I finally saw my grocery bill drop after a cashier's offhand comment.

I was at the store last Tuesday and the cashier, an older lady, saw my cart and said, 'You know, buying the big bag of rice and the whole chicken saves me nearly $30 a month.' I'd always bought the small packs and pre-cut parts. That weekend, I bought a 10-pound bag of rice and a whole chicken to break down myself. My receipt was $22 less than usual for the same amount of food. Has anyone else had a simple switch like that make a real dent?

3 comments

3 Comments

charlesanderson16d ago

Totally, that's a game changer. I started buying blocks of cheese to shred myself and it's way cheaper than the bags. Feels dumb how long I was overpaying for convenience.

brooke47515d ago

The anti-caking powder they put in bagged shreds messes with how it melts, too. Tried making a simple cheese sauce with pre-shredded stuff once and it turned out grainy and weird. A block of cheddar melts smooth and creamy every single time. That alone is worth the extra two minutes with a box grater.

morgan91515d ago

Okay but how much of that weird graininess is the powder and how much is just the cheese itself being older and drier? I've heard the pre-shred stuff sits around way longer before it gets bagged. So you're getting a worse product AND paying extra for the stuff that ruins the melt. It feels like a total scam once you know.