Currently my household is running at a deficit and I do not think there is anything in the stimulus bill with my name on it, so I have been trying to think of ways to cut my expenses. The first thing I did was change my cable package. I all ready have a programmable thermostat and compact fluorescent light bulbs throughout the house. My wife and I have not been out to eat in months or done anything for entertainment. I just could not think of many other expenses to cut.
I kept thinking and finally it hit me, I stopped using my Food Saver. The Food Saver allows you to buy in large quantities and freeze food for a very long time without worrying about freezer burn. I looked in my freezer and it was almost empty. I made two lists one for my local supermarket and one for Sam’s Club. I checked out the prices at my local supermarket for items like ground beef and chicken to do some comparison shopping. One pound of ground beef at the supermarket was over $4 a pound. A package of chicken breast ranged from 8-9 dollars (I forgot to look at the weight). One pound of frozen peas, which I bought, was $2.50.
I got 6 lbs of ground beef at Sam’s Club for under $11.00. I got what would be the equivalent to 4-5 packages of chicken breast for $23.00. The same brand of frozen peas that I paid $2.50 a pound for was 5 lbs for about $5.30.
When I got home I repackaged everything with the food saver into one pound packages. My family consumes about 1 lb of meat at dinner. Ok, I eat most of it and my wife and kids eat some. By buying some of my food at Sam’s Club and using the Food Saver I am getting five meals for the price of one. That can add up to big savings over the course of a year.
The other thing I stop dong was buying my produce from the produce store that sell for example 3 heads of lettuce for $1.50 versus the supermarket that was $1.99 a head. Often when I buy produce from one these stores much of it goes to the compost pile. So I am going to ask my neighbors if they want to split the bill and the produce. This should save us even more money and I won’t feel guilty for wasting food.
I know many of you may all ready be doing the above, but I figure if I forgot about the Food Saver in the cabinet maybe others did to. Now if I can only start using the bread and pasta maker.
Share your suggesting on cutting expenses.
I kept thinking and finally it hit me, I stopped using my Food Saver. The Food Saver allows you to buy in large quantities and freeze food for a very long time without worrying about freezer burn. I looked in my freezer and it was almost empty. I made two lists one for my local supermarket and one for Sam’s Club. I checked out the prices at my local supermarket for items like ground beef and chicken to do some comparison shopping. One pound of ground beef at the supermarket was over $4 a pound. A package of chicken breast ranged from 8-9 dollars (I forgot to look at the weight). One pound of frozen peas, which I bought, was $2.50.
I got 6 lbs of ground beef at Sam’s Club for under $11.00. I got what would be the equivalent to 4-5 packages of chicken breast for $23.00. The same brand of frozen peas that I paid $2.50 a pound for was 5 lbs for about $5.30.
When I got home I repackaged everything with the food saver into one pound packages. My family consumes about 1 lb of meat at dinner. Ok, I eat most of it and my wife and kids eat some. By buying some of my food at Sam’s Club and using the Food Saver I am getting five meals for the price of one. That can add up to big savings over the course of a year.
The other thing I stop dong was buying my produce from the produce store that sell for example 3 heads of lettuce for $1.50 versus the supermarket that was $1.99 a head. Often when I buy produce from one these stores much of it goes to the compost pile. So I am going to ask my neighbors if they want to split the bill and the produce. This should save us even more money and I won’t feel guilty for wasting food.
I know many of you may all ready be doing the above, but I figure if I forgot about the Food Saver in the cabinet maybe others did to. Now if I can only start using the bread and pasta maker.
Share your suggesting on cutting expenses.
