By Discount Dame Terri Storelli for GalTime.com
Here are four ways to cut your grocery bill in half this month and save time doing it.
4 Ways To Slash Your Grocery Bill
1. Don't Assume Generic is Cheaper
It seems logical that generic cereal or canned foods would be cheaper than their name brand counter parts right? That's not always true. You can score great deals on some generic items, but many cost the same or more than the national brands. To get the most bang for your buck look at price per ounce or price per unit. Compare these prices (located on the shelf tag) and you'll see what I mean.
Related: Save $$$ By Stockpiling!
2. Make a Meal Plan
Who has time to make a meal plan you say? You do. What if I make a plan and I'm not in the mood for what I have planned when the day gets here? Variety is the key. How will making a menu plan save you money? Here's how: Plan only your dinners. Lunch and breakfast tend to be pretty routine so don't worry about them, just get the usual cereal and eggs, salad and sandwich bread.
Your dinners are where you can save big. Glance at your stores sales add and see what meat is on sale. For example, if chicken breasts are a great deal this week, plan on having chicken three nights... three different ways. You could make chicken tacos, add chicken to fettuccini alfredo, or use chicken to top a caeser salad.
That way you have variety, but you are spending less and saving time by cooking it all at once (sans seasonings) and then stashing it in the fridge and dressing it up later. Do the same with veggies that are on special and other side dish ingredients. Each week you'll have a variety of new dishes mixed with old favorites without having to slave every night over a hot stove every night.
Related: Wanna Save on Groceries? Make a Game of It!
3. Let the Bloggers Do the Work For You
Find a blogger who covers your local stores. Just type in "Your Grocery Store Name Matchup" and get information about which sales match up with which coupons that week. Most of these sites will even give you links to online coupons right there in the matchup to help you out, or tell you the name of the Sunday paper insert they came from and the date it was sent out.
4. Don't Clip: File and Click
Clipping every coupon from the Sunday paper is a waste of time for most on-the-go gals. Are you really going to buy everything in the Sunday sales ads and inserts? No. So go ahead and file those inserts by name and date so you can access the coupons when you need them and only break out the scissors on the ones you need.
Related: 5 Coupon Myths: Debunked!
The same principal holds true for printable coupons online. Safeway.com offers up a variety of coupons you can load directly onto your card. Savings Star is another great option, simply register your store rewards card (they cover most major grocery retailers) then load the coupons on to your card, and they will deposit your savings. You'll get the savings through PayPal, into your bank account or sent to you on an Amazon gift card, your choice! How fun is that?
If you do print out coupons online do it in black and white. This will save you a ton on ink, after all you're out to save, not spend.
With some pre-planning and shortcuts, you can slash your grocery bill without sacrificing anything.
More from GalTime:
Top 3 Phone Apps for On-the-Go Money Management
Foods You Should Buy Organic
5 Sneaky Fees to Avoid
Couponing for Beginners
