 Hi, I'm Chef Robin. Today's hands in the kitchen workshop is going to be about stretching your food dollar, getting more food bang for your buck. We're gonna go through each of these food tips, food shopping tips, and elaborate on them a little bit and maybe see if we can save you a few pennies. The first shopping tip that I have is to actually shop at home before you even enter into the grocery store with a critical eye, examine the contents of your freezer and your refrigerator and your cupboards. We all have things in our freezer that need to be pulled out and incorporated into our weekly meal plan. And if not, they need to be given the heave hoe or given to someone else who can make use of them. Same thing for your refrigerator. If on your refrigerator door, you have a tablespoon of ketchup, a tablespoon of mayonnaise, a tablespoon of mustard, and salad dressing on your door, use that product up and refresh with new or don't buy again if it takes you forever to get through something. Maybe you don't need so much of it. Maybe you don't need it at all. And then in your cupboards or your pantry, we all have that box with five whole wheat curlicue pastas just hanging around there in the back. Pull that out, throw it in a soup, put it in a casserole, make use of those items that are down to one serving or less in your weekly meal plan so that you can start off with a good idea of what you have at hand and what you actually need to get at the store. So the very first thing is to shop at home. Cheaper, you've already paid for it, might as well make use of it. The second thing that I advise you to do is to actually use flyers from the grocery stores that you patronize and make a meal plan. These flyers come in the mail, they come in the Sunday paper. If you don't get the paper, maybe you can borrow them from your neighbor and they're always at the grocery store itself. If you don't have time to plan before you get to the grocery store, take a couple of minutes with the flyer, scan through it, get an idea of what they're actually promoting that week and what they have coupons for if you can make use of that. This sale flyer really got me excited, I have to tell you. When I saw the five for $10, I don't normally buy five of something and I wouldn't necessarily buy five of these items, but to think that I could buy a pint of blueberries for $2, very exciting to me. But then again, a pound of butter for $2, that's almost a $2 saving on butter and cabbage cheese, that's a dollar and 50 saving on an eight ounce block of cabbage cheese. That is something that you're not going to find and I advise you if you have it in your budget to bulk up. And what I mean by that is to buy more than just that one bar of cheese buy another bar of cheese and put it in the freezer buy another pound of butter and put it in the freezer. Butter comes back, no problem at all. The cheese from your freezer will grate and be good for layering in macaroni and cheese or layering on top of a sandwich. It's not going to slice as great as a cheese block that hasn't been frozen before a dollar and 50 savings. I think it's worth the effort to maybe use it as a graded product and to have it there waiting for you out of your freezer. So after you've made your meal plan after you know what's in your own home after you know what you necessarily may be presented with on sale at the grocery store make a meal plan for the week. And by that you can be as elaborate as filling in a calendar for all three meals what you're going to have or just a general idea of Monday I'm going to cook a chicken Thursday I'm going to do a roast bread I'm going to make a soup some power other structure your week for the groceries that you're going to buy. If you don't do that you run the chance of a lot of impulse buying and not really having the food products you need at home to execute the meals that you want to eat and you may have to run out again and buy something more or you may have to go without and it is so important that we actually eat. So I'm encouraging you even if it's just in your little head to have some kind of idea of how you're going to be eating throughout the week and what kind of food stuff you need to have on hand to do that. So keep a running list on your refrigerator or your cover door. A running list means that when you're getting low on something put it on the list. If you're completely out of something put it on the list and prioritize it if it's something that you absolutely have to have in your kitchen. When you look at your list if there's high dollar items on your list say you're completely out of meat protein but you're also out of olive oil you necessarily need to budget your food dollars in that way. It shouldn't be that every week you have high dollar items on your grocery list. It should be once in a while but because they do take more monies out of your food budget you want to be aware that they're there and create your meal plan and your food list at the grocery store with that recognition. So shop the perimeter of the store once you arrive at the store. Almost every grocery store is laid out in the same manner and by that I mean you're usually escorted or tunneled into where the produce fruit and vegetables are first. So you'll go through fruit and vegetables then on the back wall there'll be seafood and meat products and then on the next side wall there'll be dairy, eggs and cheese products. So if you're very smart you'll make your list according to that so you're not all over the store and you'll also be able to kind of make the bulk of your purchases from those necessary three places in the store. Those provide food and plants, vegetables and produce, dairy products, meat products, egg products, cheese products. Those are gonna provide for you the necessary supplements that you need to give through your day for a healthy diet. So the side aisles are really just usually extras. I'm not saying we don't go down those side aisles we definitely do, we need tissue paper of course but the most important items and the bulk of your grocery shopping budget should be spent in fruit and produce, dairy aisles, meat aisles, egg and cheese. So let's talk about when we do go down those aisles and are looking at prepared foods. The most highest price prepared food is directly at eye level. So you kinda wanna look up and you kinda wanna look down and you're going to find the generic products or the store products on the lower levels of your count of your aisle. You may have brand favorites so you're not looking, you're just looking straight ahead and going for that brand favorite but I suggest to you if a food budget is something that's worrisome and that's bothersome to you every day and you feel like you're not coming home with enough food that you branch out and trade up and try a generic product or a store item. It's going to be less expensive and it's possibly going to be of the same taste. Shop the season when you're back in fruit and vegetables. Nowadays, there's really no limit to what you can buy in terms of fruit and vegetables. Probably in December, if you absolutely wanted to have fresh cantaloupe you could find fresh cantaloupe somewhere but you're going to pay high dollar for it. So be aware that there are seasons to the produce and fruit coming in and that if you are attuned to that they're going to be the lower priced items and going to be more budget friendly. Like right now, blueberries are inexpensive and fresh blueberries are great. They last a little bit longer than strawberries. They last way longer than raspberries or blackberries. So if blueberries are fruit that you like, a pint is at a reasonable amount of money now and I would suggest it goes into your grocery car. Also leafy greens are inexpensive now. Salad greens are less expensive now but winter squash may not be. So you really have to kind of be aware of that even though the grocery store can present you with everything some things are more in season for them to get and therefore less expensive for you to buy. So try to shop in season. We talked a minute ago about going generic. Almost all of the grocery stores now have their own products on the shelf and they are usually generally less expensive than brand products. For example, these are progresso cannellini beans. They only come in this size. So progresso is a good product. It only is beans and salt and water. When I get these home, I open it up, I rinse them out but there's a lot of beans in this jar or in this can. It's also fairly pricey, progresso beans, progresso soups. This is the store brand which is at a smaller size and could be more usable for one or two people at a time. It's also considerably less expensive. So really they both on their labels if you look at the ingredient list, they both say beans, salt, water, that's it. So it's really difficult to discern the difference between these except for the economic difference between these. I'm not saying that every generic product out there is exactly like the brand name product out there. That's something that a little investigative shopping will do for you. But it is helpful to try generic brands and see what the difference is if it makes any difference for you. These are generic brands of cooking oil and oatmeal. Cooking products are across the board, generic brands are the way to go. There's no reason to pay top dollar for blueberry, not blueberry sorry, for a blue ribbon or a Pillsbury flour when the generic store brand will do for what you're baking. There's no reason to buy clabber girl baking powder when the store brand is exactly almost the same product except that for the packaging and the less expense. So if you are a baker, I'm suggesting for you to try the generic baking products you will really not find there's much difference. Also in oils, this is a generic canola oil, the store brand is PIX, very little difference from a name brand. So really just be open to that pasta, the store brand as opposed to the major manufacturing brand. Major manufacturing brand is paying for that advertising, is paying for that travel for where it's coming from, where the store is able to do it in a much cheaper way and pass those savings on to you. So think about trying generic products throughout there. The other thing that I'd like to speak about as a shopping tip is to buy in bulk and we can speak about that in a couple of different ways. Buying in bulk may mean patronizing a store which actually has large quantities of things either in bins that you scoop out or just you hold a bag and open up the lever and it comes out and you can buy exactly the amount that you need or the amount that you want to take home as opposed to buying a huge package that's already packaged for you and you have no control over how much you have to get. The other thing about buying in bulk that's thoughtful is buying in bulk, possibly you're one small person and you don't need to buy that eight drumstick package but buying bulk in the meats department can really save you big bucks. Just take out what you need when you get home then preserve the rest in your freezer. It's rare that you can just buy a small amount of meat protein unless you're buying from the deli counter or actually from the butcher and those products are always more expensive. I'm not saying that it's definitely a no go thing to do but it's going to be a chunk out of your grocery budget if you decide to buy your meat product or you're seeking product that way. Be aware, look for packaging that maybe is more than you can use at one time but maybe has someone help you do the freezing product, maybe you have a grandchild, maybe you have an attendant that comes and help you buy more than you need package label, pull it out of the freezer next time you need. Also store cards now, almost all stores have cards that give you some value for buying their products especially and also coupons, not every store offers coupons but some stores do. In the flyer that I have here, the coupon that I see that really is exciting to me is this bottom one which is for tuna packed in water for 49 cents a can. Tuna is a really reliable protein product, it's also a seafood that we need more of in our diet, packed in water if you're not getting extra fat and 49 cents a can is really a small amount of money to pay for a protein product that you're going to be able to use. I doubt if you're going to sit down and eat an entire can of tuna so you make it two or three servings out of that can which breaks down the price point even more. So the next one, trying cheaper meat cuts, that's an adventure but most grocery stores now have a section in their meat aisle where meat is close to the expiration date or there are cuts of meat like turkey necks that maybe people are not incredibly familiar with. I would definitely say to check the date but if it's at a reduced price and it's a piece of steak or it's a piece of pork and it's something that you would enjoy having, take it home, use it that day or the next or immediately freeze it. You cannot just put something that's lower priced or discounted into your refrigerator and wait a week's time to use it. It is discounted for a reason. It means it is available and viable and healthy for you to use in the next couple of days. So if you're not going to be able to use it promptly I would suggest freezing it but big food savings can be made by using those cheaper cuts of meat. Also, there are cuts of meat that take a longer time or go immediately into a crop pot like a chuck roast or a cut of pork that maybe like the shoulder or the butt that needs a long slow time to cook. They are relatively inexpensive by the pound and as long as you have the time and maybe the appliance to help you, go for it. Cook it up, shred it, have your niece or nephew or the elementary school kid down the hallway help you shred it up, package it and freeze it, pull it out later and make chili, pull it out later and make tacos, pull it out later and make a stew and use some of it at that point in time but have the rest of it on reserve for a later date and you can really save yourself quite a bit of money in that way. The next tip I have, I personally have a little bit of issue with but it's I'm asking you to cut back on prepared foods. I realize by the time that we become an older adult we don't necessarily want to spend all of our time in the kitchen maybe we don't have the physical wherewithal to do that, maybe we don't have the energy to do that maybe our kitchen is uncomfortable for us to be standing in for that long. So we do buy a lot of prepared product. The problem with buying a lot of prepared product is when you take something from its natural state to the point of being ready for dinner when that's gone along that manufacturing line in every process and step that it has more value for the producer is happening and more cost to you the buyer is happening to win by the time it gets in its glossy shiny package you're paying big dollars. The other thing that can happen with prepared foods is they can have a lot of excess sugar and they can have a lot of excess salt. So I'm instructing you to kind of be a label detective and also to be cognizant of how much of your diet is actually a prepared product as opposed to something that you make yourself or that is a little bit more in a natural state. If every single day you are having a canned soup and a prepared shake out rice or roni dinner you're not getting a lot of fresh and vibrant food into your diet and it could be lacking and it could be boring. So I'm not telling you not to take it easy on yourself and not to use these products just to be aware that they oftentimes have additives that are unhealthy for you and they oftentimes have a much higher price point. So they would take a bulk of your shopping budget to buy them if that's all you're going to eat. I will say that people that I have spoken to have found a lot of success or happiness with Trader Joe's product and I don't necessarily mean to promote that but it oftentimes will be clean of food additives, clean of artificial colors, clean of artificial preservatives. So they do have a lot of items that you can add things to and have a prepared meal. The last item that we're going to talk about and this is a no-brainer and of course there are other tips too but don't go to the grocery store hungry. If you go to the grocery store hungry you are at risk of being an impulse buyer. You are at risk of going through the food bar and nothing against food bars but at $9 a pound you're reaching a pound really quickly and it's going to be maybe just that one meal that might not be enough to stretch to another meal. So just be cognizant that if you go into the grocery store and it takes you 20, 30, 40, however minutes it takes you have something to eat before you go. Have your oatmeal and blueberries before you go. Have your tuna fish sandwich before you go. Have something on your stomach so that when you get there not every bright and colorful thing is screaming your name and especially when you get to the end of checkout and they have all the candies there and they have all the chips and sodas there you don't grab them because you're desperate for something and feel like you're going to fall out. It's much better to have something on your stomach and then be a conscious shopper while you're there relying on your food list, relying on your food plan. So anyway, I hope that's helped you a little bit maneuver through the grocery store. What I'd like to do now is talk about those foods that are going to give you a better bang for your buck and that you want to have generally in your kitchen, refrigerator, freezer, cupboard as a go-to item in your kitchen. So all of these items, and there's like 20 some on this page, all of these items bring with them their own goodness and richness to a senior diet. They all have particular vitamins, minerals, nutritious properties that you necessarily are going to need. Some of them are going to take a little bit of help on your part to get to a finished place but they all are going to bring you food that is frugally cost and that will be good for you in a health way manner. And the first one is, does that good old go-to old-fashioned oats, okay? This is not the microwave kind and this is not the kind that has dehydrated fruit in it. Instant oatmeal, the second item on instant oatmeal generally is sugar. So I really suggest to you to buy good old-fashioned oats. The night before, put your tea kettle on for boiling water over your quantity of oats that you want to have in the morning. In the morning, they're going to be like instant oats. They're going to take no time to cook. Add your teaspoon of maple syrup, add your teaspoon of honey, add your fresh blueberries or your frozen blueberries and enjoy. But save the cost of buying the microwaveable fruited product. Rice is a go-to and rice and lentils make a complete protein on your plate. I'm not advising you to go vegetarian but I am going to say that if you can branch out and be comfortable with cooking vegetarian at least once a week, challenge yourself to do that because the things that drive your budget up are the pricier cuts of meat that maybe are just not that healthy for you anyway. So rice and lentils or rice and a dried bean or a canned bean make a complete protein on your plate. And protein is an important item that we need for our health. Also, eggs used to be incredibly inexpensive for some reason this week, they're not that inexpensive but still comparatively to ground beef or sirloin, they definitely are a cheaper way to go and they're very manipulable. And by that I mean you can use them in omelettes, you can use them parboiled in salads, you can use them for any number of cooking reasons or properties. And also if eggs are on sale, eggs in the shell can be kept in your refrigerator safely for up to six months. That is not a fib, I'm not messing with you here, it's absolutely the truth. Eggs in their shell uncooked raw eggs can last forever. So if they are on sale and you're able to buy a couple dozen and then just parlay them out as you need them. The other thing that's relatively inexpensive and good to have on your shelf are some sorts of pastas. Pastas cook very quick, you can get them in a whole wheat variety now, which I encourage you to try, it has a nutty flavor to it. This is the product that's the store's product, it's not expensive, you could challenge yourself to try white pasta and whole wheat pasta together until you wean off of white pasta and this is going to be healthier for you. It's not very time consuming to play with or mess around with and very enjoyable. And also different types of pastas like the curly Q pastas that we talked about or shell pastas, they're all coming in a whole brain product now. And it's not necessarily more expensive than the white, relatively same price. Another go-to are as far as vegetables go and produce go, sweet potatoes, onions, carrots, bananas and celery. All of these things are usually on the lower cost rungs of produce and fruit. Having them on hand expands what you can do in your kitchen, they're just good go-to items. You don't have to buy an entire dozen of bananas, you can buy two bananas. You don't have to buy a whole thing of carrots in a bag, sometimes carrots come loose and you can buy two or three that you need or if you buy a bag. And this flyer that we were looking at today, $2 for baby carrots, they're already washed, they're already small, you might not even need to cut them if they're going to be cooked. You could validate $2 for a bag of baby carrots by the lack of prep that you have to do if you have whole carrots. If that is something that's an issue for you, prep time, then go for that product that makes it easier for you, but remember to keep the price in mind. We spoke before about canned tuna and salmon and excellent prepared go-to product that you don't have to do anything to and you can add it to rice, you can add it to pasta, you can make it into a healthy salad, but really they have the omega-3 fats in them already which are good for our brain growth. They're very helpful to have on hand and at 49 cents a can, $2 would give you four cans. How many meals? That's a lot of meals and something to have on reserve. Chicken thighs are also a go-to as far as in the meat department. I know the skinless, boneless breast is really easy to deal with and enjoy, but the skinless, boneless breast is also expensive because the butcher has taken the skin off, has taken the bone out, so sometimes make a choice for yourself to go with something that's a little bit less manipulated by the butcher and you deal with the skin and the bone. Chicken thighs are relatively inexpensive, they do come in that bulk packaging so that you can take out what you need and freeze the rest. Or better than that, if you like to be in the kitchen, buy a whole chicken, price per pound, that is going to be your best buy and if you have help at home, once that chicken is roasted and cooked, you have someone help you break it down, then you have the bones for chicken stock and you have bone breast meat, thigh meat, chicken salad, breast meat for on top of rice or pasta. It really is the best way to go, but like I said, if you're not wanting to spend all day in the kitchen dealing with a roast chicken, I would go with chicken thighs. They're better for you, they're darker and they're less expensive than the drumsticks. You get more meat. As far as steak cuts go, the chuck roast is really inexpensive, the chuck roast does need a long period of time to cook, to make it nice and tender and where you can just flake it with a fork, but that's where when they ask you what you need for Christmas and you don't have a slow cooker, you say I need a slow cooker and you pop that chuck roast in that with a couple onions, a couple pieces of celery or carrot, put the lid on, do the timing according to the instructions of the little cooker and walk away and let it do its thing and it doesn't heat up your kitchen like the oven does and it's all contained in there. You can pull off the azju from the roast and have that and then you can have the roast for many meals. I hope that's been helpful. Anyway, I hope maybe that you've been able to learn a couple new things and a couple two go-tos. I do want to challenge you to kind of explore, explore generic products, explore vegetarian meals, explore different ways of eating that will kind of free up your budget for more fun fruit or more fun things that you enjoy that you want to have. Not saying that you should be necessarily strict and narrow with what you're eating but be strict and narrow with your budget so that you have what you want to eat at home for when you want to eat it. Thanks for joining us today at Hands in the Kitchen.