Ways to save some bucks off your grocery bill

The price of beef jumped 23 per cent last year compared to the five-year average, according to a recent report. Home economist Jodie Kachkar shares tips.

The latest food price report from Dalhousie University says the average family’s food bill will go up by about $1,000 this year. One of the key drivers is the soaring price of beef, jumping 23 per cent last year compared to the five-year average. Home economist Jodie Kachkar joined CTV Your Morning Edmonton’s Kent Morrison with tips on tackling the rising meat costs.

This transcript has been edited for length and clarity.

Kent Morrison: Beef will cost you anywhere from about $6 to $10 for about a pound. Ground chicken will cost you $2.50 to about $8 and ground pork is about $5.78 per pound. When you talk about stretching your meat, how do you achieve this?

Jodie Kachkar: What I’m suggesting is that you take your pound of ground beef and divide it in half, or even 2/3 or 1/3, and then sub in something else. Tofu is an excellent choice. In Japanese cooking, ground tofu or shredded tofu is often put into ground meat and acts as a binder for things like meatballs and meat patties. Also, this is very inexpensive so this is a pretty cheap protein. You could also do cooked green or brown lentils. They hold their shape better and don’t get quite as mushy, or you could do grated carrot.

Kent: Let’s give people the price comparison because all of those options per pound are under $3, sometimes well under $3. So you’re not replacing the meat, you’re sort of supplementing.

Jodie: Absolutely. It’s a stretch and some of these stretches work better in some recipes than others. So it depends.

Kent: With grated carrots, you grate those, mix those in and for anything like ground beef, you cook it in with the carrots?

Jodie: Absolutely, as raw. You take your ground meat and you grate up your carrot, then you add your carrot right into it.

Kent: Lentils make me a little bit more nervous because I don’t know as much about them. What’s your approach to mixing those in?

Jodie: You need to cook a little bit first, especially with green lentils, because they take a little bit longer to cook. You simply rinse them and boil them until tender, then you add them into the raw meat and carry on with my recipe.

Kent: And tofu is pretty straightforward, but some people just don’t know what to do with tofu.

Jodie: Yeah, probably everybody has a bad tofu story, right? For most people, it’s the texture of tofu that really turns them off. If you freeze firm tofu, it turns it into something that’s a little bit more chewy and a little less squishy. Often, that’s better received. So I buy it and freeze it, then I thaw it and grate it, then I cook it with the raw meat.

Kent: This saves you money because if you’re going to do this, this can save you from $1.40 all the way almost up to $4.50 for your ground meat.

January 2026: Stretching ground meat

Ground meat costs:

• Ground Beef: $5.97 - 9.98 (per 454 g/1 lb)
• Ground Chicken: $2.50-7.98 (per 454 g/1 lb)
• Ground Pork: $5.78 (per 454 g/1 lb)

*Prices taken from local Walmart grocery store on Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026.

• Firm tofu: $2.97 per 500g (per 1lb approx.)
• Carrots: $2.29/lb
• Brown lentils: from Bulk Barn $0.51/100g or $2.55 per 500g (per 1lb approx.)

If you want to stretch your ground meat you can divide your 1 pound packages in half and sub in about 1/2 a block of shredded tofu, 1-2 grated carrots or 1 cup of cooked brown lentils. Then prepare/cook your ground meat as you would usually. This works really well for things like chili, Shepherd’s pie, pasta sauce, taco filling and well seasoned meatballs. I would not do burgers with this application as you might notice it and not enjoy the texture.

Cost Savings: $1.50 to $4.50 per pound of ground meat (depending on starting cost). Basically you can stretch 1/2 a pound of meat to 1 pound by adding in a much lower cost ingredient.

Here’s how to prepare the “sub ins.”

Carrots: Peel and grate on the large holes of a box grater, add into your raw ground meat and cook together as the recipe calls for.

Brown Lentils: Pick through the lentils and look for any small twigs or dirt. Rinse and combine 1 cup of lentils with 4 cups of water and 1/2 tsp (2.5mL) salt in a medium pot. Let sit for 15-30 minutes (if possible). Then bring to a rapid simmer and then reduce to low (barely simmering water). Cooking for 20-30 minutes and start tasting at 20 minutes. Should be cooked, firm but not mushy. Drain immediately. Can be stored in the fridge for three-five days or frozen for up to one month. I think lentils work best in a chili, sloppy joe or spaghetti sauce application with ground meat.

Tofu: I recommend freezing and then thawing the tofu as it makes the texture less “squishy” and more chewy or meaty. Once ready to use, divide your block in halves (the other half can be refrozen). Press your tofu on a plate with some paper towel for about 15 minutes by placing several paper towels on a plate and then the tofu on top. Cover the tofu with more paper towel and then your heaviest pot. Then grate your dry tofu on the largest holes of your box grater. Mix the half block into the half pound of raw meat and cook as usual. Season well.

Or you might turn the entire block of tofu into something that is similar to ground beef that you could add into pasta sauce, Shepherd’s pie, chili or sloppy joes as is.

Equipment

• Box Grater
• Small bowl (for mixing marinade)
• Large bowl (for shredded tofu)
• Non-stick skillet or large frying pan

Ingredients

• 450 g extra firm tofu frozen and then thawed
• 3 tablespoon soy sauce 
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (buy at Bulk Barn if you don’t have it)
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon white miso paste
• 1 teaspoon vegan beef stock powder or vegan bouillon powder

Instructions

1. Press and drain the extra firm tofu and pat dry. Use the large holes on a box grater to shred the tofu into a medium bowl.
2. In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients with two tablespoons of boiling water. Mix well until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
3. Pour the marinade over the shredded tofu. Use a spoon or your hands to gently mix, ensuring that all the tofu shreds are evenly coated with the marinade. Cover and allow the tofu to marinate for at least 30 minutes. For best results, let it marinate in the refrigerator for one-two hours or overnight.
4. Heat a non-stick skillet or a large frying pan over medium-high heat. If desired, add a small amount of oil to the pan to prevent sticking. Add the marinated tofu and any remaining marinade to the hot skillet. Spread it out into an even layer and let it cook undisturbed for two-three minutes.
5. Begin to stir and flip the tofu to ensure it cooks evenly and gets slightly crispy. Cook for an additional five-seven minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tofu is browned and has a texture similar to ground beef.
6. Your shredded tofu ground beef is now ready to use. It can be used as a substitute for ground beef in various dishes such as tacos, pasta sauces, casseroles, or as a topping for salads and bowls.

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two days or seal in a ziplock freezer bag and freeze for up to a month.