10 ways to push your weekly budget further
Here's some tips on how to make your shopping budget go further with a double-pronged (or forked, if you will) attack of wise spending and utilising leftovers.
As superannuation fund Equip notes, “Once you have a better understanding of your spending, and have identified ways to put a little extra aside, you can start to make some long term plans. You might be able to put that money towards a home deposit, a share portfolio, or even contribute a little extra to your super.”
1. Supermarket specials
A tricky one, as sometimes offers tempt you to purchase something you didn't even want, or need. Step back and assess if it'll make a worthy addition to your cupboard, and how much you're actually saving.
2. Buy high volume
One of the oldest tricks in the book - bulk purchases on everything from sacks of potatoes (we'll come back to that later) to fresh pots of herbs over the cut-and-packaged stuff will make your dollars go further.
3. Cook more than you need
Whip up multiple portions so you take some in for lunch the next day, or freeze for later.
4. Chicken
You can get a lot out of whole chicken, so roasting one up and using the flesh for sandwiches, soups, salads and pasta dishes makes a lot of economic sense. Or, most supermarkets stock cheap roast chickens available to buy. Better yet, find the times where they’re selling them for discounted prices.
5. Potatoes
These humble spuds can be given a second wind by being fried up as hash browns; rolled into croquettes; or grated down into tasty latkes. You can even regrow your 'taters from the peelings - and it's not the only thing this trick works on...
6. Vegetable scraps
It's true that many vegetables can be regenerated from roots, seeds and peel. Many of which require in-home watering before moving to soil, so if you have a garden or sunny window sill, it might be worth becoming an amateur gardener.
7. Coffee
Everyone knows that caffeine is practically magic, and you can use the grounds as compost to help grow these aforementioned salvageable scraps. While we're here, the dregs can be used for a multitude of hacks - from homemade candles to hairdye.
8. Tea
If you're more into tea than coffee, try re-brewing your leaves. Oolong, green and white tea can all be brewed at least a few times, and while Pu-Erh costs a bit more than average (about $17 for 100g from T2), it's worth investing in as this blend can provide multiple cuppas.
9. Fast food (no, really)
Not a suggestion, as such, more of an attempt at redemption. If you find you've given in to a cheeky takeaway, you can still use those tricky-to-use leftovers. Your leftover fries can be cooked into a french fry frittata, or put into a waffle iron for some makeshift snacks. Also, if you're more likely to be tempted by a restaurant meal than a sinful serving of junk food, embrace the culture of the doggy bags.
10. The weekly shop
Suss out your local area and see if there's a weekly fruit and veg market (if you've not done so already), as you can usually pick up groceries for far less than the supermarket chains.