Apart from petrol, the main expense you will encounter when travelling is food. You may spend a few dollars in the small towns you pass through on items you need but groceries in smaller towns can sometime be a little more expensive than larger shopping centres.
Below are some tips on saving some dollars on your food while travelling.
If you are on the road full time, meal planning is definitely a key to saving money on food. It can also help you use up every last bit, so there is no wastage. Before hitting the supermarket take a stock check of what you already have in the cupboard. With limited space in the kitchen make sure you only purchase what you are going to use.
If you are travelling between places or out sight-seeing for the day it can often be tempting to stop at a coffee shop or bakery for lunch. You might do this on occasion but the costs can soon add up.
So why not consider packing your own lunches. If travelling between location, find somewhere nice to pull up, have a break and jump in the van to make something.
If going on day trip pack a small picnic bag with plates, cutlery, a breadboard etc in it. If you have a portable fridge you can also take drinks, cold meats, salads. Options are endless.
We all like to eat a variety of different foods. But sometimes making a lot of different dishes means buying a lot of different and sometimes expensive ingredients.
So try and keep your meals fairly simple. Stir fry, spaghetti bolognaise or throw something on the BBQ and have salad or roast vegies with it. Leftovers also make a great lunch the next day.
There are so many ways you can use up leftovers.
- Brown bananas? Make Banana Bread
- Cooked sausages? Chop up and mix into an omelette.
- Vegies going soft? Grate or chop up and throw into Spaghetti
- Stale bread rolls? Turn into Garlic Bread.
We can all be guilty of over eating. By reducing your portion sizes just a little bit you can save a considerable amount of money over time. It is also much better for your overall health. Reducing your portion sizes will also help reduce food wastage because you won’t find yourself cooking as much.
This should also apply to those much loved chips, dips and cheese that we love to indulge in.
Keep an eye out whilst you are travelling, for roadside produce stalls. You will often find beautiful fresh produce straight out of the paddock for a fraction of the price. And of course you will be putting a few extra dollars into a farmers pocket.
Local markets are also another great place to find fresh produce at reasonable prices. They are often a good place to source homemade jams and relishes at a fraction of the price. Plus you might be helping out a small business as well.
One of the hardest things when travelling is keeping your food fresh and cold. A portable fridge that runs off 12 volt power is a must if you have any hope of keeping food fresh.
If you can, pre-freeze all your meat before you go on a trip. This will help your fridge work more efficiently, especially if it is hot or humid. Obviously if you are travelling full time this is not always possible. But quite often, smaller local butchers will cryovac and freeze your meat for you.
If you do have bread or fresh produce avoid leaving it in the hot sun or in the car as this will make it go quickly. A couple of good quality plastic containers with tight fitting lids are essential for leftovers. The same applies to storing our pantry basics like flour and sugar.
We all know buying in bulk can be cheaper, but in a van you have both a storage issue and often heat to contend with. So buying only the quantity of an item that you need may turn out to be more economical in the long run but will you use it all before it goes off?
For a great range of products to keep you shopping bill down and great storage ideas don't forget to check out our accessoires range.