SALT LAKE CITY — Every time you walk into the grocery store these days, it seems prices have gone up yet again. Sometimes, healthy foods are the first to be knocked off the list due to cost. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. There are 10 ways to help stretch your grocery budget. Here are the first three.
1. Plan your meals
My No. 1 tip for people when they’re looking to both eat healthy and save money is to meal plan. Even if all you plan are your dinners, you’ll find that it really can make a difference. Knowing what you’ll be eating reduces last-minute trips to the grocery store, time spent looking for something to eat in your refrigerator or pantry, and the cost of eating out. Try to plan meals with common ingredients to help decrease the need to buy different ingredients every week.
2. Make a grocery list — and stick to it
Once you have your meals planned, take inventory of what you already have on hand and make a list of all the ingredients you’ll need for the week. Shopping with a list helps ensure that you get everything you need so you don’t have to make multiple trips to the store throughout the week. Sticking to your list helps decrease impulse buying, which can add up quickly.
3. Cook at home
Eating out night after night is expensive and can really add on to a food budget. Making meals at home from scratch, or semi-scratch, is a tried and true way to help decrease costs. For example, an herb-grilled salmon meal at a restaurant might cost $20 or more, whereas the same meal made at home costs around $7.50 to make using frozen wild-caught salmon from Costco.
For all the tips, read the full story here: KSL News.
Written by BRITTANY POULSON, KSL.com.
Copyright KSL.com.