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Post by lisae on Feb 9, 2022 22:16:29 GMT
Instead of sun dried tomatoes (at almost $5 a package) I substituted a 99 cent can of fire roasted tomatoes with no noticeable change to the dish. That's a good idea, thanks! I have not really changed our menus. We haven't eaten out since right before Christmas as there is no mask mandate here. We never eat out a lot but have considerably less the entire pandemic. I figure we are saving enough to balance the cost of higher groceries.
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Post by Gem Girl on Feb 9, 2022 22:31:53 GMT
DH does the grocery shopping. He buys what he wants to eat (same things on a regular rotation, or occasionally something that looks good to him at the time), & I cook it. Since eating is his soothing mechanism, he'd cut back on almost anything before food.
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Post by myshelly on Feb 9, 2022 22:37:29 GMT
I wouldn’t really say I’m cooking differently.
I refuse to go to more than one store a week or more than once a week. I don’t watch sales or coupon.
We still make our usual meals.
The changes we have made are - We got a Costco membership again after not feeling like we needed one for 2 years. We find that we keep more food in the house that way, thereby saving money by not getting fast food and takeout all the time. We are more conscious of not wasting things because they are more expensive now. I used to not feel too bad about not eating all the produce before it went bad or not eating all the leftovers, but now we make a much bigger effort to eat what we buy.
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Post by myshelly on Feb 9, 2022 22:46:26 GMT
I haven't really changed the meals that I make, but I am trying to cut down on snacks. I would love ideas on how people ration snacks for kids. My boys go through snacks so quickly and it drives me crazy. I don’t ration snacks, but I do put focus on hydration. For every snack they have, they have to have a full cup of water (we use 30 oz Yeti/Artic/Tervis tumblers). You don’t get another snack or seconds at dinner until you have also finished the water.
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Post by amp on Feb 9, 2022 22:58:00 GMT
Nope. I'm vegan so I never bought meat and dairy. That's one of the benefits of being vegan. Also, when there are product shortages (like the cream cheese shortage in December), that doesn't affect me either, because most people don't eat what I eat. Finally!!
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Post by workingclassdog on Feb 9, 2022 23:00:47 GMT
Not really I guess.... I might second guess when I am shopping... like you, I have stopped buying soda, but that wasn't only because of prices.. we were just drinking it too much. When you get a fancy fridge, you want it too look nice and full especially in the drink area.. haha.. I got over that. If the price is really good I might get some.. just all depends. If we want something in a pinch I'll buy one 2 liter and that will give us the drink we want and be done with it.
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Post by tenacious on Feb 9, 2022 23:08:51 GMT
Yes, I am.
I am stretching meat farther by adding extra vegetables to things to add bulk.
Lots of soups with beans, etc.
Fewer snacks.
Fewer sodas (unless they go on crazy sale)
Less waste-using up what I have in the fridge/freezer.
Less eating out/almost no eating out.
We have always eaten a lot of eggs as a cheap protein.
Rotating in cheap meals like baked potatoes bar or spaghetti.
Large containers of yogurt instead of singles.
I am really starting to become uncomfortable with the rise in price in just about everything. Groceries/meals is where I feel I can make up some of the difference, so, I am up for the challenge.
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Post by leannec on Feb 9, 2022 23:42:58 GMT
I live alone so my grocery bill is not huge unless I go crazy with the brie or imported olive oil and balsamic vinegar and all kinds of fancy things which I rarely do! I only shop at my local grocery store, a high quality frozen food outlet and Costco ... I don't "stock up" very much because there is only me ... I pay whatever the price is for quality veggies, fruit and meat (don't eat a lot of meat) ... it's worth it for me My newest indulgence is a meal service that is all salads ... soooooo good! I order four per week ...
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Post by mnmloveli on Feb 10, 2022 4:31:45 GMT
It’s just my DH and I but we have noticed the prices rising. So far it has not affected our shopping. I do find myself checking the circulars for sales. Also my girlfriend, who has a membership at Costco, have been comparing prices at BJs, where I have a membership.
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Post by chaosisapony on Feb 10, 2022 5:10:31 GMT
Yes. I cook things I know will reheat well so I don't waste any leftovers. Fresh veggies are subbed out for frozen ones a lot. Meat is primarily bought on sale and vacuum sealed and frozen to last as long as possible. I just bought 15 pounds of hamburger on sale for $2.49/pound - that sale goes on a couple of times a year so I stock up when it happens. I eat a ton of eggs in the spring and summer as a coworker has chickens and brings them in to share.
I have also started getting real pizza from a restaurant if I want pizza instead of a cheap frozen one. Because the cheap frozen ones aren't cheap anymore so I might as well get a good pizza.
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mamapeaah
Full Member
Posts: 325
Sept 30, 2021 4:39:02 GMT
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Post by mamapeaah on Feb 10, 2022 13:11:17 GMT
Vegan here so the price of meat doesn't affect me. I haven't notice a rise in produce (yet) but I also started buying a lot of it from costco.
I drink a lot of sparkling water but it is always on sale. I might actually switch to tea and see how it goes.
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Post by hmp on Feb 10, 2022 14:00:31 GMT
I never really paid attention to prices in the past. Since the start of covid I’m now meal planning for the full week. Also paying attention to what is in the freezer & using that up. I’ve started cooking extra & freezing leftovers so I’m less tempted to eat out. I find I eat a lot less treats when they’re homemade. I did start baking a lot more during covid. I tend to make a lot of stews & hearty soups in the winter. Not sure what I’ll transition to as the weather warms up. I have been growing most of my own veggies & some fruits for the past five years, but I don’t think that’s saving me much money. The first 2 years it felt like a money pit. It’s much better now, so experience pays off. (I also have a much different relationship with the rabbits in my yard).
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janeliz
Drama Llama
I'm the Wiz and nobody beats me.
Posts: 5,632
Jun 26, 2014 14:35:07 GMT
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Post by janeliz on Feb 10, 2022 17:12:18 GMT
Not really. I do pay attention to sales when I’m shopping via Instacart, but I generally buy what we like. Most of our dinners are meat-free or plant-based, and I haven’t found that to be unaffordable.
The world feels like a garbage fire these days, so if I need a pint of Haagen-Dazs to get me through then I’ll pay what I have to pay.
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Elsabelle
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,604
Jun 26, 2014 2:04:55 GMT
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Post by Elsabelle on Feb 10, 2022 17:39:49 GMT
I haven't really changed the meals that I make, but I am trying to cut down on snacks. I would love ideas on how people ration snacks for kids. My boys go through snacks so quickly and it drives me crazy. I just saw something recently about a mom planning snacks. She has a bin in the fridge for each kid with their snacks for the day. Once they're gone they're gone. Hopefully that would help them eat more at meal time.
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Post by Linda on Feb 10, 2022 19:57:43 GMT
I haven't really changed the meals that I make, but I am trying to cut down on snacks. I would love ideas on how people ration snacks for kids. My boys go through snacks so quickly and it drives me crazy. I just saw something recently about a mom planning snacks. She has a bin in the fridge for each kid with their snacks for the day. Once they're gone they're gone. Hopefully that would help them eat more at meal time. I haven't done that but I buy snacks ONCE a week (and in reasonable, not excessive quantities). When they are gone, they're gone. I shop on Wed...if snacks are gone on Thursday? it'll be a long, snack-free week. I do keep plenty of string cheese, cheese cubes, raw veggies, yoghurt, nuts, and fruit on hand...my girls are pickier eaters so I've always encouraged them to snack on foods that fill in the blanks from the meals they refuse to eat/pick at. The junk food snacks tend to be more limited.
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Post by emelle64 on Feb 10, 2022 22:48:03 GMT
My newest indulgence is a meal service that is all salads ... soooooo good! I order four per week ... This sounds like something that might help me get through my busy tax season. Do you mind sharing the name of the service? Thanks Emelle
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Post by leannec on Feb 10, 2022 23:53:51 GMT
My newest indulgence is a meal service that is all salads ... soooooo good! I order four per week ... This sounds like something that might help me get through my busy tax season. Do you mind sharing the name of the service? Thanks Emelle I'm in Canada so this will probably not be helpful! The company is called Inspired Go ... I love it!
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Post by lucyg on Feb 11, 2022 3:40:35 GMT
Not really. I was already shopping the weekly sales and/or stocking up at Costco. I don’t like to waste meat (some-living-creature-gave-up-his-life-for-my-dinner) but I don’t worry so much about produce, bread, etc. Nothing much has changed. But it does cost more for sure. I tend to cook big pots of things that will last several days (soup, stew, spaghetti, casseroles) rather than cooking something new every night. We like leftovers, or sometimes I package things up to freeze or share. I rarely pick up coffee or fast food. We’ve actually been doing more restaurant meals (mostly takeout) during COVID than before, but still not all that often. But if money did get tight, I’d cut back a bit on the meat in my big pots of things, and also “unnecessary” items like chips, ice cream, etc. before I’d give up real butter. And the amount of take out would suffer, too.
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Post by emelle64 on Feb 11, 2022 3:51:59 GMT
This sounds like something that might help me get through my busy tax season. Do you mind sharing the name of the service? Thanks Emelle I'm in Canada so this will probably not be helpful! The company is called Inspired Go ... I love it! Actually I’m in Canada too but they don’t deliver in Ontario.
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Post by leannec on Feb 11, 2022 10:33:09 GMT
Actually I’m in Canada too but they don’t deliver in Ontario. Well, that sucks! Hopefully the business will expand and you will be able to give it a try!
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Post by simplyparticular on Feb 11, 2022 11:32:21 GMT
We already shop pretty tight - once a week at ALDI and then fill in the gaps at Wegmans, so there isn’t much we can do to reduce. ESP since 3 of us are on limited-dairy diets.
Remote work has made me more aggressive about using leftovers than ever before, so we’re getting decent mileage out of our food.
One thing I have noticed since the fall - expiration dates and spoilage are happening a lot faster on our go-to products. So the supply chain issues are delaying items getting on the shelf.
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Deleted
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Apr 28, 2024 13:41:19 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 11, 2022 14:29:28 GMT
The only thing that's different is that we're cooking for two instead of three or four. We're making more meals of what we want vs what they like which means less meat and frozen stuff, more veggies and fresh stuff.
Our bill is the same for the most part but that's because DH is buying the better bourbon, I'm getting better wine and paying more for better hair products. So while we're not buying as much food and making different meals, it's not making a difference in our budget because we shifted it over to other stuff.
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Post by tc on Feb 11, 2022 16:49:05 GMT
I usually have a 7 week rotating meal schedule. But in 2022 so far I've been forgoing that and we basically have the same meal plan each week of the "cheap" meals from that 7 week plan. Spaghetti, soup and sandwhich, tacos, baked potatos with chili, along with a couple of others. I'm expecting the complaing to come any day now in the form of, "Didn't we just eat this last week?" But until I figure out something different with the budget to even things out, this is what I'm choosing.
Along the same lines, I treated myself to lunch out on Monday. The place I got it from is in the first floor of our office building. I choose one of the small salads, a fountain drink, and a small cup of soup. It cost me $19. yeah, done with that. Back to leftovers daily.
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Post by Spongemom Scrappants on Feb 11, 2022 23:02:24 GMT
I have noticed increases, but haven't really changed anything in response to them yet. Cooking is one of my greatest pleasures and is a creative outlet for me. I want good quality ingredients and like to use some not-as-common foods so there's a price to pay for that. If I did need to cut back, I suppose I could... but I sure don't want to.
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pancakes
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,993
Feb 4, 2015 6:49:53 GMT
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Post by pancakes on Feb 12, 2022 5:31:16 GMT
We haven’t made changes, but I also haven’t noticed significant increases. I’m sure they’re out there, but I couldn’t tell you what things cost pre-pandemic, I won’t lie.
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Post by cadoodlebug on Feb 12, 2022 5:35:43 GMT
We're eating pretty much the same except fewer steaks and no crab ~ it's up to $13.99 a lb. I will buy salmon at $13.99 because there is no waste but not as often as before.
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Post by teacherlisa on Feb 12, 2022 22:12:00 GMT
I am a single person and normally am shopping/cooking for myself. I do meal plan and eat out rarely. I would say the only difference for me is that I am really trying to make sure i reduce any waste.
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Post by dewryce on Feb 13, 2022 3:26:08 GMT
It’s just the two of us and we meal planned so didn’t really have waste before, and once we got our extra freezer really started paying attention to meat sales and stocking up when that happened. Never had leftovers, unless we purposefully made extra to freeze, so our portion sizes were already in hand.
But I did stop getting the flowers so frequently for a little pick-me up. And then I started paying attention to cost of produce, whereas before we planned around what sounded good. And while we still buy quality meat, we treat ourselves to things like scallops, steaks, sea bass, etc. less frequently. Or some more ‘exotic’ item from produce we had never tried before.
And for the first time we are going to try and substitute a lower quality meat on Monday. It’s a Cajun dish with a creamy shrimp sauce, and I thought we might not be able to tell the difference as much. So we are having one great filet, and one frozen sirloin. Both prime, but we always used to buy the cuts we were eating as steak fresh. Anyway, we’ll each eat half and see if it makes the price difference worth it for us.
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rickmer
Pearl Clutcher
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Jul 1, 2014 20:20:18 GMT
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Post by rickmer on Feb 13, 2022 14:06:19 GMT
i have been belligerently refusing to acknowledge my grocery bills going up. marching along my merry way, doing what i have always done. i will say i have always bought on sale and stocked up (butter, cheese, canned goods and stuff i can freeze) but won't switch brands for things i actually prefer if something else is cheaper.
however, i just booked a trip for my boys and i to visit their sister who is studying in spain for 6 months. it was more than i was expecting(!).
so now i am in zero spend for the next month. i am eating out of my freezer/pantry supplies, using points and gift cards i have collected and rarely spend.
i cleaned my fridge out yesterday and was shocked and embarrassed at how much food i threw away (plus, how long some of it had been there, hidden in the back). i think it will be a good re-set for me for moving forward. we are actually eating good, if not better, meals. who knew??
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ellen
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Jun 30, 2014 12:52:45 GMT
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Post by ellen on Feb 13, 2022 14:59:44 GMT
For the most part we aren't cooking differently. Recently we decided to run down the stash of food in our freezer and that made for about three weeks of only having to pick up basics. I have been using Aldi more. The closest Aldi is about 30 minutes away, so i stock up when I go there.
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