It’s no secret that food is expensive.
Across the board, food prices have greatly risen. Whether you are cooking at home or grabbing something out, it seems to be that the bills continue to inch up in price. But food isn’t optional, it’s what keeps you alive and nourished to do what you need to do each day. On top of that, food is something that brings people together and nourishes our bodies, giving us energy to thrive.
The common perception is that ‘healthy eating is more expensive’, but it doesn’t always have to be. In an effort to stay on budget and nourish my body over the years, I’ve found a few key strategies that have helped me. These tips have saved me hundreds on groceries and I want to share them with you so you can eat well without blowing the budget.
Do you have a full pantry, but “nothing to eat”?
You know the feeling when you look into your pantry and all you can think is “we have nothing to eat.”
It’s not that you don’t have food, but you don’t seem to have the right food for what you need. Over years of grocery shopping and picking up random ingredients that you only used one time, the items seem to accumulate. Not only does this add up to a lot of wasted money, but it also clutters up your space, making it more difficult for you to make decisions when it comes to cooking
Moving five times over the last five years, I have made an active effort to keep only what I use and get rid of the rest. Whether eating up what’s in my pantry first, donating what I don’t use, or throwing out expired goods, my pantry stays organized and useful. Not only that, but I try to limit what I am purchasing in the first place so that I don’t waste money on something unnecessary.
If you scroll through my recipe box, you will start to notice key ingredients that I use time and again. While focusing on quality, I like to carefully curate my pantry to have only what I use. When choosing staple ingredients, I focus on flavor, nutrition, and versatility. With intentional shopping, cooking can become simpler, faster, and even more enjoyable.
Don’t miss the pantry audit checklist & staples download at the bottom of this blog, so you can keep your pantry stocked with useful and versatile ingredients.
My top 4 strategies for saving on groceries:
Regularly audit your pantry
Grocery shop with a plan
Preserve ingredients to keep them fresh for longer
Buy primarily whole ingredients over packaged snacks
1) Regularly audit your pantry
As humans, we are great at accumulating clutter. If we don’t actively fight against it, I promise you, it will happen. That clutter can make it more confusing for you to make decisions, whether it is clutter in the pantry, the closet, or somewhere else. Studies have shown that environment plays a key role in decision-making. Let me give you an example in how this plays out:
If your pantry is packed full of chips, cookies, pretzels, brownies, and a bunch of other snack foods, what are you going to do? You will eat them when you are hungry or bored because they are easily accessible.
If your pantry is completely bare and only has a few ingredients, what are you going to do when you are hungry? You will probably decide to order takeout or go grab fast food.
If your pantry and fridge is full of fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds, and meats, what are you going to do when you are hungry? You will probably cook a healthy & easy meal that nourishes your body.
Freeing up the clutter in your pantry is a great way to support your overall health. It will help you to remove the items that are no longer supporting you and your journey to living a healthier lifestyle.
Here’s how I audit my pantry:
Take everything out of your pantry and cupboard - Containers, unopened ingredients, half-opened ingredients, spices, everything must come out! You need to be able to see all you have so you can easily make decisions about what to do next.
Throw out what is expired or stale- For any food that has expired or gone stale, go ahead and get rid of it. This is a sunk cost, and I promise you aren’t going to want to eat it later. Remember, we are nourishing our bodies with quality ingredients.
Donate any foods that no longer align with your goals - If you want to focus on more high-quality, minimal ingredient snacks, get rid of those foods that don’t align with this. Remember, we are cultivating an environment that supports you instead of one that works against you. I will often take the unopened ingredients to a local food pantry or donation center because I don’t want to waste food that someone else might really enjoy.
Reorganize and clean what’s left - Now, it’s more clear what you have and what you will need to shop for when planning your meals. Make it look nice and appealing, so that you will be more drawn to use it in the future. This step will also help you feel more at ease when dinner time rolls around and you are pulling a meal together.
2) Grocery shop with a plan
Now that the pantry is cleaned out and organized, you know what you have at home and can shop more intentionally. Prior to heading to the grocery store, build out a plan to help guide your decision-making. It helps if you set aside a bit of time each week to make a plan.
Time-saving tip: If you don’t want to spend the time or mental energy on choosing recipes or building a plan, I’ve got you! Upgrade to a paid subscription, where you unlock access to the full weekly menu, grocery list, all the recipes, and a prep guide so you can save time and eat healthy.
My grocery planning routine:
Friday: Researching and meal planning
Saturday: Grocery shopping (Grace’s Grocery Guide delivery day with the full meal plan)
Sunday: Key ingredient prep for the week with the 90-minute Sunday Success System
By dedicating just 90 minutes on Sunday to chopping veggies, cooking grains, or marinating protein, I save time and mental energy throughout the week.
During the week: Finalizing the meals in under 15 - 30 minutes
Here’s what I do to plan for a week of meals:
Check my calendar - Prior to planning the actual meals, I always review my calendar to determine how many meals I will need in the week. Some questions to consider: Are you traveling? Do you have dinner at an event? Do you need to bring a meal to a friend? Do you have a packed schedule and need an on-the-go option?
Determine the meals and assign them a day - Looking through cookbooks, Pinterest, and my box of recipes, I build out a week’s worth of meals. Each time, I focus on building a balanced plate to ensure that my husband and I are able to fuel our bodies well. I like to go ahead and plan what day we will eat each meal so that I can prepare appropriately and keep everything fresh.
Create a grocery list - With a week’s worth of meals in the plan, I build out a grocery list separating it into the following categories:
Fruits & Veggies
Protein
Frozen
Packaged Goods
Pantry Staples.
Time-saving tip: I use the Notes app to keep my grocery list handy. Paid Grace & Greens subscribers also get a downloadable grocery list every week for even easier planning.
Shop the pantry - Don’t head to the store yet. Take your grocery list and first shop your pantry to see what you already have. This is one of the best ways to ensure you stay on budget, not wasting extra money on ingredients that you already have at home. Cross the items in your pantry off your list and now you are ready to go.
Shop for groceries - Whether you are an online grocery shopper or head to the store in person, you now have a clear plan in mind. Try to stick to your list, remembering that you made a plan and will have what you need to have a healthy & easy week of meals.
Bonus tip: I love using my Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card which offers bonus points for doing everyday things like grocery shopping and online ordering. If you sign up right now using this link, you can unlock an exclusive offer to get jump-start on getting points.
3) Preserve ingredients to help them last longer
Once you return back home, ensure your food lasts all week by storing it properly.
Here’s what I do to keep food fresh:
Bananas - Once ripe, peel bananas and place them in a large ziplock bag in the freezer for creamy smoothies.
Herbs - Fresh herbs can be placed in a cup or jar with water. Wrap a plastic bag over them and place in the fridge.
Greens - Any greens like lettuce or kale that are not already washed/bagged can be washed and dried prior to storing. Once dry, place in an air-tight container with a paper towel in the fridge.
Potatoes - Potatoes should be placed in a dark area to slow down sprouting prior to eating.
Avocados - I purchase non-ripe avocados, placing them on the counter to ripen. Once ripened, I place them in the fridge until I am ready to enjoy them. (Avoid storing near bananas since they ripen each other faster!)
Bell peppers & cucumbers - Slice them, add to an air-tight container with a paper towel on the bottom and these with last days for easy snacking.
Carrots - Wash and slice them into smaller sticks, then add them to a mason jar with water to keep them extra fresh.
Berries - For fresh berries, wash and dry them prior to placing in an air-tight container with a paper towel in the fridge.
Tomatoes - To maintain flavor, keep tomatoes on the counter until you are ready to enjoy them.
Meat - Keep meat in the fridge for enjoying at the beginning of the week or in the freezer if you won’t eat it until later in the week.
Alternative flour - Gluten-free flours like coconut and almond flour are best stored in the fridge, as recommended on the package.
Sauces & nut butters - To maximize the shelf life of your ingredients, double check the labels for expiration dates and storage instructions.
Maximizing freshness tip: If you are going to use the veggies in the first half of the week, wash, chop, cook, and store.
If you are going to use the veggies in the second half of the week, chop, store, wash, and cook. This ensures that you can maximize the freshness of your food, while saving you time during the busy week.
4) Buy primarily whole ingredients over snacks
Contrary to popular belief, healthy eating can actually be less expensive than following the standard American diet out due to the price to volume ratio of snack foods or the price of take-out today. Not only are snack foods more expensive per serving compared to a healthy meal made from wholesome ingredients, but they also do not provide the nourishment your body needs to thrive. It’s easy to overbuy snacks, but if you focus your grocery list on wholesome ingredients, you can stretch your dollar and maximize your budget for grocery shopping.
Here’s a simple example:
A healthy & easy meal option that could be prepped ahead of time:
A grilled chicken bowl with brown rice, veggies, olive oil and seasoning costs about $3.00 per serving. If you prep this in an entire batch, the cost can decrease even more and you will feel full and energized after consuming a dish like this.
Let’s compare that with a few popular snack options:
A protein bar can cost anywhere from $2.50 - $3.00 per serving, without fully replacing a meal or providing your body with the same amount of nutrients the meal above. You will end up needing to eat more or multiple to feel satisfied.
A bag of chips or a candy bar can cost anywhere from $0.75 - $1.50 per serving, without providing many of the nutrients and feelings of satiety that a meal offers. You will end up needing to eat more or multiple to feel satisfied.
I want to emphasize that I said primarily whole ingredients as opposed to only whole ingredients. There is a place for snacks, especially when you are short on time. Fueling your body means listening intuitively to your body and providing it with the support it needs to feel nourished.
I try to add a few snacks to my grocery list each week in case I am in a pinch and need something nourishing on-the-go. Here are some of my favorite snacks while traveling and here are some of my favorite snacks high in protein. When choosing snack options, I try to focus on brands with high-quality and minimal ingredients.
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be more expensive
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be more expensive, and I hope that my four key strategies help you in having a week of healthy & easy recipes without blowing the budget.
If you regularly audit your pantry, grocery shop with a plan, preserve ingredients to help them stay fresh, and purchase primarily whole ingredients, both your body and your budget will better for it. Whether you want guidance for doing a pantry audit or stocking your pantry with key staples, check out this additional resources:
If you have any specific questions about the process, please feel free to reach out to me. You can also schedule time with me and we can walk through a pantry audit together.
Best,
Grace Barker
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These tips are super helpful! Thank you so much! 😊
I had no idea bananas and avocados ripen each other faster! This post had so many useful tips. I’ve been trying to simplify meal prep, and one of the most challenging things is keeping ingredients fresh. I need to get organized, and I love your whole approach!