by Laurie Childree

Created on: September 12, 2009   Last Updated: June 26, 2010

When it comes to planning meals on a budget you have to be careful. Just because you have to limit the amount you spend on groceries doesn't mean that you can't have the foods you enjoy. You may just have to decide that these things are going to be treats instead of a day to day item on the menu.

 Portions

There have to be portions used in order to make sure everyone eats. A family of three is rather small and it just takes a minute to plan for them but when you have six people it takes a bit longer to plan a week's worth of meals. When most people think of meals they think of meat, vegetables and desserts. So we'll use that as a basic guide. 

 A Rough Menu

Whether you have three meals a day as a family or just one you still have to buy for all three of the meals during the day. While you may not be able to get an exact menu for each meal you can get a rough idea. Keeping in mind that there are something that only one or two members of the family will eat and avoiding the frozen food section of the store will help you to stay within your budget. 

 Back to Basics

There are somethings that can be made from scratch and frozen to cook later such as biscuits and dumplings. When you make biscuit mix you can make extra and freeze them to put in the oven when you're making a meal later in the week. There are a lot of things that you can double or triple the recipe for in order to have meals later into the week and it's easy to fit them into your budget. 

A Look At Packaging

When you go grocery shopping remember that the large family sizes are usually cheaper than the individual serving sizes that you purchase. Keeping this in mind when you purchase your meats for the week will go a long way in ensuring meals are planned on a budget. It works out better to buy large packages of things such as pork chops and hamburger than to buy the small convenience sizes. Once you get home you can portion them out into several meals for the week or even the month depending on the size of the package.

 Vegetables

Vegetables are usually cheaper frozen unless you have a local farmer's market. Fresh vegetables can be gotten at the local farmers market at a lot lower costs than most grocery stores. Making a meal of just vegetables every now and then can save you more money. When you limit the meals and some of the snacks to vegetables you're saving money by not having the expense of the meat.

Compare Pricing

Check your local store circulars to compare the prices before you go shopping. This will help you find the lowest prices before you leave the house. You can gather coupons to match the sales, taking advantage of double coupon days in combination with the sales will save you more money. 

Leftovers

Don't be afraid to eat leftovers. If you have a meal for dinner one night it doesn't mean that you can't have it for lunch the next day too. There are some leftovers such as chicken, rice or potatoes that can be incorporated into new meals for the family. This will save you time and effort. There are a dozen things that you can do to ensure you're not skipping meals and still feed a large family on a budget.

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