We have all been cooking up a storm during this year of 2020. All of us have discovered the chef in ourselves, the baker in ourselves, and let’s be honest, the bartender in ourselves. But one thing that this year of staying at home has not changed for us is the bills coming through for kitchen items. Since we’re all home more often, we are trying to make things at home easily accessible, including the kitchen.
It’s becoming heavy on the pocket with all the (helpful) purchases. In order to help you continue the momentum of being creative in the kitchen as well as save money in the kitchen, we have gathered some tips and tricks that could help you do so.
6 Cook From Scratch
This is a no brainer, but cooking from scratch can really help you save some money in the kitchen. There are many pre-made meals available, or meal kits that have ingredients delivered to your door for a recipe. While these are great for days you are busy or feel like having something different, it’s heavy on the pocket.
The best way to avoid this is by meal prepping. Make meals for the whole week, or at least for 5 days, as you can always cook fresh meals over the weekend. Get the family involved and make it a fun weekend activity for all of you!
5 Sale Items Are Your Best Friends
Lots of items go on sale such as storage jars, cooking utensils, kitchen towels, etc. It’s a good idea to stock up on essentials when they go on sale and store at home, if your space allows you too.
According to Graceful Little Honey Bee, there’s also nothing wrong with stocking up on vegetables that are on sale. You can always chop them up and freeze them to use on a busy day for cooking (from scratch).
4 Plan Your Grocery Trips
The more often you go to the grocery store, the more often you’ll end up buying something even if you don’t need it. It’s the many small items that add up to bigger spending. Plan your grocery trips to be once a week or once in a few days.
You can also opt to order your groceries online (especially during this time). That will make sure you stick to only what you need, and avoid any unhealthy snacks.
3 Freeze Any Leftovers
A great tip from Graceful Little Honey Bee is if you have any food remaining, it’s always a good idea to either leave them as “leftovers” for the next day, or if you’re bored of eating the same food, you can freeze it and have it for another day a few weeks later.
2 Keep Meat For Occasions
This is a tough one for some, so we understand if it’s a deal breaker. However, spending on meat is a huge budget. According to an article by Food52, where they quote some home cooks, one cook, Julie GB says, “Meatless meals save us hundreds if not thousands of dollars each year.” If you are worried about your protein substitutes, you can try eggs, cottage cheese, lentils, tofu, soy beans, and many other substitutions. The options are endless!
1 Meal Plan
Plan yours and your family’s meals for the week, and prep them over the weekend. You can store them in the fridge and eat them when you are supposed to. You can plan meticulously with breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks, or you could plan at least your lunch and dinner.
This helps you avoid those impulsive ordering in sessions, unhealthy snacking, and ensures you use your groceries at maximum capacity. This will also help you gauge what groceries you need weekly and help you avoid buying unnecessary items.
