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While there are many ways for someone to beat or cheat the system with coupons, I would never recommend doing so. The savings we can achieve legitimately without resorting to fraud are impressive.

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While there are many ways for someone to beat or cheat the system with coupons, I would never recommend doing so. The savings we can achieve legitimately without resorting to fraud are impressive.

Recently, I discussed ways to save on meats, as prices on meats are largely on the rise at the supermarket. With U.S. poultry production affected by avian influenza outbreaks, expect to see prices for chicken rise in the months ahead.

One way to shop smarter is to look for the lowest-priced cuts of meats and see if they will suit your needs. On a recent trip to a local supermarket, I saw that chicken wings were $3.39 per pound, chicken drumsticks were $1.99 per pound, but chicken leg quarters were just 79 cents per pound! I don’t mind separating the thigh from the leg for cooking or grilling (a pair of kitchen shears makes than an easy job), but what a price difference between cuts considered more desirable versus less desirable.

On the same trip, I saw that center-cut pork chops were selling for $2.79 per pound, but assorted pork chops were 99 cents per pound! Our family enjoys loin chops as well as center-cut, and the price difference meant that I could purchase almost three times as many for the price of the more expensive chops.

I like to use this strategy not only for meats and poultry but for seafood, too. While this is not always the case, shrimp sold raw in the shell is typically less expensive than shelled, precooked shrimp. I like to purchase fish at an Asian supermarket in our area, both for their selection and their fantastic per-pound prices. However, depending on what kind of fish it is, I often take home headless fish that I still need to scale and filet. I don’t mind this extra step, because it usually saves our household money over buying perfectly filleted cuts.

This brings me to another point — we as consumers pay for convenience. Pre-cut steak strips will almost always cost more than buying a steak and cutting the strips yourself. You will usually pay more for cubed chicken versus cutting boneless breasts into cubes yourself.

The exceptions to all of these guidelines, though, are clearance sales. Meat departments typically go through a lot of markdowns, as fresh meat is so perishable. It’s worth visiting your local supermarket on different days to try to figure out when meat markdowns take place. Some stores reduce prices daily, while others do this once or twice a week. If you can determine when the discounts drop, you can purchase those meats at even lower prices.

Also, use coupons whenever you can. While it’s rare to find coupons for fresh meats outside those that your store might place on items to move excess or reduced cuts, coupons for brand-name meats do exist — particularly for things like deli cuts, lunchmeats and sausages. Use these in conjunction with sale prices to further reduce the prices you’re paying.

Lastly, I continue to stress that one of the best ways to beat price increases on meats is to shop low-priced sales and pack your freezer as much as you can — whether it’s the freezer built into your refrigerator or a separate, standalone unit. The latter will give you even more space to stock up on meats, but both can be used to beat price increases at the store. However, if you’re limited to your refrigerator’s freezer, there are ways to maximize the space to your advantage. I like to unbox any foods that have inner packaging. Remove frozen pizzas and snacks from their boxes. Cut the cooking instructions off the packages, and then tape them to the bags. They’ll take up much less room in the freezer, leaving you more space for meat stock-ups.

Anytime you’re able to buy multiple meals’ worth of meats at low prices, then store them, you’re effectively “erasing” any price increases on that item each time you prepare a meal from the freezer versus going to the store and paying whatever price they happen to be charging that day for the same product. Your freezer is one of the best tools we have to save on meat prices over time.

Jill Cataldo, a coupon workshop instructor, writer and mother of three, never passes up a good deal. Learn more about Super-Couponing at her website, www.jillcataldo.com. Email your own couponing victories and questions to jill@ctwfeatures.com.

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