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The Cyberspouse: June, 2006
The Cyberspouse Goes Grocery Shopping
Recent conversations on Livelines, an email list for Foreign Service family members, reveal that a posting to Washington, DC evokes terror in the heart of many American diplomatic family members. The primary cause of this nail-biting anxiety? High rents and monster mortgage payments. Top that with above-average prices on everything from food to clothing, and family budgets can go out the window.
Take heart. Your tour in DC does not have to be a financial disaster. Every post requires certain skills, whether those are exceptional language skills, exceptional driving skills, or simply exceptional patience. In Washington, DC, you must hone your bargain-hunting skills to survive. The Cyberspouse discussed frugal furnishings in her previous column. Now she will tackle another major area of expense: groceries.
Vary your routine
If you have been stocking your pantry by making weekly trips to the Commissary with a stop at the fruteria on the way home, it's time for a new plan. Every grocery store in the DC area sells a few items at a loss every week in order to attract shoppers. These are called "loss leaders" and are the items you want to buy. Keep the sale circulars from the Sunday newspaper, or sign up to receive them by email at the various store websites. Use these to make your shopping list, and to plan a few meals for the week if you are really organized. The Cyberspouse usually shops at Giant, Safeway, Trader Joe's and Whole Foods Market once each week, planning quick stops between other errands. If there is nothing of interest in the sale circular for a certain store, she skips it for that week.
Clip coupons
The Cyberspouse would be the first to say that a person can save a lot of money on groceries with coupons, but due to ongoing organizational issues with any kind of paper, she has been unable to use them very effectively herself. She compromises by clipping only coupons for shampoo, toothpaste, and other personal care items-these coupons are usually worth at least a dollar apiece and therefore more deserving of attention, in her opinion.
The best deals can be found by combining sale prices with a coupon. "Pros" use a website called The Grocery Game. Housewife Carol Anne Zelley came up with the brilliant concept of a database that matches coupons with local sales for the lowest possible price. Devotees swear by this system; however, the Cyberspouse has found that she is too picky about brands, and does not buy enough convenience food to justify the time and membership expense, which varies depending on the number of stores that you want to include in your personal database. A month's trial is available for $1.00 if you are interested.
Consider a warehouse club
Families, or those short on time for bargain-hunting, should consider joining a warehouse club. While club prices are not usually as low as sale, or sale-plus-coupon prices at regular grocery stores, they are better than normal retail prices, and if you shop frequently, you will make up the price of membership. The Cyberspouse is a member of Costco, and uses their prices as her standard: if she sees an item on sale at a regular grocery store for less than the regular price at Costco, she'll buy it. Otherwise, it makes more sense to buy the supersize version at Costco, which usually has a lower per-unit price than regular retail. Sam's Club, Aldi's, and Shopper's Food Warehouse all offer similar warehouse shopping, though not all of them require membership.
If you don't think you have the space for cases of soda, toilet paper, and tomato sauce, think again. It's true you might not be able to store all that toilet paper under your bathroom sink, or all those canned goods in your kitchen. So, keep a second pantry in the basement, laundry room, or even under the bed in rolling containers. The Cyberspouse uses the top shelf of her coat closet to store the bargains that won't fit in her kitchen, and keeps all the paper goods in the laundry room. (You remember how to do this from that last consumables post, right?)
Think ethnic
For spices, produce, and specialty foods, try shopping at the many ethnic markets in the DC area. Asian and Latin American markets often have much lower prices on the items that are considered staples in those cultures-and in many Foreign Service homes. The Cyberspouse has found great deals on coconut milk, curry pastes, rice noodles, and other ingredients in these stores. Or, just try the ethnic foods section at your regular supermarket. Giant stocks many Goya products from Mexico, for example.
Pick your own
There are several pick-your-own and cooperative farms in the DC area. Most offer weekly or biweekly deliveries of produce during the growing season, though you don't get to choose your own vegetables that way. Picking your own produce is not always a great bargain, but you do get the freshest possible fruits and vegetables, and the kids usually love it. The Cyberspouse and her family have visited an organic farm overlooking the Potomac several times to pick truly wonderful raspberries and blackberries for less than half the price of retail. Apple and pumpkin picking is even more popular with DC-area families.
Farmer's markets are another option. The Cyberspouse has not found the prices to be any lower than retail, and often they are higher. But, you get a lot for your money, as the produce is unquestionably fresher than in the supermarket, and the selection is great. Besides, farmers' markets are fun to visit, usually featuring baked goods and plants as well as produce.
Or, grow your own! This may be easier in some neighborhoods than others. The Cyberspouse will not be growing anything other than herbs this year, as the deer and raccoons in her wooded neighborhood ate all her zucchini, pumpkin, and bean blossoms last summer and took their share of her tomatoes, too. In some areas, a garden may have to be completely enclosed to keep the critters out. Some communities offer fenced garden plots to residents, or you may able to grow beans, peas, tomatoes, and other climbing crops in containers on a deck or balcony. Even a few small pots of herbs can add zip to your meals and will be much more economical than buying fresh herbs in the grocery store.
Go light on the meat
The typical American diet contains far more costly meat than is really necessary for good nutrition. Try stretching meat by making meat pies, meat sauces, or stir-fries with it. Combine meat portions with hearty grains-a hamburger on a whole wheat bun will be more filling than it would be on a white bun, for example, and meat sauce on whole-grain pasta is a very hearty meal. The Cyberspouse's family, which includes a hungry teenager and pre-teen, usually shares a pound of meat at any meal.
Buy cheaper cuts of meat and chicken and cook them in stews, pies, or in the crockpot to make them tender. "Family size" packages of chicken thighs are great for this purpose. A whole chicken can also be a great bargain: roast it for dinner, and use the leftovers to make chicken salad sandwiches or chicken melts the next day. Put the carcass back in the freezer to make stock later.
You can also use whole grains of all kinds (rice, bulgur wheat, couscous, etc.), beans, dairy products and eggs to create hefty, thrifty, meat-free meals. Check out the classic Moosewood Cookbook series for great vegetarian recipes.
Make your own convenience food
When you've just come rushing in from soccer practice at 7 PM and everyone is hungry, there is nothing like reaching in the freezer for some lasagna, chicken pot pie, or macaroni and cheese casserole to throw to the mob. It will taste even better knowing that you didn't pay Stouffer's for the privilege. Every now and then, make a big casserole for dinner, and freeze half of it in single-serving portions. You won't regret it.
Waste not, want not
Be creative with your leftovers. Of course, extra portions of pasta and other easily microwaveable foods always make great brown-bag lunches. Or, you can have a clean-out-the-fridge night when each family member helps themselves to whatever needs eating. (A frugal friend makes a habit of doing this the night before she goes to the grocery store.) Extra uncooked foods should also be used before they spoil-the Cyberspouse likes to throw the last few carrots or broccoli florets into curries and stir-fries, for example. Sandwich bread heels can be collected in a bag all week and turned into French toast on the weekend. Over-ripe bananas make great pancakes or smoothies. It really can be fun to come up with creative uses for whatever is lurking in your fridge and pantry!
Become a frugal gourmet
The Cyberspouse, like many Foreign Service spouses, had to learn to cook from scratch out of necessity. Combine that with tours in countries with a great appreciation for good, fresh food, and a family with chronic health issues, and you get a shopper with pretty high standards for quality. There's nothing wrong with going for the cheapest possible grocery basket, but if really good food is a priority for you, then you'll end up spending a bit more. Here are a few ways to keep that spending to a reasonable level:
- Check out prices on organic and gourmet brands at warehouse clubs-you may be surprised. Costco, for example, has the cheapest organic milk and butter in the DC area.
- Giant and Safeway have both recently introduced organic store brands and often have sales on these items.
- Trader Joe's, while not always the cheapest place to buy staples, has specialty items and wines for less than other stores.
- Buy whatever organic produce or meat is on sale that week, and plan your meals around it. Buy some extra and freeze it for later use.
- Buy frozen organic fruits, vegetables, and berries-they are much cheaper than fresh and you don't have to worry about spoilage.
- Look for bargains in unexpected places-Whole Foods Market, which is not known for its low prices, nevertheless has the lowest price on cage-free eggs and all-natural peanut butter. The Whole Foods store brand version of many items is often reasonably priced as well.
- Prioritize your purchases. For example, the Cyberspouse buys all-natural peanut butter because it is a major food group for her son. If he didn't eat it every day, it would not be such a high priority and she would probably just buy Costco-sized containers of Jif.
In short, the trick to saving money on groceries is to take advantage of the great variety of shopping options available. Whether you are a confirmed "foodie" or a meat-and-potatoes type, you CAN keep your grocery budget under control while posted to Washington !
The Cyberspouse is contributed by Kelly Bembry Midura, website designer, freelance writer, stay-at-home parent, and veteran Foreign Service Spouse. She is currently working on a book about frugal living for families in the Washington, DC area. Click here to read more "Cyberspouse" columns. Email Kelly at kelly@aafsw.org.