Unpopular opinion: My grocery bill went from $150 a week to under $80 after I stopped buying 'quick' meals.

About six months ago, I looked at my bank statement and felt sick... I was spending so much on those pre-cut veggies, marinated chicken packs, and ready-to-cook rice pouches. They seemed like a small time-saver, but the cost added up fast. I made a rule to only buy raw basics like whole chickens, big bags of rice, and uncut potatoes. The first week was rough, I had to actually chop things, but now it's just normal. I roast a chicken on Sunday and use the meat for three different dinners. That one change, just avoiding the prepped stuff, cut my food cost by more than half. Has anyone else had a single switch that made that big of a difference?

2 comments

2 Comments

anna17719d ago

Respectfully, I have to push back on this. My time after work is basically zero, and those quick meals are the only reason I eat something besides toast. The extra cost is just the price of not burning out, you know? I tried the whole cooking from scratch thing and it made me miserable. Who has the energy to roast a chicken after a ten hour day?

angela89018d ago

Honestly anna177, I get where you're coming from but "the price of not burning out" feels a bit heavy for some frozen dinners. It's not that serious. Tbh there's a middle ground between roasting a whole chicken and living off toast. Like, a can of soup takes two minutes and costs way less. Ngl, it sounds like you tried the hardest possible cooking and gave up.