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Post by 1965ri on Mar 22, 2014 12:31:56 GMT -5
I like the idea of having a bulk storage of powder milk since the price of milk keeps going up. I plan on buying some dry milk the next time I go to the store. It tastes fine to me, at least the times I had the dry milk. You can defiantly taste a difference between dry and fresh milk, but with the amount of cereals I eat I might as well save some money and use the dry milk for that too. Either way with hurricane season on its way and just bad weather in general, having a little food emergency kit with some bulk food items is a good idea.
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Post by queenocoupon78 on Jul 13, 2014 2:13:40 GMT -5
Try shopping for your meats and specialty items after monthly holidays. Halloween/Thanksgiving/Xmas/Valentines Day/Easter are holidays that people can find great deals on unsold-candy, especially at the discount & dollar stores. Candy lasts long-term and in the days after each of these events, 50% to 90% off prices can easily be found. And since SNAP allows all types of candies, you should take advantage of these days if you have a sweet tooth or kids/grandkids.
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Post by gourmet1 on Aug 8, 2014 15:15:04 GMT -5
First--SNAP benefits are not meant to provide ALL your food money for the month. They are meant to supplement the amount of money from your "income" that is used for food. Of course, when you are short of money, food is the first thing we usually cut from, no matter how much or how little we have.
Buying in bulk is good, but you have to put out the money up front. What I try to do is use my money to buy what is on sale, and if possible, buy enough of the sale items so they last until the next time they go on sale. So if you use one can of corn per week, when you see it on sale, try to afford to buy 6-8 cans. It will probably go on sale again in about 6 weeks. (Varies with the store, some things go on sale less often than others.) I try to build up my pantry so I have enough to buy that item ONLY when it's on sale. Now it will take a some time to get to that point, but that's my goal. Start with what you can afford, even if it's $2 a week to build up your supplies. And we have BUY ONE GET ONE FREE specials around here. It's true they raise the price a little, but often you still pay less than the full amount if you divide by two. Rice, noodles, pasta, or potatoes---if they have BOGO, I try to buy two at least. I have in my head a certain "price point" and try not to spend more than that for that item. Substitute something else until the item goes on sale again, if you can. You can write the prices down, and the store where you found that price, and then you have made a "price book." Sometimes our store does Buy 2, get 3 free. It's usually something not "basic" like Pepsi, but it it's something I use anyhow, I buy them then. I also use the price per unit tags on the shelf to figure which size box or bag is the cheapest per unit. Sometimes the smaller size is a better deal, and sometimes the bigger one is. You have to watch every price to get the most possible for your money. We sure don't eat steak or shrimp very often.....shrimp has gone up about $3 a lb here in the last six months. My splurges are getting farther and farther apart. Lamb chops too--loved those on the grill in summer, but one meal costs at least $8-9 now, so we haven't had those lately either.
If your family likes pancakes, it's sure a lot cheaper to make them (from scratch) than buy cold cereal or eggs at the prices they are lately. ($2.29 a dozen??) Or buy medium eggs on sale for $1/doz, and use more of them if you need too. Eggs are generally a good value for the money--serve with toast. Oatmeal and grits or cream of wheat also make good breakfasts if your family will eat them. If you buy the large size vanilla yogurt and add fruit you have available, that's good too. Try to buy whatever fruit is in season, because it will be cheapest them. When it's winter here, we often have pancakes or waffles for dinner once in a while. I have a favorite brand of sausage I keep in the freezer for such meals, too.
Soup is also a great answer. Ready to cook soup is SO expensive and homemade soup is SO cheap, and can use up all the bits and pieces that accumulate in the fridge! I make a white sauce and add dried onions or small slices of celery instead of cream of mushroom soup for casseroles and such. I leave out the salt, because it's what my doctor says I need to do, but it saves a lot of money in the process also. 2 tbsp flour, 2 tbsp butter or oil, salt, pepper, and a cup of milk and there is your white sauce made. I even preheat the milk in the microwave to make it faster--hate to stand and stir for 5 minutes when 1 minute will do. Just melt or heat the butter or oil, drop in the flour, and let it cook 1 minute so the floury taste is out of it, --I use a whisk to keep it lump-free, add the milk, and it will thicken up in about a minute if the milk is already hot. Add onion or celery for more flavor. OR bits of meat or chicken if you have them leftover.
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Post by texascountryboy on Feb 16, 2019 11:01:36 GMT -5
I lived in ohio for 4 years.then moved in with my mom when i moved back to texas.simply because i couldn't afford to do anything else. Then i started getting food stamp.i quickly learned to buy non brand name foods.like back lable and clover leaf foods.plus id only buy whats needed.and limit myself to how many of each item.all of that took place from 2007 to 2010.then my mom bought me a nook color tablet.in which it came with a shopping app called out of milk.it help's me stay within my budget seeing how i can include the price of each item.then i got a part time job and a seasonal job.those small pay checks allowed me to get into home canning. I now have a presto 16 quart pressure cooker/canner.i now have pint jars of chicken and turkey soup.chili with beans.and other foods that I've canned myself. I also now go to 2 diff food pantry's. As for the actual shopping goes.i only buy whats needed.and maybe add 1 or 2 actual items here n there.because of the way i shop n all.i now have enough store bought canned foods and home canned foods that'll last me at least 2 or 3 months.if not longer.i also stock up on dry foods when i can.like flour,sugar,corn meal,salt n pepper.diff spices.mainly in the large containers.more importantly. I only buy what "i will eat and eat what i buy"..
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