I love reading a good menu.
I was inspired by your reactions to how my baby makes me spend more to brainstorm all the ways in which I can save money by NOT eating out. I know there’s a lot more out there so please share your tricks and I’ll add them to this list.
- Buy yummy food (avocados, feta cheese, tortillas, salsa, steak) so you can’t resist eating at home.
- Wash all your lettuce when you get home from the store so a salad or healthy sandwich is just seconds away. My Mom does this religiously.
- Double, or even triple, recipes so you have enough for a second dinner.
- Set aside a big batch of time (in my world that means two hours) just to cook. It’s hard to start a recipe if you think you might get interrupted.
- Convenience foods are more expensive than cooking from scratch, but are much cheaper than eating out, as Lorena pointed out. “My husband and I used to love making meals from scratch, but it’s not realistic right now. So, we’ll buy roasted chickens from the grocery store deli, bagged salad or frozen veggies, and fresh bread from the bakery or a refrigerated tube of biscuit dough to bake at home. It’s not as cheap as making it all ourselves, but it is MUCH easier, especially when you’re so tired you’re falling asleep on the couch at 8 p.m. (see: me last night).”
- Cut out the carbs. Mentally, it’s easier for me to prepare dinner if I let myself skip the potatoes, pasta, or rice. I may throw in a slice of bread or tortillas, or just skip the carbs entirely!
- Stock up on snack foods, like almonds, tortilla chips, string cheese, fruit, hummus and pita, yogurt, cottage cheese, crackers, and carrots to stave off hunger, which is when you are at your weakest!
- Make soup. As Myke says: “I make big pots of soups,stews or brisket and freeze the extra portions. The prep involves a little extra chopping but the cooking time is about the same (just a little extra time to come up to a boil). You always have good food in the freezer (and you know what’s in it) and it can be thawed ahead or in the microwave and cooked. Much cheaper than eating out.”
- Can you say rotisserie chicken? Costco used to sell them for $5 on Friday nights (not sure if that’s still the case).
- Pull out your slow cooker, dump in a few cans, and dinner is on the way! Kudos to Lorena (again) for sharing her favorite crockpot blogger, Stephanie O’Dea.
- Throw away restaurant menus when they come in the mail or stapled to a take out order. The more effort it takes to track down the menu and phone number, the less likely you are to place an order.
- Save loose change in a “date night fund” so when you DO eat out, you DON’T feel an ounce of guilt. It worked for EllieD!
- Prepare food in segments, Lee says: “I want to recommend the book “Parents Need to Eat Too: Nap-Friendly Recipes, One-Handed Meals, and Time-Saving Kitchen Tricks for New Parents
” by Debbie Koenig (she blogs at debbiekoenig.com) is really helpful. For example, she has a chapter on things you can prepare in stages —so, during naps “” and another on things you can eat one-handed. I wish it had been published when my kids were babies, and I’ve been giving it to friends who are new parents!”
- Beg your friends to let you eat at their house. Or, you can be civilized about it and trade off hosting each other for dinner one night of the week.
- Arrange a neighborhood meal share. Similar to hosting each other for dinner, but this time you get two to three families together that trade off cooking for each other one day a week. That week’s cook puts the meal into containers and delivers the food. Requires a bit of organization but really pays off!
- Freeze cookie dough. I can never eat an entire batch of cookies (and I’ve given it many, many good tries) before they go stale in 2-3 days. Lesson learned, I now freeze half the batch for later. Cookie dough freezes really well!
- Swap food, as Bobbi suggests. She explains how to set up a food swap.
- Your food steamer
is for more than veggies. Anon says: “have a veggie steamer? i love mine. you can cook rice/veggies in it. you set it up and can walk away. no more worries about burned rice. i make a pot of rice for a few meals. when hungry, i just add whatever is in the frig/freezer. it’s different every time.”
- Make Pasta Plus. That’s when I cook whatever pasta I have, plus whatever meat and veggies I have. I season with garlic, onions, salt, pepper and cheese and it always tastes great!
What do you do you avoid eating out?
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Welcome to Bargain Babe! I’m Mara, and I’m so glad you’re here. I am an obsessive bargain hunter and penny pincher, and I am determined to live a full life without EVER paying full price.
I have to watch my carb intake regularly, as that’s my real weakness. Soooooo… I make a pot of rice combo once a week, then portion it out during the week. It keeps me from over eating, and adds to my nutrition. I make one and a half recipes (1 1/2 c. rice/3 c. water). Ingredients are brown rice (1 c.), barley (1/3 c.) and 1/3 c. of either wild rice or TJ’s brown rice trilogy. I put 2 TB garlic oil (my combo) in the water along with curry powder (to taste), freshly ground pepper, and 1/2 tsp. kosher salt. Replace the water with broth, if desired, or even add bouillon to the water for more flavor. Bring the seasoned liquid to a boil before adding rice. Return to a boil, then reduce to simmer and cook covered ’til done. This is more a process than an exact recipe, and is easily varied to suit individual tastes. Other options include red rice, quinoa, couscous and/or other grains. The main thing is to boost one’s diet with the addition of fiber without tons of calories, fat or sodium.
when I get a fast food urge, I mentally think about the $$ I would use…then think of what I have at home to make a meal that’s just as filling. I thnk that the $5 would be better used for ‘some thing’ (clothing/movie/gift, etc) If I do this enough times, I have that money to use at a later period, And really, that $5 here, $4 there, adds up quickly.
I’m glad my suggestions were so helpful!
When I feel like eating out, I ask myself what the real problem is — is it a craving? Am I feeling lazy or is it too hot to cook? Do I not want leftovers again?
Whatever it is, I try to figure out a better solution than eating out. If it’s a specific craving, can I make it myself more quickly than heading out to the restaurant? Or is the craving for a texture as opposed to a specific food or cuisine, can I duplicate that at home?
If it’s laziness, is there something in the freezer or pantry I could make easily and quickly with minimal fuss? If it’s too hot, is there something I could throw together from the fridge or use my microwave or rice cooker to make?
If the idea of leftovers is “ick,” can I remake those leftovers into something tastier, like a stew or casserole? Could I pair it with new sides, like frozen veggies or a pilaf or pasta?
Once I get to the underlying excuse, it’s pretty easy to come up with a solution that doesn’t involve take-out or going out to eat.
@Lorena ~ A woman after my own heart. I find that if I just wait ’til the craving passes, and think about alternatives, I can usually come up with something satisfying.
Go vegan. It’s hard to find vegan entrees at most restaurants. Plus then you have an excuse when eating with others of eating less or close to nothing.
Safeway has $5 Fridays… this includes rotisserie chicken. At least this is so in Oregon 🙂
My boyfriend needs to be gluten free. We are NOT able to easily go out to eat, as there are few restaurants that can truly serve a gluten free meal…so…we cook ALOT. I cook soups, rice dishes, and a GF dessert on the weekends. We eat a lot of fish (we both do not eat “meat”) and a lot of salads. Always have salad on hand, and good thing to put on it, and its easy to skip going out to eat. We have a better meal at home. We are spoiled…of course, it does not hurt that I’m a pretty fantastic cook…makes it easier.
Good article. The rostisseire from Costco is a dinner the first day, a salad chicken sandwich the second day, & even a soup or tacos sometimes. I always cut some restaurant cost when I am on vacations stopping by the supermarket and I grab a chicken and buy a couple of sides. The rice steamer is a good tool to save. At the same time you are doing rice you can steam some corn, potatoes, sweet potatotes for a side dish. If you prepare enough rice keep it in the fridge and then you can add shrimps, chicken leftover, vegetables for a quick dinner.
Yes, of course, dining in is a cheaper and more convenient method to feed oneself and family; however, there comes a point in the life of every family cook where he or she would just like to sit down to a meal they have not prepared. As in: no prep work, no setting of table, no glancing at clock to make sure the food and arrival time of family members and/or guests all coincide, the thrill of stepping out into polite society with nothing else on your mind but your dinner date and wondering what you are going to eat. . . and did I mention the thrill of no clean up. I had five children and managed a food budget that was adequate but not princely, and everyone seated at our table (children, childrens’ friends, etc) ate well, diversely, and in good humor. However, those Saturday nights that my husband took me out to eat either with friends or just by ourselves were “priceless”.
Loved my Friday night date nights with my hubby as well. I do enjoy cooking, so that was not a problem. But I did (and do) enjoy being waited on for a change, and not having to clean up afterwards.