Items worth stocking up on include:. More ways to save money on groceries. Here are a few other simple tips from our experts to food shop on a budget:. Even in tough times, it's possible to find affordable and healthy groceries with a few smart strategies.

The best ways include buying in bulk when items are on sale, shopping seasonally and loading up on pantry staples.

Compare prices online when you can look for coupons while you're there and stick to grocery stores nearby. With a little planning, your meals will be healthy and nutritious without breaking the bank. And if you need a week off, consider ordering from one of the more affordable cheap meal delivery services.

She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Miami University of Ohio and a master's degree in clinical nutrition from NYU. Prior to Good Housekeeping , she worked at one of the largest teaching hospitals in New York City as a cardiac transplant dietitian.

She has authored numerous chapters in clinical nutrition textbooks and has also worked in PR and marketing for food company start-ups. What to Eat for Breakfast to Feel Your Best. Why You Should Eat a Banana Every Single Day. These High-Carb Foods Are Seriously Good for You.

The Superfood We All Need More Of. The Real Health Benefits of Eating Carrots. What You Need to Know About Collagen Supplements. Brown Rice vs. White Rice: Which is Better? Avocado Vs. Olive Oil.

Skip to Content Product Reviews Life Health Food Beauty. sign in. Best Flower Delivery V-Day Gifts For Kids V-Day Gifts For Women V-Day Gifts For Men Amazon Valentine's Gifts. I just had never done anything with them.

I mean, outside of buying oatmeal packets, which are delicious, but really crappy for ya. The only thing I did with oats for a while was make oatmeal for my daughter. She loved it and now both of my girls eat it and love it. So I made granola bars, baked oatmeal, smoothies, and more.

It is really great what you can make with oats. You wanna know why? Because they are uber cheap! I can buy them in bulk at WinCo for 64 cents a pound.

Try finding a packaged cereal that is that cheap! Now you know you can do a lot more than just make boring, old oatmeal with oats! They can be turned into delicious snacks, breakfasts, desserts, and dinners! I actually go back and forth on potatoes. However, when it comes to lowering your grocery bill, potatoes can come to the rescue every time!

The other day, we had half a bag of potatoes that were about to go bad, so my husband spent an hour peeling and cutting those potatoes and making french fries out of them. Homemade french fries are the best ever. When we run out of flour, the world stops turning and we have no idea what to do with ourselves!

Speaking of…we only have about a cup or two left right now! So, it is to our advantage to always have flour on hand. I used to buy flour at WinCo, but that was before we had a Costco membership.

It keeps the cost of our bread way down, as well as anything else we make with flour. As long as I have tomato sauce, tomato paste, and diced tomatoes on hand, I can make just about any kind of sauce, soup, or pizza we like.

I usually buy these tomato products from Costco because they tend to be a bit cheaper, but I do have to buy a whole box at a time. One of the things I sometimes struggle with is using up a can of tomato paste, for example, before it goes bad.

Well, you can simply freeze it see my note below, though , but I would like to use it up in other ways. HOWEVER, if you do this, you may notice a stronger acidic taste. You can balance out the acidity of these tomato products by adding a bit of sugar to whatever you are making.

This is just what I have learned from my Italian foodie brother-in-law. If we have nothing in the house to eat except eggs, I can usually figure out something to make for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Eggs are so versatile and can be cooked in so many ways that they should be on the menu at least once a week, if not more, especially when you want to cut back on meat and save some cash money.

Cheese livens things up! We like to keep mozzarella, colby jack, and parmesan cheese around for all our meals. However, if you only buy it when it is on sale or use coupons if that is one way you save on groceries , you can save a lot on something that is really a luxury.

I like to buy my mozzarella at Costco because it is usually cheaper per pound than I can get it anywhere else. Although, sometimes you only have a small amount for groceries, and it might be better to just buy the smallest package even if you are actually spending more money.

You know? Here are all the ways we use cheese in our meals as well as some others you might like to remember. Before last year, I would buy chicken stock in the cans. I had made chicken stock at home before, but it never seemed to turn out quite right.

And then last year, I made it in the crockpot for the first time, and VOILA! It worked out much better! It made 8 cups of chicken stock from one chicken carcass and some leftover bones and vegetables we had lying around. This pantry staple is another one that will go with just about anything and it's cheap and easy to keep on hand.

Pro Tip: When you're cooking pasta, don't use oil in your water for boiling. A lot of Freebs keep canned pasta sauce on hand as it pairs naturally with pasta. It's a pantry staple that is pretty cheap to stock up on and can go in lots of different things!

Pro Tip: Pasta sauce is basically canned tomato sauce and some seasonings, so stock up on tomato sauce and you can easily make your own pasta sauce in a pinch! Tomatoes are another pantry staple that a lot of Freebs keep on hand!

Whether they're canned tomatoes, or tomato paste or sauce, there are so many different recipes you can make with them! Don't be afraid to doctor your tomato sauces with fresh herbs, garlic, cheeses, or thickeners to get the results you want.

You can even combined tomato sauce with paste for a slightly different take that uses up both ingredients. Now that you have some ideas about how to use up those delicious canned and jarred tomato soups, sauces, and pastes, let's talk beans!

Whether they're canned or whole, beans are good for so many things! Eat them plain, add them to meat to bulk up the meal, add them to a soup…. Those are just a few of the reasons that beans are one of the top pantry staples for the Freebs! You can even use your leftover canned beans in easy peasy dishes like my tamale casserole!

Beans are a delicious filler and add protein and other nutrients! These soups are so good to have on hand. They go with pretty much anything and can really help to take a few ingredients from being a random assortment of items to a casserole in no time!

Pro Tip: It is beyond easy to make your own cream of chicken soup if you keep broth on hand — just add milk, flour , and a little seasoning! Genius, right!? These are an obvious pantry staple! They're great to have by themselves as a side or added to a recipe.

Pro Tip: To improve the flavor of canned vegetables, first rinse them in a colander under cold water. Then add to your recipes as usual. Whether it's beef, chicken, or vegetable, broth and stock are great pantry staples to keep on hand!

Just buy the biggest carton or whatever is cheapest that you can find if you use it a lot.

Learn more about our review process. Get to the checkout line of any grocery store these days and you may be shocked to see the amount at the bottom of your receipt. One of the best ways to find cheap groceries is to create a budget-friendly, healthy grocery list and stick to it. By prioritizing seasonal items, frozen foods and certain cuts of meat and seafood, shopping strategically can help keep sticker shock to a minimum.

The key to locating cheap groceries is to create a system for shopping, and that begins before you even grab a cart.

Start by identifying the closest supermarkets to you hello, high gas prices! and cross check the cost of your favorite items online before you shop. Think about what you spend the most on and prioritize finding the best price for those items. The next step is to follow that quintessential shopping advice: Don't go to the grocery store hungry.

You're much more likely to make impulse and unhealthy purchases if you do, so shop after a meal or grab a healthy snack before heading to the store.

And remember: The cheapest groceries are not always the most nutritious; consider spending slightly more for foods that are filling and nutrient-dense.

For tips and recommendations for a more economical shopping experience, see below for advice from the experts at the Good Housekeeping Institute Nutrition Lab.

Fruit and vegetables are among the groceries with the largest price jumps lately , but you can still find affordable produce by buying seasonally. Purchasing when produce is abundant helps lower the cost and will all but assure the best taste and highest levels of nutrition.

Seasonal Fruits. Seasonal Vegetables. Another way to save money on produce is to opt for fruit and vegetables that have a longer shelf-life. For example, to help extend your grocery dollars, choose apples over berries or carrots or celery over leafy greens.

Generally, some of the cheapest fruit and vegetables year-round tend to be bananas, apples, oranges, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and sweet potatoes. Meat can be the most expensive category for most food budgets, and can account for a large portion of the overall grocery bill.

To save money, opt for the ground variety of your favorite protein. Ground beef, chicken or turkey are super versatile, easily frozen and can be used in many different recipes.

Larger cuts of meat will usually cost less per pound, but they may require marinating, braising and slow cooking to bring out the tenderness. If you do prefer to include cheaper cuts of meat, consider including:. My obsession with tinned fish must have started with Devan's Niçoise-ish salad , which also coincided with the renaissance of tinned fish on social media a trend I fully endorse.

From flavor-enhancing anchovies to more substantial canned tuna, sardines , and more, they're not only on top of my list for my regular grocery trips, but also on the list of souvenirs to bring back from vacation in seaside destinations such as Portugal, Spain, and Italy.

My go-to is a can of oil-packed tuna, which can be used in a range of cuisines. If you're looking for quick and easy lunch ideas that use canned tuna, think about a quick pasta , sandwich , kimbap or onigiri , or even fried rice.

My love for canned chickpeas can probably be traced back to Alison Roman's stew, a flavorful spiced chickpea dish that has won the internet and been on my winter cooking routine since The lockdown hoarding craze solidified this relationship as I marveled at Chana masala and other dishes featuring crispy chickpeas.

The same goes for canned white beans, which I have been praising since I tried these Mediterranean-y baked beans. When I don't know what to cook, I grab one or two cans of beans and think from there.

If you have enough time to soak them overnight, dried beans are great options too. I can't overstate the joy of biting into a plump and juicy tomato. Tomatoes are essential in my kitchen for some of my favorite dishes, from a nostalgic tomato egg stir-fry to a quick tomato sauce.

Their versatility extends to pizza, stew, quick lunch, and more. However, the peak season for tomatoes here in Germany is only a few weeks, and for the rest of the year, they taste bland. Using canned tomatoes is not just a dupe for the fresh ones at off-seasons, they in fact have a ton of flavor.

This pasta with spicy tomato sauce that I make on repeat is an excellent example. If you already have a stash of canned tomatoes, adding a tube of tomato paste preferably a tube to a can for longer shelf life can bring the sunny, zesty flavor of tomatoes to the next level.

Even as someone who would gladly go through the trouble of making dumplings and wontons from scratch, I have my lazy days too. Grocery shopping can be expensive. Who among us doesn't know the feeling of coming home, looking at your bill, emptying the bags, and immediately thinking, "Did I even buy something to make for dinner?

If you're looking to cut down your grocery bill, you can buy fewer things. Or you can be smarter about the things you buy. The simplest way to accomplish this? Keep your pantry stocked with inexpensive, essential items that can mix and match with any number of foods for endless meals.

Cheap doesn't mean flavorless or flavor-free. No, this list of budget-friendly pantry essentials is designed to pack plenty of flavor and nutrition into everything it helps make.

Cutting your grocery budget doesn't mean cutting the quality of food you buy, and it certainly doesn't mean making your food less enjoyable in the name of a few pennies. Stocking these wallet-friendly essentials will save you money, and it will also help you be a more agile cook, one that's ready to adapt at a moment's notice instead of going out for expensive takeout.

Check out our list of must-have, budget-friendly pantry items and how you can use them in everyday meals. Brown rice is a whole grain and has more nutritional value than white rice. Stock up on brown rice, or other grains such as quinoa, and add it to your meals for a fiber boost.

Use the brown rice in grain bowls with black beans or other proteins, side salads, and puddings. Of course, you can also use brown rice to make fried rice or stir fry. For quicker meal prep, cook up a big batch of rice and freeze it for later, or look for pre-cooked rice that only needs a few seconds in the microwave to be plate-ready.

Beans are a great way to add protein to any meal — and they're cheap. While dried beans are a few cents cheaper, canned beans are more convenient because they're ready to use in an instant. Either is worth stocking, depending on the time you have. Any beans — like black beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, or white beans — can be used to replace meat in your meals, like in a black bean burger.

Beans are also a great addition to soups , stews , and chilis. They can be cooked with ground beef or other meats to stretch a pound to feed five or six instead of three or four. Traditional pasta sauce isn't only for spaghetti — although that's a quick and easy weeknight meal.

You can use leftover marinara sauce to make stuffed peppers , chicken Parmesan , meatloaf , pizza, and so much more. Next time you're at the store grab the multipack of sauce; it will save you extra money and provide you with multiple meals for the month. Canned meat, like chicken, salmon, and tuna, is a great alternative for fresh meats.