Wasted 2 weeks trying to meal prep without a food scale

I kept making these giant batches of chili and rice bowls only to realize my portions were way off. I was just eyeballing everything with measuring cups and guessing on stuff like chicken and beans. Turns out I was eating double the protein I thought I was, which killed my budget because meat is expensive. After 2 weeks of this frustration I finally bought a $10 digital scale off Amazon. Now I actually weigh my portions and my grocery bill dropped by about $25 a week. The scale paid for itself in 3 days easy. Has anyone else had a similar issue with guessing portions and overspending on ingredients?

3 comments

3 Comments

thea85728d ago

I actually read somewhere that most people underestimate their portion sizes by like 30-40% when they're just guessing, especially with dense stuff like meat and cheese. That totally explains why my meal prep budget was so out of control. After I got my scale I noticed the same thing you did, my grocery bill dropped a ton. What really surprised me was how much easier meal prep got too, like I was spending less time second guessing and scooping stuff out. A friend of mine is still eyeballing everything and she complains about how much food costs but won't listen when I tell her a scale saves money. That $10 is pretty much the best kitchen investment I ever made, right up there with a good knife.

joseph_adams6628d ago

Man I gotta disagree with you a little on the whole scale thing being the best investment. I see what you're saying about the $10 scale paying for itself and all that, but I've been eyeballing portions for like 8 years now and my grocery bill is actually pretty steady. I think the real issue is people don't know what a serving looks like in the first place, so the scale just confirms their guesses are off but doesn't teach them to eyeball better. Like yeah, the first time I weighed chicken I was shocked too, but after a few weeks of doing it I learned to just grab a fist-sized piece and now I'm within 10% every time without the scale. There's something about pulling out a gadget for every single meal that feels like overkill to me, plus I've seen scales break after a few months and then you're back to guessing with nothing.

ruby_patel2728d ago

Gotta admit I was the dummy who thought I could use a soup ladle as a measuring tool and ended up with chili for an army. Took me three days to realize my 'single serving' of rice was actually enough to feed a small village. My scale definitely keeps my budget in check and my ego in its place.