Bulk buying

The other day the inevitable happened - we ran out of bread. This is something that happens about once a month. Simple reason: we don't eat much bread, so we don't buy it every week - there is just no need for it.
As I was looking for an open bakery (of course it happened late) I saw that just down the road from where I live there are two new ones. One next to the other, door to door. And they are in fierce competition with each other. The one had really good deals for both bread rolls and pre-sliced bread. The prices there are soooo amazingly good that, even if I would have paid the normal price for one loaf , I would have paid about a third to half less of what I normally pay. The deal they had was for three loafs and I paid less then I usually pay for one!!! I decided to stock up on bread and put two loafs into the freezer. I also stocked up on some bread rolls and bought the obligatory pitta bread (a staple in my family), that we also had run out of.

Bulk buying is one of the ways to live frugally - or so it is being claimed. This may be true if you have a large family or have a lot of freezer space. I know a family that owns a large fridge-freezer plus a separate super large freezer (the kind you see in shops). That may work for them, but first of all, I don't have the space where I live nor are we a super large family. So, buying in bulk is not for everyone - unless you really don't mind stocking up on one or two things and eating it until it runs out.

But there are a few things that I do find useful stocking up on. And they are things that don't take up too much space or that I now I will use up in maximum 6 to 8 weeks. For me, that would be things like coconut milk, flour and sugar, certain types of meat, beans, tofu.

When it comes to meat, I bulk buy when there are good deals on. I usually buy chicken breast, chicken legs and minced meat. Those are real staples in my family. Once a while my hubby makes schnitzel, or I prepare some of the chicken breasts in marinades, the chicken legs are rubbed with various spices and are cooked in the oven, and the mincemeat is turned into various styles of meat balls, sauces, sloppy Jo's, chili con carne etc. Everything that we prepare is then packed and thrown into the freezer.
This may sound like a lot of work, but usually we don't need more than one evening and our meat dishes are sorted out and I have enough to invite guests and little to prepare.

I never bulk buy things like fruits and veggies. We just throw them out in the end. I also don't stock up on things that I don't use up that quickly - like soap, washing up liquid etc. Made that mistake and we are washing out son since his birth for the first 15 Month with the same bottle of shampoo (and then our baby girl too when she joined us)!!!! And there was another one (same shampoo ... hey it was a good deal: buy one get one free) waiting in the cupboard!!!!

So, bulk buying may be something that works for you if you know what your stables are and if it makes sense. But if you find yourself starting to hate the very thing you bought or eating the same type of food over and over again, you should really re-think it.