Grocery Games

Since I started trying to break my restaurant addiction by cooking some dishes myself, I’ve found that my grocery bills have gone through the roof. On the plus side, my restaurant bills have fallen through the floor. Overall, I spend less, but still eat quite well, and get a big kick out of making my own chocolate mousse, panacotta and Basque ox tongue stew (with pigs’ tongues – I don’t know where to get ox tongues). Not a bad state of things, overall.
However, I’ve learned a thing or two about how not to go overboard with the groceries.
First, if you go to the supermarket choose it with care. According to Tim Harford in his book The Undercover Economist, stores place goods strategically. By placing certain goods at eyecatching spots, they can actually boost the sales of those items by getting us to buy them on impulse. So the supermarket that is located conveniently in posh areas will probably tempt us with fresh fruit juices rather than the cheaper cordials. Both shops stock both goods, but the expensive stuff will be in the impulse spots of the posh location.
Outlets convenient for busy commuters tend to charge more for the same goods. As do different “brands” of supermarkets, even if they are owned by the same group. An interview with The Asian Parent (http://sg.theasianparent.com/articles/supermarket_differential_pricing_explained_diary_farm_group) showed how Marketplace, Shop 'N Save, Giant and Cold Storage, though part of the same group, charge different prices according to different groups, and across outlets within the same groups.
“Pricing is affected by many factors. Location and rental is just one of them. Other factors include the market positioning of the store, the level of service and store ambience. Retailers also take into account the competitive strategy of each store in each neighbourhood.”
To me, this translates into: “We want to make as much off the consumer as possible, and will squeeze whose more willing to part with their cash as much as possible.”
I don’t like to part with my money unnecessarily. To make sure that I get my money’s worth, especially in these days of inflation – they say that inflation has slowed, but I’m still trying to get over that massive jump in prices from late 2007 to early 2008 – I tend to stay away from Cold Storage unless I need something exotic, like kosher salt. And other such highly unlikely purchases.
Some people say the food there is fresher than other places, but most of the time, the meat I buy goes into the freezer for some time, so I’m not crazy about paying two or three times more for meat that will end up frozen anyway. Sometimes I do buy a couple of pieces of grass-fed steak from QB, but make sure I cook them right away, or keep them in the fridge overnight and eat them the next day.
I also make it a habit to shop at Shop ‘N Save or NTUC outlets in heartland areas – it helps to live near Geylang East. To avoid overdoing the buying, either go after eating a meal, because being hungry makes everything look tempting, or make a shopping list and stick to it, or both. I tend to avoid shopping before meals, but I don’t make lists, since I enjoy checking out the sale items. I take part in a survey of consumer patterns, so I have my food buys to scan into a machine. This makes me quite aware of what I buy, and the price compared with that on other shopping trips. For my trouble, they give me points, which translate into $100 worth of Harvey Norman coupons every 10 months.


I find that saving is less onerous if I treat it as a game. To entertain myself, I sometimes buy something on sale that I normally don’t eat, and challenge myself to make something out of it. Some chicken livers on sale led to liver pate, based on a recipe from a book, which I amended because I don’t like raisins in my savouries, and I don’t know where to find armagnac.
Here’s my version of Smooth Chicken Liver Pate:
3 tablespoons port
2 tablespoons Armagnac or sherry (if you don’t have one spirit or another, just use 5 tablespoons of one)
350g chicken livers, trimmed
100 grams unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon salt (actually, I’m use salted butter, and add less salt)
85 ml double cream, warmed (any cream will do)
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon allspice
50 g butter, melted, or 1 sheet gelatine (for sealing). Panko flakes (optional)
Poach the livers in simmering salted water until just bouncy and tight, but not firm. Overcooking will lead to grey pate, which tastes ok, but doesn’t look so good. Put them into a blender with all the other ingredients except the last. Blend it into a smooth paste.
If it is more watery than pasty, stir in some panko flakes – these Japanese breadcrumbs are really fine and taste neutral, so they form a good thickener.
Pour into a shallow dish, cover with cling wrap and put in fridge for 30 mins.
Take out of fridge, remove film, and spoon over melted butter to seal. I find this ok, but I prefer melting a sheet of gelatine in a little of the liquid used to cook the liver, and then pouring the gelatine mixture over the pate to seal it. The butter looks too fatty.
Refrigerate for at least 6 hours. The book says consume within 48 hours, but I have kept it for 72 without any loss of taste or ill effects.