Grocery Shopping Tips for College Students

If you’ve finally left the dorms, or simply need a change from your dining hall’s culinary fair, learning to shop and cook for yourself is a rewarding step that increases your independence as a young adult. Not only will you be more self-sufficient, but through a little trial and error in the kitchen, you’ll discover your personal preferences regarding food and learn how to be more creative with your meals.

Of course, some of you have grown up cooking, perhaps learning from a relative or friend. However, now that you’re out on your own, you have more freedom to develop a cooking style that is distinctly you. If nothing else, you’ll ensure that you won’t starve. Nor will you ever have to rely on cafeteria food again.

We’ve previously covered the topic of healthy breakfast recipes as well as lunch recipes. Now, in order to help you expand your culinary sensibilities even further, here are some grocery tips that will help you shop for better quality ingredients, while saving you money.

Grocery Shopping Tips

Before you gather supplies for future recipes, keep the following grocery shopping tips in mind to maximize your shopping trip:

• Avoid grocery shopping when you’re hungry, you’d be surprised how susceptible you’re to impulse buying when your stomach is grumbling.
• Always make a list of ingredients before you head to the store. Otherwise, it’s easy to forget an item or make unnecessary purchases.
• If you can, plan a week’s worth of meals in advance and get everything you need for that meal plan in one trip. This will save you gas money over time and will ensure that you stick to your grocery budget. The exception is making extra trips to get fresh ingredients, like fruits and vegetables, throughout the week. As these ingredients will spoil more quickly than shelf staples.
• When buying processed food, look for items with fewer ingredients. The more ingredients listed on product labels, the more likely an item is to be packed with sodium and preservatives, which are generally less healthy for you. If you can, search for canned items that have little to no added salt.
• Make the most out of your ingredients. While it can be exciting to try out every new item you see, tailor your recipes so that they all incorporate similar ingredients. By preparing meals that share ingredients, you’re able to buy staple items in bulk, which saves you money in the long run. You also spend less on novelty ingredients that you’ll only use once or twice.
• Learn how to substitute ingredients. While certain items, like coconut shavings, are more unique and have few, if any, rival products, there are times when it’s better to swap a pricey ingredient for a cheaper substitute. For example, if your lasagna recipe calls for ricotta cheese, try using cottage cheese instead. Odds are, you won’t be able to tell the difference. Additionally, if you don’t want to buy a whole carton of eggs for a recipe that calls for only two, you can replace eggs with mashed bananas in most baked goods.

For more tips and information, check out the blog for up to date news on college apartment living.

Do you have any grocery shopping tips of your own? Let us know about them in the comment section below.