One Week Meal Plan - Example Menu for Planning A Week Of Meals For One

Food Buying Guide

Where to Shop?

Large supermarkets provide larger selections and lower prices than most small neighborhood stores. Read the newspaper or local shopper for specials and shop where there are bargains.

What to Buy?

Try to plan menus for a week at a time.

Make a list of items you need to prepare the meals you planned.

Buy just what you can use without waste.

Keep in mind the amount and kinds of food storage space available.

How to Buy?

Groceries

1. Choose foods that fit your budget. Check the unit price markers posted on the shelf near the food item. Choose the lower priced items.

2. Avoid buying expensive convenience items, such as frozen vegetables in a sauce.

3. Buy fresh fruits and vegetables when they are in season. They cost less.

4. Buy frozen foods that are frozen solid and sealed.

5. Do not buy canned foods that are badly dented, leaking or bulging at the ends. Do not buy packages on which the seal has been broken.

6. Read the expiration dates on packaged products and purchase food that you can use within that date.

Meats

1. Save money by purchasing economical large cuts of meat. Then cut and freeze them in individual serving-size portions.

2. Remember that eggs and cheese are inexpensive substitutes for meat.

3. Cuts of meat high in bone, fat or gristle are often expensive sources of lean meat, even if they are priced low. Some higher priced boneless cuts are better buys because they have little waste.

Therefore, consider the cost per serving rather than the cost per pound. Cost per edible portion is what counts.

Meat Yield

Number Servings Meat

Per pound

4 Beef for stew, ground beef, cubed steak

3 Tip and boneless rump roasts. Round, top loin and rib eye steaks

2 - 3 Sirloin steak, Boneless chuck roasts

2 Arm and blade pot roasts

1-2 Short ribs

Determine the cost per serving by dividing the price per pound by the number or servings per pound the cut will provide.