Instructions

1. Clean out your pantry. Only put back what isn't expired. Cook your way through your pantry or donate the food you know you won't use. This will help you not over shop going forward and you will have a nice, clean pantry to start with.
2. Shop at a bare bones market like WinCo or Aldi. They pass the savings on to you through lower prices than your neighborhood market.
3. Learn to cook from scratch. Processed and convenience foods are much more expensive than cooking from scratch. With over 3 million food bloggers and Pinterest, there has never been an easier time to cook from scratch. Chances are you will eat healthier too.
4. Grow your own herbs. When you start cooking from scratch you will appreciate not having to buy fresh herbs.
5. Shop online and pick up at the store. This cuts down on impulse buying and you can see the savings before you enter your payment.
6. Eat leftovers for lunch. It will be much better for you than your works cafeteria plus you will save quite a bit of money.
7. Go vegetarian for a meal or two per week. Meat is expensive.
8. Buy generic groceries instead of name brand. Shop in the bulk aisle. This is much cheaper than buying name brand pre-packaged food.
9. Only buy meat when it's on sale and stock up. Don't forget to stock up on boneless, skinless chicken thighs which is much cheaper than chicken breast and tastier too.
10. Skip pre-packaged individual snacks.
11. Look down. The cheaper food is not at eye level.
12. Shop alone. Leave the grandkids or your impulse shopping partner at home.
13. Gather some cheap recipes for your arsenal. Use recipe searches like Pinterest, Foodgawker or Google. Search for recipes using the cheap stuff in the bulk aisle.