Money Saving Techniques - Food and Dining

First of all, expect to be eating home a lot more often. The savings between dining out and eating in can be astounding, especailly if you have more mouths to feed other than yourself. Below are some money saving techniques to save on dining out along with goods that will save you money and maximize your food budget.

Groceries - Get coupons. For everything. Coupons.com lets you print coupons for free. Shop at discount retailers for household items like ziplock bags, aluminum foil, cereals, chips, crackers, etc. Cooking utensils? Shop the dollar store. Same goes with Spices - you'd be surprised at the spice selection at a dollar store, you can save anywhere from $1 - $5 dollars on dried spices.

If you're a healthy eater, try Trader Joe's instead of Whole Foods. If you don't care, think stores like Aldi's and Sav-A-Lot. Groceries quickly add up and these stores will give you the most for your money.

Alcohol - Drink cheaper or drink less. What’s more important to you? Quality or quantity? As a fan of expensive import beers, it’s definitely Quality. I’ve had to cut back my drinking as I snub my nose at the Millers and InBevs in favor of finer choices that come at a premium cost.

And if you’re a wine drinker, you should know that for the selections of dinner wines, there probably isn’t much difference in taste between that $10 dollar bottle of wine and that $40 dollar bottle of wine. IF you live anywhere near a local winery, go on a tour and you'll not only get to try wines for free but you'll get a good idea of new wines you like. Since they're local, they'll likely be less expensive and you'll support a local business.

Delivery - Pizza should have it's own category, because it is its own food group, after all. Save money buying frozen pizza or AT LEAST getting carry out. Plus, you should always tip generously when its deserved, so it’s worth the trip not to pay the premium on delivery - even free delivery commands a reasonable tip.

First of all, a little note about how the service industry works to some cheapskates who have forgotten: and any waiter in any restaurant is working for tips. You should ALWAYS tip for good service. If you can't afford to tip your waiter, you shouldn't be eating in a restaurant or you should be ordering less so you can. Be good to these people - they work on their feet for relatively little. When they do a good job, they should be appreciated! Here are some tips to save on dining:

1) Stick with water instead of expensive drinks. Have a beverage at home later if you must have something. (See: Alcohol above...)

2) Consider quick service vs. waited service if you decide you can't tip the waiter appropriately.

3) Get appetizers instead of entrees. Throw in a side garden salad if you need your greens. You'll often spend less for your meal and still fill up.

4) Fill up on your meal, skip out on dessert. If you have a sweet tooth and must imbibe, stop by the grocery store for a half gallon of ice cream, a square cut of pre-made cookie dough that bakes in 10 minutes, or a Sara Lee Cheesecake that's ready to go as soon as it thaws. This'll save you cash in the long run feed more mouths.

5) Get Cheap Gift Certificates - Visit Restaurant.com and read the terms and conditions on a few gift cards. If you're going out to eat for more than yourself, you can often estimate about how much you'll spend and purchase a gift certificate before you go out. Print it out, bring it to the restaurant, and save anywhere from $3 - $150 on your dinner bill.

Here's a list of foods that are cheap and filling. You should have these on your grocery list next time you go shopping - they'll go further and several on this list are healthy alternatives to pre-packaged and frozen foods.

1) Spaghetti Dinner – Spaghetti sauce is cheap, and so are noodles. They're also ridiculously easy to heat up and throw together. Brew a few carrots and a mild green pepper into the sauce, some lean beef or turkey (ground or meatballs), as well as some spices from the dollar store and you’ve got an excellent meal that will feed a whole family for about the price of dine-in for one. Add a light garden/Caesar salad, some homemade garlic bread, and a bottle of Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon and light a couple candles for a touch of class.

2) Macaroni and Cheese – Spice it up with a little extra cheese, some hamburger or tuna, and some steamed veggies on the side and you’ve made a nice cheap lunch.

3) Frozen Chicken – Bags of chicken breasts from the grocery store will last forever, taste delicious when they’re oven cooked. You can also put anything you want on them. I suggest steaming a couple cups of rice, throwing in a little spicy curry into the rice as well as sprinkling on the chicken as it cooks. Add can of pineapple chunks, raisins, and some raw cashews into there for a sweet curry taste.

4) Peanut Butter – A jar of peanut butter will go a long way. It’s great when something so sweet and gooey is considered healthy as well, so enjoy it while you can. You can put it on celery, apples, bread with jelly, bagels, or just eat it plain. There are a million ways to eat peanut butter, all of them delicious.

5) Popcorn beats potato chips any day of the week in cost savings as well as health and taste! And while we're at it, read my Best Popcorn Recipe ever!

6) Bread – Get the multi-grain variety, not the white variety. Even though it’s cheaper, white enriched bread is about as healthy as Styrofoam. So, splurge the extra .30 cents for your health!

7) Oatmeal – Tasty, super healthy, and comes with all sorts of great flavors like maple and apple cinnamon! A nice warm bowl of oats is especially nice in the winter.

8) Potatoes - Potatoes are ingrained in my Irish mind, body, and soul. Potatoes ca be made into just about anything. Mash them, boil them, bake them, Au Gratin, hash them, fry them, eat them raw if you dare. If you can cook it, potatoes can be added. And be sure to clean and eat the skins too, they’re filled with all the healthy parts.

9) Beans – A bag of beans, some chilli seasoning, and some beef will make a great meal. Refried beans are healthy and cheap as well and can be spread on a number of Mexican dishes while providing healthy fats and carbs for your diet.

10) Tomato Sauce – Tomatoes are essential to any healthy diet, bursting with nutrients. Tomato paste is loaded with tomatoes, so a great way to make sure you're getting your veggies is to eat tomato paste-based foods that are packed with more tomatoes than you would possible eat in a day. Get a tasty tomato sauce and you can make spaghetti. Marinana sauce can be just as good for homemade pizzas and other pasta dishes, as well.

11) Eggs – Great for just about any meal, especially breakfast. And cheap, too.

12) Produce - Stick with what's in season - you'll typically save more this way, especially on melons, plums, oranges, apples, etc.