Couponing to Disney

Buying cuts of chicken is easier, but it isn’t as cost effective as buying a whole chicken. I asked the SavEars how they stretch the whole chicken in 2-3 meals for their family. Here are their ideas:

I used to buy whole chickens, cut them up. Put the backs and wings in a freezer bag and freeze until I had enough for chicken soup. – Bonnie

You can butcher it in to sections like breasts and thighs/legs and wings. Or you can cook it, shred up the meat and divvy that up in to meals like chicken pot pie. Casseroles are a good way to stretch meats. – Tanya

Remove breasts and cook and use for a meal. Chicken salad, casserole, pot pie, etc.
Save carcass, wings, thighs and use for chicken noodle soup, chicken n dumplings, etc. – Jessica

I roast in crockpot or oven. First meal is roast chicken. Leftovers then become pot pie, soup, and chicken Caesar salad. I always try and get the largest one that will fit in my crockpot. – Shannon

Depends on how big a family, but butcher it and use breasts for one meal, use the thighs for chicken pot pie or cacciatore, and freeze the wings and legs until you have enough to do bbq legs/wings. Then use the carcass for soup/stock. – Rebecca

You can simmer it in water until done, then remove the meat from the bones. Make a pot of chicken stew using some of the broth left from boiling the chicken, a can of evaporated milk, a little butter, salt and pepper. Add back in some of the meat. Can add veggies if you like as well.
Depending on how much broth you have, could also make chicken and rice. I keep bags of yellow rice on hand so just follow package directions as to how much liquid. When it’s done stir in a can of either cream of chicken or mushroom soup and some of the leftover chicken meat and heat through. Can also make chicken salad with any leftover meat. – Janice

Roast it with vegetables and potatoes and have that for one night. Then leftovers can be used in tacos, quesadillas, pasta (tossed with chicken and any leftover veggies), bbq chicken wraps, chicken salad – Jennifer

Shred it all that way it stretches further and you can make many different dishes with shredded chicken – Claudia

Cook the whole thing with water and vegetables. Take half to make a chicken soup or chili (you can add filling veggies and beans to bulk it up) and the rest in a casserole or chicken taco bowls (you can bulk it up with beans, rice and veggies as well). – Rachel Abbey

I like to cook it, strip it fully. Put the bones in the crockpot wiht all my veggie scraps, water, parsley.
Dinner 1 would be chicken tacos. Id take 1/3 of the meet and mix with beans (lots of beans) and season for taco meat. Id make tacos (tortilla, rice, meat mixure, salsa or fresh tomato (depending on if i had salsa or tomatoes on hand or what I could get cheaper), lettuce, some cheese).
Dinner 2 & 3 Would be chicken soup. Id make a big vat with teh left over chicken, homemade broth, and veggies. Id cook just a litte rice and egg noodles but resve them.
Dinner 2 would be chicken noodle soup, adding the noodles and a little butter to each bowl as you serve.
Dinner 3 would be chicken and rice soup. same as above but use rice. Id probably make sure I had sourough and butter in teh house for htose two nights.
(You dont get the overcooked soggy pasta/rice issue that sometimes happens with home made soup plus you get to “switch it up”) – April

Roast it and serve that, then stew the carcass for broth. Drain the broth and pick the rest of the meat and either use in the soup (two meals total) or in a casserole or chicken tacos (mix with black beans and corn to bulk it up) and make a vegetable soup with the broth. – Ashley

First meal chicken in the crockpot with potatoes and carrots. Then enough for a pot pie. Then the stuff I won’t put in a pot pie…chicken and potatoes, carrots, onions, celery in a soup with rolls and maybe a pie. – Eryn

Meal 1, roast or rotisserie; Meal 2, bow tie pasta, a small jar of pesto, sliced roasted red peppers and chopped chicken leftovers, toss together top with Parmesan; meal 3, bones become broth and then some sort of soup. – MaryAnne

I made 2 in the crock pot this past weekend. Used them for enchiladas; then chicken salad; then chicken dumpling soup. I will still have a little left to put over salads. There are so many ways to use them. – Carol

Meal 1: roast chicken
Meal 2: chicken noodle soup
Meal 3: chicken and dumplings
You can also use the carcass after you roast the chicken for Meal 1 to make chicken stock to use for meals 2 and 3 – Sarah

1. Roast, 2. Tacos/quesildias/sandwich. 3. Soup/rissoto/pasta – Ashley

I cook it the crockpot. First meal is roasted chicken with sides. I boil the bones and use leftover meat for chicken n dumplings. I Save the legs to make chicken fried rice. Family of 6. – Sharon

I cook it in a baking bag with rice… just add rice and water twice the amount of rice spices… I use broth as well as water.. usually it is a mesl.plus leftovers and then it all the meat isn’t off the bones I will make a soup – Darlene

Shred and add black beans and corn. Burritos, nachos, taco soup…all viable with that combo. – Kimberly

Sam’s Club can be a great budget saver if you are intentional about what you purchase. Just because they sell in bulk doesn’t mean it is automatically cheaper than the everyday Walmart price (or the sale prices at your local grocer). I asked the SavEars what they purchase and here’s what they said:

• Trash Bags (best deal I’ve seen on them)
• Chicken
• Ground Beef
• Splenda
• Tyson Chicken Nuggets
• Folgers Coffee
• Pop Chips
• Famous Amos Cookies
• Paper Towels
• Toilet Paper
• Spices
• Bacon
• Medicines like Advil and Benadryl
• Elderberry
• Grapes
• Dishwasher Tabs
• Washing Detergent
• Frozen Vegetable Medley
• Razor Blades
• Bread
• Water

And you can’t go wrong with the Rotisserie chicken! It is $4.98 at my local store and I could eat the entire chicken myself, it is that good!

Let us know what you like to pick up at Sam’s.

Need a Membership? Groupon has a new membership for $25 (was $50).

One way to save money is to buy discounted gift cards for places you plan to shop. I’ve recommended this for years to save on Disney Gift Cards, but the same tips apply to every store/restaurant that you frequent that has gift cards available.

Raise.com

Raise.com offers discount gift cards for purchase as well as an opportunity for you to sell unwanted gift cards. You’ll find them for hundreds of different stores including Kroger, Walmart, Chili’s, DoorDash and more! Before you go out to a restaurant, retail store or shop online, look to see if there is a discount gift card available.

When you join through this link and verify your cell number, you’ll get $5 off your purchase of $20 or more. That’s an instant $5 you can save at a place you were already going to shop.

All gift cards on Raise.com are covered by their 100% money back guarantee. In the event that your gift card does not work, you will get a full refund up to 100 days from the date of purchase. This means that you can buy with confidence.

Create an account on Raise.com and visit the Brand Alerts section to create alerts for your favorite stores. You can set your price and discount range and it will email you when new cards are available. Be sure to list your local stores you frequent (grocery, gas, and restaurants), plus any places you might visit in the coming months.

Before you head out to spend money or purchase items online, check if Raise.com has a discounted gift card available. Many of the gift cards are delivered instantly and can be redeemed online or in person using the Raise app.

They have 1000’s of gift cards to 100’s of different merchants. Remember that since these cards are sold by individuals, they usually only have one of each available. Be sure to jump on any deal that you see.

TopCashBack.com

When you join TopCashBack, they also offer cash back when you purchase select gift cards. Just head to the gift card section and browse. I see great deals on restaurants and retail stores in my area that I frequent.

Swagbucks also has a Gift Card section where you can earn SB for the gift cards you purchase. Compare the 2 to see which will give you a better deal.

Sam’s Club and Kroger

Sam’s Club has a discount gift card selection for local restaurants. Browse your store’s selection next time you go. We’ve got all the details right here.

Kroger often offers 4x Fuel Points on the purchase of gift cards. Look to see what your local store carries and grab them when you can.

In Store

Many Restaurants will offer incentives if you purchase gift cards, such as “Spend $50 on Gift Cards and get a $10 bonus discount”. Check with your local restaurants to see if they have any gift card incentives right now.

Target offers 5% off gift cards with the Red Card.

Rewards

Many credit cards offer gift cards as a rewards option. Save up your points and cash out for gift cards to give as Christmas gifts.

Ibotta and Fetch offer earnings for gift cards

AARP

Jennifer says – I am not sure how many of you gals are old enough for this but i joined AARP for $10 and they often have great discounts for members on gift cards. My first purchase was a $500 Carnival cruise line gift card for $450 also purchased 2 – $100 GC for $90 for spending money

Find out all the ways to save with our helpful Savings Bingo!