Mom of 10 shares extreme grocery store hacks for $2-per-person meals
As the extreme budgeting craze takes over social media, the trend has now also made its way to the grocery store.
ABC News' Elizabeth Schulze went grocery shopping in Virginia with a mom of 10 who is known as an "extreme grocery budgeter."
Jane Brosseau said she uses her hacks to create meals for 10 people for just $1 to $2 per person, even as her children, two of whom live away from home at college, get older, and their appetites grow.
"I have a lot of teens that are playing sports, so some really hungry kids," Brosseau told Schulze. "So, I probably would say I'm twice a week at the grocery store."
Tip No. 1: Stick to a rotating list of the same meals every 2 weeks
Brosseau said she knows the meals her kids will eat and the ones that are cost-efficient, and she sticks to those same meals on a rotating basis.
The consistency of the meals helps her budget and know what she will be spending, Brosseau explained.
"I always stick to the list, and I would say we really only have about eight meals that we're making just in rotation," she said. "Because when you have a lot of kids, you're making the food that they're going to eat, especially with the high cost of food. I don't want to make something that they're not going to eat."
One go-to meal for Brosseau is a four-ingredient crockpot meal -- spaghetti, sausage, peppers and sauce -- that comes to just around $2 per person for her family.
Tip No. 2: Choose 'underrated' proteins
Centering a meal around a protein doesn't mean it has to be out of budget, according to Brosseau. She said she shops for "underrated" proteins, like chicken drumsticks, that are cheaper.
On their shopping trip, Brosseau and Schulze found a family-pack of chicken drumsticks for $5.
Brosseau said she'll combine the drumsticks with broccoli and potatoes on a sheet pan and cook a satisfying meal for her family for $1.50 for person, or $15 total.
Broccoli is another savings hack, according to Brosseau.
"Broccoli is always on my list every week," she said. "It's just something that I can throw in a sheet pan or I can use as a side. And if they don't have it here in the fresh produce, I'll then go to the frozen."
Tip No. 3: Have theme nights to keep meals cheap and fun
Brosseau said mixing her family's meal plan up with theme nights like breakfast for dinner, appetizers and fast food allow her to stick to the budget while having fun.
The appetizer and fast-food theme nights feature at-home versions of her family's favorite treats.
"Even fast food, really we're priced out of that," Brosseau said of getting takeout. "We'll get like the restaurant-style French fries and the onion rings [at the grocery story], and we've made fast food night at home."
