Low income grocery shopping tips for a newbie to adult crap.

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  • boriquaprp
    boriquaprp Posts: 34 Member
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    Have your dad buy you gift cards for the nearest supermarket or just give you the cash to help you out. He can buy you a rotisserie chicken in place of a pizza too. Everyone has great suggestions. Extremely useful!
  • sjv1966
    sjv1966 Posts: 121 Member
    edited December 2014
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    My biggest tip is to find a "ethnic" grocery store i.e. a non-chain grocery store in a Mexican or Indian or Asian neighborhood. I live in a neighborhood that has a large Hispanic population and the produce in our local grocery store is SO CHEAP. The other day I got two huge bags of fresh fruits and vegetables and my total at the cash register was $21. I couldn't believe it. I am not exactly sure why this is but I think is partly just the fact that people in those cultures tend to cook with a lot more fruits and veggies so the stores can carry more and charge less because less is wasted. I also think that these stores look look for fruits and veggies that wouldn't be sold in other stores. Not because they are bad because they are the wrong size (apples that are too small or too big) or blemished in some way. My store also has a shelf where they sell veggies that are on their last legs for a discount. I shop from this shelf any time I am planning to cook that same day. In a big chain store they would just throw that stuff away.

    Anyway when I used to shop at the big chains fruits and veggies seemed like a luxury. My perspective totally changed when I started going to local ethnic markets. FWIW I live in Chicago so we have a lot of them -- if that is not the case where you live then yes, as others have said, Aldies is also great.
  • ruqayyahsmum
    ruqayyahsmum Posts: 1,514 Member
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    i have a store cupboard and 2 freezers. i batch cook and freeze extras, i bulk buy meat usually at the local market and freeze in portions that ill need

    i buy vegetables like onions, peppers and carrots and chop them and freeze to be added to stews, sauces etc

    tins, packets, huge bags of rice and pasta, passata and bulk buys of toiletrys are kept in the store cupboard

    for the items i need weekly i will "online shop" on several supermarket sites to see where my shopping will be cheapest before i choose one to go to in person
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    Menu Plan

    then go out and buy food on sale - cook big batches and freeze

    frozen vegetables and frozen berries are great

    pulses, lentils, rices, potatoes are your friends

    get some budget recipe ideas .. there's millions on the net and try them out to add to your repertoire

  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    A whole chicken makes 3 meals easily
    dinner 1: roast chicken
    dinner 2: chicken soup from bones with carrots, celery, onion, bay leaf, peppercorns, salt, noodles/rice
    dinner 3: chicken pasta dish / chicken sandwiches / chicken stir fry or lots of others
  • Noogynoogs
    Noogynoogs Posts: 1,028 Member
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    I am on low income and have a problem with my budget for shopping. It's scary that the recent figures show 90 percent of people other. U. K. are malnourished.
  • greenfirearm
    greenfirearm Posts: 120 Member
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    RatOuttaHell wrote: »
    Thumbs up for Aldi's! Well, if you live in the UK that is. Aldi's is brilliant for low price, quality food - especially fruit and veg and they have a massive selection.

    Aldi has stores in quite a few countries; it's not a UK store, it's German. Viva la Lidl.

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