Shopping for groceries is difficult enough.
Add in making sure that you order absolutely everything that your family needs until your next shop and doing it while staying within your budget? Now you have a Mission Impossible level task.
If you’ve been struggling to make sure that you have enough to feed your family while being smart with your money, you are not alone. The good news is that there are ways to be a smart shopper.
Plan Your Meals
If you’ve mastered the art of planning, this one's for you. Planning out your meals for the week gives you an idea of what ingredients you need and when. If you know that you’re having a taco night on Tuesday, you know that you need all of the ingredients, so you can easily add the essentials to your handy grocery list.
Meal planning can significantly lower your stress levels. You’ll never have to rack your brain for last-minute ideas again because you’ll know what you’re having for dinner each night. The days of constantly being asked “what’s for dinner?” are over.
Shop on a Full Stomach
Grocery shopping when you’re hungry is the worst thing that you can do for your budget.
When your stomach is rumbling, it’s easy to add almost everything to your cart because it all looks so good. It’s not good for your budget or your storage space. Chances are, the items that you ordered in your haste to tame your hunger will sit in the back of your cupboard collecting dust. Why waste valuable real estate, your precious time, and your hard earned money?
If you are starving while ordering your groceries, having a snack on hand while you’re scrolling could temporarily placate your hunger.
Take Advantage of the Bulk Section
What makes more sense: buying two smaller packages of an item or one larger pack of the same item? Buying one large version of typical household items and grocery essentials is often cheaper than buying multiple small versions. This also allows for the elimination of unnecessary packaging. It’s a win-win for you and the planet.
Use Your Freezer
Those bananas that are moving at NASCAR speed past their prime? Freeze them.
Those four containers’ worth of leftover soup? Freeze them too.
Your freezer and online grocery ordering are a match made in heaven. If you order your meat in bulk and you know that there’s no way that your family will eat that much meat before its best before date, you can easily freeze what you don’t prepare. If you’re unsure of how long meat will last in your freezer, here is a quick guide.
Shop With Northern Shopper
If you’re going to be ordering your groceries online, you want to make sure that you’re getting the best bang for your buck. You want someone to choose your groceries the way that you would, and that is exactly what you get. Not only will your groceries be carefully selected, you will be paying less than what you would in a grocery store. Quality food that makes sticking to your budget easy. What’s not to love?
You shouldn’t have to choose between the meals of your dreams and staying within your budget. While it may be difficult at first, discipline and planning will be your best friends when it comes to feeding your family.