Tips on Saving at the Grocery Store

Dairy:

• Make ends meet. Look for leftover cheese ends (or ask at the deli counter). Most grocery stores sell them at a discount. Use the pieces to make a delicious sauce for broccoli or to liven up your favorite mac and cheese recipe!
• Skip buttermilk. Don’t buy buttermilk if you need only 1 cup. Instead, mix 1 cup milk with 1 tablespoon lemon juice, shake, and you’re all set!

Produce:

• Go big. Found a large bag of vegetables on sale? Grab it, even if it’s more than you need. Use the extras to make soups, stews or chop and freeze in airtight bags.
• Swap colors. Orange and yellow bell peppers are significantly cheaper than their red cousins, and they’re only slightly less sweet. If you’re making a recipe that calls for red bell peppers, save some money and go with a different hue.
• Stay clean. Visit foodnews.org for the updated Clean 15 list of produce with the lowest levels of pesticides. You can save money by buying non-organic versions of those.

Bread:

• Get creative. Add crumbled bread to burgers and meatloaf. You can save money by using less meat, but without skimping on flavor.
• Go stale. Ask for day-old bread at the bakery counter to make your own bread crumbs or croutons, or to treat your family to french toast!
  
• Save on snacks. Pick up inexpensive corn or flour tortillas and turn them into chips. Crisp up the tortillas in the oven and sprinkle on sea salt and chili powder for a delicious, savory treat. Or try brushing them with butter and tossing with cinnamon and sugar before baking for a sweet, crunchy ice cream topping.

Meat:

• Beware of boneless. Skinless, boneless chicken breasts can be high-priced. Try buying bone-in chicken instead; they’re much cheaper.
• Speak up. Found a cut of meat on sale that doesn’t look familiar? Ask the store’s butcher about it. He or she should be able to recommend the best way to prepare it, which means you’ll get a deal and add a recipe to your collection.
• Hit the deli. Don’t buy packaged, pre-sliced cold cuts—you’re paying for convenience. Instead, spend a few extra minutes at the deli counter and have meat sliced. Savings bonus: You can buy as much or as little as you need.

Freezer:

• Sip for less. Ounce for ounce, fruit juice made from frozen concentrate costs less than the bottled variety. You also can use it to replace sweeteners, like sugar or maple syrup, in most baking recipes.
• Catch a bargain. Choose frozen fish instead of fresh—it’s almost always a better deal, and it tastes just as good. (Besides, fresh fish at the grocery store was likely frozen at some point.)
• Snap up organics. Head to the freezer aisle for frozen organic berries and other vegetables. They great and will keep for much longer.