Eliminate Convenience Foods

**Shell** · 01-25-2003, 09:40 AM

Convenience foods have eaten up many of our grocery dollars. With some preplanning, making your own meals and snacks from scratch can cut way back on your food bill. Did you know:

-A restaurant meal costs six to ten times more than one from scratch?
-A frozen meal costs four times more than one made from scratch?
-A prepackaged mix costs three times more than one made from scratch?
-Precut foods (ready made salads, sliced carrots, shredded cheese) cost two times more than if you cut them yourself.

**SewCrafty** · 01-25-2003, 09:47 AM

Wow Shell, I always knew those things cost more, I just didn't know how much!

Definately makes you stop and think. Thanks for the great info!

**scrappycat** · 01-25-2003, 10:45 AM

It always amazes me how much more a restaurant meal costs than homemade. Last week, we splurged and I bought fresh Salmon filets (5) which was about $15.00. Which is a lot for one meal. But I grilled them and served with a mango salsa, a rice pilaf (from scratch), and steamed spinach, and it was excellent. It sounded like a lot of money, except when you realize that one meal like that would have probably cost close to $15 at a restaurant.
I make every thing from scratch. The only thing I do buy are those bags of mixed salad greens. I love the mediteranean one. It has such a great variety of lettuce. I don't have room in my produce drawer to buy all of those separately, so the bags of greens makes sense to me. I usually had more fresh veggies or fruit to them, so one two dollar bag makes 2 meals worth of salads, so I think it's worth it.

**halo475** · 01-25-2003, 11:10 AM

Wow I did not realize How much more it cost. I stopped buying convenience foods last year about September. I make almost everything from scratch. Sometimes its hard to keep up with it all, but I think we are eating so much healthier!!

**MJsLady** · 01-25-2003, 11:27 AM

There are only a few premade or packaged things I buy.
I tried to make cheesecake from scratch once, but the costs of the ingredients was way more than the cost of the jello pudding flavor and the graham crust!
Also on Lasagna, I find the costs of the individual ingredients is higher than buying the frozen Lasagna.
True in both cases the ingredients would make more than 1, but since these are rare occasion items, I do not want them in my house too much! (I would eat a whole cheesecake for breakfast everyday if I did that!)
I have noticed a huge difference in my from scratch cookies, the kids not really do not like store bought cookies, or pizza! Instead of pizza hut (gag ) they want MY pizza!!!!
Which now that I have figure out the crust thing (originally they looked like ameobas, now they come out more or less round!) they get at least 1 time per week!
I love to cook so doing things from scratch just makes more sense to me, especially when i do not work.

**homesteadmamma** · 01-25-2003, 12:22 PM

Thanks for sharing those stats. I knew the cost was high but didn't realize just how much.

**Coffee16** · 01-25-2003, 03:02 PM

Thanks for the reminder of how much it costs.

**learning** · 01-25-2003, 05:05 PM

So true, so true... amazing more once you think about it... it's all about choices.

**pip** · 01-25-2003, 11:34 PM

wow.

**captclearance** · 01-25-2003, 11:48 PM

I do most everything from scratch.......

**Belinda** · 01-26-2003, 07:21 AM

Not to mention that scratch (sp?) cooking tastes better too! I just gave up convenience foods the past 6 months and I have noticed a change in my grocery bill.

**mfedor** · 01-26-2003, 07:38 AM

One of the things I like to do now is make my own taco seasoning. I buy the large containers of bullion cubes from sam's. When their empty, I wash them out and store large batches of seasoning mixes in them. This way I only have to make often used seasoning mixes two or three times a year.

I went to topsecret.com to get all my favorite seasoning recipes. What a time and money saver that is.

**Nelly** · 01-26-2003, 07:05 PM

Mfedor, did you say topsecret.com? I went there to check it out but it kicked me to a porn site?! Can you post a link to where you got the seasoning recipes. Thanks!
nelly

**halo475** · 01-26-2003, 08:29 PM

Here is a link to topsecret recipes: ( porn site??

)

http://www.topsecretrecipes.com/index.html

**pita1213** · 01-26-2003, 09:45 PM

i too make most things from scratch. i do still buy frozen pizzas and mac n cheese in a box, but i get them at sam's where it is much cheaper. i can get a box of 4 tony's pizzas for just a more than it costs for two when they are on sale at the grocery store. i also get mac n cheese there though i can't remember the price comparison other than it worked out to be cheaper.
i do get the kids treats like fruit roll ups from time to time, but those too are bought at sam's where it is much cheaper.

cookies are always made from scratch unless there is a really good deal on milano cookies

cakes and icing are made from scratch as well. it really doesn't take that much more time to make a simple vanilla cake from scratch than from a box. icing is a little time consuming but you control the sweetness.