The Supermarket Diet | How You can Save Money & Eat Better

It has been quite a crazy last few years – not only did Fry’s end doubling, Safeway followed, and now Walmart has opted to discontinue price matching here within the next week. And although it might not be at all stores, it’s certainly at most, and hopefully it inspires you to take a different look at your shopping habits and find new ways to save.

It was just a few years ago when Fry’s stopped doubling that we shifted the way we shopped – it wasn’t out of anger at Fry’s though. I’ll be honest and say that the decisions made by Fry’s, Safeway, and Walmart haven’t bothered us in the least – from a business perspective, they need to do what works best for them as a whole and that’s what they have embraced. 

I am thankful though for the changes because it propelled us to where we are now ~ and it’s amazing how much of a difference 2-3 years can make. We have successfully swerved the Supermarket.. changed our approach to buying, growing and cooking food. Not only are we spending less, we are eating better, healthier meals and are not dependent on a Supermarket to keep our family well fed. 

Here are the ways we have managed.

Having our Own Garden

We have had a garden now for a few years, so this year isn’t new – but this year we planted much more than we usually do. The kids are responsible for taking care of the watering daily and weeding, and my smallest of kids are in charge of spraying the plants for pests (you can see our pest spray HERE)…

We used up what we had leftover from last year, bought some new items with a gift card we had leftover from last year too and that eliminated the need to spend too much.  

My kids eat peppers and carrots straight from the fridge, and when 4 of them reach their hands in there 3-4 times a day, I can’t have enough of them in the drawer. My smallest 2 year old last week ate 7 red bell peppers in a day, she just goes in and takes what she wants. Grow lots of them and hungry mouths keep eating. That’s fine with us.

The only thing I can’t keep up with is carrots… we have to buy 2 10 lb bags of them at Costco the first week of the month because our 2 year old loves to eat them from the fridge too. I think she was inspired by Harry the Bunny – nonetheless, I’ll take it. Carrots are great for her and she’s not going to slow down.

Cooking from Scratch

Thankfully I can throw it down in the kitchen – no matter what, I can make it, and I make it well. Whether baking or cooking, I can conquer it all, and when it comes to the kids, planning ahead is key. The Instant Pot has allowed us to save huge on food, but also permitted us to eat better – steel cut oats for breakfast, lentil dahl for dinner, rice, quinoa, all work great in that pot, as do hard boiled eggs.   

Using up produce from the garden or supplemental produce from our CSA has us well stocked on frozen, shredded Zucchini for Double Chocolate {Healthy} Zucchini Muffins, and Cantaloupe for popsicles for the kids.   Baked and Sweet Potatoes are great in the Instant Pot – in 10 minutes or less for up to 15-20.

I’m thankful for the option to buy yeast in bulk because it does not last long here ~ we make our own pizza crust and freeze some for later. We bulk buy Organic flour and use that to make our own breads, rolls, pita bread and even flatbread Naan – it’s such a huge savings versus buying the bread items in store that are usually more.  Organic crackers? Not necessary to throw out $5 in store, make them on your own.

That stuff costs pennies to make, and can save you so much every year when you start crunching numbers.

Eliminate Over-Buying

By avoiding the store, you are more inclined to use what you have – when you resort to going to the store, you end up with a mountain of items you don’t need. That’s how the store sucks you in  ~ but they can’t suck you in when you aren’t inspired to go.  But by putting things on the front of the ad that might appear to be great deals (Strawberries for $.79, which are a great price but considering laden in pesticides, not really all the best deal -right?)

Those supermarket marketing tactics don’t exist for us… because we don’t have to face tem. Though we will bulk buy either online or at a warehouse 1 time a month, we buy what we need, get in and get out and within 45 minutes we are back in the car and headed home. No time wasted looking for sales, we have set items we need, we buy those items and we aren’t wasting time scouring store ads for sales.  

Time is money and finding items in stock, organic items at a competitive {bulk} price and being able to buy as little or as much as you need without a limit is great.

Being Super Thrifty

Every day is a super thrifty day … when you don’t have to worry about buying paper towels, and you can use your own kitchen towels. Buying dried items such as pasta, rice and lentils in bulk from Vitacost every other month (with a max of $50 spent) is easier than dragging kids to the store.

Not to mention it’s cheaper. Organic items offered by Vitacost are a pretty generous savings, and they have everything we need without having to find an empty shelf, or having to dodge people in aisles with a cart full of processed food. It’s just not happening here.

Who needs cleaners and personal products when you can make your own? It’s cheaper and better for you.

Helps you Value your Food

When you are on a first name basis with the owner of the Raw Dairy farm that you pick up your milk, and she cares more about your health than the people that get paid to care in a professional setting, you start to form more of a respect for them over anyone else. Not to mention raw milk is medicine in our house and although it’s more, it’s worth every last penny.

Our CSA supplements what we don’t have in our garden  – they are amazing people that I feel great handing money to every week, not to mention my kids can see that really good food doesn’t come from the riser at the grocery store, but comes from a local farmer who has their interest in mind.

Supermarkets may be a popular place for the 99% ~ catchy music, bright lights, car carts, and weekly sales ads, but once you stop shopping there, you realize how expensive they are (even on sales). You realize how skewed marketing is in this country towards food that is less than beneficial to your health.

They have made people dependent on a food system without any second thought as to where the food comes from – they don’t encourage people to really think about the food that they put in their cart, where it comes from or where it is grown.. it’s all about the price, and appearance of a deal, that makes people assume that grocery shopping is a necessity for every American family.

It couldn’t be farther from the truth.