Who doesn’t love to go out to eat? You get a night off from cooking and doing dishes, you get tasty food that you may not be able to recreate at home, and you get to relax. Unfortunately, you usually have to pay a rather large bill, especially if you are dining out with your family. Eat out several nights a week, and you could easily spend $400 to $800 a month on dining out alone!

However, there are several ways you can enjoy eating out without paying full price.

Consider the following strategies:
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It’s no small secret that I’m a big fan of Costco. We probably make a trip there once a week, whether to get gas or to shop at the warehouse, and while we never really fill up a cart, we usually walk out with something good. I like Costco for their staples goods, whether it’s toilet paper or tissues, and only occasionally buy food that isn’t fresh or frozen. I just don’t like buying some products in bulk because we don’t have the space to store it and, well, I don’t really want huge jugs of barbecue sauce in my fridge unless I know I’m going to be throwing a party where we’ll be using it up.

This will be a list of tips that I consider valuable. You won’t see me recommending you go there on an empty stomach and fill your stomach full of samples, which is a good tip but not something I’d consider a valuable secret.

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Before the lowly green onion led to a Hepatitis A outbreak that eventually led Chi-Chi’s to file for bankruptcy in 2004, Chi-Chi’s was my favorite Mexican restaurant.  I ate there at least once a week and always ordered one of two dishes:  Seafood Nachos or Seafood Enchiladas.

When they filed bankruptcy and closed their doors, I went through serious Chi-Chi’s withdrawl.  However, over the next few years, I altered some recipes to come up with my own version of these two dishes at home.  They tasted just as good as the meals served at Chi-Chi’s, and best of all, I could feed my entire family of 5 the mock meal for the same price I had paid for one entree at Chi-Chi’s.

Whether or not you visited Chi-Chi’s before, these are two recipes you will most likely enjoy.  The Seafood Nachos are an especially good appetizer for parties and potlucks.

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YouTube started as a fun way for people to share their videos, but it didn’t take long for it to change into an online resource that can help support your hobbies and help you to save money.  Now, there are many other video sites on the Internet that can save you literally hundreds of dollars every year.  If you don’t think it is possible, consider all of these sites that can help you save some serious cash:

YouTube—Started in 2005 by three friends who used to work at PayPal, YouTube now streams 4 billion videos per day, according to Wikipedia.   While you can certainly find fluff and even offensive videos of crimes such as beatings being committed, there are many videos specifically designed to help consumers.  Recently my space bar was sticking on my laptop.  Instead of taking it in to be repaired, I watched a few YouTube videos and fixed it myself.  Another blogger reported that her husband fixed their kitchen sink plumbing by watching how to do it on YouTube.

Besides saving you on repair bills, YouTube can also teach you how to do any number of money saving things such as grow your own garden, treat pests in your garden, and prepare cheap food (I love Clara’s Depression Era Cooking).

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Even if you don’t follow Dave Ramsey, you are likely familiar with his famous mantra, “Live like no one else so later you can LIVE like no one else.” Apparently, Ramsey has taken his words to heart and after paying off a hefty debt many years ago and making his millions advising people how to do the same, he is now living like no one else in his new 13,000+ square foot home.

We often think of millionaires and billionaires building luxury homes like Ramsey and living rock star lives complete with catered meals, servants, outrageous shopping, personal assistance, and private jets, but the shocking fact is that many of them live a frugal life just like you and your fellow Bargaineering readers. Surprised? I was, too.

Yet here are some of the uber-rich and their frugal habits:

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Aloe vera is an easy to grow plant that even those who fail miserably at growing everything else can grow.  And, of course, we all know it is an excellent sun burn soother.  (I used an entire tube of aloe vera after I stayed out in the hot North Carolina sun a few hours too long one summer; aloe vera was the only things that brought my flaming skin relief.)

Many people think that soothing a sun burn is aloe vera’s only use, but it turns out, much like witch hazel, there are many uses for aloe vera.

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Most of us are conditioned thanks to advertising firms’ marketing to buy already prepared mixes that we can make at home for a fraction of the cost. Our family has recently explored creating some convenience items that we can easily make at home including Onion Dry Soup Mix and Italian Salad Dressing.

When I was growing up, a staple in our home was Lipton Onion Dry Soup Mix. My mom used this for making dips and to sprinkle on our roasts for flavor.  However, Lipton Onion Soup Mix is not cheap at about $1.60 a box, especially when you consider you can easily put together your own onion dry soup mix using ingredients you probably already have in your pantry.

In addition to saving yourself a little bit of money, you also avoid unsavory ingredients such as MSG, hydrolized soy protein and disodium inosinate.

This is a recipe I originally found on Heavenly Homemakers (a great source for natural recipes); best of all, I notice no difference from the “real” Lipton Onion Dry Soup Mix.

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Everyone needs a little down time to relax and unwind. While some choose to spend quite a bit of money on their hobbies and recreational activities (think downhill skiing or boating), your hobbies don’t have to cost a lot. Best of all, some frugal hobbies might even make you money!

Here is a list of 20 frugal hobbies you might enjoy:

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