Thought I'd share some of my own tips:
1. If you don't know how to - learn to cook stuff from scratch. There's money to save there. Having said that - it's not always true. I know here in Sweden right now, it's cheaper to buy frozen meat balls than getting the ground beef and make them yourself. Crazy! Healthier probably to make your own, but there you have to decide. But - most of the time it's cheaper to make things from scratch - if you have the time.
2. And talking about time. If you know you haven't got much time to cook on week days - set aside a couple of hours on a day when you have time and prepare food. It's great to have prepared meals in the freezer on a busy day. That way you won't have to get a pizza cuz you're stressed.
3. Make a list of your go-to-food. This way you always have that list to fall back on when you run out of ideas. Every meal doesn't have to be a new spectacular experience - basic mac'n'cheese or something quick and easy will make you just as full.
4. Compare prices. ALL THE TIME. Compare stores - easier now that you can google most stuff.
5. Eat your leftovers. This is something I've had to teach myself. I'm not a fan of re-heated food, but hey, I'm not a millionaire. We ususally eat the leftovers from yesterday's dinner for lunch the next day. Also, I often cook extra of something to build another dinner around another day of the week, i.e. boiling extra potatoes one day, and make wedges for another dinner. Or cook extra pasta one day and make a pasta bake another day of half of it.
6. Great tip for leftovers: keep a box in the freezer. In this box, put all the leftover veggies. I can be as little as a tomato slice or a tablespoon of something. Just add it to the box. Pick a box that is a suitable size for your family, I have one that's about 2 cups. When to box is full - take the veggies and boil up some water and a stock cube or two, add the veggies and you have a nice soup. Mix if you like. When I was a meat eater, I had another box for meat leftovers. Cut it all in small pieces, and when the box was full, I made a pasta sauce from it.
7. You're not gonna like this one LOL Skip the meat! Meat is so expensive, I almost cried in the store last time I wanted to get some meat for John. You don't have to go vegan - if you leave out meat one or two days a week, you can save money. If you think it through, you probably know of meatless dishes you make already. Pancakes, beans, lentil soup and so on. Homemade pizza is great meatless - add onion, favorite veggies, olives, whatever - pizza = party no matter what the topping.
8. Shop by season. You have to google this - what's in season at yours is probably different from what's in season here in Sweden. Usually it's cheap when it's in season & it tastes better.
9. Take some time and google recipes. Google is your friend! There's so much resources out there, all for free.
www.tasteofhome.com