$120 CAD worth of groceries from Superstore for the next ten days. Plus I plan on making salsa and ketchup. There are a lot of stocking up items here as well.
Meals are: tacos, Chicken Tagine, Pork Chops, Salmon Chowder, Lasagna. Each recipe is big enough to serve us at least two suppers. Any leftovers will go in the freezer.
Two pickups because they are on a reasonable walking loop and they had overlapping times.
The meat was $7, and is organic/grass fed hamburgers, peameal bacon and short ribs. Slightly freezer burned, so not saleable for a high end butcher. $34 based on the sticker price.
The random convenience delivery warehouse pickup was $6, and is mostly items coming quickly to their best before dates. ETA the shadowy one is pleased that it is jazz apples, Iām pleased the salad greens are in very good shape. we did this one because it is very close and I was curious
We went hunting for the mooncakes recommended by @flan, one thing led to another, and we had a ālet H Mart tell us what we wantā shopping trip. @ginja_ninja, we went to the other one that isnāt by you, or I would have reached out!
We didnāt find the mooncakes Flan recommended, but got two other kinds (pictured). I took another pic of the rest of the dry goods haul. I didnāt get a pic of the fridge/freezer stuff, but just picture every kind of frozen dumpling and every kind of banchan.
Oh, and two flavors kd these ice creams! If you, like me, did not grow up eating them, I highly recommend seeking them out.
Hmmmmm I might need to grab myself some Hello Panda today
I love those. Have you tried the buldak brand instant noodles? They are my faaaaavorite. Even better than shin IMO.
Ok YES but it was much too spicy for me - have you found a non spicy flavor? As you can probably tell the tempura udon is my favorite.
Ok now i know what to find for my brother. We have most of the brands shown on Bernadetteās picture at our Asian food stores
I get the hottest one, haha, IDK if they have milder ones! But ever since my Stomach Disasters began I havenāt had any instant noodles bc soy 
insert some quotation about the interminable unfairness of life.
So Hubby and I did a fun little exercise today. We sat down and figured out how much we had spent on the vegetable and herb garden since we moved in the end of April 2020. About $3400 CAD. We had to build and have built some raised beds, and buy dirt to fill them. Plus seeds and plants. And then there was the deck herb garden.
So I thought we should check our grocery expenses for that time period and see if there was any effect on how much we spent in groceries. I asked for grocery figures to be split up into individual years, using a monthly figure for comparison.
In 2020 we spent an average of $598 CAD /mth on food.
In 2021 we spent an average of $550/mth on food.
So far, in 2022 weāve spent an average of $460/mth on food.
Whether itās the garden or me just shopping differently, the difference is noticeable. Considering how much food has increased in cost, I was very surprised by the results. I will be aiming lower for 2023. Maybe $400/mth.
We considered it might be a sign weāre eating out more, but a quick look shows that isnāt so. We are still under our $75/mth budget for that.
So now Iām off to study Mel Bartholomewās book āHigh-Value Veggiesā a little closer. Itās time to see how efficient I can make this garden! 
So I had a chat about grocery expenses with my walking buddy today and got a shock! I thought I was doing good, until she told me they spend about $200 CAD/mth for two of them. Mind you they only eat breakfast and supper. They skip lunch.
They eat very different from us. They wonāt come to our place to eat because of the differences. Iām not sure Iād be able to eat their meat and potatoes meals. Iām following a dietitian recommended diet due to health issues, and I think thatās just more expensive.
They donāt garden either. Hmmmā¦she does bake her own bread. I donāt know. I think she barters a lot for food. They donāt use many spices either. Bland food. Ugh!
Well, I guess thereās more room for improvement than I thought! 
Nope nope nope Iāll stay expensive tyvm 
$6 for claimed value of 18. Not shown two rapini bunches that went into compost.
Nectarines, apples and pears all a little sad, so Iām going to make the smitten kitchen crumb cake again with mixed autumn fruits.
ETA:
2 heads of lettuce rehydrated, spun dry, and in paper towel in fridge
green onions cleaned up and in paper towel in fridge
carrots peeled and in water
celery stalks chopped and in water
cucumber spears in water (half went into salad bowl for dinner)
1 tomato chopped and ready for salsa
cubanelle peppers deseeded, quartered and in the freezer
corn cooked and kernels cut off the cob in fridge for a salad at some point
1 apple chopped for snack (bruises worked around)
cake in oven (mixed fruit 1 nectarine, 1 peach, 1 apple, half the crumb)
1 nectarine, 2 pears, prickly pear, 2 tomatoes in fridge to deal with later
tired
Prickly pear!
Prickly pears are really tasty! Itās like a tropical fruit thatās slightly cherry, pomegranate, or if youāve had it, dragon fruit? Lots of small seeds, kinda like a pomegranate but less edible. Probably best to try raw, but have also made jam with it (straining seeds was hard).
That fruit is definitely covered in the exemplary ikea book Oranutang is Scared. I can check at home?
Another small delivery order. They were annoyingly out of a few things that showed as available, but Iām excited to have found coconut milk! Also, we have SO much smoked paprika now because I wasnāt able to order any amount smaller than 250 grams. 360 LE total (~$18.50, most expensive item was the coffee)
Impressed! The first time Iāve ever done in store grocery shopping at Walmart! The prices are incredibly low for the quality of produce you get. We walked out with three huge Superstore bags and two blue jean bags of groceries, and 2 cases of water, for under $125 CAD!
While we were there Hubby was realizing how cheap some of the food is, and commented at home we should have some of this stuff around all the time, for the nights I donāt feel like cooking. I agree. Usually we go out to eat those nights. Itās expensive and the food isnāt good for us. This canned/processed food isnāt good for us either, but itās a lot cheaper!
Hereās the receiptā¦ (I should note this trip was our hurricane preparedness shopping trip.)
Our produce at Walmarts here in the PNW has been universally appalling. Which is notable since we have wonderful produce readily available. Iām glad yours was better quality!
I feel like there is a lot a variation in WalMarts. I have been in some that were just spectacularly great. We went to the one here for the first time, and it reminded me of KMart right before it closed forever.
