How To Spend Less By Menu-Planning
I say this often: Buy the things you use when they are on sale! I can’t stress enough how important it is to take advantage of the weekly sales.
Here’s a scenario: Suzy is at the store on Saturday (the last day of the weekly sale). She notices that milk is on sale for $2.49/gallon. She remembers that she has a gallon in the refrigerator, so she doesn’t buy any milk. The next week on Wednesday, Suzy finishes the gallon of milk that was in her fridge. She doesn’t really need anything from the store, but she’s forced to make a grocery run for milk. When she gets to the dairy case, she sees that milk is $3.79/gallon. Eeeek! Suzy must pay that exorbitant price!
What she should have done: Suzy should have bought the milk when it was on sale even if she had a gallon in the fridge. Whenever milk is on sale, pay close attention to the expiration date and purchase as much milk as you can use before it will expire. Then, you won’t be stuck paying a high price for milk.
Okay, so what does all that have to do with menu-planning? You will spend much less if you plan your menus around the weekly sales! If chicken is on sale this week, serve chicken for several dinner meals. You can still have variety. Think about the options: fried chicken, chicken noodle soup, chicken casseroles, chicken fajitas, etc. Also, buy some chicken to put in the freezer for upcoming weeks when chicken is not on sale!
If pot roast is on sale, buy a big one. Have pot roast on Monday, then use the leftover beef for a soup or stew later in the week. Shred some of the beef to make BBQ sandwiches. And, again, freeze some for later.
You should also plan your side dishes around the produce sales. Serve your family the produce that is on sale each week. If lettuce is on sale, plan to have a salad one night and tacos on another night. When broccoli is on sale, serve steamed broccoli one night and make a broccoli casserole on another night. Recently, I wanted to purchase a head of cauliflower, but it was almost $4.00!! I decided to wait. The next week it was on sale for less than $2.00.
It just makes sense (and cents) to buy meats and produce when they are at a sale price instead of their full price. Browse the sale paper, then write down a menu plan for the week. Just by making this simple change, you’ll soon discover that you’re spending less!
