25 tips for minimising your food costs

1. cook from scratch
Convenience is expensive so it’s best to cook things from scratch where possible. For example, home cooked chickpeas are about half the price of canned.

2. reduce your meat intake
We all know that animal products tend to be expensive and if you do find cheap meat, you’ve got to question why it is. If the thought of turning vegan scares you, why not start with eating meat-free a few times a week or decreasing the amount of meat in a recipe and supplementing with lentils or beans or even tofu. A few thin slices of proscuitto as a garnish can keep the carnivores happy without the cost of a steak.

3. try ‘unfashionable’ foods
The costs of food are driven by supply and demand. So the things less fashionable or less ‘in demand’ tend to command lower prices.

4. buy in bulk
A good rule of thumb, but larger pack sizes aren’t always better value, so it does pay to check the price.

5. shop with a list
Planning ahead is a great way to economise and reduce the risk of expensive impulse purchases.

6. shop without a list
No I haven’t just done a backflip, well maybe. This probably should read be flexible with your list, or have contingencies withing your list. The aim is to be able to be flexible to make the most of the things at reduced prices.

7. buy veg in season / on special
Fresh fruit & veg are one of the most price variable foods. So it is generally better value to buy in season, although with the whole global food trade, it can be tricky to predict what you’ll find discounted in your supermarket from one week to the next.

8. find an ethnic market
As much as I love shopping in some of the ‘farmers markets’ in Sydney, they can be incredibly pricey. If you’re on a budget, better to head to the far less glamorous ethnic makets in your area. Shop where the migrant communities are.

9. shop at closing time in the large markets
While closing time at the markets can be a scary thing, it can be a great chance to pick up some really great deals.

10. reduce your portion sizes
I’m stating the obvious here but serving less and eating less are one of the most immediate changes you can make. And your waistline will thank you.

11. avoid processed, packaged foods
Marketing costs money, so does fancy packaging. Boxed cereal is one glaringly expensive item that comes to mind.

12. consider frozen veg
Until recently, frozen peas and an occasional bag of frozen broad beans were about as far as my frozen vegetable knowledge extended. Have some fun experimenting, especially if you find things on special.

13. invest in a water filter
Buying bottled water, juices and soft drink is an easy way to blow out your budget (lets not even think about luxuries like red wine). I love my water filter, it tastes great, is better for the environment and my budget, and saves me lugging heavy bottles up the stairs.

14. don’t peel your veg
I tend not to peel things because I’m lazy and I prefer a more rustic look. But why throw away valuable nutrition when you don’t have to. Besides, there can be a lot of flavour in the skins.

15. avoid ‘lite’ foods
Someone made a comment not to buy lite milk but to dilute regular milk with water. Not a bad idea when you think about it. So rather than paying a higher price for the ‘lite’ version, just dilute or use less of the full fat product.

16. grow your own
While a veggie patch can be a real source of savings, starting small with a little rosemary plant or some fresh mint can be a great way to supplement your food budget.

17. get creative with spices
It doesn’t take much to change the flavour profile of a dish with a little curry powder or ground cumin. And don’t forget the wonderful mood enhancing properties of some chilli warmth.

18. become a forager
I have dreams of one day learning to forage for wild mushrooms but so far I’ve got as far as wild fennel and olives growing on the roadside when I lived in the Barossa Valley. And I have been known to occasionally ‘prune’ the rosemary on Jersey Road in Paddington. Best to check up on the legalities of foraging in your area before you get started though.

19. use everything you paid for
Oil from the tuna (see recipe below!), canning liquid from the beans, broccoli stems, beet leaves, bones from the Christmas ham – all these and more are sources of flavour and nutrition that are often discarded.

20. minimise your waste
One of the biggest costs can be the food we throw away. Fresh produce is probably the most common offender here. It might actually be cheaper to use frozen rather than taking the chance that you won’t get around to cooking the fresh veg before they expire.

21. know when it’s OK to eat things past their best before dates
I still know people who think that everything has to be thrown out after it has expired. It doesn’t have to be like that! If you’re a little unsure, have a look at an insiders guide to use by dates – when should you throw food out?.

22. question your habits
We all fall into habits with our everyday lives. Taking the time to be objective and question whether we really need that coffee or other little ‘treat’ or could we bring filtered water from home instead of buying bottled can make a difference to our savings over time.

23. think about your energy costs
Last year I read M.F.K. Fisher’s The Art of Eating. During her essays on food and cooking during the war years, I was intrigued by the idea of being frugal with your energy for cooking. Until then I hadn’t really thought about the costs of having the oven running for hours. Fisher spoke at length about different ways to fit as much as possible in the oven to make the most of the precious heat. I wonder what her thoughts would be on modern refrigerators and freezers?

24. conduct your own taste tests
After conducting taste tests professionally on an almost daily basis as a winemaker and a product developer, I do miss critically evaluating things. Fortunately my Irishman also loves to test his taste buds so we often have little experiments at home testing different brands of tinned tuna or olive oil or potato chip or which butcher has the best sausages. The interesting thing is that the most expensive item is often not the one we most prefer. This often leads to future savings when we switch to the less expensive preferred option. Nerdy but fun 😉

25. be aware of pricing
I used to think that if I was cooking for myself, I was saving so much more than eating out. I figured it didn’t matter how much things cost. My $25 challenge got me thinking about food costs and how by just being aware, not necessarily obsessive I can make changes that will make a real difference to my savings.

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