I shop for my family of 3 at Aldi on a $500 monthly budget. Here are my 10 favorite things to get there.

I cook and prepare lots of meals for my family and I often shop for ingredients at Aldi. I stick to a budget of $500 a month and focus on buying quality products, like the Atlantic salmon. Mama Cozzi’s Texas toast and the Breakfast Best pitas fill in the gaps when there’s no time to cook. I love making delicious, satisfying meals for my family and Aldi’s prices make it possible to buy all of the ingredients I need. I typically shop at Aldi multiple times each month and try to keep my grocery spending at $500 total. Here are 10 of my favorite things to get at Aldi. The Little Salad Bar spinach is a staple in every family meal. I’ll combine the Little Salad Bar spinach with feta and eggs to make a scramble or a crustless quiche. For lunch, I use spinach, fresh mozzarella, and cherry tomatoes to make a mock caprese salad when I don’t want the punch of basil. For dinner, I’ll use spinach in palak paneer, a cheese curry, and serve it with fresh garlic naan. I also add spinach to many whole-wheat pasta dishes for some much-needed greens. I get an 8-ounce bag of Little Salad Bar spinach for $1.50. I enhance so many meals using the Southern Grove pistachios. The Southern Grove pistachios are one of my favorite snack foods. I usually keep a bowl of shelled pistachios near my desk for easy munching throughout the day. If I’ve got time, I might even roast them for a few minutes first. I also use pistachios in dinner dishes by pulverizing them to make a chicken coating or blending them with water to create a thickening agent to replace heavy cream. A bag of Southern Grove pistachios costs $3.40. The Millville whole-grain granola is an awesome crunchy snack and an ideal yogurt booster. I don’t love yogurt by itself so I often make it tastier with the Millville whole-grain granola mixes and some berries. I might also mix the Millville product with chocolate and a few other ingredients and bake scrumptious homemade granola bars. A 14-ounce bag of granola is $2.30. Hot Italian sausage makes dinner preparation a breeze. Hot Italian sausages are a useful meal ingredient because they come with heat, seasoning, and protein in one convenient package. For an easy weeknight meal, I lay sausages, bell peppers, onions, and potatoes on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil, and roast for about 50 minutes. It’s a simple and delicious meal with easy cleanup. A package of five sausage links costs $3.40. The Breakfast Best pita sandwiches are a lifesaver on hectic weekday mornings. I usually prefer a homemade breakfast, but on busy mornings, I’ll give my family the Breakfast Best pita sandwiches. I love that these pitas maintain a soft and fluffy texture after heating up in the microwave. A box of six Breakfast Best pita sandwiches costs $3. The Fremont Fish Market Argentine shrimp are a staple in some of my favorite dishes. The Fremont Fish Market Argentine red shrimp are fantastic in fajitas, kebabs, stir-fries, and pasta dishes. But a shrimp étouffée, a Cajun stew, really gets my family excited. The Argentine red shrimp have a clean and mildly sweet flavor that complements the rich Cajun smothering. I get a 24-ounce bag of shrimp for $10. I love Atlantic salmon and nothing beats Aldi’s prices. If I’m lucky, I’ll reincarnate as a Kodiak bear on the Alaskan archipelago eating salmon straight from the river. But for now, I’ll enjoy my favorite fish at a relatively affordable price. The Alaskan salmon at Aldi is just $9 per pound, about $20 to $25 per package. I’ve seen salmon that costs twice as much at other grocery stores. Add some visual appeal to dinner with multicolored bell peppers. The multicolored bell peppers are sweet enough to enjoy raw in salads and wraps but are also great cooked in rich curries and fajitas. Each bag costs $2.70 and contains a red, yellow, and orange bell pepper. Season’s Choice frozen blueberries are there when I need them. Fresh blueberries almost always go bad before I can consume all of them so I grab the frozen version from Season’s Choice. I keep at least one or two bags in my freezer so I can enjoy this superfood almost anytime without worrying about them spoiling. A 24-ounce bag of Season’s Choice blueberries is just $4.40. Mama Cozzi’s Texas toast is a freezer staple for my Lone-Star family. Though Mama Cozzi’s frozen Texas toast doesn’t compare to the homemade version, it’s a perfectly acceptable substitute on busy weeknights. I serve the Texas toast with a salad and lean protein. A box of five Mama Cozzi’s Texas toast usually costs about $3.