I don't like cooking.
I mean....I really don't like cooking. And you know what I dislike even more?
Baking.
I would rather scrub a toilet than cook dinner or bake cookies.
If it were up to me and money were no object, I would buy everything pre-made and/or go out to eat.
But, alas, fortune is not my friend. And, therefore, I am forced to be organized, to cook AND to keep track of everything I spend. My grocery shopping day includes 4 different stores because of this reason. Well, it's also because of our food allergies, but either way, grocery shopping day is not my favorite. I try to make it more fun by arranging to be kid-less, listening to loud music and purchasing myself one treat. Usually it's frozen yogurt. YUM!
Preparing to talk on this topic, I came up with a list of 10 tips to meal planning on a budget. It should be prefaced, however, with the fact that I do NOT coupon. I have looked into it. It sounds.....CRAZY. I couldn't even prepare myself mentally without feeling puffs of smoke blow out from my ears. One of the websites I studied actually had instructions on what kind of check out clerk to look for when using an obscene amount of coupons; young man, short line....and get friendly with the manager's at each of your local grocery stores because you are sure to get in to some....ahem....altercations.
No thank you.
Although I am outgoing and talk A LOT, I like confrontation as much as the next person. Which is pretty much zero.
I came up with some other ways to save money and feed a family of four without the need for dramatic run-ins with the teenage boys at my local King Soopers.
1.Make a Menu
Plan a menu and stick to it. This means figure out your schedule ahead of time and arrange cooking around that. For example, Wednesday nights we have AWANAS. It's always crazy trying to get dinner in tummies and get out the door on time. So, when I plan my menu, I take that into consideration. Usually Wednesday nights are our leftover or sandwich night. Something easy and quick that doesn't take a lot of preparation.
Making a menu and sticking to it also ensures that you are less likely to get to 5 PM and say, "Crap. I don't know what to make for dinner. Ummm....let's just go out."
2.No more going out to dinner.
Going out is now a special occasion kind of thing. It is something that is very much looked forward to by our kids. They get BEYOND excited to go through the drive-thru at Chick-fil-a. And if we decide to dine in and play in the play place?? Best day EVER!
It doesn't need to be a sad farewell to the McDonald's french fries. But, it is challenging saying 'no' to friends a lot. Sometimes it's awkward. But, you know....such is life.
3.Get organized
It's a lot of work to get organized. But, it takes more work to get organized than to stay organized. Come up with some kind of system that works for you. Two of my friends plan a week at a time and post it on their fridge. My mom uses a computer program that prints off her grocery lists, etc.
It took a lot of trial and error before I found something that really works for me.
Here's what I do:
I bought a dry erase magnetic monthly calendar at Wal-Mart right before school started, so I got it for $5. Awesome. I posted it on my fridge and try to plan a month at a time.
It got frustrating writing everything over and over and over again, so then I took a trip to Hobby Lobby (really any excuse to go there and spend a little cash) and got supplies like magnetic backing, card stock, etc.
I wrote down all the meals that I make so that now I can easily shuffle them around or change my mind depending on groceries, unexpected expenses, surprise date nights, etc.
I also made sure to include cards such as "Happy Birthday," "Try new recipe," "Leftovers," "Dinner @ in-law's," etc.
4.Get used to a lot of 'basic' meals.
I don't cook a lot of steak. Or lasagna. Or recipes that require any kind of meat that I can't buy in bulk at Costco.
I make a lot of:
Tacos
Bean & Cheese Burritos
Qdoba style burritos
Chicken w/rice or potatoes
Chicken stir fry
Spaghetti
Chicken nuggets
Homemade pizza
Grilled cheese sandwiches
Breakfast for dinner (scrambled eggs, etc.)
Chili
Tuna noodle
Egg salad sandwiches
5.No more snacks or convenience foods.
I don't buy snacks, really. I bake our own bread, muffins, pizza crusts, bagels, cookies and granola bars. I freeze a lot. I also have hubby (our official pancake chef) make giant batches of pancakes and freeze them for breakfast. I make our own chicken nuggets, french fries and refried beans. Anything I can make easy for the kids later. It's not fun. It's a LOT of work, but it is WAY cheaper than buying these things already made. For a box of frozen pancakes, I can make 3-4 times that amount for cheaper.
6. Buy in bulk
I buy a lot of things in bulk at Costco. I switched from ground beef to ground turkey because it was cheaper (both in money AND in calories). I also buy milk, eggs, yogurt, string cheese, shredded cheese, gluten free flour, gluten free tortillas, apples, onions, peppers & rotisserie chickens.
The onions & peppers I cut up all at once and freeze. Super convenient for recipes. Love not having to prep this.
Rotisserie chickens at Costco are $5 each and are cheaper than buying a whole chicken and cooking it yourself. I usually buy 2-3 of these per paycheck. As soon as I get home and they are still warm, I take all of the meat off the bones and freeze it. We use this chicken for pasta, stir fry, sandwiches, wraps, etc.
I buy the 64 count carton of eggs. I hard boil at least 2 dozen of them and use them for breakfast, snacks and lunches.
7. Always make a list
Don't go to the grocery store without a list if you are trying to save money. You won't. And you'll buy a lot of stuff you can't really use in recipes. You'll also probably be surprised when you hear the total at the end.
8. Eat your leftovers
We don't throw a lot of meals out. We eat them for lunches, dinners and if we are at the very end of pay period.....breakfast. HA!
9. Get used to not buying as much fresh produce
I would LOVE to buy fresh produce every week. But, it's expensive. I buy a lot of frozen veggies. I buy apples, bananas and grapes at Costco and when they are gone....they are gone. We wait until next paycheck or make smoothies with frozen fruit.
10. Be creative
I have made a lot of things at the end of pay period with random things in my pantry. I probably couldn't make them again, but my family loved them.
Does the thought of inventing new meals stress you out? There's a cool website www.myfridgefood.com that you can enter the things you have in your fridge or pantry and it will come up with a recipe for you.
That's it. A lot of thinking. A lot of planning, but totally do-able.
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