The FastDay Forum

I think I am doing something wrong. I eat less but can't seem to save money, it's the opposite in fact and I do need to save money. So my question is, how do you do it ?

Here's what I do, as I hate to have to go in the supermarkets, I do it once a month. I don't know why I can't seem to be able to do them for a few days at a time....

I was thinking to do a big one with all the cleaning stuff, soaps, shampoo, etc but do the food shopping once a week and only take things out of a menu. I don't know if I could stand it, however because I don't know how it would save money

ARRRRRRGGGGG I hate shopping......


Help !

Do you plan your menu for the week?

IME, saving money is different depending on where you live. I save money differently in Greece than I would in the UK but I'll tell you what I do and you can adapt.
1. I only buy fruit, veg and fish that's in season. Tomatoes in winter are expensive and tasteless.
2. I buy my cleaning products once every 4-6 weeks but I do chase whatever is on offer. If I don't need shampoo but the one I use is BOGOF (buy one get one free) then I'll buy it and save money from next month's bill.
3. When it comes to food, I go to the supermarket once a week and buy only what I need. Going once a month for food is, IMO, the worse way to save money. You might buy things you won't need after all or things that will go bad before you eat them.
4. I freeze. If I find a good offer on fresh pasta, ham, cheese, bacon, veggies, meat, I buy more and I freeze them.
5. I go to the source. Meat market for the meat, fruit&veg market for the fruit&veg and so on.
6. Each week, I go to a different supermarket and buy from there what is cheap or good. I buy my cottage cheese from one supermarket and my feta from another and so on.
7. The money I spend at the supermarket is allocated before I go. How much do I have to spend? 30 euros? Than that is it. I have a list and I stick to it. I always allow 5 extra euros for a special offer or something that I forgot to put on my list.
8. If there's something cheaper because it is near the expiry date, I buy it. If I don't need it immediately, I put it in the freezer.
9. Loyalty cards, point cards, coupons, I use them ALL.
10. Last but not least, the LIST. I have 4 lists on my fridge. One for each supermarket/market. This way, I won't forget anything and end up buying it more expensive from the "wrong" place.

[Moogie]

I've definitely saved money by prepping a menu. I shop fortnightly online for the bulk of my stuff, so I'm not tempted by unnecessary treats etc (plus if hubby goes to the shop with me we end up with so much we don't need and so much expense!). I look at the online deals, plan out a 2 week menu with some meals I can batch cook and then freeze portions as well as some one off meals to cook. So each week we end up having some things fresh cooked and some variety from the home made frozen meals. I also pop to the local shop at least once a week where I pick up fresh fruit/veg/milk as needed and any bargains which have been reduced (which often end up in the freezer).

You can save money by batch cooking because you can buy the bigger packs of things or the multibuys. Likewise if you've planned a menu you can use the same ingredients for different meals, for example I do a spinach and ricotta stuffed chicken dish which is lovely but I always have spare spinach, ricotta & cream from that. So, when I do that dish there's always my spinach & ricotta pasta dish a few days before or after, to avoid waste!

I try to minimise waste, if something in the fridge needs to be used, cook it and freeze it in - make a nice mixed veg soup for example or prep some filling for a nice fruit pie/crumble. I'm not 100% waste free but far less waste than previously. Sometimes I'll swap something with my mum too if we've got things which need using up but want something different.

I have a fortnightly budget in mind for the online shop and I'll always go through my basket a couple of times before I checkout, just to make sure there's nothing I don't really need. Or, if there's money to spare I check through the offers for anything which will keep and be good for the next fortnight.

I don't make menus, I wouldn't follow them anyway, but I only buy what I need so there is no waste at all. For example, in my fridge, right now, there's some butter, milk, jam, a 1/4 of a camembert and that's it. (I should go grocery shopping today, that's why)

I always buy fruits and veg in season, the other times it's frozen and raw (for the tomatoes, I buy cans of them, they are excellent and cheap)

Never by prepared food, I cook everything myself

For the online shopping, the problem is I live in a tiny town so we don't have that here at less than 50 km

In our supermarket we have a thingy which scans the products so there's no surprise at the end, I know exactly how much I'll pay and I always pay cash

I zldo have 3 supermakets where I go and 3 lists.

Maybe try to cook more big things and freeze them....

Plan what you will eat. If you don't plan, then there is no list. If there is no list, there is no budget. If there is no budget, there is no saving.

I plan, I just don't make manus. I know exactly what I need concerning meat, vegetables, pasta, yogurt, etc. Even the water is planned ! (here we can't drink water, there are too chemicals in, even to boil it I have to put bottle water in the kettle or it's undrinkable)

I make a list, as well. And there's no waste, at all. I mean, even in my cupboards. And there is a budget (I have the money cash and I can't spend more and never do anyway).

I really don't see what I do wrong or why I don't spend less as I eat less. I don't even buy alcohol like whisky and vodka anymore and it's what cost the most !

Make a full list of what you buy and see how you could make it cheaper?

[carieoates]

Great advice everyone. I plan, batch cook, freeze, make soups. And above all I now go to aldi. Which has nearly halved my food shop bill. Just got back from there and will be making squash and chicken soup from yesterday's roast chicken leftovers and a beef and bacon lardon casserole for the freezer. We also have two chooks who save us about £3 a week in eggs. Yes they cost a bomb to set up but I haven bought a single egg since New Year's Day when they started laying. Went from tesco to sainsburys and now settled into aldi. It's quite, not freezing cold, not brightly lit and reminds me of a lovely holiday in France a couple of years back. But I do go twice a week, spending about 35-55 a time. That's for a family of four with a seventeen year old boy who eats non stop.

Do you know what, I think the food prices have gone up a lot in France Manderley, we are shopping the same way that we have for the past two years but recently it's getting more and more expensive, I keep trying to cut costs but nothing seems to work!

Do you have lidl or aldi near you? That's one way to save, or else I try the market for fruit and veggies just before closing, sometimes you can get good bargains if you are not too fussy about what you get.

Lidl and Carrefour saved my life. Them and Bazaar. Not sure if Bazaar is international or not, they have very cheap cheeses, hams and biccies. Oh, and Italian ice cream.

I tend to shop little and often but only pick up the things on my list. I also started a few years ago doing cash only, it's amazing the amount you save when you hand over cash rather than the plastic debit card.

Good tip about the cash. No way to go off budget if you have a certain amount of cash on your pocket.

Agree with the others 're menu planning and a list. I start in aldi's and get my basics. Sainsbury for the rest.

I recently started withdrawing money once a week. It does control the spending and I can save doing this.