So you think you know your menu plan...

**MomToTwoBoys** · 11-13-2010, 12:54 PM

but then something throws a wrench in it!

Take for instance:

You go through the circulars. You check out the deals online. You plan your meals for the next week or two, then you head out to the store. But what do you know? There's 30% chicken breasts for sale! There's 50% ground beef for sale! Oh my, BOGOF turkeys?! You bet!

Suddenly, that meal plan you made isn't looking so hot, is it?

So what do you do? Do you just keep truckin' on, knowing that you're dead set on those meals? Or do you decide to buy every single package of marked-down meat that looks appetizing enough for later on? Do you just ditch the list and make one on the fly?

I thought about this as I was walking through Superstore on Thursday. I went in to get chicken for sweet and sour chicken, then I ran across all sorts of marked-down meats. Then it hit me... what do I do if it happens when I go shopping, knowing that I need to save as much as I can?

So what do YOU do?

**Maine Girl** · 11-13-2010, 01:00 PM

If it was me i would buy the chicken you needed then buy one of the specials either ground beef or a turkey. I would do the turkey if possible. Those sound like wonderful deals

**AmyBoz** · 11-13-2010, 01:12 PM

I'm flexible. I'd go for the deals and rework the plan around what was on sale.

**MomToTwoBoys** · 11-13-2010, 01:38 PM

So do you carry a menu plan book with you that's tailored to specific items? I know that if I end up having to get something else that I didn't plan for, I spend a ton of cash.

**Syn D** · 11-13-2010, 02:07 PM

I have to stick with my menu plan... But if there is a good deal on meat and I had extra $$ I'd buy it and save it for the next menu..

**jas** · 11-13-2010, 02:55 PM

I usually use the same types of meats all the time so I have it on hand. On any given week if there is a sale on one particual kind I stock up. Same with other items. I am not usually buying to use right at that moment.

There is usually at least a little wiggle room to get something that is a really good deal.

**HappyMama** · 11-13-2010, 03:04 PM

Originally Posted by jas

I usually use the same types of meats all the time so I have it on hand. On any given week if there is a sale on one particual kind I stock up. Same with other items. I am not usually buying to use right at that moment.

There is usually at least a little wiggle room to get something that is a really good deal.

I stock up my meat the same!

I always look at my budget in terms of dollars, and cents for the whole month and long term meal plans vs weekly. So this month might be stocking up on my whole grains, sugar, oatmeal ( and these are usually in 25-50 pound bags), olive oil and coconut oil. The next month might be my honey, beans of all kinds etc. But I always have wiggle room for great stock up deals and buy my eggs, fresh cream, milk etc weekly. That way my freezer and pantry are always full, I can make what I want, I save tons, and finally it saves me energy and time. This week I am buying 40 jars of Franks hot sauce ( have coupons, a good price ) and this will last me almost a yr for my wings.

**Contrary Housewife** · 11-13-2010, 03:07 PM

I pray for those kinds of days when I go shopping. Since I started stockpiling I no longer ever buy meat at full price. I find the markdowns and stock up. Some weeks I find nothing, some weeks it's a gold mine. Last Friday I scored ~15lbs of steak, lamb chops, and pork cutlets for under $2 a lb.

I have a pretty good idea what is in my stockpile, as I keep an inventory list and look at it every week.

Today I would have skipped the chicken, as I have a lot of it already in the freezer, but gone for the ground beef because I am due to make a big batch of chili. I'd also skip the turkey deal because a whole bird is too much for us and two would not fit in the deep freeze. YMMV.

**Momto5RN** · 11-13-2010, 05:12 PM

i just buy whats on sale and create a plan around it - my first stop when shopping isi always meat dept so i can get other sale items to go with the meast if i need to. having a pantry with some basics stocked prevents this from being an issue also -

**Palooka** · 11-14-2010, 12:20 AM

I menu plan very little and would go for the deals. We eat different diets in this house so I have to be flexible.

**Judi Dial** · 11-17-2010, 11:46 AM

I'd buy the beef & the turkey, as I just got chicken

I build my menu, daily, around what we have that needs to be eaten and what's seasonally available or on sale.

Yesterday's dinner was HM soup and crescent rolls...we were out late shopping and didn't want to fuss, but were hungry. The soup was LO from lunch.

Today, I have a hamburger patty to use up, so we'll probably have it for lunch, in some form or the other. I have a lot of pasta, as I got 4 boxes last week on sale for .79 a box + a coupon, so that's probably what I'll do. I'll make mini meatballs and cook some pasta and either make gravy or use a can of it from the pantry, probably make it, as I think the only canned gravy I have right now is turkey.

That means that tonight's dinner will probably have a pasta side dish or tomorrow's lunch will be pasta salad.

I have promised DH pies, so my main focus cooking wise today is to make a Marlborough (apple custard) pie and a chicken pot pie with the end of the can of cream of chicken soup that needs using in the fridge. I had planned to freeze the pot pie for another night when I just don't feel like cooking, although we may eat it for dinner. In that case, it will be dinner tonight and probably lunch tomorrow too.

I work at keeping my pantry filled with in-season, cheap foods and then let myself be creative with meal planning. Sometimes I get involved, usually it's simple. I'm not usually up for cooking anything that takes more than 1/2 hour, unless I can leave it, like a roast or pie or something....

Judi

**Tess B** · 12-06-2010, 04:00 PM

at least for me, i've learned i HAVE to be flexible...nothing worse than having a menu and/or specific recipe in mind requiring a specific ingredient or cut of meat and the store not having what you need.........don't know about anybody else but that can totally throw me off kilter!!! then i'm standing there like an idiot staring blankly at the meat display...as we both work, during the week we try to avoid super complicated menus (the ones with 42 steps and use of every major pot pan and utensil. i love my kitchen but i really don't want to spend the WHOLE night in there!) we do the more involved productions on the weekends.

having a well stocked pantry means that on those random days i can go from Chicken Something that morning to a more defined dinner entree by day's end as i've had all day to ponder.

**savvy_sniper** · 12-06-2010, 04:16 PM

That is why there is always room in the grocery budget. When I find good deals (especially on meat) I stock up. I may spend more today, but in the long run I save a lot.

I don't have a rigid weekly meal plan for this exact reason. I have a general idea of what I am going to cook that week, but there is always room for changes. Plus things come up and I might not be able to cook what I had planned. So there is always something quick and easy for a backup meal.

**savvy_sniper** · 12-06-2010, 04:18 PM

Finding unexpected sales is also why I have stockpile. I only buy food when it is on sale and/or I have coupons.

**Labontet** · 12-06-2010, 04:25 PM

When you get a turkey at a good deal, see if the butcher will cut it in half. That way if you are in a smaller family, you have 2 little turkeys instead of a big one that you do not have to roast.