How to Eat Well On A Tiny Budget Part Two: Grocery Tips and Tricks

(For the first post in this series, click here!)

One time, after taking care of my bills and expenses, I had $37 to spend on food. For the rest of the month. I was sweating just thinking about how I could make that work, and then I did the very best thing I could have done.

I called my dad.

Not to ask for money, mind you. To ask for grocery shopping leadership. My dad has the spiritual gift of making money stretch a mile. I called him and said, “Dad, I have $37 with which to feed three people for the next three weeks. What do I do?” He picked me up, took me to the grocery store, handed me a basket, and said, “Try to keep up.” As I rushed alongside him, here are the tips and tricks I learned that I adhere to even today:

Follow the sales.

No one enjoys getting junk mail, but give that grocery flyer a second glance each week, and you’ll start to recognize standard prices and know when to snap up a great deal. Circle items that appeal to you, and use the sales to inform your shopping list. If you come across an exceptional price, consider stocking up – you can freeze a lot more than you may think.

Shop what’s in season.

Fruits and vegetables all have different harvest times. Start paying attention to seasonal produce, and you’ll notice a huge increase in quality and (generally speaking) better prices. An anemic, stiff December Roma tomato has nothing on its juicy, scarlet July superior. Check out this seasonal food guide for tips on what’s fresh based on your (US) location. For quick reference, here’s a table:

Spring	Summer	Autumn	Winter
Radishes	Tomatoes	Apples	Spaghetti Squash
Rhubarb	Cherries	Cranberries	Parsnips
Asparagus	Corn	Garlic	Cabbage
Strawberries	Bell Peppers	Pumpkin	Beets
Spinach	Watermelon	Peas	Brussels Sprouts
Chives	Zucchini	Brussels Sprouts	Mahi Mahi
Fresh Shrimp	Sockeye Salmon	Lobsters	Scallops

Search in unexpected locations.

That ground coriander you just found among the spices in the baking aisle is twice the price of the bag two aisles over in international foods. Venture beyond the most obvious spots as you’re shopping (for specialty items in particular), and you’ll often stumble across great deals. Another example: you might find lemon and lime juices in the produce section as well as in condiments or juices. As you navigate the store, keep your eyes open for discounted stickers. Sometimes you can find ingredients for entire meals at half-price.

Use everything.

I’ll go more in-depth on this point in my next post, but please please please don’t waste food. There are so many ways you can salvage parts, pieces, and even items beyond their shelf life. Simmer your meat bones to make broths and stocks. Bruised fruits make delicious smoothies. You can use milk past its prime for baking. Scrub your veggies well instead of peeling off half their nutrients. Eggshells, coffee grounds, fruit pits, and vegetable scraps all make for excellent compost. There are countless ways to use “discards” – check out my next post for ideas.

Get rid of what you don’t need.

Make your list and stick to it. Impulse buying can jack your bill way up. Also, if you’re shopping for produce by the pound, eliminate what you’re not going to use. For instance, break the stem off a bell pepper before putting it in your basket. You’re just going to chop it off anyway. And when you’ve only got $37, the 5 cents make a genuine difference.

Compare and contrast.

Intuition would tell us that store brand prices are cheaper than name brand, but that’s not always the case (especially during a sale). A second look could surprise you. You should also compare bulk prices to packaged prices (think of grains, nuts, and candy, for example). There isn’t any guarantee that either is a better deal. The same goes for fresh versus frozen. Sometimes frozen are much more cost-effective and conveniently low-waste. Lastly, compare sizes. I always want to buy the best value item – sometimes that means the larger container, but not always. Typically, a price tag will list the item price, and then in a smaller font in the corner, the price per ounce or gram. Learn to hone in on that smaller price and use that to compare.

Practice specific mental math skills.

Either pull out your phone calculator or brush up on your conversions so you don’t have any issues switching between metric and ~ freedom units ~. Also, prices don’t always have pretty rounded numbers, so practice converting to a common denominator on the fly. You’ll be shocked at price disparities you didn’t notice before.

Join the club.

If your fave grocery store has a loyalty or rewards program, join it. You have nothing to lose, and you always have to eat. As you do your shopping, your account will be racking up points (=$$$) in the background. I know some families who shop for their entire Christmas meal exclusively with reward points. They add up.

Grocery shopping with a limited budget can be intimidating and demoralizing. By implementing some of these tips, you can make a little go a long way. Stay tuned for my third post in this series, where I’ll share some basic cooking standards and list some ideas for how to use scraps you’d otherwise waste!

Have you ever used any of these strategies while grocery shopping? Let me know in the comments!