How to save on products and at the same time to strengthen health

If you want to learn how to save your family moneyon products, then you need to approach the solution of such a difficult task wisely. Or rather, with clear and specific plans that you, as a housewife, will have to make not only before each visit to the market or supermarket, but also thinking about what your family members will eat during the week. It is planning that will help you learn to spend less, but buy more. There is no other way to save, because you do not want to put your family on a diet, do you? Therefore, there is only one way out - a rational approach to grocery shopping.

Ten tips for saving on food without harm to the stomach

The most interesting thing is that you willpleasantly surprised how varied, tasty and, most importantly, healthy your family's new diet will be, despite the savings, if you use the tips below and embark on the path of smart savings on food. Moreover, there is nothing particularly complicated or difficult to implement in this process - you will just have to reconsider your habits and establish new rules by which your family will now shop for food and eat. And, of course, you should not be lazy and cook for yourself. So, here they are, 10 tips on how to save on food with benefits for your wallet and stomach:

Making a menu and grocery list should becomeyour habit Before heading to the supermarket to buy goods for the coming week, think about what you plan to cook. Make a rough menu for the next 7-10 days. This will make your task easier by planning a list of necessary food products for a trip to the supermarket or market. After all, if you know in advance what you will feed your family, there is a chance to save a certain amount of money on hasty purchases during the week. Perhaps, at first, this approach to buying products will seem too burdensome, but if you do not retreat, then in the near future you will be able to appreciate its undoubted advantages. Having made a shopping list, do not take a credit card with you - give preference to cash. And try to make sure that the amount in your wallet only slightly exceeds the approximate total cost of the purchased products. This method will allow you to learn to buy only what is listed, and not put in the cart various useless goodies, which you can not only do without, but also do it with health benefits. Some particularly thrifty people collect receipts from grocery stores and analyze their monthly purchases. This option cannot be recommended as a universal and permanent way to save, but in the first month of life according to the plan, you can use it to assess which products lead to the greatest expenses. This will not only help reduce expenses, but also show the shortcomings of the diet. Perhaps your family eats a lot of pasta and practically does not eat porridge. Or you buy little fish, eating only meat dishes. In any case, food analysis will be useful.

Buy groceries on a full stomach BeforeWhen going to the market or supermarket, be sure to eat something. After all, a hungry shopper is often ready to put half of the assortment in his cart, and there is no time for a list. And in the end, having assessed the purchases and counted the remaining money, you can come to the disappointing conclusion that you did not buy anything useful, although you spent a lot. Therefore, do not go to the store hungry and do not turn grocery shopping into weekend entertainment. For those who want to learn how to save money, you should reduce the time spent in the supermarket to 20-30 minutes. Believe me, this supply will allow you to buy everything you need on the list and will not leave the opportunity for the temptation to buy something besides what was planned. If in the store itself you get the idea to change the ready-made menu in favor of another dish, do not do it - it is better to postpone such a decision until next week. Another important point is not to include children in the shopping process. It is better to leave them at home with one of the adults. After all, it is sometimes very difficult for parents to refuse their beloved child another chocolate bar, candy, cookies, and so on. Moreover, it is rare that a child is able to limit himself to just one thing, because the supermarket is full of temptations at every step. And advertising, which modern children are well versed in, is by no means an assistant in saving money.

Use discount coupons and sometimesrefuse shopping carts How often do we find bright brochures with a range of all kinds of products offered by large supermarkets in our mailboxes and immediately throw them in the trash. For those who want to learn how to save on food, this is not waste paper, but a guide to action. You need to carefully study the products and prices for them in these brochures, choose the most advantageous offers and cut out a discount coupon. Now you can not only buy what you need, but also do it with financial benefit for yourself. It happens that the products bought on the weekend are not enough for the whole week. And there is nothing left to do but go to the store again. But now you do not need to buy a lot of things - often only such products as milk, butter, bread, sour cream run out. And it is in this case that you only take a shopping basket, because much will not fit in it. Such an act will allow you to avoid the temptation to buy something else in addition to the necessary set.

Don't buy washed or already peeled vegetables.Prefer whole chicken to ready-made pieces. And don't buy tenderloin for dumplings! Of course, any housewife knows how much time it takes to pre-clean and chop vegetables or disassemble poultry before preparing any dish. However, by saving time and buying all this ready-made, we spend extra money. After all, the manufacturer took care of itself by significantly increasing the price of such products. And no matter how attractive washed carrots or potatoes may seem to you, don't buy them. You shouldn't do this also because in this form, vegetables are stored much worse and spoil faster. As for meat products, buying a whole chicken will ultimately be more profitable than several cut parts. And although you will have to tinker with cutting it, you will have sets for preparing several dishes at once. Thighs, drumsticks and wings can be baked, chicken breasts can be used to make healthy and dietary cutlets, and the remaining parts and bones will be a good basis for the first course. Do not forget that the most expensive part of pork and beef is the tenderloin. This is excellent meat for making chops, but if your menu includes homemade dumplings, then give preference to a cheaper option, for example, the back or shoulder. Believe me, the taste of the dish will not suffer at all, and you will spend less money and thus be able to learn another way to save on food. Market traders have a popular trick: they often offer to buy a piece of meat with a bone from them, citing the benefit of a lower price. At first glance, this really seems like a cheaper option. However, you should also think about the fact that the bone also has weight and you will be charged for it at the price of meat. Therefore, before agreeing, evaluate its size: some cunning sellers sometimes manage to sell an unlucky buyer supposedly two kilograms of meat, one of which consists entirely of bones.

Every vegetable and fruit on your table shouldcorrespond to the season of its ripening Of course, this advice does not apply to the exotic that we love so much. We are talking about traditional apples, strawberries, cucumbers, tomatoes and other gifts of the fields, gardens and vegetable gardens. If you follow this advice, you will not only be able to save money, but also bring a lot of benefit to the body, because in this case, vegetables and fruits grown in our climate zone will end up on your table. And it is best to buy them at the market, because the sellers there often give discounts, especially in the afternoon. Seasonal vegetables and fruits, as a rule, are much less exposed to various kinds of chemical fertilizers and ripening stimulants and therefore can be considered safe for the human body. And their price in season is very acceptable. Those who have ever bought imported strawberries in December will understand the meaning of the above, because, except for the appearance and color, nothing in it resembles the fragrant and tasty summer berry from the garden. And the price is ten times higher than the seasonal one. To enjoy the taste of fresh homemade compote all year round instead of sweet soda or store-bought juices and save money, freeze strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, apricots and other berries and fruits for future use, which will also come in handy for baking aromatic pies. Don't ignore dried apples and pears. They can also be a great base for healthy compote, and you won't have to spend money on ready-made sweet drinks that our children love so much.

Eat vegetarian one day a weekfood Agree, most of us simply cannot live without meat or fish dishes. Of course, they are very useful for the body, because they supply it with the necessary proteins. But still, it does not hurt to make one day a week vegetarian for variety and unloading. Cook vegetable dishes, and to replenish the supply of proteins, use beans, eggs, tofu cheese and legumes in the diet. If you add boiled beans to the vinaigrette, then a simple salad will turn out to be a very satisfying and tasty dish. Eggs are generally a universal product, so an omelet or fried eggs for dinner, sprinkled with herbs and grated cheese, are a worthy alternative to a cutlet with pasta.

Browse the counters with ready-made confectioneryproducts and do not buy semi-finished products Cakes, pastries and cookies bought in the store are quite harmful products and are not cheap. In addition to the fact that they contain a large amount of fat and "light" carbohydrates, in the summer these products can cause poisoning due to violation of storage conditions. But it is difficult to do without sweets, especially children should not be deprived of them. After all, if an adult is able to heed the arguments of reason and replace a cake, for example, with a banana, then it is quite difficult for a child to do this. Therefore, the best way out of the situation will be home-made pastries. Moreover, there are a lot of simple recipes and step-by-step instructions now, and learning how to cook sweets is not very difficult. Especially remembering that mom's pies are tastier than any others. The same can be said about semi-finished products. Pelmeni, vareniki, ready-made cutlets, pancakes and all similar food products are better excluded from your family's diet, thereby saving money, and sometimes health. After all, the nutritional value and quality composition of these semi-finished products do not stand up to any criticism. Therefore, make such popular and beloved dishes yourself from good products and with the help of your family members. In terms of price, this will be much more profitable than buying store analogues. And you will not have to worry about your health. You can even create a small, so-called, strategic reserve of your own cutlets, pelmeni and vareniki, storing them in the freezer. Very convenient for preparing a delicious dinner in a hurry after a busy day at work.

Remember that every product has its own expiration date.storage Before you put any product in your cart, take the time to inquire about its freshness. Sometimes, milk or cottage cheese bought in a hurry ends up in the trash the next day because its expiration date has already passed. Remember that along with expired products, you also throw away the money you spent on purchasing them. So, look at the dates. There is another point that allows you to learn how to save money. Perishable food products should be purchased with an eye on how much your family can eat or drink before their expiration date expires. This applies primarily to fermented milk products, fruits, and some vegetables. Therefore, no matter how profitable it may seem to you in terms of saving money to buy a box of persimmons or bananas, think about not having to throw some of them away because they have spoiled. It is a different matter if you buy pasta, cereals, sugar, and other long-term storage products. It is really more profitable to buy them in bulk, because the price in this case is often lower. The same can be said about potatoes, carrots and onions. However, vegetables are more demanding of storage conditions, so large purchases should be made if you have a basement, cellar, garage or spacious balcony.

Pay attention to what's in the package, andnot how beautiful it is Let's take, for example, such a popular product as milk. It is loved by many as a stand-alone drink, used to prepare children's meals, and so on. The mistake of many housewives is that, trying to buy the most useful products for their family, they give preference to milk in cardboard packages or bottles, although the same manufacturer also offers a cheaper packaging option - cellophane. But no, the principle of buying more expensive, and therefore better quality, is firmly entrenched in our minds. But it is enough to simply look at the composition indicated on both packages - it will be identical. Although the expiration dates may be different, but milk is usually not bought for future use, and it can be boiled for preservation. Therefore, look not at the packaging, but inside it. And then you will learn to save on products without compromising their quality.

Do a little price monitoring in largesupermarkets where you usually shop Indeed, often at first glance the difference in prices for standard food products in different large retail outlets turns out to be a pittance. And if you just need to buy a loaf of bread or a carton of milk for dinner, then you don’t have to choose where it’s cheaper. But when it comes to buying a week’s supply of food, then it makes sense to go to the supermarket where the prices are lower. Therefore, pay attention to such nuances - they will also help you learn how to really save money.

Well, that's probably all the basic advice regardingof how any average family can reduce their food expenses. As you can see, there are no special tricks or secrets in them. The main recommendations are based on only one rule: it is not how much you buy that matters, but what kind of food products make up your diet. After all, healthy food is much cheaper than it might seem at first glance. This is true, because a kilogram of store-bought dumplings or cutlets often costs more than regular chicken fillet. So does it make sense to pay more? Therefore, saving on food is useful even for those who do not have financial problems and are used to not denying themselves anything, filling the refrigerator with smoked meats and other food with questionable health benefits. Do not forget that our eating habits are an example for children. And so that they do not suffer from problems with excess weight, as is happening now in the USA and a number of European countries, it is worth taking a closer look at what we eat. This, oddly enough, will allow us to significantly reduce our food expenses and eat healthy and wholesome food. Enjoy your meal and thrifty shopping! We recommend reading: