Cooking From Home

However, when trying to feed a family on a tight budget, the result can be plenty of stress, a mess to clean up, and children who can get frustrated in the beginning. There are ways to make kids part of your spending less efforts in the kitchen, from making a shopping list (print these list templates to make it fun), to peeling and prepping, or even cleaning up after the meal. Encourage children to take a role in meal prep; as they grow, they will love cooking. Each age group can focus on a set of skills that helps them play an active role in feeding the family and cuts down on boredom while also allowing them to feel some pride and accomplishment.

Ages 3-5: Pint-Size Helpers

Children exert their independence at this stage of toddlerhood and want to dive head-first into the world around them. Three, four, and five-year-olds have short attention spans and very little awareness of danger (think sharp knives or hot pans) and therefore, they cannot handle plenty of kitchen tasks; however, by getting them involved at a young age, they will learn quickly and many parents are surprised by just how much help their preschooler can be. The toddler age is a great time to have them wash produce, mash potatoes, tear lettuce, smash crackers, or knead dough.

Teaching Kids to Cook (video): Watch an interesting video on just how much the younger crowd can do when given the proper tools.
Preschool Helpers in the Kitchen: Get ideas for ways to involve preschoolers and babies when cooking in the kitchen.

Ages 5-7: Grade-School Sous Chefs

Children in early elementary school learn many skills that can be put to great use in the kitchen. They are now able to use scissors and have improved other fine motor skills. These increased skills mean they can take a more active role in meal prep for the family. There are some learning opportunities as well. Children can help set the table and learn about proper place settings or measure and count items as a math lesson on multiplication and fractions. They can practice reading by following along with simple recipes and reading each step. At this age, kids can also mix dry ingredients, crack eggs, roll cookie dough or meat, and chop softer fruits and veggies.

Learning in Cooking Teach kids math and so much more with the help of these ideas.
The Psychology of Kids in the Kitchen: A holistic child psychologist, Nicole Beurkens, talks about the benefits of having children help cook from an early age.

Ages 8-12: Budding Cooks

As preteens establish their own opinions and ideas, there is no doubt they will have some thoughts regarding their favorite or least-favorite foods. This is an excellent opportunity to teach them greater independence by allowing them to make simple recipes on their own. They can peel veggies, make sandwiches, do the dishes, put up groceries, and make cookies or brownies on their own. With supervision, they can really step up and do even more than this.

Middle School Cooks: Browse a mix of ideas on ways to engage middle school children in the kitchen.
What to Cook with Middle Schoolers: This is a collection of simple recipes to make with the middle school crowd.

Ages 13 & Up: Young Chefs

Teens can learn to do pretty much anything they want in the kitchen, but it is essential to be sure they first know proper food handling and other safety techniques. They should know which pots and pans can go in the oven, ways to handle raw meat, and ways to use sharp knives safely. They can make recipes on the stovetop, bake cookies with friends, make waffles, press garlic, or learn to use assorted kitchen appliances like blenders and food processors. Teens should also be taught ways to clean the kitchen and be put in charge of dinner one night a week.

25 Recipes for Teens: Let the teens choose from these 25 recipes they can cook with basic kitchen and safety knowledge.
13 Meals Teens Can Cook: Let the teens cook once a week and they can use this list of meal ideas to get them started.

Extra Cooking Resources for All Ages

While almost everyone knows that if you are cooking with kids on a tight budget, members-only stores like Sam’s Club and Costco are the best at helping you get your cost-per-item price down drawn from the deals and sales they offer on bulk items (including everything from cereal to fresh produce). Layer those savings with credit cards that offer cash back when you shop and now you are really adding up the savings! If saving time is as key to you as keeping more cash, try the free offers from grocery delivery services like Instacart and Walmart + for first-time users. The Walmart+ site even claims that their members are saving over $1,300 a year by applying the service to get groceries and even home goods delivered as soon as same-day.

Extra resources for cooking with kids on a tight budget:

Cooking with Preschoolers: Find a list of kitchen tasks preschoolers can handle and descriptions of all the benefits to be reaped by helping in the kitsch at an early age.
Montessori Kids in the Kitchen: Browse recipes with step-by-step briefings on making them with children and where to buy kid-friendly kitchen supplies and tools.
Kid-Friendly Recipes: Plan what to cook with the family by looking through a collection of recipes kids will love to make.
8 Fun Snacks to Make with Kids: Feed the kids while also teaching them ways to do basic kitchen tasks, making snack time fun.
Skills By Age Group: Learn which tasks are appropriate to each age group.
Recipes for Older Kids and Tweens: Plan meals and snacks that the junior high and high school crowds will enjoy helping with.
Teaching Food Safety: Browse key food safety concepts and be sure children are learning them in the kitchen.
Kids and Food Safety: Use these ideas to teach younger kids food safety principles.

Cash-saving Resources for Cooking and Food Buying

Sales on food are the best ways to keep more cash at the grocery store, so be sure to download the app of your local supermarket chain, whether it is Walmart or a local Kroger, Safeway, or Von’s. All have coupons you can add to your account, so you don’t even need to cut coupons from inserts. A benefit to applying these apps to find deals on food and groceries is that, as time passes, the app will know your go-to orders and staples and show you sales on the foods you use the most.

While most people don’t think of Amazon when they’re cooking with kids on a tight budget, there are tons of top brands on sale in the dry goods and bulk foods sections. If these are items your family uses often, save even more by signing up for auto-shipments with Amazon’s subscription service.

Plus, for meal planning and prepping, Amazon sellers have many creative items and choices, from prep-printed list notepads to economical containers that can equal spending less over the long term after your initial purchase. The number of offered meal-prep and budget-friendly items to help you save while cooking wholesome meals is almost endless! Look for items that are also targeted towards kids to get them involved in shopping and meal-prepping to make cooking on a tight budget a family event.

Amazon Fresh also offers convenient delivery of fresh foods and there is often a deal on Sacodes’s Amazon deals page. We recently saw an offer for $10 off on your Amazon Fresh order, a discount that is often offered year-round on first-time orders.

Also look for dry goods, cooking utensils, and plenty of storage for meal prepping at discount stores like Wayfair, Marshall’s, and Kohl’s. Try shopping these store during their seasonal sales for the best deals, and always check for any sales or discount codes on Sacodes first.

See Marshall’s Latest Coupon Codes and Discounts
Get Kohl’s Newest Discount codes and Deals
Wayfair Coupon Codes and Sales
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