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..........Liquids are a killer. Ones bottle of Snapple instead of 2. Tropicana is expensive but I am not giving it up.
Snapple is iced tea. A lipton tea bag costs 3-4 cents. A few drops of fruit juice and a spoonful of sugar and you've got a pint of snapple clone for a dime.
Tropicana orange juice? Have you price compared the frozen orange juice concentrate?
My downfall is that I now live in an apartment and cannot save money by growing some of my own food. Going to try some in containers but my favorite thing to grow is beets. Will have to get a big, deep container of some type for those.
I have a ton of basil growing indoors in one of these:
I have two cheap shop lights hanging over it with just daylight T-8 fluorescent bulbs. I have all the fresh basil I can use and I also give it away.
You could probably grow beets this way, too. It would be plenty deep enough for them. You wouldn't have a huge supply of them, but you could have some for a treat.
I have snow peas on my balcony right now. I'd have a huge patch of them, if I had the space. But, I was able to pick around 6 pea pods for my soup today, which was a fun treat.
But, my basil is a real success in a small space. I have lots of fresh, organic basil on a constant basis from that tote. If you just keep trimming it so it doesn't bolt, it just keeps going!
We have a local grocery who advertises meat specials once a week on their facebook page. Should see if there are stores around you that have a meat special from time to time. This week's special is 2 lb chicken breast, 2 lb angus beef patties, a 2 pack of brats, a pound each of bacon, sausage patties and ground beef, and a 2 lb sirloin tip roast, for $16.99.
All of the local grocery store ads for this week have 99 cent meat sales - pork blade roast and chicken - whole and drumsticks and thighs. I don't eat meat anymore, but I buy it for my dog and I wait for the 99 cent sales and freeze it.
OP, maybe think in terms of allowing yourself a salmon dinner every week. But, you start out with a monthly or weekly budget. Deduct the cost of the salmon dinners, and then see how much you can spend each week. Then, make decisions based on that.
So, you can look forward to your Friday salmon night, and learn some really yummy, healthy but cheap meals to make the rest of the week.
If you like Mexican, it's really good even without meat - and it's really good with just a little meat, if dh insists on meat.
You can make killer Mexican style pork in a slow cooker with a cheap cut of pork. Slow cook it in a crock pot with a packet of seasoning for tacos, if you're not sure of how to spice it.
If you like Greek food, it can be cheap to make, too. Trader Joe's has a delicious falafel mix for really cheap and all you add is water. I actually make it into patties instead of balls for sandwiches. Homemade hummus is super easy and cheap. You can find a lot of recipes online. I actually make mine without oil or tahini and it's still really good, for a low-fat, low-calorie option.
There are lots of great pasta recipes that are really cheap.
Anyway, I am thinking you'll be more successful longer-term, if you can still have a meal every week that you love. And adjust the rest of the week's budget around that. Good luck.
I consider groceries anything I buy at the grocery store. Cleaning supplies are definitely "groceries". I do not see what else they would fall under. They are a household necessity.
I think they would fall under the "cleaning supplies" category.
If you're willing to cook you can really control your budget *and* have nutritional things to eat.
I make big pots of multiple veggie soup (sautee the veggies first using 1 tbsp of oil), then puree at the end to get to a creamy consistency. Healthy, tasty, can add whatever you want to your bowl of soup (beans, rice, pieces of chicken, tofu, whatever). Have a thick slice of whole grain bread with it. Nirvana.
I categorize all cleaning supplies or food storage or trash bags as "household supplies" in my budget. I keep grocery items to mean food, and only food. Anything else gets added up separately in my online budget (mint . com) so I can see what I'm really spending.
I can't imagine eating 20 pounds of sweet potatoes in a month.
Reminds me of when my roommate discovered how cheap liver is, and bought more than one serving. That went to waste.
ROFL that brings back memories. When I was young and first got married my husband was in the Air Force we didn't have base housing yet so we were perpetually broke. We went to a food bank and got a 20 pound bag of lima beans and a case of tuna. We ate virtually nothing but lima beans and tuna for two weeks. Some 50 years later I still get nauseous when I think about lima beans and tuna.
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