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Ever notice how the grocery shopping experience seems specifically designed to entice us to buy more? With all of the family-size packaging, buy-one-get-one sales and better deals for bigger quantities, food shopping can be particularly challenging for small households. Those of us who live alone or with one other person often end up buying and cooking more than necessary. The result? We either throw food away or get tired of eating leftovers for three days straight. How can singles and couples manage their grocery purchases so they don’t buy more than they need? Here are a dozen ways to downsize your food shopping—and your food waste. Have a plan. It’s common advice, but taking the time each week to create a meal plan will help you shop more sensibly. When you’re cooking for one or two, it’s helpful to think of smart ways to reuse key ingredients. For example, tonight’s grilled steak dinner could easily become tomorrow night’s hearty steak salad. What’s more, having a menu plan will keep you from overbuying while you shop. Cook from scratch. Frozen, boxed and prepared foods from the grocery store commonly serve four people or more. If you’re a household of one or two, you end up paying for twice the food you need. Instead of using packaged foods, cook from scratch. You can easily scale down most recipes to serve one or two people (and shop accordingly). Be careful with the coupons. We’re all about saving money on groceries, but coupons typically entice us to purchase more than we need—or, to purchase items we wouldn't normally buy. If you’re going to use coupons for food items, stick to pantry staples that won't go bad. Stock up and store them until you need them. Accept the pricing tradeoff. Larger package sizes are typically a better deal. You’ll spend more per ounce or per unit by buying smaller quantities. However, consider the alternative: purchasing more than you need and throwing away food you tire of or don’t use. Look for half-quantities or smaller package sizes: choose six eggs instead of a dozen, half loaves of bread, half-gallons of milk, and pints of ice cream instead of gallons (probably a good idea anyway). Shop the bulk food section. Many larger groceries and most specialty stores have aisles stocked with bulk bins of items like grains, beans and nuts. The bulk food aisle is the single-shopper’s best friend, because you can scoop out and purchase only what you need. Purchase dry goods like oats, pastas, nuts and spices from the bulk section. Sample specialty items like cookies and cereals by buying just a single serving, to be sure you like the taste, then, buy these in small quantities from the bulk bins rather than in too-big-for-your-household packages. Continued › |
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Nutrition Articles › Healthy HabitsSmart Shopping Tips for Small Households11 Ways to Save Money and Stop Food Waste-- By Bryn Mooth, SparkPeople ContributorSparkPeople advertisers help keep the site free! Learn more
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Bryn Mooth
Bryn Mooth is an independent copywriter and journalist focused on food, wellness and design; she's also a Master Gardener and enthusiastic green thumb. She shares seasonal recipes, kitchen techniques, healthy eating tips and food wisdom on her blog writes4food.com. |
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Member Comments
One on my favorite is roasted veggies. One cooking dish, a good verity of veggies. I use the large cut (example) broc, calif, & carrots (frozen) then mix in what ever I've found in the fresh section of the store. - 11/7/2012 9:00:50 AM
I then shop twice a week for fresh vegetables and fruits and only buy enough for a few days. I want to make sure I eat everything and nothing gets lost in the back of the frig that i will eventually throw out. I plan in my head in what recipes or salads I will be using the fruits and vegetables and even plan what I will be eating for snacks. Having a plan is what's key for me. - 11/7/2012 8:33:53 AM
I am not sure if I am supposed to mention another website on here, but emeals.com has menu's and grocery lists for 1-2 people. Dave Ramsey talks about it on his show all the time. It's $5 per month and they send you a menu, and grocery list, every week.
Just a couple more ideas for those of us who are trying to live better as frugally as possible. ;) - 5/31/2012 2:52:26 PM
There are many tricks and strategies, such as dividing meat into single or two person portions before putting it away or freezing, learning to use food saver boxes and bags and even carefully buying "older" produce so you save the money and have less quantity as long as you know how to check and choose. Mostly, cook large quantities of some things like pasta sauce and stews and freeze some in one and two portion containers so you don't at the same thing day after day. - 5/24/2012 3:23:46 PM
only question I have is your comment about frozen prepared meals. I love them and find a whole section of the freezer section filled with single serving meals. lean Cuisine and Health Choice would be shocked to hear they are not single servings. I love them for potion control and simplicity. I hate to cook so anything that help me there is a plus. - 5/24/2012 2:01:34 PM