Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Beyond the Coupon: Other Money Saving Methods

So as I mentioned, coupons are still new and somewhat scary for Jared and I. But saving money is something that we've been trying to do for a while now, and have come up with a few things that have enabled us to still enjoy quality meals for a little less than what we're used to spending. For the most part, this involves large chunks of meat and a sharp knife.
For starters, it helps that Jared has an affinity for slicing steaks and dismembering chickens. So we started buying whole chickens, which frequently go on sale for like, $6-$7 a piece. We always buy 2. We take the first chicken and roast it off- roasted chicken is perhaps one of my most favorite foods. We eat what we want, and then shred the rest of the meat. We portion it out into about 3-4 bags and freeze it to be used later for chicken soup, stir fry, etc. Then we (by we I mean Jared) butchers the other chicken and we freeze the parts to roast/cook later. This mainly started due to my pure hatred of boneless chicken breast, which is seemingly always on sale, but does not taste better even having paid very little for it.
We moved on from chicken to pork, having found a full pork loin at Costco for like, $18. We got 2 roasts and nearly 16 chops from the loin. Cutting it yourself also allows for customized portions. 2 people don't need a roast that can feed an army. Also, different thicknesses of chops allow for different cooking methods, so we cut some thicker ones for stuffing and some thinner ones for frying.
Lastly, while we were at my parents' for the holidays, we were informed that meat prices are way way lower up in the great north. This allowed us to purchase a beautiful piece of beef for about $50. Seems pricey- sure. But we got about 8 gorgeous steaks out of it, plus a roast and some strips of meat for sandwiches, stir fry, etc.
Now I know this idea isn't rocket science; but its a start. As I said, it's actually something that we enjoy doing, and if we can save money while we're at it, then all the better.

Let me segway from that quickly to ask a quick question before I hit the hay. Does anyone know where to find some perhaps "rarer" coupons for perhaps some healthier items? As I mentioned in the first post, we're not the Hamburger Helper type and are having trouble finding coupons that pertain to us. So, suggestions welcome!

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