Leaf frog or stair step.

One kitchen management or quick cooking tool is to leap frog or stair step your meals.   It's an age old trick.    This week, we are having tacos, rice and non-fried refried beans.   We are also having sliced chicken and rice soup.   I can save some of the rice and some ofmthemoeooers from the beans and use  them in the soup.   We are also having a rox medley or pilaf  if you want to be fancy.   Rice and beans have a three day fridge life.   That might be pushing it.   Rice in the rice cooker is a no brainer.   Not fried - refried beans, not so much. Spicy  chicken soup is from taste of home.    Many times you can google it for the recipe.  

Stair stepping or leap frogging is when you save something from one nights dinner and use it for th mn still nights dinner,  it especially is good if you have a small family and need to use up a whole can of something.   Or you can cook once and ise it twice , as in rice or beans.  

It took me a long time to get the refried bean recipe down to 1 cup of beans,   It's just the right amount for a quart deli tub of product.   There are four of us for anything that is vegetable based.  

Just another way to save time and money.


Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from  a different perspectives. 

The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food  for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until they goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you  use  on a weekly basis. 

This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week. 
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level. 

You often are paying 1/2 price for your food.   This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget.   You spend more time on the 
locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen )by
cooking more efficiently. It also means when payday comes, you still have food in the pantry.   

 Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending