Grocery Goals

So, in the two years since our daughter was born, I’ve learned I can no longer saunter through the grocery store, buying whatever I’m tasting for at the moment, and then repeating this process 3 to 4 times a week, racking up huge grocery bills and unfortunately wasting lots of food too.

But I didn’t really know what to do instead, until now. I’m sure this simple idea may seem like a no-brainer to many of you, but it was not to me: set a grocery bill goal (i.e. spend less than $85) for each shop and max out the number of meal ingredients you can buy for that amount.

What this means for me practically is taking a quick glance through the  store circular that gets mailed to our house, and matching the sales items with favorite dishes (I have a list of 20 meals I make regularly), then shopping to make those meals.

I’ve really seen results with this. Our grocery bill has decreased by about 1/3 over the past 6 weeks, and I’m feeling just as satisfied in the cooking process, and inspired to weave sale ingredients into meals that can easily accommodate them (like hearty winter greens instead of kale in my kolcannon.) As an added benefit, I’m shopping less often because I’m stocking up 4 meals or so worth of ingredients– so I’m saving time too.

I think the psychology of the goal has a secondary benefit too, I seem to be more interested in coupons, and have been faithful at using my store card which racks up points for free groceries. Before, coupons seemed like they were always for garbage food I didn’t want, but now, I’m finding those one or two coupons that represent items we use regularly (like yogurt, laundry detergent, pasta and sauce) is making a dent.

I’m interested in your comments too! Please share what works for you!