Trimming money on the grocery budget is one of the easiest ways to get started living frugally.   There is a ton of ways to make cuts from the grocery budget.  So today I’m going to share some of my tricks.

 I love to have fresh vegetables but they get expensive during the year.  Especially when they aren’t in season.  So what I do is watch for sales on these items.  I keep a certain amount of money set aside for what I call stockpiling funds.  With this money I buy big quantities of the sale item.  For example I wait until Kroger’s sell their broccoli and cauliflower 10 for $10 and buy 10 or 20 of each.  I then take them home and blanche and freeze them.  I also do this with corn on the cob, green peppers, zucchini, and squash.  For corn on the cob I wait for the 12 ears for $2 and I hit the sale hard.  In case you’re wondering I have a very large chest freezer.  The green peppers, zucchini, and squash freeze well for things like stir fries, zucchini bread, spaghetti sauce, and soups.  You can also find vegetables real cheap at roadside farmer markets.  Here is a link to give you some ideas of what to do with zucchini.  http://www.livingonadime.com/articles/zucchini.htm

Learn to can.  During apple season the kids and I go and pick apples at the local orchard.  You can get them much cheaper this way and the kids really enjoy it.  We make our own applesauce, apple butter, and can apples for baking.   Not only are they much cheaper this way, they are also healthier.  I can control how much if any sugar goes into it.  I look at farmer’s markets for deals.  Often if you buy in large quantities you can get a better deal.  Also look for pick your own farms for cheaper prices.  We get berries this way and make our own jams.   We also plant a garden and can a lot of that produce.  But our yard isn’t big enough to grow enough for a whole year, so therefore we look for these deals.

As for canning supplies I got a bunch from a yard sale.  I was at an elderly ladies yard sale and saw a small box of canning jars.  I asked her how much she wanted for them and she then asked me if I canned.  I said yes and she said come with me honey.  She took me to her basement she had boxes and boxes of canning jars she wanted to get rid of.  I got all those jars for $15.  Her price not mine.  I asked her if she knew that some of them were worth more than that.  She said yes but she wanted someone that was going to can with them to have them.  I also learned a lot from her.  I ended up spending a couple of hours at her yard sale as she shared her wealth of information.  I also learned some info about sewing.  I was pretty new at it at the time and she had patterns she was selling for a quarter.  I will never forget her I learned a lot about being a homemaker that day. 

Here is a site where you can get information on canning.  The directions are very easy to understand and follow.  You can also purchase canning supplies from here.  They are very budget conscientious.  http://www.pickyourown.org/allaboutcanning.htm

Also cooking from scratch will save you a lot of money not to mention be healthier for you and your family.  Here is a site with a wealth of information.  My favorite section is make – your – own convenience foods.  I really like the rice recipes, as I am rice challenged.   Just ask my family before trying these recipes I made the worse rice. LOL    http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/