How much do you spend on groceries?
If we buy a house with a massive mortgage we will have to start budgeting more closely. Right now we are all over the map and don’t really track how much goes where. I always feel a niggling worry in the back of my head like I should be carefully budgeting.
Does anyone else think that economics should be taught early in school? There seems no reason that junior or elementary school people shouldn’t be exposed and not in an annoying horrible math way like – Jonny had 6 apples and spent 60 cents on them and he started out with 50 cents where did that little jerk get the last 10 cents?
Here is my grocery list that I arrived at Berkeley Bowl with last night:
spinach
celery
variety of peppers
cherry tomatoes
olives
avocado
cilantro
red onion
eggplant
asparagus
eggs
bread
milk
3 cans black beans
2 cans kidney beans
capers
diced tomatoes
chicken
beef
smoked salmon
reduced fat sharp cheddar
reduced fat feta
spagetti
I bought all that plus:
chocolate bunnies, lemon curd, strawberries, carrots, olive oil spray, hot dogs
I spent 109.00
and here is my weekly menu:
Tuna salad: tuna, mayo, celery, olives, peppers on a bed of spinach
Bean salad: (175 new american) black beans, celery, peppers, cherry tomatoes, spinach, avocado,lemon juice, olive oil, sharp cheddar reduced fat
veggie frittata: (page 181 new american) 2 eggs, 4 egg whites, oilive oil, red pepper, black beans, sharp cheddar, avocado, cilantro, salsa or cherry tomatoes, red onion,
salmon snack: cream cheese, black pepper, yellow pepper, capers, spinach
beef chili: (183 new american) lean ground beef, chili powder, unsweetened coco powder, cumin, oregano, garlic, onion, kidney beans, salsa, diced tomatoes in juice, sharp cheddar, noodles
eggplant and tuna: (127 new american) eggplant, olive oil spray, red onion,
smoked salmon eggs: eggs, smoked salmon, capers, black pepper, asparagus?
salad: lettuce or spinach, yummy olive dressing, feta
As long as I mostly stick to a list my bill hovers around 100.00. If I branch out and start buying wine or other crap it creeps up to 150.00 and I have in the past,especially when preparing to entertain spent closer to 200.00. Sticking to around 100 seems like a decent amount for 3 people. I could make it less if I bought less meat. Somehow I spent like 17.00 last night on chicken…
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October 9, 2009 at 8:11 pm
we have a supermarket diagonally opposite the corner of our house (well, the loading dock is. which is good for truck watching for paddo; the entrance is only a 3 minute walk from our front door, tho’). the upshot is that we don’t plan our weekly dinners regularly, unless there is something i eaaly want to cook because we can pretty much run across the road for anything we need. budget? I don’t know how.
with ollie rapidly approaching 6 months we’re soon going to b feeding -ulp- 4. and with me going back to work, i can see more convenience dinners coming up (read: pasta and bottled sauce). i’m all for sticking my head in the sand.
having a mortgage in the beginning seems daunting, but then you kind of get used to it, and knowing how much you can afford kind of becomes second nature. because we have a 30-year mortgage, we’d be paying it off when i’m… 65. of course we’ll pay it off sooner (cough cough) but the point is, this is something long-term.
but i’m all for sticking your head in the sand. la la laaaa i’m not listening….
thank f*uck australia is the only dveloped economy not in recession. and i’m in a well-employed business.
October 9, 2009 at 9:18 pm
A hundred bucks for three people a week is not ridiculous ( I could spend that easily just for me) but you could trim it down if you tried. Looks like you plan your menus so that’s good. Clip coupons but only for things you would buy anyway. Buy meat in large packs and freeze in meal-size portions when it’s cheaper in bulk or on sale and add one more meatless meal a week. If you find a good market for dried goods and invest a little time in soaking – dried beans are much cheaper than canned (and you can freeze them once they’re cooked so you can cook a TON of them ahead of time.) Figure out where you’re paying “convenience tax” (washed lettuce, peeled baby carrots, etc) and when it’s worth paying it (boned chicken is cheaper but if you are not patient at removing bones…). Also (and sorry if this is a very annoying piece of advice) reduced fat anything only means you’ll eat more of it to feel full. Especially cheese – true story. Doesn’t reduce your grocery bill and certainly doesn’t reduce your waist. Then the classics – slowcooking cheaper cuts of meat and learning how to make soup from bones and less than perfect produce. Hope that helps!
October 9, 2009 at 9:34 pm
huh, maybe I’ll try that with beans! reduced fat cheese is also super boring and untasty.
October 10, 2009 at 9:38 am
do you have a crockpot? they are great for cooking up lots of things easily and since you have three, you actually have a chance of eating it all in a week (but mine stays good seemingly forever in the fridge, or frozen until i throw it out a year or so later:) it’s especially good for things like black beans, and stews with some meat and lots more non-meat thing. and they’re cheap! get one with a removeable ceramic crock, easier to soak clean at night.hmmm, think i’ll cook up some black beans this weekend: i’m out!
October 10, 2009 at 9:43 am
also (me again) i finally sprang for a foreman grill for 20 bucks at target. I found meat on sale for 99 cents a pound when i bought a flat of thick boneless porkchops for under 3 bucks! i marinated them in mojo in the frig for a day or two and then froze them in individual bags. enough meat for 6 fancy dinners for me, and they’re huge–i should really cut them in half– for under 4 bucks. there’s usually *something* on sale like that and the foreman grills it up in 5 minutes on the countertop.
October 13, 2009 at 1:44 am
as soon as i have more counter space i am buying a crock pot.
October 18, 2010 at 12:41 pm
I have a family of 5, which includes two teenagers, an adult roommate, and my husband and I. I spend anywhere from 150-300 a week on groceries.