How to Save Money on Family Groceries Without Compromising Quality

Let’s face it. These days everyone is trying to find ways to save money. Whether it’s on groceries, clothes, or gift giving, everyone is looking for ways to make our dollars go further. Over the years I’ve learned a few things about saving a buck or two. Here are my tips on doing just that.

1. Invest in a Deep Freezer

I actually have two deep freezers. Since I live in the country it’s not always feasible to run to a grocery store. Having a freezer makes meal planning easy and affordable. I can stock up meat and bread products when things are on sale, which adds up to a lot of savings. I’ve even bought cases of vegetables when they’ve been on sale, prepped and frozen them. They save me time and money when life gets hectic, as it often does raising 5 kids. You can often find deep freezers second-hand too which is another savings in your pocket.

2. Plan ahead

I use my local fliers to plan my next week of meals. Every flier has vegetables and fruits on sale for the week. Those are what I plan my meals around. Some weeks it’s soups and stews, others it will be a pasta casserole and salads. Either way my family will have healthy meals based on what I can afford. Planning ahead also saves time and lessens the mental load I carry because I don’t have to worry about what’s for dinner every day. I use this weekly meal planner to help me keep things organized. It’s handy to have on the fridge so everyone can see the answer to the age-old question…”What’s for dinner?”

3. Eat Seasonally and Local

Different fruits and vegetables are often seasonal which leads to savings. Eating seasonal foods is often the cheaper option, without sacrificing quality. The same goes for eating locally produced food when possible. The less distance the food has to travel can often translate into savings and much higher quality. Root vegetables like carrots, turnips, beets, and potatoes are much cheaper during fall and winter than they are during spring and summer. Winter squash and apples are good go to staples for colder seasons too. I love visiting my local farmers too. They are often happy to answer questions and help you plan for what will be ready next in your area. Getting to know the locals can lead to discounts on produce as well.

4. Learn Food Preservation Techniques

Preserving food may sound like something our grandmothers did, but when you’re trying to save money nothing is better than canning your own food. I can’t even calculate how much canning has saved me over the years. And having my own store of preserved goods on hand has saved my bacon so many times I can’t count. There’s something so satisfying about seeing all those full jars at the end of the day. I’m looking forward to writing about food preserving techniques soon too.

5. Grow Food not Grass

In my beginning years in this house I wanted pretty flower beds and manicured lawns. But as time went on I realized what I really wanted was to nurture things and watch them grow. Sure, flowers are pretty, but vegetable plants fed my family. I got a garden growing. Working in the vegetable patch soon took on a life of its own. I was so proud to be able to walk out there with an empty basket and come in with my arms and baskets laden with the fruits of my labour. Even if you don’t have a lot of space to work with you can still plant food. The pennies you spend on seeds will pay for themselves ten times over when you harvest your first tomato or cucumber. A lot of plants are even happy to grow in pots on a veranda.

6. Cooking from Scratch

Investing time learning how to cook from scratch will save a lot of money in the long run, as well as providing healthy meals for your family. Avoid pre-packaged meals whenever possible. Even though they make meals seem easy, they are often filled with more sodium and preservatives. I like knowing what is in my food too. My kids often tease me about being an “ingredient household” but they aren’t wrong. If we want cookies, we bake. Now that the kids are older, we take turns making meals. It doesn’t matter how basic a recipe is either. Simple is often better. Start with easy, quick meals and soon you’ll be a pro and don’t forget to have fun with it!

7. Cook Once, Eat Twice

Planned leftovers. I try to cook extras of things I can build into new meals to save time and money on the days when things are a little too busy. It takes a little effort to double a pot of potatoes but they’ll turn into amazing home fries on the weekend. Leftover spaghetti sauce can easily be turned into a pot of chili or a yummy pasta casserole with just a step or two and a few ingredients. Leftover rice makes the best fried rice with just a few extra ingredients too. Or you can turn leftover rice into a yummy rice pudding with very little effort. Using up leftovers can save time and money without getting boring.

Keep coming back to learn more tips and tricks and snippets of wisdom from my home to yours. Have a tip? Leave a comment and let me know what works for you!

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases — at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting this site!