Welcome back to our grocery budget series.  To learn why I am sharing our favorite ways to save money on our grocery budget, read here.

Here is tip #7: We like the crockpot and rotisserie. If I know my afternoon is going to be eventful and I don’t want to mess with waiting for a frozen meal to cook and don’t want to spend money on take out, I like to use my crockpot to make dinner for me.  Another thing we really enjoy is our rotisserie.  We like to rotisserie duck and chicken – we use a seasoning that makes it taste just like the yummy chicken you can buy from the grocery store that has been rotisserie’d.  This is one of those things that I cook up a bunch, shred the meat, freeze or can it for future meals calling for shredded chicken because the seasoning makes the meat so much more flavorful than using plain chicken.  We also have a cheap smoker that we use to smoke meats for something different, pressure canners that double as cookers, and other various ways to prepare meals.  They have, for the most part, been purchased used and have done our family well for much less than buying new appliances.

How does this save us money?  It gives us another way, aside from our oven and stovetop, to prepare the same basic cuts of meat.  It opens up a whole new world of ways to cook, so you run less risk of getting bored or burnt out.  Also, if you enjoy rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, you can prepare it yourself at home for a little less than buying it and you can try out a bunch more seasonings.  Having a smoker will allow you to smoke bacon and sausages, briskets and loins.  A pressure canner that doubles as a cooker is a useful appliance serving double dirty – but beware – not all pressure cookers double as canners.

What different appliances do you enjoy cooking with?