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Eating cheap and still getting adequate nutrition
TwoQuestions
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I've been looking at how much I spend on groceries, and it's frightening. In response, I'm starting to cut down on things like chips and shrimp, but it's still quite a bit. I know meat's getting very expensive, so we've cut down on that, doing more stir-frys than steaks.
Other than that, I really don't know what's critical to have to eat and still remain healthy. When I was a teenager, I ate buttered rice and felt fine, but at 25 I don't think that will fly anymore.
So here's my plan thus far:
Is there anything else I really need, or would this do?
Other than that, I really don't know what's critical to have to eat and still remain healthy. When I was a teenager, I ate buttered rice and felt fine, but at 25 I don't think that will fly anymore.
So here's my plan thus far:
- A 6-ounce portion of meat, mostly chicken.
- A bit of veggies, like peas or carrots
- Some kind of starch, like potatoes or rice
Is there anything else I really need, or would this do?
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Switching to different cuts of meat can make a big difference, too. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are up to like $5/lb at the grocery stores around here, it's ridiculous. Chicken thighs, however, are much cheaper, and actually have more flavour. Sirloin steaks are $6-8/lb; chuck steak is $2/lb, and while it needs to be cooked a little differently, it ends up being just as delicious.
Aside from that, yeah, rice and beans are going to be your friends. Something like a 15-bean soup costs about $2 for a massive pot of distressingly hearty goodness that will feed you for a week of lunches, especially if you toss in a chunk of ham on the bone and some veggies.
In my area we have Shaws, Market Basket and Hannefords.
Market Basket is much cheaper like 50% cheaper then shaws and probably 30% Cheaper then Hannefords for the same exact things.
The same is true for meats, chips, anything really. Rather than eating out of the bag, put it in a bowl first -- as long as you're not intentionally going back for refills, you'll find this casually stretches out your food. Don't cook 4 servings of dinner, with the intent of making leftover lunches, and then go back for seconds if you're not hungry. Pack it up when you serve dinner, so it's already in the fridge. You'll still have your lunch AND you'll realize you're already pretty full.
I eat peanut shells.
and
can be cheap and healthy if you eat about half of what I made in those pictures. Those have tuna for the meat, but just about anything works.
Sandwiches with deli meat are good too. For breakfast I do a serving of waffles or store brand cheerios with a little honey.
We often do black beans and rice and jerk chicken (thighs) also a very cheap but super flavorful meal.
If you drink alot of soda or juice, you can cut costs there usually.
This isnt really healthy at all, but if you have an asian market anywhere near you, you can usually get a huge bag of frozen dumplings for way cheaper there. Nice added side to stir fry.
i mean what, depending on where you live, ~3 bucks for a dozen eggs?
eggs are the best
Heck, you can even make them out of leftovers to start with. Do you have two or three extra hamburgers and half a package of green beans in your freezer? Cook a package of noodles (normally $2 or less), add in a jar of your sauce of choice ($3 to $5 dollars) and some cheese of choice (another $3 or $4) and you have another 5 or 6 meals.
If you get your local flyers every week and start learning what things cost at full price, and what their lowest sale price is, you will absolutely save a TON of money. Buy on sale, store as much as you can (provided it won't go bad) and only shop weekly for fresh produce and milk. If you write in a little notebook (or on your phone or whatever) the prices for the groceries you buy, then you look at flyers and update your notebook every time you see a lower price, you will soon have a list of what things should cost at sale price. Then, don't buy anything that isn't at the lowest possible price or at least within 10%.
Lean meats are cheaper in bulk, not always from bulk stores like Costco though, depends on your area. Price it out per pound, buy it at the cheapest, and then store a nice big box in a deep freeze. Produce may be cheaper at a farmers market, may not be. Check one out using your notebook prices and see if you'd be saving.
Canned tuna here in Canada fluctuates more than 200% in price. Canned beans from say, Heinz vary from 50c per can (10c if you're a crazy couponer) up to $2 (yes) per can in our grocery stores. Same product, crazy ass price variety. Toothpaste, regular price for large tube of Crest, $2.50+, on sale, 75c. I am sure in the States you can get way cheaper than that if you hunt around.
Grocery bills often include things you forget like cleaners, health items, toilet paper, etc. Go carefully through your receipts and see if this is also a problem in your budget. If so, start buying these items in bulk only when they are on extreme sale. The shelf life of body wash and stuff is usually 12 months, so get these from clearance bins instead of shelf price. Get an idea of the cheapest price you can pay per roll of TP (and still have a comfortable anus, no reason to buy a crappy brand if it really sucks) and then make sure you only buy these products at their absolute lowest.
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eggs.
eggs.
in as many different ways as you can.
and oatmeal. I have a huge thing of rolled oats (still haven't found steel cut down here yet) that has lasted me months so far. And it's so easy to make. it takes a bit more time than toss in the nuker and go, but the difference in taste and being full is so worth it.
when the package tells you '1/2 cup serving' and you laugh at it, don't. I'm a big girl and I struggle to get through 1/2 cup.
rice and beans. Add some more and make it brown rice and you could be even more golden. There was a recipe on allrecipes that I found with brown rice, lentils, and eggs. looked delicious, but i have yet to try to make it yet.
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You can make non-instant oatmeal in the microwave, I do it all the time (I usually add extra salt when doing so, though).
In fact, you don't even need to cook oatmeal! Two of these recipes don't require cooking --> http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/41864160/ns/today-food/
Steel-cut oats usually require 30-45 minutes of cooking, but you can bring that down to less than 10 minutes if you soak them overnight:
--> http://www.thebittenword.com/thebittenword/2009/01/overnight-oatmeal-quick-cook-steelcut-oats-in-10-minutes.html
--> http://everydayfoodblog.marthastewart.com/2010/05/make-ahead-oatmeal-trick.html
A slow cooker (or a rice cooker, if you have a nice one) works as well.
Basic vegies, such as onions and potatos and tomatos are all cheap as dirt, but can also be used on many dishes, or even as sides. They add a bit of diversity, and can each be prepared seven ways from sunday.
Also, I find I can save considerable amounts of money by going down to the asian grocers and buying my meat and veg there. Honestly, I'm asian, and I'm aware their hygenie practices probably aren't ... ideal, but I've never been sick, and their prices are always like a good 20%-40% lower than western sellers. A 40 buck bag of rice lasts me and the missus ... pretty much a year? And its just some veg and meat we use to supplement our intake.
The last thing I'd say is be careful when buying stuff where you need to dispose of a large amount of peelings or shell, because you will inevitably pay by weight, but you'll be tossing away most of the weight, and your hard earned cash. It includes stuff like clams, prawns ... cuts of meat with fat that need trimming ...
Rice.
Beans.
Oatmeal.
Lentils.
Then come up with things that are inexpensive to supplement or change the meal without requiring a whole lot of additional ingredients.
Tortillas.
Salsa.
Bread(s).
Sauces. (Tabasco, Soy Sauce, Chile Sauce, etc)
Now come up with fresh stuff you can buy frequently that will let you mix it up a bit for different meals, still using some of the above ingredients.
Eggs.
Cheese. (buy a big block of jack and cut it up and freeze most of it, save a ton of cash)
Chicken.
Turkey Bacon.
Now go to Lowes or Home Depot and buy a little starter spice garden kit. Grow your own Thyme, Oregano, Cilantro, Basil and whatever else you think will be useful.
So, this last week I made some Black Beans with a pack of Turkey Bacon chopped up in it. For the following 4 days I had burritos, chili and rice and beans pretty often for lunch at work.
Eggs, Milk, Cheese, Beans and Rice are almost always the same price. So they end out being staples. If Turkey Bacon is on sale, I buy 3 packs and freeze 2, same with Hot Dogs or Chicken.
Once you're on a sort of cycle of what goes on sale, you end out with a pretty good rotation of things to eat. I think the last trip to the store 9 days ago cost me 38$ and because I keep eggs and stuff around, and things in the freezer I can throw together a turkey bacon and egg sandwich or burrito or just have hotdogs if I'm feeling lazy.
Biggest thing is going to be catching things "in season"(on sale) at the store. There's a pretty huge savings if you find Hot Dogs at 2.00$ a pack instead of 5.00$, and if nothing is on sale? (improbable) you've still got that disgus....delicious bag of beans in the cabinet you purchased a month ago.
edit: Learn to cook. A lot of the things you buy in the store aren't hard to make at all if you do it yourself. Pasta sauce, salsa, etc. 12oz can of Alfredo Sauce is like 4.50$, cream and Parmesan cheese will run you a little more, but you can make like 10x the amount in 15-20 minutes, you may hate it at first, but it really becomes enjoyable cooking things and having them come out well.
edit2:
I've actually been thinking about trying to live off 100$ a month in grocery cost just to see if I can. Only real problem right now is I smoke, and that's expensive. I'm really interested in seeing just how cheaply I can survive. Oddly enough the cheaper I live the better I think my diet gets and after a few days of scraping by with what's on hand I learn to make some pretty nifty dishes out of what I've got and I feel a ton better by virtue of what I'm eating and my portions end out being.
Similarly, pasta if you make your own sauce. I make a big batch of pasta, eat it for a day or 2, then bake the leftovers with cheese and eat it for another couple days. Adding various vegetables to either the sauce or finished product keeps it relatively fresh and different. Pasta can be a bit expensive but its versatile enough that you can make it with whatever is on sale so that offsets the cost significantly.
Polenta! Cornmeal is crazy cheap and polenta can be prepared dozens of different ways.
A large pot pie can similarly be made with whatever fresh food is on sale, or cheap, canned food. Bisquick (or the generic version) is a potent weapon in the budget gourmets arsenal.
Most importantly, remember where each food in your stable of goods can be purchased for cheapest: milk, cheese, and other dairy products seem to have the most wild variations in price from store to store, as well as frozen goods (just my experience).
Tofu is cheap as well, and a quarter-pound is a big dollop of protein. For reference, that's probably about 25 cents to fill your protein requirement
Wraps, get/make a flavorful sauce that is healthy,
portion out the ingredients you want to keep you
EAT
Works well for keeping in the fridge after a hard day's work.
Also, friend rice is really easy to make, rice, seasonings, eggs, cheap veggies, canned meat.
1 more thing, life hacker told me that Bulk and wholesale goods stores are not the best source for fresh veggies. It appears you get better deals buying them at local supermarkets and maybe farmer's markets.