same exact item with fresher ingredients and for less money, making purchasing these more expensive and less nutritious options seem a little crazy. One thing you should definitely never buy, according to EatingWell.com, is pre-packaged salad mixes. It would cost you a lot less money to get these vegetables fresh and then make the salad yourself. Plus, those salads tend to go bad quicker than salads you make on your own.

Take Advantage of Your Freezer

Your freezer is a great resource to help you save both time and money when it comes to meals. Having certain frozen items on hand, like vegetables or fruits, allows you to eat well regardless of the time of year. And if you make a larger purchase of these items when they’re on sale, you’re saving yourself even more money.

It’s also a good idea, according to U.S. News and World Report, to purchase some of the healthy yet inexpensive freezer meals to have on hand when you’re running short on time. These can help you to not use fast food as your last resort while also assisting with portion control. Look for these items when they’re on sale, and try to avoid the brands that have a lot of preservatives or salt in them.

Save Your Extra Portions for Later

One other great option for saving money—and taking less trips to the grocery store in general—is to make larger meals that you can then save and eat over multiple days. Rachel Sanders, a contributor to BuzzFeed.com, shares that by cooking a larger batch of multi-purpose foods like chicken or pork, you can use the food from that one time in a few other meals that you eat that week, again saving you time and money. Also, if you ever find that you’ve made too much food for yourself or your family, be sure you save the leftovers and use them as an additional meal or meal replacement.

By thinking creatively about your shopping and cooking, you can save yourself a lot of money when you visit the grocery store. Use the tips mentioned above to help you learn how.

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Insights on money, career and trading