At a time when many Canadians are feeling the pinch due to soaring food prices, Alex MacLaren’s motto is “We use what we have.” And it’s helping her followers save hundreds of dollars on groceries.
The Nova Scotia-based mom has gained thousands of followers on TikTok for her easy-to-follow videos, using ingredients she has lying around to cook easy no-fuss meals.
“There are some easy meals that lend themselves well to using what you have; pasta, soup, stew, fried rice, casseroles,” the MacLaren told Daily Hive via email.
“But the first thing I always say is not to go to the store for one missing ingredient. If you planned a meal and realized you missed something, look for what else you could use that you already have.”
This simple hack for buying groceries is something MacLaren has consistently shared with her huge TikTok audience, which has now reached over 479,000 followers.
In a recently posted video, MacLaren describes her “We use what we have” mantra.
@mac.larena 🚨 NEW SERIES 🚨 How to save money on groceries! We use what we have doesnt mean only buying the cheapest items, its about making the most of the things you do buy! #grocerysavingtips #groceryprices #groceryshoppingtips ♬ original sound – Alex 🍕🥗☕️😎
“You’ve probably heard to shop your pantry first and make your meal plan that way, and that’s also a good way to start. But my whole philosophy revolves around substitutions. Finding alternatives at home instead of running to the store when you realize you’re missing an ingredient for a recipe,” MacLaren says.
“It means being intentional about your food waste. That’s money you’ve spent, and you still need to consume the same about of food. So if you throw it out, you have to buy more. Looking in your fridge and using things up before they go bad and seeing how you can incorporate those ingredients into the recipes you’re already making.”
She adds that making substitutions for specific groceries has made a massive difference in what she spends on food.
Alex MacLaren (Submitted)
It can be as simple as seeing that broccoli is $6 a head and switching it out with a cheaper vegetable or frozen option or using the broccoli for that recipe as intended and ensuring that another meal you’re making that week requires broccoli.
“When I share grocery hauls, people are often shocked at how little I’ve spent, and it’s because I’m doing the math while I’m in the store when I’m presented with new information about the deals I find around me,” she explains.
MacLaren told Daily Hive that she’s been posting her lifestyle food on Instagram for quite some time, and a friend encouraged her to start posting on TikTok, “and the rest is history.”
As for her “We use what we have” tagline, MacLaren says it caught on organically after she said it in one of her videos.
“At one point over a year ago, I started a video with “repeat after me, we use what we have,” and lots of people commented, “We use what we have,” so I just rolled with it, then when I forgot to say it in a video people would remind me!” she explains.
MacLaren focuses on making simple recipes for families (Submitted)
Scrolling through MacLaren’s page, you’ll find hundreds of videos of her sharing what she’s making using leftovers, scraps from her fridge, or things she needs to use up in her freezer.
In one video, she teaches her followers how to make “clean out the fridge” fried rice. It involves random bits of veggies and some leftover rice. She makes a simple sauce using soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil. The recipe also requires brown sugar, but she’s out, so she uses what she has and replaces it with white sugar.
It’s an easy meal, and MacLaren whips it up in 10 minutes.
@mac.larena 10 minute meal to clean out your fridge (so basically free bc if you didn’t use it it would go bad 🤪). Cabbage is a seriously underrated vegetable tbh. @Alex 🥘 Budget Friendly Foodie . . . . . . Fried rice recipe #friedricerecipe pulled pork leftovers, leftover transformation #leftovertransformation #whatsfordinnertonight #easylunchrecipe #10minutemeal #mealsunder15mins #betterthantakeout #cheapmeals ♬ original sound – Alex 🍕🥗☕️😎
In another video, she makes “garbage soup,” which she describes as “the easiest way to clean out your fridge and feed your family for only a few dollars.”
It requires four simple elements: some onion, garlic in some form (MacLaren says garlic powder works just fine), something with “tomato” (whether it’s paste, sauce, or a can of tomatoes), and some kind of stock.
The rest of the ingredients are up to you, making it easy to use up anything in your fridge you feel like throwing in. MacLaren adds some leftover cabbage, turkey, and corn.
@mac.larena Replying to @rensworld12 Garbage soup! The easiest way to clean out the fridge and feed your family for only a few dollars. Also freezes well if you dont want to eat it right away. @Alex 🥘 Budget Friendly Foodie . . . . . #garbagesoup #easysouprecipes #cleanoutthefridge #easyweeknightmeals #cheapmeals ♬ original sound – Alex 🍕🥗☕️😎
MacLaren’s videos aren’t just focused on recipes. She also shares a lot of simple kitchen and ingredient hacks to help her followers save more on their groceries.
One of her videos focuses on how to make easy ingredient swaps with items you probably already have.
@mac.larena Much requested video! It took me a while to make this (sorry) because i didn’t know where to start; re- task paralysis. Here are 3 things you can easily substitute in recipes to save yourself a trip to the store (and money) @Alex 🥘 Budget Friendly Foodie . . . . #pantrymeals #weusewhatwehave #extremegrocerybudgetchallenge #groceryshoppingtips #cookinghacks ♬ original sound – Alex 🍕🥗☕️😎
“You don’t need to have every type of vinegar. Vinegars are all kind of interchangeable in recipes,” she says in the clip.
She provides similar examples for tomato-based sauces and broth and bouillon. “Will it be the exact same? No. But it will be fine,” she assures her viewers.
Another tip she swears by is letting specific ingredients run before replacing them.
“I’m also big on letting things run out between shops instead of buying backups of things (unless there’s a good sale), which will have you using up things you might have left to go bad,” she tells Daily Hive.
“For example, if you typically eat oatmeal for breakfast and run out before grocery day, you might have that open box of cereal that will go stale soon.”
@mac.larena 🚨 NEW SERIES 🚨 How to save money on groceries. This is the budget series that started it all! Easy to follow tips to cut down your grocery bill. @Alex 🥘 Budget Friendly Foodie . . . . . . #extremegrocerybudgetchallenge #howtosavemoney #cheapfoodhack #groceryshoppingtips #groceryhaul ♬ original sound – Alex 🍕🥗☕️😎
MacLaren tells Daily Hive that she’s always been a creative and thrifty cook, so cutting costs on groceries is a built-in habit.
“But I’ve had lots of people tell me they cut their bill by hundreds per month or even in half by implementing “we use what we have” despite rising food costs,” she says.
Aside from her helpful tricks and tips, MacLaren is relatable. She’s a busy mom on the go. After being let go from her IT job following maternity leave, MacLaren pursued content creation as a full-time career.
Even though she’s amassed a huge online following, MacLaren doesn’t try to make herself seem like the perfect aesthetic social media influencer. She offers an honest and realistic glimpse into her everyday life.
Sometimes you hear one of her kids crying in the background, and other times she’s holding one of her kids in one arm while trying to meal quickly because she’s in a rush. Like many Canadians, she is just trying to feed her family while sticking to a budget.
“I couldn’t be anyone else,” she says. “Truthfully, with a young family, it’s chaotic, and if things had to be perfect, the videos just wouldn’t happen at all.”