There are so many delicious recipes that call for meat, but it can be so expensive! Here are 8 tips and tricks to save money while feeding the meat-lovers in your home.

1. Eat less meat! When meal planning, try incorporating meals that don't use any meat. I often make spaghetti for my husband and he loves it regardless what meat is with it, so I usually forgo the meatballs and just serve noodles and sauce! Make Hawaiian haystacks with a meatless gravy, bean tacos, veggie stir-fry—be creative with your recipes and go meatless!

2. Stretch the meat to go farther. I rarely use the amount of meat a recipe calls for. If it calls for 3-5 chicken breasts, I usually do 2, or sometimes even 1. For example, when I make a chicken broccoli casserole that calls for 4 chicken breasts, I use one chicken breast and add more broccoli (it's healthier anyway). Often recipes call for a whole meat serving per person, but you can usually get away with using a lot less.

3. Look through ads and find the deals! I look through all the ads of my local grocery stores to see where I can get the meat I need the cheapest. This alone can save you tons!

4. Get quick sale/marked down meat. Stores have to sell their meat by a certain date, so talk to the butcher/meat counter employees and ask when they mark down the prices. If you get there early, you can have first choice on meat that is cheaper but is still safe to eat! Just be sure to eat it or freeze it when you get home! And the perfect segue—

5. Freeze it! If I find a really good deal on meats I know I will use, I stock up when it goes on sale. (Oh how I wish I had a bigger freezer!). Make sure you individually wrap the meat in freezer paper to protect it from freezer-burn; but if properly wrapped your meat can last for months (be sure to write the date, the poundage, and the particular meat on each one!) Pay special attention to those times of year you know that certain meats will be on sale (e.g. turkey at Thanksgiving, steak at Independence Day).

6. Plan on freezing your meat immediately. I don't know how many times I have let meat go bad because I stick it in the fridge, planning to freeze it or eat it the next day, and then something comes up. Before I know it, the meat's gone bad and I have to throw it out! Always plan on freezing your meat the same day you buy it (unless you're planning on cooking it for dinner!).

7. Buy the meat, not the prep-work. It's so nice to be able to buy a cut of meat that's all ready to go, but it's definitely not cheaper! You can save a ton of money by purchasing meat that has not already been prepared. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are going to cost more per pound than buying the whole chicken because all the work has already been done. Bone-in is cheaper, and while you may be paying for the weight of the bone, you'll still be paying way less per pound than buying it boneless.

8. Buy the cheaper cuts of meat. Many times a recipe calls for a particular cut of meat, but you can generally get away with using something cheaper. With that said, it definitely helps to become a master with the slow cooker—tough meats are usually cheaper, and if you cook it just right in the slow cooker, no one will know the difference! You can buy the cheap cuts and still get tender tastiness!