Thursday, March 27, 2014

Grocery shopping

I've always known that Walmart was the cheapest place to shop for some time now. This comparison makes my point very well, even though it ranks Aldi the cheapest. I don't even consider Aldi though, as they don't offer many name brands and are limited in sizes, etc. For me, this was/is all about comparing Kroger and Walmart strictly on a lowest price basis.

I buy my groceries one month at a time and have always been able to get more for my money at Walmart. This was even after using a Kroger card for additional savings. I pity the fool who shops at Kroger without one of those, they are paying through the nose for items!

Because my food needs are very basic, as well as the fact that I only eat twice a day, I can usually eat what I consider well for $100 or less a month. On months that I need to use my money to pay a bill or some unexpected expense comes up, I can survive on much less actually.

I do this by eating a lot of single items like chili for example. I always get the Armour Star chili with beans for $1.14 a can and buy 30 cans of it for $34.20. That is supper for a month for me if need be. A couple of boxes of the store brand crackers and this is a very good meal for me!

If I want variety, I substitute Banquet frozen dinners and pot pies. At $1.00 each for the dinners and only 80 cents each for the pot pies, I can save even more!  At these prices I can even afford to buy the occasional treat like beef stew and bean soup.

For my breakfast meal, I sometimes purchase the El Monterey brand family packs of burritos for which I can get a full months supply for about $13. Put one of these on a napkin and pop in the microwave for a minute, and instant breakfast! That and a bottle of water to take my pills with is all I need to last until supper time.


Naturally I spice things up from time to time and add a few more items to the list, such as Great Value pancake mix or maybe a box of cereal and bananas to top it with. And I also buy other items for the supper meal too from time to time, like frozen pizza or maybe even hamburger helper.

The point is, I can eat cheap if I need to. Some might find my way of doing things bland or boring, but it satisfies me and that is all I need. And yes I do include veggies in my diet from time to time as well. I might even make a meat loaf if the mood strikes me.

I have not really mentioned what I drink with my meals, but that is simply water. I used to buy the discount diet soda, but I've found that I like water even better when I eat. Bland yes, but better for you in the long run.

To those who say this diet not healthy, I can say that while I was working, my primary single daily meal consisted of deep fried chicken tenders and taters after work. Considering this, I look like a health food nut now!