WAYS TO SAVE ON GROCERIES THAT NO ONE TALKS ABOUT 🤫

Like so many of you, we've really tried to cut back on food spending lately because the prices just increasing. Here's how I was able to cut back our grocery spending, stick to a grocery budget, and still eat healthy, without obsessing over weekly sales or clipping coupons.

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Hi I'm Kallie Branciforte from But First, Coffee! I'm glad you found my video! I'm the content creator for the blog and YouTube channel But First, Coffee.



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Music by licensed by Epidemic Sound.

[GoblinsAreAGirlsBestFriend]

I just want to say I really appreciate how incredibly considerate you are in your videos - I LOVE that you always say "I know not everyone has time for this" or "I know not everyone is in this or that situation". I appreciate that a lot. I find it really triggering personally when 'lifestyle' YouTubers lose sight of the variety in their audience and you never do, I really feel that you always imagine how many of us may face struggles or challenges different from you, and you approach us with a lot of genuine care and respect.

[MaterDeiMinistries]

1. Meal plan
2. Unit price every item you buy
3. Use 3 different inventories: refrigerator, freezer, and pantry. You will be able to see what you have and what you REALLY need. This also eliminates accidentally buying multiples.
4. Use a grocery list. I split it into two categories: what I need now, and what to buy next time (you are "running low", but still have enough until the next trip to the market).
5. Pay in cash, and leave your cards at home. You cannot spend what you do not have.
6. Do NOT go to the store hungry!
7. Shop the perimeter of the store FIRST. Yes, those are all the perishable items. If you shop the perimeter FIRST, you will not waste time because your food will start to spoil. Also, in the aisles are where you can get bogged down with extra items you might not need.
8. If you see something you like, want to try, or forgot to add to the list, write it down for next time. Putting time and space between writing it down and the actual purchase helps you to discern if you really need it or not.

[carolbabb]

I had a freezer problem (out of sight out of mind) until I started keeping a notebook. Every time something goes in the freezer I date it and add it and the date to the notebook. A page for cheese, a page for vegs, a page for chicken and pork, a page for bits ect. When I meal plan I take the notebook over to the pantry and pull from both what I need to use up and cross off things in the notebook. It was a bit of a challange at first but now its 2nd nature and saves me $ every week and no more freezer burn.

[CheriJ]

With cleaning, your “Tomorrow me will thank tonight me for doing this now” has made a huge impact on me. From this video, the biggest impact for me is “Your spending now will impact your ultimate financial goals.” I’m also loving “Do you want to feel rich or be rich?” Thanks for a great video!

[JRoseE]

No doubt; I definitely spend on average, $30 less when I do online shopping opposed to in store shopping!

[Jessicanijkl]

I have a few tips to add:
- I started seeking out freezer friendly recipes and making double batches of meals. We eat out less and if I can limit the number of different ingredients I have to buy, I save that way.
- I try to find meals that have shared ingredients for the week. Reducing the diversity in the ingredients I buy makes cooking less expensive for me.
- I prevent food waste and save money by dehydrating or freezing foods that are going bad. I had some kale and some cilantro that were going bad last week, so I made kale chips and my own dried cilantro seasoning. You can even dehydrate onions to make your own onion powder. Fruit or bread that starts to go bad go in the freezer. Preventing food waste is good for my budget and good for the planet.

[cltinturkey]

Great tips! To use every bit of fresh foods, I keep two small (DT) rectangular bins in the fridge. When I cut an onion, I put the unused part in a covered glass container and put it in the bin. I do this with peppers, avocado, beans, beets, squash, etc. To stir fry, I pull out the bin and use all the bits left over. Easy and fast, especially for a burrito or savory bean dish. I use the other bin for lettuce, kale, cukes, and carrots. I pull out both bins to make a loaded salad. Keeping bins in the front means I rotate and use everything before it spoils. I also keep fruit on a beautiful dish (like a still life) on the counter to snack on all week.

[lankakaaos]

Greetings from Finland!
I just got to thank you for chancing my life. In beginning of July I did watch one of your videos. I started to keep my kitchen cleaner and also started to deep clean 5-15min per day and I do daily clean up once a week in every room.
My home is not clutter free yet, but here is less clutter and each day daily clean up is easier. Before I talked about apartment I live in and now I’m talking about home.
My goal now is that I have most of clutter away in the end of October. That is doable if I just keep on track and keep cleaning little bit every day.
So thank you for making these videos!

[Elizabeth-]

Excellent content thank you! Tip that worked for me: on a 4x6 card write down what you’ve planned for the week’s meals. After 4 weeks you’ll have a month’s worth of menu plans ready to use again. If you’re stuck getting started just write down what you are actually eating for a week. You have just created a one week menu plan ready for next month!

[suearcher]

Thanks for the cured vs uncured bacon info! I wish I could shop on line, I know I would spend less not roaming around the store. However, I live in a very rural area and no one delivers here. I can do the order on line pick up at store thing, but the only store that will do that near me is the most expensive option. Also, since eating beef rarely I go to a butcher store and maybe pay a bit more it is so good it's very much worth it. Before my husband died if I gave him a list...that is what he came home with. Just one of the gazillion reasons I miss him.

[mariawhiddon]

You’re such a wise young lady Kallie. So many wonderful tips. The one thing that has always kept my spending under control is to meal plan. And as you said, ‘sticking to it as if your life depends on it’! In fact if ever I don’t meal plan, I’m horrified at how quickly my life just falls in a heap! Thanks for all you do. 😊

[riawhetstone]

My husband & I like to, what we call - Pantry Diet, which is when we can spend up to a week getting creative with whatever we have in the pantry and freezer. Having an extra chest freezer in the basement really helps. Fried rice, pizza, & pasta are easy go tos for using up freezer/pantry ingredients 🙃

[NHarts]

Great tips. Our family has gotten a lot smaller very suddenly, but since I've been doing a lot of the shopping lately I've realise that we are still buying the same amount of groceries as were for the past 5 or so years. Gotta adjust the grocery lists going forward.

[MarieMBaird]

These are great tips!! 😊 I have also noticed that stores have started to catch on to the fact that we automatically think that bulk items are less expensive. In the past, the price per ounce for bulk items was always less expensive than that product’s smaller size. I’m realizing now, with online shopping where the item’s price per ounce is more visible and easy to track, that some larger sized products actually have a larger price per ounce than their smaller versions. So I stick to the cheapest price per ounce, even if it means I have to buy a few more of the small items to add up to the quantity of the larger size.

[FionaApplewright]

For like 20yrs I had the constant issue of rancid oils, expired mayo and expired salad dressings in my fridge constantly. I finally clued in that oils and mayo are the base for like 99% of salad dressings and have learned to make them one small batch at a time-- basically enough to get through the rest of the salad ingredients and then I never have leftovers, and I have never since then had bad mayonnaise or olive oil. Plus I have very few items cluttering up my fridge door.

[pturzy]

I went to the Carvivore WOE (way of earting) and my fridge looks so empty. I'm saving soooo much money by not buying what I may or may not eat/use and the waste. I'm never hungry, always satiated and have no cravings. Also healing health problems. So the almost empty looking fridge does not bother me anymore. 😁👍

[adventuresofd-day]

I have a tradition I call “kitchen sink Sunday”….it’s when I make soup with whatever veg is left in the fridge…usually freeze some of it. It’s different every week. No recipe, just wing it.

I also adopted something I started for my 92 year old grandpa. I cook a month of dinner, put them in individual containers all with labels on all sides and reheat instructions. Then on his fridge door I have a bingo sheet with all the meals (one square per container) and a stamper on a string. When he eats a meal, he stamps it on his bingo sheet. Works great and he has a variety of options!

I found that having a list of “what’s in the freezer/fridge/pantry” really helps me cut down on redundant buying and food waste. No more “out of sight, out of mind”.

[kitchensink]

Love your videos, this one has some great tips. I have one for you: to keep cheese from molding, don't touch it with your fingers. Use the plastic wrap it comes in or a piece of Saran wrap to hold the cheese - it will last longer. Also, tip from my mum, jams and anything with vinegar in it won't go bad. And yes, budget and planning...always good advice!

[Sunshine-fyfz]

Ever since online ordering/curbside pickup came on the scene, I haven’t been inside a grocery store (since summer of 2020!) and I LOVE it! I get exactly what I need, I don’t spend money on items that are ‘a special price’ or with a new display to tempt me, and I get to choose the time I’ll pick it up. How convenient is this? My only question is: where was this convenience when I had little ones in car One of the best things to have happened due to covid19 ❤️

[markconger]

Awesome awesome! A full fridge actually is terrible because some stuff is unseen and spoils or doesn’t get used when it could have been.