Healthy & Cheap Shopping Tips

I see a lot of posts about shopping healthier and cheaper but they all sort of say the same thing. Plan your weekly menu, shop in season, use coupons, blah, blah, blah....what I'm really hungry for (yeah, I just said that) is some real information for a real family.

I would LOVE to plan every meal in advance and shop at my local farmer's market, only to skip home and whip up a fabulous dinner from scratch every night of the week. Too bad it just ain't gonna happen!

That said, I still have to stay on budget and it IS my goal to feed my family balanced, healthy meals, so here are my tips for everyday ways to accomplish that.


Shop the perimeter of the grocery store – most of what you need is located on the perimeter. It's fresh and it's cheaper. If you do this first your cart will be starting to get full before you hit the aisles and the more expensive and processed foods. As my cart gets fuller, I tend to think more about what I'm putting into it.

Choose healthier, cheaper, more versatile aisle food – We all have to stock some non-perishables, these will provide the basis for many meals:

• Brown Rice
• Whole Grain Pasta
• 100 % Wheat Breads
• Oatmeal
• Canned or Dried Beans
• Canned Tuna
• Marinara in a Jar
• Vegetable Broth
• Honey
• Peanut Butter
• Frozen Veggies
• Frozen Fish Fillets (No, not fried sticks)
• Frozen Chicken Breasts

Make a produce plan – Too bad we can't buy one stalk of celery or 2 tablespoons of green onion! But since we can't, here's what we can do: pulverize that produce in a food processor and sneak it into other things. Think about spaghetti sauce (even jarred), meatloaf, burritos or even into a smashed potato side dish. A lot of leftover veggies taste great in a frittata or omelet.

Eat less meat – Ground turkey can be substituted for ground beef in anything and it's about $1 per pound cheaper....and healthier. Try incorporating several vegetarian recipes each week. Rice, beans and those leftover fresh veggies can go a long way wrapped up in a tortilla with cheese.

Check Out Manager Specials – I used think these were just for food about to spoil. Nope! I've found great deals on food with lots of shelf life. My last score was 1 lb. packages of turkey bacon for 79¢ and they had a freshness date that was over six weeks out. I bought them all and froze them.

Store Brands Don't Always Suck – I have to admit, I can be a store brand snob when it comes to some things. But there are lots of things I do buy store brand to save money and I have never been able to tell the difference. These few things can save a lot of money:

• Spices
• Stocks or Broths
• Turkey Meat (Jennie O is almost double the price)
• Dairy Products
• Frozen Veggies

Shop Online – Personally, I shop SO well in my kitchen. Unfortunately, when I step into the store I seem to forget who I am and marketing strategies take over my mind. It takes a lot of willpower to stick to a list and rarely do I succeed 100%. Online shopping and delivery usually accepts coupons, your first delivery is free AND no impulse buying! Oh yeah, and you can shop in your jammies. :)



Common Grocery Store Marketing Tactics
Did you know that those ridiculous displays in the middle of aisles are placed there on purpose? By creating the 'one lane bridge effect' you have to stop more often and that leads to seeing more stuff to buy.

Oh, and is that display right in front of what you're looking for? Yep, that means the profit margin on the product you want is lower than that of the display so they are making it harder to get.

Grocery chains move things around several times per year. Not a lot, just enough so you can't find that thing you've grabbed dozens of times, right THERE! Uh huh, it's to make you see new items.

How about that music? Studies show that contemporary music with a slower beat makes people hang out longer and buy more. You might want to shop with your iPod plugged in at full blast.

By the way, it's no mistake that Starbucks is the first thing you smell and fresh bread is the second...nose plugs anyone?