Cook your own meals: The number one tip, echoed almost anywhere you look, is to cook your own meals. Cooking is a fun way to reduce your costs, provide entertainment, and eat healthier. Eat less meat: Veggies are cheap per pound compared to meat, so try going with a heavier vegetable diet. If you like meat, skip beef and go more often with chicken and pork. Pork isn’t as healthy as beef but chicken is a pretty good option. Meat as a side dish: If you don’t want to eat less meat, here’s a trick – use meat as a side dish and something else as the headliner. You still get your meat, but you eat less of it. We like eating eggplant and ground pork, the eggplant is the headliner and the ground pork makes up the supporting cast. Eat slower: The faster you eat, the more you eat. It takes time for your stomach to tell your brain you’re full. Bring your lunch: Brown bagging lunch is a great way to take a $5-$10 expense every day and bring it in under $2-3. Heck, if you’re a cold cut sub kind of person, your lunches could be under a dollar or two and still be jam-packed with goodness. If you like eating out, eat out for lunch and cook for dinner: Dinner at a restaurant is far more expensive than lunch at a restaurant, so always go with lunch if you’re deciding between the two Check for restaurant coupons: If you do eat out, check online or in the local circulars for coupons. At worst, you can always hit up Restaurant.com and get $25 gift certificates for $10 (or even less when they have deals). The only warning about Restaurant.com is that their selection is very limited around where I live, so it may also be the case for you. Skip the vending machine: If you really like an afternoon snack, bring your own. You can usually buy them for much much cheaper at the grocery store. Grow your own herbs: Herbs are really easy to grow, they just need some dirt, some light, and they’ll grow like crazy. Vegetables are a little tougher so start off with herbs and grow the ones you use the most. Fresh herbs will taste better and you won’t have to pay McCormick & Company $5 for a container of basil. Make one of those lunches a cold cut sandwich: I’m a fan of hot lunches but if you want to trim your expenses even more, make it a real budget lunch once a week for extra savings. Two slices of bread, a couple slices of your favorite cold cut, some lettuce, maybe a slice of tomato… that is some good eating with a great price.

3.95 USD InStock