Food is one of the top spending categories. The average millennial spends more on food each month than they do on retirement saving. Thats not surprising. It is consumed several times a day, is a mechanism to socialize with colleagues and friends, and it plays a big role in everyday life.

But food is a category with many opportunities to reduce spending. We’ve talked in the past about how something as simple as a daily coffee can lead to more than a thousand dollars of yearly spending cuts. I have been applying a number of strategies to my own life these past few months and thought it might be helpful to share more broadly.

Limit eating out

Eating out is great, but it is costly. Is it possible to stop eating out? Yes! It is possible, but I’m told by the girlfriend of Mr. FIRE Power that eliminating the practice is neither fun nor very “romantic.” So we’ve come to the happy medium of eating out…less.

A company called Wellio focuses on demystifying the costs of eating. Its data indicates on average ordering food from a restaurant is 5 times more expensive than it is to cook at home. If a meal kit from a group like Blue Apron is almost 3 times as expensive as cooking from scratch.

The disparity is greater depending on the type of food. Pan frying a pork tenderloin at home costs about four dollars. At a restaurant, the average price is thirty three. That’s seven times the cost of eating at home.

Making pizza from scratch (bread, tomato sauce, cheese, pepperoni) costs $1.87 per pizza. A large pizza hut pizza costs about $10, so you’re saving 80 percent eating at home. 

Buy in bulk strategically

If you have a Costco in your neighborhood I envy you.

Buying in bulk can reduce spending over time, but not every product benefits from these savings. Buying nonperishable items in bulk can save as much as 80 percent when compared to buying in smaller quantities. While the saving is frequently the same for food items, if the items spoil before consumed this savings are lost.

Not every food product should be avoided. If I bought a three pound sausage log from Costco you can be sure that I would enjoy sausage omelets, sides of patty sausages, sausage burgers, sausage chili, before it spoiled. But I am what you would call a breakfast meat aficionado.

I recognize, however, that others might be less passionate about sausage. If you’re buying in bulk and half the food is going to waste, you are likely paying more than if you purchased the the “normal” quantity.

If you cook regularly, plan your meals, or have a large family buying in bulk is an excellent strategy. 

Prepare large portions

This strategy is foolproof. At the FIRE Power household, we spend a lot of time making crock pots of chili, pots of stew, and one of my new favorites, Thai curry. These recipes are fairly easy to prepare. Cost effective vegetables and low-cost protein like chicken are the key ingredient. 

I generally make enough for two people the day of preparation. That leaves five or six portions for the refrigerator or freezer. This prep translates into multiple meals throughout the week.

Lets take a look at tonight’s curry numbers, shall we?

• Chicken: 2 pounds: RMB 40 ($5.70)
• Carrots, Mushrooms, Onion, Anaheim Pepper: RMB 20 ($2.85)
• Coconut milk: RMB 24 ($3.42)
• Chicken stock: Free (boiled up some water with last weeks chicken bones)
• Chili paste: RMB 50/tub, I used 1/10th: RMB 5 ($.71)
• Total: $12.68

For a total of $12.68 I made dinner for two and had enough left over for four more meals. That breaks down to $2.11 per meal. Not a bad price when compared to local restaurant in Beijing.

Sunday meal prep

Prepping a big meal after a long days work may be the last thing on your mind. When the supplies are prepped and portioned in advance, cooking is easy at home.

Sunday is a terrific day to consolidate and prep for the week ahead. I use the time to chop vegetables, prepare soup stock, or prep a couple of big meals for the freezer.

For me, the most important meal of the day is breakfast. I make an omelette every day. My Instagram is mydailyomelette. Every omelette is filled with chopped onion, peppers, mushroom, and whatever protein I have lying around. With all that work done on Sunday, it takes six minutes to go from supplies to this:

Buy a storage solution

If you’re prepping supplies and storing meals for the week, you need a good storage solution. I purchased a set of Tupperware on that I have been very happy with.

It doesn’t matter the brand, but finding a quality, reusable set will make all of the above steps easier.

Control your mobile applications

In China, food delivery is everywhere. There are so many drivers incentivized to rush food to a customer that it can be hazardous encountering them on the street. Baidu, Alibaba, and Meituan all manage successful ventures that keep a billion people happily fed. It is both convenient and cheap. It is so easy, in fact, you may not realize how much you’re spending each month.

I just had a look at two of the food apps in my phone and calculated all expenses for the month of January. That month I spent RMB 3786 ($540) on food delivery. And that doesn’t count the costs of regularly eating out or of groceries. The costs add up quick