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shortfatbalduglyman
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22 Dec 2023, 7:56 pm

Grocery costs skyrocketing.

Salaries not increasing in proportion.

What are some good ways to save on groceries?

What kind of hard things do you know how to cook?

How much do you like cooking and why?

What kind of food do you like to eat?

How often do you not eat what you want because it is expensive, too hard to cook, unhealthy or anything like that?



ToughDiamond
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26 Dec 2023, 7:38 pm

shortfatbalduglyman wrote:
What are some good ways to save on groceries?

I used to hear that buying fruit and vegetables at an open market was cheaper than buying them at a supermarket. Beyond that, there's always shopping around, though it can take a long time. I used to bulk buy things that had a long shelf life. That way I could efficiently take advantage of a limited-time price cut. The downside was that sometimes I'd lose my taste for a particular thing and then I'd be stuck with a ton of the stuff. A load of flour got infested with insects. So one has to be careful.

I don't know whether buying simple, raw ingredients is cheaper than ready-made meals or not. Certainly you get more control over the result though.

Quote:
What kind of hard things do you know how to cook?

Nothing. All the things I cook are characterised by being very easy. The hard part is figuring out how to make it easy.

Quote:
How much do you like cooking and why?

It's all become rather routine and therefore inherently boring because there's no challenge in it. I only cook a few things. I get some satisfaction in knowing I don't take very long to get it done. I mostly cook to get the result, not for the enjoyment of the process. But I've nothing against having a bit of fun with cooking. I like doing experiments, searching for cheap, easy ways of getting tasty food.

Quote:
What kind of food do you like to eat?

Mashed potato with fried onions, fried mushrooms, boiled spinach, boiled lentils, garlic, butter, olive oil, and just enough vitamin C to give it a nice tang.

Salad made of grated carrot, raw spinach, tomatoes, walnuts, grated cheese, and olive oil.

Home-made wholemeal bread.

Fried egg on toast.

Grapes.

I don't eat much else.

Quote:
How often do you not eat what you want because it is expensive, too hard to cook, unhealthy or anything like that?


I don't think much about other kinds of food, so I don't experience wanting it much. Stuff in the shops that I'm not there to buy doesn't interest me. I'm pretty content with what I do eat. There's a lot of unhealthy food I would imagine doesn't taste very nice. I tried a McDonalds thing once but didn't like it at all.



jamie0.0
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27 Dec 2023, 2:21 am

i'm a big meat eater

to cut down costs, i usually shop on monday night. stuff like dairy and meat usually get heavily discounted this time where i live.

the cavet is that the best deals are on the stuff thats about to go bad, but they are fine to put in the freezer for later



BTDT
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27 Dec 2023, 4:29 am

Cooking and efficiently buying groceries are learned skills, just like playing a sport or solving puzzles.
Over time I've learned how to use everything I buy! Most stuff is one sale.
Nowadays I can walk through the store and buy anything on sale with confidence that I can cook it.
But, that took about a decade to learn how to cook everything by steaming, frying, deep frying, baking, or simmering.