Cooking saving hack Part 2 - Breakfast at half the time and water!

Save! Depends. You'll probably save more time than money.

The long and the short of it

Boil your eggs and steam your buns at the same time! (Ok that sounded just a little rude :p)

Added tips!

Bring your eggs to room temperature first. Cos one of my eggs burst open during boiling. Not much mess just that the boiled egg isn't going to be a looker.

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Behold! The lazy man, save cooking time and save water all-in-one pot breakfast!

All my eggs and buns in one basket.

I know I know... it's all a little bit underwhelming. But Hey! You save water, time and gas.
It's still money saved no?

Any worries about the water not being safe and cleaning up to be more of a hassle... well those aren't true.

I've thought about it (all of a grand 30 seconds) and came up with the following Q&A to allay thine fears:

Q: You disgusting person you!    What if the egg breaks during cooking and it coats your pot with egg bits! Won't it be hard to clean?!

A: Using another pot will result in the same mess what...

Q: You unhygienic animal!    Won't it be unhygienic what with the metal steamer insert?!
A) It's boiling water... People use that to sterilize canning jars... It's safe. Period.

Q: Liar!    Won't it take longer to steam with more mass in the pot?
A) Yes it will but erm not noticeably. Anyway you don't watch the water to wait for it to boil so I guess you ain't gonna catch and save on that 0.5 millisecond extra gas used in the cooking of those 2 eggs.

Q: You heathen!    It's against Nature to eat eggs with buns! The pairing of the two are against my religion!
A: Fine. Steam the eggs and boil some sausages instead... Or steam the buns and boil sausages instead... Go think up your own combination / combo...

Q: You're a destroyer of worlds!   Cooking eggs other than by itself in pure unadulterated water is against the laws of the galaxy and will cause a cosmic imbalance that risks turning the world onto itself, causing a massive super nova to erupt! Thus destroying the world!
A: Go jump in the lake you mad F***...

Half priced chicken!!!!!

Save!  - $6 per bird!

The long and the short of it:

Cold storage / Jasons has half priced roasted meats just before closing time! Usually at 9.30pm.

Additional or local tips!
Sometimes they will put up the sign at 9.30pm sometimes they will sneakily not put up anything! And sometimes they won't have it at all. So it's a game of chance and chicken.

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I swear Cold Storage does one of the best roast chickens in town for its price and convenience. Their other roast meats aren't too bad either. Their smoked duck steak is another to die for.

Now these roasted items are normally ok priced. They aren't expensive. I mean one whole uncooked bird already cost $4-6 and you still have to use electricity to cook it with herbs and spices and what nots. So $14 for a whole family sized roasted bird is pretty decently priced.

Smoke duck breast. TO DIE for.

Meat overload. Can get a bit jerlat

It looks ugly but tastes damn delicious. Smaller birds yield much a more tender meat while the larger birds have tougher breast meats.

So then, what makes this a frugallivingsg article you say?

Wait for it... (literally)... at 9.30pm, sometimes... sometimes... something magical happens.
The roast meat counter will have a fire sale and everything cooked for that day will be going for 50% off!!!!    *Goes wild!*

A whole roasted chicken is so versatile that I can make 14 meals out of that one single 50% off bird! Frozen and consumed over 2 weeks. And they were all delish. My saliva is flowing just thinking about those 14 plates of pasta.

My 14 meals of pasta from one bird!

Groceries on fire sale that are not for the faint of heart - Expired foods

Save!  - Depends on how much you spend on groceries and how often you get a chance to pick up quick sale items from the supermarket

The long and the short of it:

Expired foods are ok. If they aren't turning green or white with mould and other weird fungi, it's fine to eat them.
Additional or local tips!
Check out the supermarket about 30min before closing time to pick up Quick Sale items which needs to be sold by the end of the day otherwise they will get chucked. These items will normally be at 50% off.

Alternatively, come in early in the morning. These should be the two timings when items get labelled for Quick Sale.

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Now I'm a big proponent of this.

Expired or expiring foods are OK. 
If they aren't turning green or white with mould and other weird fungi, it's fine to eat them.

One big big example is... sliced bread. My parents always makes sure there is a loaf of clean white Gardenia sliced bread lying in the kitchen. It's the daily breakfast food, a versatile staple. They go through a loaf about once every 4 days but if not... they toss out the remaining slices, sometimes even whole loaves even if it is perfectly edible.

Why? Because of this...

They throw out perfectly edible food. And YET they lecture me on starving children in Africa when I was younger!

Hell, they've even gone one step further and toss out the bread on the day of expiration! It's not even about expired food anymore, they are tossing out expiring food because they can.
It's just too wasteful! It's like Singaporeans are too rich or something...


So what's a kid gotta do to convince the parents? Hahaha I started horrifying them by buying close to expired groceries before proceeding to cook and eat them. I've survived for about 3 yrs now having eaten some food items that are long past their expiry dates so there, it's fine.

Now there are obviously certain things that you should not eat in this manner. Namely, eggs, diary products, oils and canned foods which are bloated or have turned black when they should not. But honestly, even if these items have not gone past their expiration date, I wouldn't eat them if they have obviously turned bad. So just use your common sense. But in case you need some help to start off. Below are some examples:

• White bread that's white. No wispy fungal spores or mould is safe to eat.
• Vacuum packed preserved meats such as sausages, smoked meats and bacon. Best if frozen. Frozen goods last indefinitely.
• Canned foods such as beans. No tomatoes cos the acidity might eat through can. I've had that happen to me so don't chance it.
• Dried goods. Beans. herbs, mushrooms... Dried goods if kept properly dried will last indefinitely.

If you need more convincing, here's an article from TIME magazine that supports this. It's aptly named - Only Suckers Abide by Food Expiration Dates.

Oh and on top of saving food, you'll save money cos near expired items in the supermarkets have to be cleared asap and will often be sold at deep discounts.

Free train rides + Breakfast!

Save! - $300-$390 a year on transport fees and a free breakfast!

The long and the short of it:

If you work in the city or near one of the 18 eligible MRT stations, wake your ass up early and take the MRT to your destination before 7.45am.

Additional or local tips!

Missed the timing just by a few minutes? Nebermind.
You still get $0.50 discount so still not bad. As the Hokkien saying goes: "No fish prawn also good."

Also!

Get a free Ya Kun Breakfast voucher (while stocks last) on 23rd May 2014, Friday, when you tap out before 7.45am at Raffles Place, Somerset or Lavender MRT.
I would say go for the free breakfast voucher thingy only if it's on your way. 
While stocks last means there's a high chance the vouchers will run out. Retirees sure to leap on this and organize breakfast keng kai sessions based on these voucher giveaways one. I know cos I will definitely do this sort of thing when I turn old!!!

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Who doesn't love a good cup of Ya Kun in the morning?

Basically, LTA will subsidize free MRT rides for morning trips that end at 18 designated stations in the city area.

This scheme has been around for awhile now, having started in April 2013 to encourage people to ride to work at earlier hours to spread the human traffic flowing into the city.
It must have worked out well for both the LTA, SMRT and commuters since they are extending this to June 2015 (woohoo!)

You can read more about its history and the scheme itself here.

What's more they are giving away Ya Kun breakfast vouchers on 3 separate days!
Friday 16 May 2014 at Tanjong Pagar, Orchard and Bugis (oops! Blogged about it too late.)

Friday 23 May 2014 at Raffles Place, Somerset and Lavender
Friday 30 May 2014 at City Hall, Dhoby Ghaut and Chinatown

The Most Important Details in Brief!

• You need to tap out of one of the designated stations by 7.45am to get the free ride. If you tap out later by a few minutes, you still get $0.50 off.
• Your ride cannot originate from one of the 18 stations.
• The 18 stations are:

Bayfront
Bras Basah
Bugis
Chinatown
City Hall
Clarke Quay
Dhoby Ghaut
Downtown
Esplanade
Lavender
Marina Bay
Orchard
Outram Park
Promenade
Raffles Place
Somerset
Tanjong Pagar
Telok Ayer

• Free breakfast on 23 May (Raffles Place, Somerset and Lavender) and 30 May (City Hall, Dhoby Ghaut and Chinatown)

Save more on groceries by not buying from supermarkets!

Save! $5-10 depending on what you buy for groceries and how much food you go through each month.

The long and the short of it

Go direct to suppliers or pseudo suppliers for certain groceries. Especially pantry items.

Local tips!

Look up Phoon Huat or Kwong Cheong Thye. These are the two I know. If you know more, please share!

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When you think about groceries shopping you think supermarkets such as NTUC, Giant, Mustafa, Sheng Siong or even the wet market. For most items yes, it will be cheaper to get at the supermarkets but there are some items that can be gotten cheaper at... the suppliers of course!

I've looked up and did a rough comparison and if you're buying the following, it's actually cheaper to get from... Phoon Huat!!!! (HUAT AH!)

Items that are definitely cheaper:
- Unsalted butter (if you bake)
- Sun dried tomatoes
- Cooked whole beans
- Nuts (raw or otherwise) *heard victoria market carries them at good prices too but haven't checked. Thing is, confirm cheaper than supermarkets can le.
- Vinegars
- Oils
- Frozen fruit meats
- CHEESE!!!! OMG GOD DAMN CHEAP! (Ok not cheap but cheaper. Soooo much cheaper)
(1kg Mozzarella is only $11.80! Eat till cheese come out of the ears!)

Just be sure to call them before you head down so you don't make a wasted trip and plan your journey so your cost savings don't end up spent on petrol or the bloodsucking SMRT and SBS. I personally like the Aljunied MRT branch cos its super big and tends to have items in stock. Calling before hand is important.

Phoon Huat catalogue here but no price list. Sadz.

On the other hand, Kwong Cheong Thye is where you can get your chinese / asian cooking sauces and also other ingredients. However, they only have 1 retail outlet near Aljunied MRT.

My mum only goes there to buy the Yu Sheng veges and sauces for CNY (HUAT AH!!!)
I saw other nuts and assorted pantry items too.

Eat less save more

Save! Potentially a lot. Maybe about half of your food spend

The long and the short of it

Cut down on your meal portions because we are all eating too much....

Local tips!

Order less side dishes. Don't order "value" meals.

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This is more philosophy and method than a good deal kind of post. 

We all eat way too much now in this modern, affluent society. That's why diabetes and gout are on the rise. Both are "rich man" diseases. Rich in the sense that we can fill our bellies and not have to go hungry. A very low bar.

So to combat health problems from eating too much and save our bellies and our wallets, we should all try to cut down on consumption. 

For e.g.

• When ordering Cai Fan 菜饭, aim for just 2 side dishes instead of the usual 3. 
• Always avoid taking the meal options in fast food outlets and just buy 1-2 individual items. 

These actions may just save you a few cents but you're treating your body and wallet so much better.

Try it. Start slow.
Do frugal Fridays!
Where you subtract one item off your lunch since you've the weekend to look forward to so a bit of "misery" in smaller food portions shouldn't hurt that much!

Work your way to a slimmer self and a fatter wallet!
Better for your heart and mind too :D

BYO Mug Kopitiam version

Save! About $1 per meal which works out to an average of $288 a year assuming 6 meals a week that you eat out at a coffeeshop or hawker.

The long and the short of it

BYO drinks or make your  own kopi / teh in the office or at home!

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Another simple no brainer though I suspect many will find this hard to do.
BYO drinks to your meals. It's simple and so obvious.

Every coffeeshop owner will run the drinks stall. You know why? Because that stall's profit margins are the highest! Ever thought about the cost price of that coca-cola can drink? I betcha it's probably $0.20 or less! The mark-ups are mad.

So save your wallet from being gutted. BYO drink or even better, drink plain tap water (bottled water does not count and is equally wasteful!)

If you need to have your caffeine fix, BYO to the office and have your beverage back at your desk. It's still way cheaper. The cost savings really builds up.
An example is fellow money saver AK from ASSI who's saved an amazing $9,216 over 16yrs! (His How I earned $9,216 with a mug? article) He's one committed fella!

Now why did I say many will find this hard to do? Because of peer pressure. When everyone buys a drink with their meal you will feel pressured. Resist! Persevere!

Free food with McDonald's Surprise Alarm!

Save! Probably about $20 during this promotion.

The long and the short of it

Download the app and use it to get free food! Usually breakfast but sometimes coffee as well

Local tips!

There's none except maybe stay near a Mcdonald's…

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McDonald's is giving away free food. Yes free food. Everyday. Every single freaking day until god knows when.

You just need to download their free app, Mcdonald's surprise alarm, and set the alarm clock to ring. Once it rings, you will (sometimes) get a surprise offer that you can use. The offers are great because they are giving away free food with no purchase needed! I've so far gotten Sausage McGriddles, Sunrise Roll Chicken Ham or a coffee - basically mostly experimental menu stuff that they need guinea pigs for. I'm not gonna quibble over free food so hell I'll eat them. Plus it's always kinda fun to be trying new fast food items particularly if its free.

Sometimes just small fries or an extra turkey bacon that you can get with some purchase which suits me just fine if I'm going to eat there anyway.

If you get free coffee, well you would have earned yourself a coffee break at an air-con Mc Cafe or McDonald's to work or chillax.

Other benefits include getting a very very nice looking alarm clock app. The alarm that goes off is also fairly annoying. It drives me nuts and wakes me up every time. So that's an added benefit.

$2.50 breakfast for maybe 2 days in a week. That saves you $5 a week, $20 a month, $240 a year though this will probably only run for another 1mth max (my guesstimate) so maybe you can save $20 through this exercise.

Yeah yeah, I know. Fast food ain't healthy, so might as well not pay to pollute your body! :p

Get the app here - McDonald's Surprise Alarm
Read more about it here - McDonald's webpage