Eating (mostly) clean on a budget

HardcoreP0rk

Certain stores charge more for ingredients that they don't sell regularly. For example, I notice that quinoa at the supermarket is outrageous (6.99 for less than a pound) - but at Trader Joe's it is a fraction of that. While I tend to think that big grocery stores offer more competitive pricing, there are specific items that are often worth the trip to a specialty store. TJ's is worth the trip...always.

Th3Ph03n1x

lawlifehanna wrote: »

bkerr30 wrote: »

As I continue to read these posts, I wonder do certain areas charge more for healthy food? I live in Canada and the only places I know of that charge significantly more is wayyy up in the northern provinces where transportation costs sky rocket. Where I live, it is significantly more expensive to eat prepackaged/convenience foods. Those in the states or other countries, what is your take on this? Could this be a region- related issue?

I live in Finland, and here are my insights: living in a place with one growing season and four distinct seasons, buying what's in season helps a lot. For example, tomato prices are almost tripled for winter. The options are expensive Finnish tomatoes that have been grown inside with heat lamps and don't even taste like anything, or slightly less expensive Spanish tomatoes that taste a little bit like tomatoes (not much) and have suffered a lot during transportation. So, less tomatoes right now.

OP, don't worry. My first "clean" grocery shopping bill was also doubled compared to what I usually spent. There were a lot of staples, some I haven't finished yet, and some I purchased because I went a little overboard (despite having preplanned the meals and having a list in hand). For example, instead of buying the frozen berries needed for the two smoothies I had planned for, I bought enough for probably 8. The next two shopping bills were about 20% smaller than pre-MFP, but they last us longer and there hasn't been "refill trips" in between, except for some things that were actually forgotten. Before MFP I didn't really do meal planning or look for discounts, and I had to go to the store almost every day for something.

If you're using a recipe and notice in the store that some ingredient is crazy expensive (this happened to me and fresh rosemary, which was double the price compared with other fresh herbs), just skip it if possible (one of 5 veggies in the recipe, a spice etc.), or substitute it with something.

Is there more than one grocery shop in your area? Find out what's on sale in each one before making your meal plan, but also figure out how much extra you'll pay for gas when driving to several different stores, and see if it's actually worth it (money- or time wise). If not, see what's on sale in the store you frequently go to, and start planning there. The store might also have some extra sales they don't advertise, if they have too much of something. Since prices often wary, you might even want to write your grocery list in a way of "3 pieces of fruit for snacks" and then go to the store and see which fruit is cheapest.

I try to go to a bigger and cheaper store about once a month to do the grocery shopping for that week, and to buy non-perishables for the month. I don't have a car and usually use a store that's within walking distance, for the bigger one I need to commute with public transportation or get a ride from someone.

Also, organic doesn't automatically mean it's clean. Example: organic bananas come to the store packaged in the same preservatives as the regular ones.

I think you nailed it. I'm feeling like the recipes I used had a lot of stuff that I normally didn't buy and it added up but I'm not sure how much of that is just because of the switch to a healthier menu and how much will take me adjusting the recipes in the future to lower the bill.

We have actually used up most of the produce and so far only lost some spinach. To the last part I'm not actually buying organic. I knew that would be a hit to the budget.

HardcoreP0rk

If you share the meal plan or some recipes, I'd be happy to suggest low cost substitutions or some cost saving measures. Having a chef in the house makes it easier for us to get creative with the menu (and the budget).

Th3Ph03n1x

HardcoreP0rk wrote: »

Certain stores charge more for ingredients that they don't sell regularly. For example, I notice that quinoa at the supermarket is outrageous (6.99 for less than a pound) - but at Trader Joe's it is a fraction of that. While I tend to think that big grocery stores offer more competitive pricing, there are specific items that are often worth the trip to a specialty store. TJ's is worth the trip...always.

HardcoreP0rk wrote: »

If you share the meal plan or some recipes, I'd be happy to suggest low cost substitutions or some cost saving measures. Having a chef in the house makes it easier for us to get creative with the menu (and the budget).

I haven't looked to see if we have a Trader Joe's here but I will. I'll look into getting the last meal plan together too... thanks.

WinoGelato

Th3Ph03n1x wrote: »

lawlifehanna wrote: »

bkerr30 wrote: »

As I continue to read these posts, I wonder do certain areas charge more for healthy food? I live in Canada and the only places I know of that charge significantly more is wayyy up in the northern provinces where transportation costs sky rocket. Where I live, it is significantly more expensive to eat prepackaged/convenience foods. Those in the states or other countries, what is your take on this? Could this be a region- related issue?

I live in Finland, and here are my insights: living in a place with one growing season and four distinct seasons, buying what's in season helps a lot. For example, tomato prices are almost tripled for winter. The options are expensive Finnish tomatoes that have been grown inside with heat lamps and don't even taste like anything, or slightly less expensive Spanish tomatoes that taste a little bit like tomatoes (not much) and have suffered a lot during transportation. So, less tomatoes right now.

OP, don't worry. My first "clean" grocery shopping bill was also doubled compared to what I usually spent. There were a lot of staples, some I haven't finished yet, and some I purchased because I went a little overboard (despite having preplanned the meals and having a list in hand). For example, instead of buying the frozen berries needed for the two smoothies I had planned for, I bought enough for probably 8. The next two shopping bills were about 20% smaller than pre-MFP, but they last us longer and there hasn't been "refill trips" in between, except for some things that were actually forgotten. Before MFP I didn't really do meal planning or look for discounts, and I had to go to the store almost every day for something.

If you're using a recipe and notice in the store that some ingredient is crazy expensive (this happened to me and fresh rosemary, which was double the price compared with other fresh herbs), just skip it if possible (one of 5 veggies in the recipe, a spice etc.), or substitute it with something.

Is there more than one grocery shop in your area? Find out what's on sale in each one before making your meal plan, but also figure out how much extra you'll pay for gas when driving to several different stores, and see if it's actually worth it (money- or time wise). If not, see what's on sale in the store you frequently go to, and start planning there. The store might also have some extra sales they don't advertise, if they have too much of something. Since prices often wary, you might even want to write your grocery list in a way of "3 pieces of fruit for snacks" and then go to the store and see which fruit is cheapest.

I try to go to a bigger and cheaper store about once a month to do the grocery shopping for that week, and to buy non-perishables for the month. I don't have a car and usually use a store that's within walking distance, for the bigger one I need to commute with public transportation or get a ride from someone.

Also, organic doesn't automatically mean it's clean. Example: organic bananas come to the store packaged in the same preservatives as the regular ones.

I think you nailed it. I'm feeling like the recipes I used had a lot of stuff that I normally didn't buy and it added up but I'm not sure how much of that is just because of the switch to a healthier menu and how much will take me adjusting the recipes in the future to lower the bill.

We have actually used up most of the produce and so far only lost some spinach. To the last part I'm not actually buying organic. I knew that would be a hit to the budget.

It's possible too that some of the things you initially bought - oils and whatnot - are expensive but not consumed entirely with the first week's meals. Those more costly items will now become your pantry staples as you build up an arsenal of these types of meals, and in future weeks your budget will now go to the perishable items and may be less expensive week to week.

Th3Ph03n1x

Kruggeri wrote: »

Th3Ph03n1x wrote: »

lawlifehanna wrote: »

bkerr30 wrote: »

As I continue to read these posts, I wonder do certain areas charge more for healthy food? I live in Canada and the only places I know of that charge significantly more is wayyy up in the northern provinces where transportation costs sky rocket. Where I live, it is significantly more expensive to eat prepackaged/convenience foods. Those in the states or other countries, what is your take on this? Could this be a region- related issue?

I live in Finland, and here are my insights: living in a place with one growing season and four distinct seasons, buying what's in season helps a lot. For example, tomato prices are almost tripled for winter. The options are expensive Finnish tomatoes that have been grown inside with heat lamps and don't even taste like anything, or slightly less expensive Spanish tomatoes that taste a little bit like tomatoes (not much) and have suffered a lot during transportation. So, less tomatoes right now.

OP, don't worry. My first "clean" grocery shopping bill was also doubled compared to what I usually spent. There were a lot of staples, some I haven't finished yet, and some I purchased because I went a little overboard (despite having preplanned the meals and having a list in hand). For example, instead of buying the frozen berries needed for the two smoothies I had planned for, I bought enough for probably 8. The next two shopping bills were about 20% smaller than pre-MFP, but they last us longer and there hasn't been "refill trips" in between, except for some things that were actually forgotten. Before MFP I didn't really do meal planning or look for discounts, and I had to go to the store almost every day for something.

If you're using a recipe and notice in the store that some ingredient is crazy expensive (this happened to me and fresh rosemary, which was double the price compared with other fresh herbs), just skip it if possible (one of 5 veggies in the recipe, a spice etc.), or substitute it with something.

Is there more than one grocery shop in your area? Find out what's on sale in each one before making your meal plan, but also figure out how much extra you'll pay for gas when driving to several different stores, and see if it's actually worth it (money- or time wise). If not, see what's on sale in the store you frequently go to, and start planning there. The store might also have some extra sales they don't advertise, if they have too much of something. Since prices often wary, you might even want to write your grocery list in a way of "3 pieces of fruit for snacks" and then go to the store and see which fruit is cheapest.

I try to go to a bigger and cheaper store about once a month to do the grocery shopping for that week, and to buy non-perishables for the month. I don't have a car and usually use a store that's within walking distance, for the bigger one I need to commute with public transportation or get a ride from someone.

Also, organic doesn't automatically mean it's clean. Example: organic bananas come to the store packaged in the same preservatives as the regular ones.

I think you nailed it. I'm feeling like the recipes I used had a lot of stuff that I normally didn't buy and it added up but I'm not sure how much of that is just because of the switch to a healthier menu and how much will take me adjusting the recipes in the future to lower the bill.

We have actually used up most of the produce and so far only lost some spinach. To the last part I'm not actually buying organic. I knew that would be a hit to the budget.

It's possible too that some of the things you initially bought - oils and whatnot - are expensive but not consumed entirely with the first week's meals. Those more costly items will now become your pantry staples as you build up an arsenal of these types of meals, and in future weeks your budget will now go to the perishable items and may be less expensive week to week.

I'm sure that will be the case I'm just not sure how much the difference will be because it just seems like most of the new stuff was dairy and produce.

ransom_of_red_briefs

sleibo87 wrote: »

One meal I like a lot is 2 eggs and one banana blended, and cooked like a pancake. It taste like a banana pancake but no flour and very clean.

Okay...YUM.