10 Clever Tips to Save Money on Groceries

10 Clever Tips to Save Money on Groceries

In today’s video, I’ll show you 10 clever tips to save money on groceries. Some of these tips may surprise you, but all give you the opportunity to stretch your food budget by spending less to make meals for you and your family.

You Can See the Rising Grocery Prices

You don’t need anyone to tell you that grocery prices are rising and not just by a little amount. Your own experience in the aisles of your local supermarket shows you the foods you’re used to buying are dramatically more expensive than just a year ago.

• Note: If you want an official statement on how much grocery prices have gone up in the United States and where they are heading, you can consult the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Price Index. As you’ll learn, food prices have increased 10.4% on average from June 2021 to June 2022.

Many factors influence the price of our groceries, including supply and demand, world instability, the cost of gasoline, and more. Unfortunately, most, if not all of these factors, are out of our control, so we have to focus on what we can control.

We can control what we choose to buy and we can also control when we choose to buy what we need. In my comprehensive video, I’ll talk about ways you can save on food and stretch your budget. I’ll talk about everything from how to buy in bulk to what days are the best to shop from your local grocery store.

Please don’t feel like inflation and rising food prices have you at their mercy. With these tips, you’ll be empowered to make your own decisions at the supermarket, shop within your budget, and be able to checkout with more groceries than you thought possible.

Battling Inflation to Save Money on Groceries

There’s more than one way to battle inflation, and in the following videos, I show you how to inflation-proof your pantry and set up multiple streams of food that you can rely upon.

In my How to Fight Rising Grocery Prices video, I provide you with a free “10 Steps to Inflation Proof Your Four Corners Pantry” checklist that you can download and print out. The checklist includes questions to help you think about how each list item applies to your own life and how you spend money on groceries.

• Tip: After you complete your checklist, be sure to save it in your Kitchen Journal. Your journal is an excellent place to store your recipes, grocery receipts, and other kitchen printouts. You can also use your journal like a diary to help you understand which factors, like time and temperature, led you to a successful ferment or sourdough rise.

In my Multiple Streams of Food video, I talk about how you should set up different streams of food, similar to how you may have different streams of income for your household. This approach will help you weather problems if supply chain troubles, devastating storms, sky-high prices, or other difficulties interrupt some of your food streams.

Food Storage Options

For the most part, buying a product in bulk is cheaper than buying smaller portions. And for those opportunities when you can save money with a bulk purchase, especially by stocking up during a sale, you’ll want to make sure you can store your food for the long term. In the following video, I’ll show you the Best Food Storage Supplies for your Prepper Pantry.

And if you get a windfall of cheap vegetables, think about canning or fermenting them for long-term storage. For example, think of making and canning crisp green beans or no sugar jam from your bounty of green beans or strawberries. Also, if you have a delightful assortment of vegetables, try making Fermented Giardiniera so you can enjoy them long after their fresh counterparts may have expired.

When Is Buying Bulk Not Always the Cheaper Option?

Buying in bulk is oftentimes cheaper than buying smaller or individual portions, but that’s not always the case. You need to calculate the cost per item to see if it is truly cheaper in bulk.

For example, if you can get a package of six cans of 10-ounce (oz) chicken for $20.58 or one of those cans for $3.42, you’re actually paying slightly more for the convenience of having the six cans wrapped together because:

• Bulk price per can = $20.58 / 6 = $3.43
• Single can price = $3.42

If you’re looking at the per ounce price, you get:

• Bulk price per can = $20.58 / (6 cans * 10 oz) = $0.343 / oz
• Single can price = $3.42 / 10 oz = $0.342 / oz

If you compare different brands of canned chicken, you’ll want to make the per ounce price comparison because the size of the cans may be different between the brands.

This example only shows (1) a penny difference between the bulk and non-bulk price for a single can or (2) a six-cent difference if you buy six individual cans, instead of the prewrapped package of six cans. You could select either choice in good conscience. You could say that every penny counts and get the six individual cans, or you could prefer the convenience of handling a single package for storage in your Prepper Pantry for an extra few cents.

Not all bulk and smaller or individual item price differences will be that close. When you do the calculations, you’ll find larger cost comparisons that will make it immediately clear which is the better bargain.

• Note: If you want a shocking illustration of how much canned chicken has gone up, when I wrote about How to Stock Your Prepper Pantry for $5 a Week two years ago, a package of six cans of 10 oz chicken was $7.99. Now, the same package of six cans of chicken is $20.58. That’s over a 250% increase!

Save Money by Making More Homemade

Packaged products from your grocery store provide you with convenience, but often at a significantly higher cost than when you can make the same foods homemade.

To make homemade foods, you just need the recipe ingredients and time. You can often get the ingredients inexpensively. As to the time, think of the time you spend making your food homemade as an investment in yourself and your family. You’re gaining skills that will last you a lifetime.

The first time you make something homemade, such as a no knead sandwich bread, it may take you a little while as you familiarize yourself with the ingredients, techniques, and kitchen equipment used. But the next time you make the bread, it’ll go much faster since you’ll have your experience to draw upon.

In addition to being less expensive, your homemade foods will also be healthier, since you control the ingredients. You won’t need (or want to) add those ingredients that we read on packaged foods but can’t pronounce.

In addition to homemade sandwich bread, try making quick pickles you can store in your refrigerator and 5 healthy make ahead mixes you can store in your working or extended pantry (also known as your Prepper Pantry).

Try Different Foods to Save Money

When the prices of foods you usually enjoy have skyrocketed, you’ll need to cut back on those familiar foods and turn to new foods that may be much less expensive or on sale. For example, canned sardines are a food you may not have tried before, but you may be attracted to buy a few of them because of their cheaper price.

But what should you do with your sardines? I have a sardines recipe to help you make this new food tasty for your palate. Viewers have told me they’ve never had sardines before, but with this delicious way to prepare them, they are now big fans of this inexpensive fish. You’ll love them too, and so will your grocery budget!

And beef liver? If you’re older, you may have grown up with liver and onions, but this nutritious dish is not as common today. If you have a chance to buy inexpensive beef liver, I’ll show you how to cook beef liver in a way that kids of all ages will enjoy. Trying new foods helps expand your palate with additional nutritious foods that are easy on your grocery budget.

Grind Your Own Flour with the Mockmill

If you bought a lot of whole grains because of an unbeatable sale price and a desire to stock them for the long term in your Prepper Pantry, you’ll need a way to turn your grain into flour. There are different manual and electric grain mills that you can choose from.

When it comes to electric grain mills, after I did A LOT of research, I decided to buy a Mockmill. And am I so happy I did! The Mockmill is a very affordable but beautifully crafted German-made mill that stone grinds grain with settings ranging from 1 to 10—fine to coarse ground grain.

And I have great news! The folks at Mockmill are very kind to offer my viewers and readers a special one-time discount to help you save money on the grain mills that they sell.

• Use my affiliate link for a special one-time 5% discount on Mockmill Stone Grain Mill products, including Ancient Grains, like Einkorn, Emmer, and Spelt. (The discount will appear when you checkout.)

You can see me unbox and try out the Mockmill 100 Grain mill in the following video.

Masontops Mason Jar Fermentation Kit Discount Coupon

Although you don’t need any special equipment to start making ferments, the Masontops kit can help you simplify the process and enable you to create your ferment successfully. In my Masontops unboxing video, I show you my Masontops Complete Mason Jar Fermentation Kit and go over everything the kit includes.

• Use promo code MARYSNST for a one-time 15% off Masontops and Breadsmart products on Amazon.com. (This is not a sponsored post. Masontops provided me with a special discount code for my viewers. I like their products, and I think you will too.)

Download Your Free 36-Page Pantry List

For an extensive list of the traditional foods you can make and purchase to stock your pantry, be sure to download my free 36-page Traditional Foods Pantry List. This comprehensive eBook is full of links to recipe videos, helpful articles, and more!

Kitchen Academy Videos

Are you looking for more traditional foods videos? If so, I invite you to join the Traditional Foods Kitchen Academy. Members of this optional paid YouTube community get access to exclusive videos, live streams, and other members-only perks. Plus, your YouTube comments include a special members-only badge.

In the following members-only video, I talk about Ten Staples for the Traditional Foods Kitchen.

Stay in Touch with Mary’s Nest

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I look forward to having you join me in my Texas Hill Country Kitchen!

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Favorite Kitchen Supplies

• Favorite Aprons
• Spice Grinder
• Countertop Burner (On my kitchen island in many recipe videos.)
• Handheld Vacuum Sealing System
• Vacuum Lids
• Whisk
• Silica Gel Packets (Helps keep moisture from building up in your mix)
• Cast Iron Dutch Oven
• 8-Quart Slow-Cooker
• Fat Separator (Clever kitchen device to help you decant bone broth)
• Flour Sack Towels
• pH Strips (Helps you check on the acidity of your vinegar)
• Microgreens Seed Sprouter
• Lid Lock Storage Containers

Favorite Prepper Pantry Supplies

• Wireless Fridge and Freezer Exterior Thermometer
• Life Straw
• Water Disinfection Tablets
• Water BOB Tub Liner
• Cast Iron Trivet
• Tea Lights
• Glass Kettle
• Manual Can Opener
• Battery Powered Can Opener
• Long Lasting Ice Packs
• Igloo Cooler
• YETI Cooler
• Electric Cooler
• Jackery Solar Power Station
• Jackery Portable Solar Panels
• 10 Gauge Power Cord
• Kill A Watt EZ
• Hand Crank Flashlight
• High Powered Flashlight
• Hand Crank Emergency Radio

More Kitchen Supplies with Discount Codes

• Mockmill Grain Mill (for making homemade flour)

Learn more about Mockmill electric grain mills for making fresh flour and their Flake Lover's Flaker that flakes whole grain in minutes.

• Masontops Fermentation Kit

Use promo code MARYSNST for a one-time 15% off Masontops and Breadsmart products on Amazon.com.

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• Visit Mary’s Nest Amazon Shop
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