That bag of baby carrots on your Thanksgiving shopping list may be costing you double. Joan Salge Blake, a clinical professor of nutrition at Boston University’s Sargent College, says baby carrots typically cost about twice as much as whole carrots.
She has a handful of other money-saving moves for the big dinner, and one of them involves the canned food aisle that many of us were taught to look down on.
Food Prices Are Up 3.7%, So Start Early
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that food prices in September 2026 were up 3.7% from a year earlier, and they keep climbing. That means the same cart of groceries costs more than it did last November.
Salge Blake, who hosts a podcast called Spot On!, advises shoppers not to wait until Thanksgiving week to start buying. The closer you get to the holiday, the fewer chances you have to catch a good sale.
Buy The Pie Fixings Now And Freeze The Whole Dessert
Her first tip is to use your freezer. When baking apples and pie crust go on sale in early November, grab them and bake the pie ahead of time.
You can freeze the baked pie, and she suggests freezing ice cream alongside it for a one-and-done dessert. It also takes a few chores off your plate on the busiest cooking day of the year.
Turkey needs planning of its own. A bird thaws in the refrigerator at roughly 24 hours for every 4 to 5 pounds, so a 15 pound turkey needs at least three days.
Watch The Flyers, Because Stores Sell Turkeys Cheap To Get You Inside
Supermarkets often cut turkey prices on purpose, as what the industry calls loss leaders. They are happy to lose a little on the bird if you fill the rest of your cart while you are there.
Salge Blake says to check the store flyer, website or app, buy a turkey when it is on sale, and freeze it. You can do that weeks before the holiday and still serve a fresh-tasting bird.
Treat the sale like a game. Keep your own shopping list and only buy the other items you truly need, so the discount on the bird is not eaten up by impulse buys.
Baby Carrots Cost About Twice As Much As Whole Ones
Here is the tip behind the headline. Pre-cut and pre-peeled produce costs more because you are paying for someone else to do the chopping.
Baby carrots typically cost about twice as much as large carrots, which you can cut up yourself in a couple of minutes. For a table full of guests, that difference adds up.
The same idea applies to bagged salad, cut-up squash and pre-diced onions. A good knife and ten minutes of work can cut your produce bill noticeably.
Canned Vegetables Can Be Up To 80% Cheaper Than Fresh
Fresh is not always best for your wallet. Depending on the vegetable, Salge Blake says canned versions can be up to 80% cheaper than fresh and 50% cheaper than frozen.
She suggests a cheap first-course soup made from canned tomatoes, potatoes and beans. Canned vegetables come cleaned and diced, and the soup can be made ahead and frozen.
If you worry about salt, look for cans labeled low sodium or no salt added, and rinse beans and vegetables under water before using them. That is general kitchen advice, and it takes only a moment.
Serve Dinner At 1 P.M. Instead Of 4 P.M.
Her last tip is about the clock. Starting dinner around 1 p.m. instead of 4 p.m. or later cuts the need for expensive appetizers and alcohol, because guests are not sitting around hungry for hours.
Serve the soup when people arrive, then the main meal. If anyone gets hungry again around 6 p.m., leftovers can be offered.
Plan the leftovers on purpose. Turkey sandwiches, soup from the carcass and a plate to send home with each guest are an easy way to stretch the money you spent.
The full set of tips is posted on the Boston University website.
Put It All Into One Simple Plan
If you want to turn the advice into a plan, start with the guest list. Count heads and decide on the menu before you buy anything, so you do not end up with three kinds of cranberry sauce.
Then check the flyers this week, buy the turkey and baking items that are on sale, and clear space in the freezer. Make a note of when to move the turkey into the refrigerator.
Ask each guest to bring a dish they love, such as rolls, a vegetable side or a pie. Most people are glad to help, and it spreads the cost around the table.
Write the plan on a single sheet of paper and stick it on the refrigerator. When the whole family can see the dates for shopping, thawing and baking, nothing gets forgotten and nobody pays for a last-minute rush to the store.
Finally, skip the extras that you can make yourself. Whole carrots, a canned-tomato soup and an early dinner will not spoil anyone’s holiday, and they could leave a little more in your pocket for the next one.
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