Do you portion out food when you get it so that you can be sure you're actually eating the right number of portions of the food you're getting? I never used to do that but then I realised I wasn't getting as many portions as I should've been and as soon as I started portioning things out I noticed things seemed to last longer and therefore save me money in the long run. I've even bought containers so I can separate it out as soon as I get home into portion tubs now.
I think I will be doing that when I'm on a tight budget, since I love to eat, so I tend to stuff myself to the point that I get full when I eat. I actually have trouble controlling my portions, I always overeat.
I started doing the container thing because I hated not knowing how much I was consuming on a daily basis, and threw out the day, In the morning I might eat 3 bowls of cereal, for lunch I might eat burgers at some restaurant, and same thing for dinner. My portions of food was a lot compared to someone who mangaes how much they eat. I was eating how ever much I wanted, but now I create portions, and manage the amount of food I in-take on a daily. I consider weighing everything I put in containers so that I can know how many pounds of food I eat a day, this will help me to really manage my weight and better understand what makes me full.
I am not a stickler for frugality when it comes to food because I look at food as the only luxury in life that everyone could afford. However, my husband hates wastage that he even reprimands me when I get food from the kitchen that I couldn't finish. He always tells everyone in the house to get food in small portions only and get a second or even third helping if needed, that is to avoid leftover which is considered a waste.
I never do that because I love eating and sometimes even tend to overeat. Woops. Anyways, I usually make a meal without actually considering the portions. I just make sure that I don't consume the entire meal and ensure that there are left overs. Usually when making my meals, I often intend for there to be leftovers for the next day which I can eat for lunch or even heat up for dinner if I'm running low on time.
We used to hit sales and buy stuff in bulk like ground chuck. I'd portion it out into one pound packages for later use. I'd also make up some burgers (or single serving packages). Then, I'd freeze the rest. It helped to be able to pop one out when needed and also to avoid using more than necessary per recipe. It is also good for watching what you eat as well. I think a lot of people would be surprised by how much smaller a regular serving size is than what they typically eat. Cereal is a good example. Filling up a soup bowl full of cereal is several servings (serving sizes are generally around 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup).
Freezing excess that can't be eaten in time is a great way to save money as well as preventing food waste. I do this as well. I even freeze the juice from lemons in ice cube trays if I buy a lot in bulk and won't get through them all in time. It's better than wasting the money on the food going off for sure. Filling up a soup bowl with cereal is exactly what my father tends to do and when I tell him that's several portions he says "It's just one bowl!" It's the size of the bowl that's the problem!
