You must be willing to travel for a good deal. It’s true!
Good luck to everyone participating, I hope that you all take something from this project.

This is what i do:

Shop your grocery ads every week. When something is on sale, like protein products, buy as much as you can afford on sale. Remember that a pork tenderloin can be cut into chops, or made into a roast. Versatile cuts of meat are good to have. You could even get that cubed round steak for very inexpensive, , you can make your own ground beef out of it. Not great for burgers, but fine for meat sauces and meatballs, or any recipe that calls for ground meat.

Divide your sale protein products into meal portions (a good guideline I use is about 1/4 pound max per person, whether that be for 2 or for 10) and freeze them. You can freeze just about anything these days, even eggs. Just crack them, beat them, and freeze in individual freezer bags. About 2 tablespoons of beaten egg equals one large egg. Thaw them in the refrigerator for a day before use.

SHOP LOCAL PRODUCE!! There are a few in our area that are open year round. As long as you don’t have any hangups about dents or dimples on your fruit and veg, you can get A TON of produce for a much lower price than the grocery store. Just make sure not to buy more than a week at a time, as produce from these discount stands don’t tend to last longer than that.

DON’T BE SCARED to shop at Ethnic Markets!! Some Asian and Mexican grocer’s have amazing deals on proteins and staples like oil, vinegar, and sauces, and ALSO sport good prices on produce (although produce stands tend to be lower)

My biggest advice is to discover your local Food Outlets… While they do not carry tons of selection on stuff, they have GREAT deals on canned and frozen food, and often carry many organic products.

Also, try going at least one, even 2 days a week MEATLESS. Learn to love things like beans, tofu, whole grain pastas and rice.(yes, you can afford whole grain on a budget!) With the amount of veggies you will have on hand, there are a lot of possibilities for delicious, satisfying meals.

These are some good general guidelines, and although you wont be able to afford Filet Mignon, you will be a able to provide yourself and your family with well balanced meals.