How we save over $5000 on food

Are you tired like N-dog here, of constantly finding yourself stressed out while standing in the grocery store, not knowing what you`re going to have for dinner? Do you want to save more money on food?  Are you tired of eating industrial, un-healthy food? Then keep on reading!

So.. this is embarrassing, but a couple of years ago, when BF and I moved in together, we both lived in small spaced dorms and shared kitchen with a lot of random (and semi-crazy) people, so we didn`t like to spend much time in the common room, which means that we didn`t think about how much money we wasted on food. We went to expensive grocery stores because it was more convenient, we bought easy expensive industrial food,  and shopped every day. Neither of us thought about how much we were really spending.

But then we moved into a house together and I started paying attention to what I ate due to my Fibromyalgia. That was 3 years ago, and I`ve had a steep learning curve and saved so much money! Approximately $5300 a year! That`s A LOT of money. We used to spend more about $900(!!) on food a month. I know, I know, but I did warn you, it was not my finest hour.

No More Gym Expenses

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I want to take care of my body and my health, but I don`t want to waste money.  I`ve been scrutinizing my monthly budget to see where I could make more cuts, like I did with my cellphone plan, and from April 1st I´m cutting down on the gym expenses. I`ve experienced that exercise helps with the fibromyalgia, giving me more energy, and lessening the pain, which is probably why I have been so hesitant with quitting the gym.  I`ve been going to this relatively cheap gym for a year or so, but ever since August when I started Uni with an extra classload to finish up my BA faster, there really hasn`t been time enough to exercise.  But quitting the gym, doesn`t mean I have to stop exercising.

Budget Friendly Cooking – What`s in your pantry?

Save Money – Cut down Grocery Budget – Organize the Food – Cook with what you`ve got

In order to save more money I`m trying to cut down on my food-budget this month, and one way of doing that is by cooking with what you`ve got. My cupboards were getting quite messy, so today I  cleaned the cupboard, wrote down every food item, and then organized the food. I also organized the freezer, and noted down whatever I found. And there were a lot more food than I`d thought:

Baking supply: Whole wheat, Whole-wheat flour coarsely ground, Whole-wheat flour finely ground, Wheat bran, Sunflower kernels, Pumpkinseeds, Flax seeds, Yeast, Flour, Vanilla sugar, Baking powder, Baking soda, Dark syrup, Light syrup, Demerara sugar, Sugar, Brown sugar, Confectionary sugar, Cocoa powder, Sweet condensed milk.

Dry Ingredients: Pasta Penne, Pasta Tagliatelle, Jasmine rice, Brown lentils, Red lentils, Tomato soup, Béarnaise sauce, Gravy, Oatmeal, Polenta, Muesli, Pistachio, Raisins, Saltines,

Freezer: Broccoli, Lingonberries, Blueberries, Raspberries, 6 Nan bread, 10 Tortilla, Hamburger bread, Portion Bread, Brioche, Sourdough Bread, 4 calzones, Pizza sauce, Pork, 2 Chicken Breasts, 4 Ground Pork meat, 4 Ground Beef,  2 Turkey Breasts, 2 Tenderloins of Pork, 1 Tenderloin of Pork BBQ, some Chicken wings, 3 portions of smoked salmon.

Fridge: Spring onion, Onion, Ham, Salsa, Butter, Whipping cream, Tomato pure, Milk Chocolate, Apples, Oranges, Bananas.

With these ingredients in mind, I decided to make the following meal plan, trying to incorporate food items I already got.

Meal Plan
Monday: Creamy Pasta with Ham & Mushroom
Tuesday: Norwegian Stew
Wednesday: Scrambled egg & smoked salmon with bread
Thursday: European Pancakes
Friday: Pizza
Saturday: Turkey Breast with creamy mushroom sauce
Sunday: Pasta Bolognese

For the next 4 weeks, I`ll be using what I`ve got as the main ingredients, and try to only buy items of food that`s absolutely needed. My starting budget is $421, but hopefully I`ll have some money left after one month.

What are you ways of cutting down the food expenses?

My Old School Savings Method

Remember this old thing?

This Christmas I spent 1$ on this piggy bank, that doesn`t at all look like a piggy bank, but I have no idea what else you call it in English, in Norwegian it`s just called a “sparebøsse”, which doesn`t make much sense either, just that it`s something you save money in. Anyway, back to topic. I bought this in order to save some cash for my summer vacation, and I guess you`re all thinking, “why aren`t you saving the money in a real bank?” Well, here`s my answer. This “piggy” bank doesn`t have an easy way of taking out money whenever I need (i.e. want) it. I have to physically destroy by using a can opener to get to the money.

As for me, who is used to a 24/7 accessability to my online bank, having money on a savings account with literally no interest at all, can be too tempting. I don`t really earn anything by having the money in the bank, which makes it so much more “acceptable” in my mind to dip into. I do have a special savings account for holidays and vacations, and well, let`s just say it`s too easy to access them. That´s why I decided to save cash. Now do keep in mind, this is only for a short-period and for a limited amount of money. I do of course have more serious savings account that I never dip into, like my saving for-a-house account, or my emergency savings.

And before you ask, I`ve already paid for my airline tickets, and the accommodation is free, as it`s my parents apartment I`ll be living in. The money I`m saving up now is just for food, entertainment and shopping. So until June I`ll keep on saving cash. So far I`ve saved about 150$! And by adding some cash now and then the next three months, it`ll probably be a nice surprise when I eventually have to use that dreaded can-opener!

Do you ever go old school like me when it comes to smaller saving goals?

Budget Friendly: Stocking up

Whenever I`m visiting my parents in the Canary Islands, I always make sure that I`ve got an extra suitcase to bring back home. Living in Norway is very, very expensive, especially when you`re living on student loans and grants. Which is why I usually stock up on things when I`m in the Canary Islands, as there are practically no taxes there, with the price level being generally very low. Take the cans of sweet condensed milk for instance. In Norway, these would cost me 9$ per can. When I bought them on the Spanish Island it cost me 1$/can. That`s a 8 dollar difference! The amount of money I save each year just by buying some products with me is rediculously huge!

This time I stocked up on sweet condensed milk, honey, my favourite chocolate, a jar of peach jam, two boxes of sprinkles, some luxurious goat cheese, Serrano ham (Spanish version of the Italian Parma ham), and some  bio-degradable garbage bags.

I love being able to stock up on things that I use, but only  to a fraction of what it`d cost in Norway. This is one of the ways I save a lot of money each year, as everytime I visit I always make sure to buy certain food items with me.

What do you like to stock up on when you got the chance?