According to the USDA, food prices have increased by 9.4% over the last year. These prices will continue to increase between 7.0 and 8.0 percent over the next year. Getting dinner on the table every night can be stressful in and of itself. The increased price of food certainly does not help make dinnertime less stressful! Thankfully, we do. Our mission is to make gathering around the family table a cornerstone of daily life. With rising food prices, we are committed to continuing to make dinnertime as easy as possible for our customers. That’s why we are providing you with a complete guide on how to save money on groceries during these trying times.
1. Reduce Food Waste
A study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey found that the average U.S. household wastes 31.9% of the food its members obtain. One way to save money on groceries is to reduce food waste in your household. There are various ways your family can reduce food waste in your home.
- Keep track of the ingredients you already have in your household and use them to prepare family meals.
- Plan your meals before you go grocery shopping to avoid buying ingredients you already have or items that you don’t really need.
- Include quantities in your shopping list to avoid overbuying ingredients for recipes that ultimately go to waste.
- Freeze grocery items that you know won’t be eaten in time.
- Properly store fruits and vegetables for maximum freshness.
- Stock your freezer with prepped meals from Dream Dinners so that your meals for the month and their exact quantities are planned and ready to be eaten.
Creating a habit of reducing food waste can save the average household up to $370 per person annually. A family of five could save up to $1850 a year by being more conscientious about wasting food. If you’re looking to save money on groceries, reducing food waste is a wonderful place to start!
2. Freeze and Store Your Meals
Befriending your freezer is an excellent way to save money on groceries. Freeze all of the food you can to maximize the shelf life of your groceries! Dairy products, meat, poultry, seafood, produce, grains, and baked goods can all be frozen to remain fresh as long as possible. Freezing food prevents items from going bad before you can even use them. Ultimately, when we freeze food, we save ourselves from an unnecessary trip to the grocery store with another hefty bill.
Prep meals in large quantities ahead of time and place what you aren’t immediately eating in the freezer. When ready for your next dinner, take it out to thaw. Place an order with Dream Dinners to prepare pre-made meals in your freezer for dinner every night. Not only will this help your family cope with food shortages, but it will also make feeding the family much more effortless. Instead of cooking a new meal every night, you can easily take one pre-made out of the freezer.
3. Meal Prep and Plan
When you plan your meals ahead of time, you save yourself time, money, and stress. You know precisely what you need when you head to the grocery store. Therefore, you avoid buying unnecessary items and increasing your grocery bill. It’s as equally crucial to prep your meals as it is to plan them. Planning your meals will save you from expensive last-minute trips to the grocery store to grab the ingredients you need to make dinner. Prepping your meals will keep you from eating out last minute on the days you are far too tired to cook. Planning and preparing your meals for the week will help your family save significant money on groceries.
4. Shop with a Plan
Create a solid plan for dinner and stick to it while grocery shopping. Plan exactly what you will buy and in what quantity. Avoid grocery shopping while you are hungry so you don’t get distracted by the eye-level treats on the shelf. Call your local grocery store before heading out to see if any of the items on your list are out of stock. Knowing this ahead of time will help you properly prepare. Research any sales that may be happening. If you find a great deal, plan some meals around it. Shopping with a plan will prevent you from aimlessly shopping and purchasing items you don’t actually need.
5. Compare Prices
Before grocery shopping, weigh out your options. Compare prices on items you have to buy and purchase them at the lowest price. We understand how expensive grocery shopping can be, which is why we are committed to saving customers from the hassles of the grocery store. Purchasing meals from Dream Dinners is more cost-efficient than if you were purchasing the same meals from the grocery store. Combined, the items on our recent June menu are $200 less than if you were to buy those same meals from the store. In addition, you save time, and saving time ultimately will save you money.
6. Utilize Your Leftovers
Leftovers are a wonderful, money-saving thing! If you’re looking for ways to save money on groceries, utilize your leftovers the right way. Do you ever put leftovers in the fridge and wonder if they are still good a few days later? Stick them in the freezer and LABEL them so you know precisely when the leftovers were prepared. Labeling leftovers with their prep date will make it easy to understand how long you have to use them.
Getting creative with your leftovers is another way to save money on groceries. Leftovers tend to get ignored in the fridge because they feel dull, and we’ve already eaten that meal once this week. You can use your leftovers and give yourself a night off from cooking by rebranding them. If you cooked steak for dinner, turn the leftovers into delicious steak sandwiches for lunch. Pack them up for school and work so you don’t spend unnecessary money on-to-go lunch!
7. Go Meatless Once a Week
Participate in Meatless Monday to save money on groceries for your family. Meat prices are rising, and going meatless once a week can save your family around $500 a year. Vow to participate in Meatless Mondays as a family to help save money on groceries in your household. Replace meat with less expensive, in-season produce that you can purchase at a much better price. Not only will you save money, but you will also experience significant health benefits from eating healthier options at dinnertime!
8. Shop Less
The more we grocery shop, the more we spend. Minimize trips to the grocery store to save money for your family. There are plenty of ways to minimize your trips to the grocery store. First, get creative with what you have. Before heading to the store, take inventory of what you already have in your pantry, fridge, and freezer. There is likely a tasty recipe you can make with what you already have! When going to the grocery store, shop with shelf life in mind. Buy products that will last longer so you don’t have to head back to the store often. If you want to avoid the grocery store altogether, place an order with Dream Dinners and have delicious, prepped family meals to stock your freezer.
9. Budget
Break out Excel and budget your family’s monthly spending to save money on groceries. Lay out your finances and create a monthly budget for food. Stick to the budget as best as you can! Having this number in mind will stop you from reckless spending on food. When you have a monthly budget you must adhere to, you will be less likely to splurge on expensive grocery store items and dining out.
10. Fill Your Freezer with Dream Dinners
The best way to save money on groceries for your family is to fill your freezer with Dream Dinners. Dream Dinners does all the shopping, chopping, and prepping, so you can avoid hefty grocery store bills altogether. Not only does Dream Dinners make dinnertime easier, but it also makes it less expensive. Combined, our recent June menu is $203 cheaper than if you were to purchase the same items from the grocery store. To put things into perspective, we’ve made a deep price comparison on our menu items. Below is how much money you save on each dinner when purchased through Dream Dinners June menu rather than at the grocery store.
- Texas Roadhouse Burgers: $21.20
- Al Pastor Pork Tacos: $14.81
- Chicken Egg Roll Bowl: $13.34
- Sonoma Grilled Steaks: $27.19
- Vegetable Con Queso Enchiladas: $13.62
- Turkey Meatballs in a Garlic Butter Sauce over Orzo Pasta: $21.82
- Surf and Turf Yakisoba Noodles: $17.80
- Bacon Mac N’ Three Cheese Bake: $12.50
- Creamy Chicken Florentine Tortellini: $12.91
- Peach Bourbon Chicken with Almond Green Beans: $11.01
- Buffalo Ranch Chicken with Summer Grilled Vegetables: $6.64
- Chicago Style Chicken with Roasted Potato Wedges: $15.58
- Grilled Pesto Chicken Pizza: $7.04
As you can see, ordering from Dream Dinners will save you a lot of money on groceries. In addition, our fully prepped meals will save you hours. Most of these dishes go from fridge to table in under 30 minutes. If you were to prepare them yourself, you would add hours to that time between going to the grocery store and prepping your ingredients. Place your Dream Dinners order to save money on groceries for your family this month and make dinnertime a breeze.
Awesome Deals from Dream Dinners
Start off with the Meal Prep Starter Pack! Save $15 on the Meal Prep Starter Pack which includes 4 medium (or 2 large) family-style dinners (regular price $79) with promo code MACKID15. Then, next month, save $30 on your first full standard order with promo code MACKID.
What are you waiting for? Make your back-to-school meals easier and save money too!
Place your order today, use your coupon code to save either $15 or $30 off the regular price, select Community Pick Up and choose September 10th from 12:30 to 1:00 PM. Then on Saturday, September 10th, pick up your order in Newark. Orders for September must be placed by midnight on September 8th.
Pick up location is at the closed Orchard Supply Hardware store parking lot at 5829 Jarvis Avenue in Newark. 
