Everyone wants to eat healthy but only a few are willing to dig deeper into their pockets. Luckily, eating healthy doesn’t have to be expensive! What's more important is that you shop intelligently and have a plan. We have created a list of tips and tricks that will reduce the amount on your receipt.
Buy “dishes” instead of “ingredients”.
It's often easy to be tempted to buy ingredients that you have no use for. At home you wonder why you bought a family pack of beans because the remaining ingredients for a “chilli con carne” are missing. Or you realize that a whole watermelon is a bit too much of a good thing.
If you want to stick to a certain budget, you should specifically buy ingredients for certain dishes and leave out everything that you don't absolutely need. It therefore makes sense to think about the recipes you want to cook in the coming days in advance.
“Real” food from the frozen section
Frozen fruits and vegetables are cheap, high quality and easy to use. In contrast to fresh fruit and vegetables, they are only harvested when they are ripe and can be stored frozen for a very long time without losing the nutrients they contain or rotting.
A smart warehouse
According to nutrition experts, it is easier to keep your checkout bill small if you have already set up a smart warehouse at home with which you can cook healthy meals:
- Rice, quinoa and gluten-free whole grains : Fill the stomach and can be used in a variety of ways.
- Canned fish (tuna/sardines/salmon) : protein and healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
- Beans : Very cheap source of protein and vegetables at the same time.
- Nuts : Perfect choice for a quick snack.
Buy fewer “offers” and save money?
The most obvious advice for someone looking to save on shopping seems to be to look for deals. However, offers are often family packs that are far too large or products that are very close to their expiry date. Especially with vegetables and fruits, it can easily happen that they are spoiled the next day. That's why you should pay close attention to which offers are actually worthwhile and which are just a waste of money.
Never shop hungry
This is the simplest but no less important tip on how to save money when grocery shopping. “Hungry at the supermarket” is just not a good idea. Food that you wouldn't even look at under normal circumstances literally laughs in your face and it can easily happen that you go into a real buying frenzy. If you go to the supermarket hungry, you will definitely buy unnecessary food and waste hard-earned money.
Eating under 8€/day, an example:
Breakfast: oatmeal with berries
Ingredients :
- oatmeal
- Berry mix from the frozen shelf
- Rice milk
Lunch: Chicken and quinoa salad
Ingredients:
- Quinoa
- Chicken
- tomato
- Cucumber
- Sheep cheese
Dinner: Mexican Rice
Ingredients:
- Brown rice
- tomato sauce
- Chilli
- Kidney beans
