10 Easy Ways to Save Money in the Kitchen

Lizzy
by Lizzy

If you are looking to be more frugal, I got you. Here are 10 great ways to save money in the kitchen that I personally use in my house. Let’s get started!


Reusing packaging

1. Reuse packaging

We have so much packaging with items we buy, and it does not take very long to fill up the recycling bin. So what we try and do is reuse as much of the packaging as we can.


Snack containers can be reused, especially ones with dividers: put fruit on one side and dip in the other. Jars are an obvious one, too: you can make your own pickles, just make sure to sterilize the jars properly. We use takeaway tubs to hold little condiment packages.


You can use ice cream tubs or margarine tubs as the little lunch boxes. Alternatively, put them in your fridge to isolate smelly items like boiled eggs. We also reuse plastic bags for packed lunches and such.


2. Sparkling genius

A Marigold crystal clear cloth will save you any kind of glass cleaner. All you have to do is wet them with hot water, clean your window, and they are left smear-free and mark-free. No other cleaning product is needed. It has little rubber nodules on it for cleaning and after a couple of uses it goes in the washing machine. You can get that on eBay.


3. Leftover coffee

If you have a little bit of leftover black coffee or you have run out of milk, you can make tiramisu overnight oats. Pour your leftover black coffee onto your raw oats and half a teaspoon of sugar, stir it up, and leave overnight in the fridge.


By the morning, the oats will have soaked up all the coffee and the sweetness and have taken on the flavor. You can serve it cold with a spoonful of yogurt or a sliced banana, or you can warm it up in the microwave and make a full porridge with it.


It really is a good way to save leftover coffee and it is a really cheap breakfast.

 

4. Pump up the dispenser

Decant your dishwashing liquid and your hand soap into smaller pump dispensers. Thanks to the pump, you will be using less product each time, making it last longer. This is one of the simplest ideas on how to save money in the kitchen.

Using scourers to clean

5. Scour power

The best scourers are Wilko’s stainless steel scourers. Those last forever and will clean even the most stubborn stains with just a little bit of dishwashing liquid.


ASDA sponge scourers are also fantastic: you put the dishwashing liquid directly onto the sponge. You can put those in the washing machine and reuse them again and again till they fall apart.


We use them for the first time for pots and in the kitchen, and when they are a bit shabby already, we use them to clean the corners of the kitchen floors.

 

6. Hydrogen peroxide

This is a cheap item, which is a must-have in the medicine basket as well as the kitchen. It is a mild disinfectant, and it has so many uses.


Probably one of my favorite uses for it in the kitchen would be as a stain remover. It removes black markers, and is great for removing grease spots, but, most importantly, it is the best for removing blood from clothing or fabrics or carpets.


You pour a little onto the stain, watch it break down the blood, and then just wash the item in water.

 

7. Cheaper cooking

If you are looking for tips on how to save money and energy in the kitchen, I want to share two of my very favorite items to have in the kitchen. One is the slow cooker crock-pot. You can cook so many meals with such a small amount of energy in these.


The second one is a thermos flask. When we boil water, we keep the water we do not use right away in the thermos. Then we can make a new pot of tea. Thermoses are great for saving hot water or keeping food warm if you have a food thermos.

 

8. Diluting

As you know, you can make anything last a little bit longer by diluting it with water. It is the same with condiments. If there is a little bit of tomato ketchup or mayonnaise at the bottom of the tub or the bottle and you cannot get it out, you can add a little bit of water, shake it around and it will come out a lot easier.


Moreover, you can also dilute most things with vinegar to get that last bit out or actually double the amount you have.

Making syrup out of foraged rosehips

9. Foraging goodies

In November, my favorite to go foraging for is rose hips. Rosehip syrup is a sweet-flavored drink, great for vitamin C. Making it can be quite time-consuming and use a lot of energy, but I have a simpler way to make it.


You just get your rosehips, add in a bag of sugar, shake the jar well, and leave for a couple of months, so the sugar starts taking. You do have to be a bit patient, but this is a great way to save a little taste of the fall’s warmth for January-February. It goes great with vodka, too.

 

10. Buy local, buy direct

The media is currently telling us that there is an egg shortage in supermarkets due to avian flu. However, my local farmer who supplies eggs and meat cannot sell his eggs to the supermarkets anymore because he would be selling them at a loss.


The supermarkets have put the prices up for the consumer, but not for the farmer. So, buy local and buy direct when you can.


Ways to save money in the kitchen

What are your ideas to save money in the kitchen? Do you do something a little bit different? Have you got any other ideas for leftover coffee, leftover tea, or leftover anything? Leave a comment below!

Comments
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 2 comments
  • Leslie Wilson Leslie Wilson on Apr 08, 2023

    People don't shop at home before you go to the store. Every area store that has a weekly paper AD is online & I find the specials & make a list. I deflate what you call inflation. Wake up America, ask grandma how she made ends meet.

  • Barbara Hill Barbara Hill on Apr 11, 2023

    Freeze leftover coffee in ice trays: Make iced coffee

    Use to flavor meats(especially if you're doing BBQ of some type)

    Use to water acidic loving plants and flowers.


    Save to go containers to send leftovers home with a guest.


    Crockpots and Insta pots are life savers when it comes to time consumption (along with electricity consumption). We do lots of our meals in them.


    If you buy a lot of sliced deli style ham, look for the big cans of ham nearby and ask the meat department to slice it for you. They'll slice it in whatever thickness level you want. You also do this with pork loin racks and any other large section of meat.


    Always check the item price against the unit price. Sometimes it's cheaper to buy the smaller size.


    Save any pasta water to water plants and flowers.


    Save milk or water bottles/jugs to use as mini greenhouses for starting out your seeds. Then just cut off the top part when the plant gets big enough or transplant to a pot or garden.




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