Money saved by cooking (or not)

[Anonymous]

How much money do you save cooking fresh meals versus getting prepared foods from places like Trader Joe's?

[Anonymous]

We are a small family - only 3 - so we don't really save that much by cooking honestly. Sometimes it is cheaper for us to get take out and then spread out left overs for a couple days

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are a small family - only 3 - so we don't really save that much by cooking honestly. Sometimes it is cheaper for us to get take out and then spread out left overs for a couple days

Ugh yeah my husband and I were just talking about this! It's us and a toddler and I kind of feel the same way. I feel like when I try to plan and make actual meals we end up wasting half of the ingredients anyways (...could be related to my poor meal-planning abilities, I know)

[Anonymous]

I feel this way, too. If we're making food out of what we already have - spaghetti and sauce with veggies thrown in, or something like that - then yeah it's cheap. But if we have to buy ingredients? I think takeout is basically about the same - especially considering I generally get two meals out of one takeout order.

We are two adults, no kids.

[Anonymous]

I guess it depends on what you're getting for take out. We tend to order from more expensive places so a take out order could be $50 (for 3-4 people). There's no way that buying raw ingredients would cost $50.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How much money do you save cooking fresh meals versus getting prepared foods from places like Trader Joe's?

I am more concerned about the added fat and salt in prepared foods, so I cook. We will be a family of two come September so we shall see how much I end up cooking. We may start getting take away more frequently from some of the salad places that have proliferated near us.

[Anonymous]

Cooking is cheaper if you stock your fridge and pantry well. I don't like to meal plan, I just stock up on what's on sale. I only buy halal meat (my butcher is a 30-min drive away), so I go once every month or two and stock up. I buy fruits and veg based on what is on sale each week.

On days I have time to cook, I can mentally plan the meal based on the ingredients I know I have in the pantry. Lately I've been on a kick to save money, so I'm really stretching my creativity with what I have on hand.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How much money do you save cooking fresh meals versus getting prepared foods from places like Trader Joe's?

depends on how much your time is worth

[Anonymous]

Unless we do carry out like Crisp and Juicy (family meal of a whole chicken and three sides for $20), we spend about $40-$50 as a family of three if we go out to a restaurant. Our child eats like an adult. In contrast, we shop once a week (aside from a few small trips here and there) and spend between $150-$200. This is for breakfast, lunches (no one buys lunch), dinner, and snacks. Three to four meals out for us is our entirely grocery budget.

We also don't eat or buy a ton of meat, and when we do eat meat, we don't eat a pound of something in one meal - we divide up a pound of ground turkey for two meals, for example, or use three large chicken breasts for two meals.

We also buy nearly all organic everything, so what we spend could be cut even further if you dont' care about that stuff.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I guess it depends on what you're getting for take out. We tend to order from more expensive places so a take out order could be $50 (for 3-4 people). There's no way that buying raw ingredients would cost $50.

We do take out a lot but try to keep it under 25/meal.

[Anonymous]

I don't really save anything, it's more a matter of getting healthier/fresher/less processed meals.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I guess it depends on what you're getting for take out. We tend to order from more expensive places so a take out order could be $50 (for 3-4 people). There's no way that buying raw ingredients would cost $50.

We do take out a lot but try to keep it under 25/meal.

+1. When I do cook, I feel like its a thankless job and no one wants to help clean up. No thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I guess it depends on what you're getting for take out. We tend to order from more expensive places so a take out order could be $50 (for 3-4 people). There's no way that buying raw ingredients would cost $50.

We do take out a lot but try to keep it under 25/meal.

+1. When I do cook, I feel like its a thankless job and no one wants to help clean up. No thanks.

I care more about what I put in my body. And who cares what no one wants to do. We clean up after ourselves. It's a basic life skill.

[Anonymous]

Less about the money and more about knowing what I'm eating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I guess it depends on what you're getting for take out. We tend to order from more expensive places so a take out order could be $50 (for 3-4 people). There's no way that buying raw ingredients would cost $50.

We do take out a lot but try to keep it under 25/meal.

+1. When I do cook, I feel like its a thankless job and no one wants to help clean up. No thanks.

I care more about what I put in my body. And who cares what no one wants to do. We clean up after ourselves. It's a basic life skill.

more power to you