This page is dedicated to those seeking money and time saving tips...I mean real, actual tips, especially for stretching your dollar. Living in New York City is definitely a test of budgeting skills, particularly for families. I have just about reached saturation with the news specials and segments claiming to have great ideas about saving money, only to showcase the brilliant idea of using coupons! Really?! I can save money by using coupons? You don't say!
No, no, these tips are not for those who have not figured out that coupons save money. These are little things you can do in your home, and the little grocery store tricks you can use to keep your pantry fuller, longer. I'm always trying to update and add new tips to this section, and love to hear savvy tips from others!
(these are not in an orderly fashion just yet, I basically just typed up a stream of consciousness compilation of the things I do in my own home...organization soon to come!)
- Buy richer/sharper cheeses when they are the same price as their mild counterparts; you can use less but have greater taste, and get more bang for your buck.
- Re-grind your coffee. The finer the grind, the stronger the brew, so you can use less and stretch your grounds. Also, make less than you think you will drink and it will probably be spot on. How many times do you walk out the door for your day leaving a half-full pot of coffee that will invariable be poured down the drain later? You can always make more coffee if you do run out, but you can’t get those used grounds back that go to waste every day. If you save just one scoop of coffee per day, that is 365 tablespoons a year, which is nearly 23 cups of coffee grounds (coffee sold in the large canisters, which run anywhere from $8-$12 contain 12 cups of grounds, and of course the smaller the container the more you pay per unit price; that’s a savings of at least 2 coffee containers a year with just one less tablespoon! Double the savings with 2 tablespoons a day)
- Opt for nut pieces or chopped varieties versus the whole nut, as the pieces are often cheaper and taste exactly the same; you may also end up using less of the chopped variety in cooking and baking.
- Make your own chicken stock. Make one meal a week using a rotisserie chicken and simmer the carcass covered in water for about 30 minutes; most birds will yield 4-8 cups of stock that can be used to cook rice or used in other recipes calling for stock. Use within 3 days or freeze for later (f you freeze it, make sure you measure it first and label the container so when you go to use it you know how much stock you have). If you are worried about the sodium content, and typically buy low sodium chicken broth, simply dilute the home made stock to make lower sodium broth. Although I of course have no scientific proof, if you've ever looked at the color of low sodium broth versus regular, it is much lighter in color; I imagine the regular broth or stock is simply diluted and marketed as low sodium, so you're paying the same price for diluted broth...make your own!
- Use baby wipes instead of Clorox wipes. They are cheaper and safer for your family; have you ever read the warning label on the back of clorox wipes, or read how many you have to actually use to eliminate salmonella, etc? The heavy duty wipes have their place every now and then for raw meat clean up, but for everyday messes the baby wipes work just as well and are cheaper (bonus: buy the generic brand!)
- When buying produce by the pound, pay close attention to the size vs. weight ratio so you get the most fruit/vegetable for the money. Example: bell peppers can be quite pricey, particularly the colored ones. Pick up several and look at their size, then weigh them to see which pepper will give you the most usable pepper; no need to pay for extra seeds and membrane. Often peppers have baby peppers growing inside them that get tossed out, this process should eliminate those peppers too. Similarly: butternut squash has the most useful “meat” in the long neck portion vs. the bulb, look for squash that have a very small bulb (full of seeds) and a long, thick neck to get the most squash for cooking and avoid throwing away a huge bulb full of seeds.
- When purchasing produce that is a fixed price, of course find the largest, heaviest piece you can (i.e. cantelopes, watermelons, etc are often sold per each, not per pound)
- Make Kale chips instead of buying processed potato chips. They are much better for you and still satisfy that craving for a crisp salty treat. A bunch of kale averages around $1.99 and will make 2-3 baking sheets full of kale chips, vs paying $3-$4 for a half-full bag of greasy potato chips (kale is anecdotally the best food on the planet nutrition wise)
- Drink seltzer water instead of soda; it is cheaper and much better for you. The taste will take some acclimating because it lacks sugar, but it satisfies that fizzy drink craving and is light and crisp with a squeezed lime or lemon. Not ready to make the full switch? Start out trying to water down your soda with seltzer until you end up drinking all seltzer and no soda. An entire liter of seltzer can be as cheap as $.50!
- Re-use oil from frying. Often times a portion of the oil used is still usable. Wait for the leftover oil to cool completely in the pan, then pour it through a small sieve into an appropriate container and refrigerate for another time. I do this with canola oil and peanut oil.
- Dilution strategies! Example: If you normally buy a bottled teriyaki sauce for flavoring stir-fry or other dishes, buy a teriyaki marinade instead and dilute it. You will spend about the same amount of money on the marinade, but marinades are meant to be very strong because they have to penetrate meat, so you can use less of it by diluting with water before using and make it last longer. Similarly, you will pay the same amount for full fat sour cream and reduced fat or fat free…buy the full fat version and “dilute” it with water or skim milk to get twice the sour cream for your money; it is just as tasty. Take a look in your refrigerator for other opportunities to dilute and save.
- In baking, opt for smaller pieces of any add-ins. For example, when making chocolate chip cookies, use the mini morsels instead of the regular sized and you can get the same dispersement (even more!) of chip to batter ratio with using HALF the morsels. At $3 or more a bag, that’s a lot of stretching. This works with nuts really well too. Consider chopping other add ins, such as craisins or raisins, for the same affect using less but getting better dispersement...
- If you are going to have a baby, or have a baby, don't waste your money on the "baby-specific" laundry detergent. What makes a detergent suitable for babies is the exclusion of perfumes and dyes. Many regular detergent brands (like All and Tide) have dye-free, perfume-free detergents for much less than the baby-specifics (like Dreft)...plus you can use them for your own clothes and not have to wash separately, saving water and dryer time by not having to do baby-only loads.
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