With planning and a little more time in the kitchen, you can stick to your budget without sacrificing taste or nutrition. Here are 10 tips that can help you feed your family for about a hundred bucks a week from shine.com:
1. Plan in Advance
Create the week’s menu, but leave some room for flexibility. The most important step in sticking to a weekly budget is to come up with a plan for every meal, snack, and beverage you’ll need for 7 days. Make sure you account for every item you put in your cart. This will keep you from adding expensive impulse buys that may go to waste.
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2. Steer Clear of Convenience
Check your grocery store’s weekly circular for discounts and coupons. These specials can be a starting point to plan your meals for the week. Foods packaged for convenience, such as individually boxed raisins, juice, and yogurt, are a no-no for those on a tight budget, says nutritionist Elizabeth Somer, RD, author of 10 Habits That Mess Up a Woman’s Diet. Ditto for those 100-calorie packs of cookies. Marinate your own meat instead of buying the premarinated, packaged kind. Swap out those milk or juice boxes in your child’s lunch for a Thermos. These options are all less expensive, and the reduction in packaging is better for the environment.
