Family Grocery Haul: What I Buy, How I Plan & How I Save on Groceries

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Grocery shopping for a family can feel like a full-time job sometimes. Especially when you have growing kids who seem to be hungry about five minutes after you just fed them.

Over the years, I’ve learned that the best way to save money on groceries is simply to have plan.

I check what we already have, think through the meals I want to make, stock up on things when they’re on sale, and try to be intentional about where I’m spending our grocery money.

I originally wrote this post to share one of our family’s grocery hauls and weekly meal plan. I’m keeping that original haul below because I think it’s still helpful to see what a real grocery trip looked like ( and still does for the most part) for our family.

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How I Plan Our Family’s Groceries

I still shop the same way though…I don’t start my grocery list by opening the grocery store app and looking at what’s on sale. I start at home.

Before going shopping, I look through the fridge, freezer, and pantry and see what we already have. It sounds simple, but it can make a big difference.

There have been many times I’ve started making a grocery list only to realize I already have a lot of what I need sitting in the freezer or pantry.

I usually think through:

• What meat do we already have?
• What produce needs to be used?
• What our schedule looks like for the week.
• What pantry staples are running low?
• What meals can I make with what we already have?
• Is there anything worth buying extra of because it’s on sale?

The goal is simply to buy what our family will actually use.

Our Family Budget

For reference we are a one income family of five: two adults, two college age boys, and an elementary school age boy. Our grocery budget is $250/week. That number includes all household supplies, toiletries, chicken feed, etc.

HOWEVER, the year after Covid we decided to purchase half a steer from a local farmer to fill the freezer. It was an upfront cost but it was well worth it, and I truly feel like it has saved us a lot of money.

We try to eat healthy and buy organic as much as possible . Not all the time, but the effort is definitely made. Sourcing food from other places besides the grocery store has been a high priority of mine since covid.

Besides getting our beef from a local farm, we also buy two gallons of milk from a local dairy farm every week, receive an order of organic fruit and veggies once or twice a month from Misfits Market (especially during summer when the boys are home a lot), order bulk grains from Azure Standard, and we got backyard chickens a couple of years ago so we have fresh eggs all summer and fall.

The only thing from the above list not included in the $250 weekly budget is the beef, everything else comes out of that amount.

Build Your Grocery List Around Meals

One of the easiest ways I’ve found to avoid buying a bunch of random groceries is to think about meals first. And I don’t necessarily plan a completely different meal for every single day.

Breakfasts and lunches can repeat, and I am perfectly happy with leftovers making an appearance more than once.

For example, a week might look something like this:

Breakfasts:

• Eggs
• Oatmeal with fruit
• Sourdough pancakes

Lunches:

• Leftovers
• Tuna salad
• Grilled cheese and fruit
• Sandwiches

Dinners:

• Tacos
• Burrito bowls
• Pasta with meat sauce
• Homemade pizza
• Mexican Tostades
• Meatloaf

The exact meals change depending on what we have on hand.

What I Always Try to Keep in the Pantry

Having a few basic staples on hand makes grocery shopping so much easier.

Pantry Staples

Depending on what your family eats, this might include:

• Rice
• Beans
• Oats
• Pasta
• Flour
• Canned tomatoes
• Marinara sauce
• Tuna
• Peanut butter
• Spices and seasonings
• Cooking oils
• Broth
• Baking staples

I don’t necessarily buy all of these every week but that’s the point. When something runs low, it goes on the grocery list. When I find a good sale on something we use regularly, I buy extra.

Don’t Forget the Freezer

Our freezer has always been an important part of how I grocery shop. We have purchased beef in bulk from a local farmer, which means I don’t have to buy meat every time I go to the grocery store.

Having meat already in the freezer changes the way I meal plan. Instead of thinking, What meat do I need to buy this week? I can start with, What do I already have?

The same idea works on a smaller scale even if you don’t have a large freezer. If chicken is on sale and you know your family will eat it, buying a little extra and freezing it can save you money later.

The key is to only stock up on things you already know your family will use.

Buy in Bulk When It Makes Sense

I’m a big fan of buying some foods in larger quantities, but I don’t think buying everything in bulk is automatically cheaper.

Some foods make sense to buy in bulk because we use them on a weekly basis or because I can store them properly. For us, that might mean things like:

• Meat
• Rice
• Oats
• Flour or wheat berries to grind our own flour
• Beans
• Other pantry staples
• Or anything you can freeze for later

I just try to pay attention to what is on sale.

Shop Your Pantry and Freezer Before You Shop the Store

This is probably one of my favorite grocery-saving habits. Before heading to the store, shop your own kitchen first.

Take a quick look through the freezer and pantry. You might find:

• A package of meat you forgot about
• A bag of rice
• Pasta that needs to be used
• Frozen vegetables
• Canned goods
• Ingredients for a meal you hadn’t thought about making

It sounds almost too simple, but it keeps food from sitting around unused and helps me avoid buying something we already have.

A Real-Life Family Grocery Haul

I’m leaving the original haul here because I think the actual list of foods is still useful and gives you a peek at how I was shopping and meal planning for our family at the time. Which is basically still the same today with the exception of I shredd my own cheese now I I buy organic sourdough bread or bake my own.

• 1 Lb Deli sliced pepperoni
• 2 loaves of bread
• Corn tortillas
• 2 queso fresco
• Organic heavy whipping cream for my coffee
• 18 ct eggs
• 5 bags of shredded cheese. I got extra bags to keep in the freezer because it was on sale.
• 2 cans of tuna
• 1 jar of pickles
• Box of larabars
• Organic oatmeal
• Organic marinara sauce
• Butter
• Organic mushrooms
• Organic apples
• Watermelon
• Clementines
• 2 roma tomatoes
• Organic sweet potatoes
• 4 avocados
• Bananas
• 2 lbs of kiwis
• Dr. Bronner’s castile soap

The Meal Plan From This Family Grocery Haul

Here’s what I planned to make with the groceries I bought, along with ingredients I already had at home.

Breakfasts:

• Oatmeal with fruit
• Sourdough pancakes
• Eggs

Lunches:

• Left overs
• Grilled cheese sandwiches
• Tuna salad

Dinners:

• Pasta with meat sauce
• Burrito bowls
• Pulled pork sandwiches with sweet potatoes
• Sourdough pizzas
• Tacos.

What I Already Had on Hand For These Meals:

• All the meat needed
• Sourdough starter for pancakes and pizzas
• Buns for pulled pork sandwiches
• Rice and beans for burrito bowls
• Pasta

Every week looks different. I usually don’t buy ten pounds of cheese in one grocery haul, but at least now I won’t have to buy cheese for quite a while. That my friends is probably the best way to save on groceries, when something is on sale STOCK UP!

Grocery Shopping Is Not Going To Look The Same For Everyone

After all these years of feeding a family, I’ve learned that there really isn’t one perfect way to grocery shop. Some weeks I have a great plan.

Other weeks we’re eating leftovers, throwing together something from the freezer, and calling it good.

Some weeks the grocery bill is higher because we’re stocking up.

Other weeks I barely need to buy anything because the pantry and freezer are already full. That’s normal.

The goal isn’t to stick to someone else’s perfect grocery budget. It’s simply to be intentional with what you’re buying, use what you already have, and feed your family well with the resources you’ve been given.

And if you have growing kids in your house, remember this:

There is no shame in buying a lot of groceries. They’re probably going to eat all of it. 😂

From my home to yours,

Suani

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