Tight budget Grocery list?

curvesfordays8907

If you had $50 for groceries what are your must have foods? Looking to build a good list, there are 2 of us in our home, bf eats like a bird so this is pretty much going to be for one person. My goals are to lose weight and eat 1800 cals a day.

TavistockToad

Whayever you like to eat... bulk buy whatever is on offer...

I always have pasta and rice and baked beans in, plus cheese, bread, potatoes, chicken, frozen veg

kommodevaran

How long are the 50 dollars meant to last for? What do you have on hand already? How much can you cook at home? What do you like? Do you have allergies or aversions?

I have built up a stock of cheap, low-persishable, versatile staples, and I fill up occasionally, try to do so when they go on sale, and buy just what I need of perishables until next shopping trip, usually twice a week.

It's more important that you eat balanced and as varied as possible, and that you don't throw anything out, than buying particular foods. What is available in your area will and should influence your decision.

Think food groups and look for cheap alternatives in each group. Look at price per pound and price per serving to see if it's a good price.

For protein, eggs, beans, tuna, chicken and pork are usually cheapest. Frozen vegetables can be cheaper than fresh, and they are just as good, depends on what you'll be using them for. Potatoes, onion, carrots, canned tomatoes. Apples, oranges, bananas. Pasta, rice, bread, oatmeal. Peanuts, almonds. Rapeseed or sunflower oil for frying, olive oil and butter for taste. Look for bargains of cheese, yogurt, milk.

Avoid things like juice, soda, supplements, low/enriched/free this and that unless real, medical issues.

And finally, eating less costs less. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

Poisonedpawn78

Oranges, Blueberries would be on the list for me for sure.

Heather4448

The most cost effective way to shop is by pre-planning your meals for the week. Get the sale flyers from your local grocery stores, list the sale items you like, and build meals and snacks based on sales. Make soup out of all the leftovers at the end of the week. It really won't be hard. $50 is actually quite a lot for 2 people.

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Geocitiesuser

curvesfordays8907 wrote: »

If you had $50 for groceries what are your must have foods? Looking to build a good list, there are 2 of us in our home, bf eats like a bird so this is pretty much going to be for one person. My goals are to lose weight and eat 1800 cals a day.

Rice, beans, peanut butter, eggs, milk. Whatever meat is on sale, whatever veg is on sale.

Some of those are food staples that have been keeping the poor alive for centuries.

Though I'm not sure what 50 dollars for groceries entails. Is that a week? Then you have leeway for more meats and protein, nicer veggies and fruits, etc. If it's 50 a month, you're gonna be living off rice, beans, and soups made of deeply discounted manager's specials.

A jar of peanut butter is like $3.50 usd and provides a full day's worth of calories. Gallons of milk are somewhat similar. Not the healthiest diet, but a means of survival on tight purse strings. Rice and beans are VERY cheap if you buy them dry and in bulk.

curvesfordays8907

This will be for 2 weeks, right now I have rice, beans and peanut butter along with some pasta. Doesn't seem like much but we just ran out of most of our food and haven't gone shopping yet

RodaRose

Whole chicken, chicken thighs, eggs, black beans, lentils, pinto beans, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, onions, canned tomato sauce, canned tuna or salmon, canned corn, oatmeal, Greek yogurt, frozen berries and other frozen fruits and veggies, peanuts, bananas, ground beef

Tried30UserNames

Is that $50 for the month? I'd plan the monthly menu out of what's already very cheap or on sale, making something like lentils and rice the main part of the diet and adding meat and veg as an accent.

First, I'd check the sale flyers from the grocery stores in my area. Often one or two items are on super great sale like $1 a pound organic strawberries or 49 cents a pound chicken, both of which I've seen recently. I'd visit the local ethnic supermarkets to check the prices which are usually much cheaper than Walmart or Kroger. I'd buy dried legumes, rice, eggs, oatmeal, milk. I'd use coupons for cheap tuna and pasta. I'd probably hit the 99 cent store for the large cans of canned salmon with bones and cauliflower. I'd also check the frozen and fresh food prices...usually frozen spinach is pretty cheap. Big bags of potatoes, onions and cabbage are cheap, usually. And I'd supplement by finding some friends or acquaintances who grow food...anybody who grows squash is usually trying to get rid of it any way they can.

Lounmoun

Do some meal planning. I would plan a bunch of meatless meals. Make a big pot of soup, stew. Make casseroles. Cook a chicken or something and cut up the meat to use in recipes.
Rice, dry beans, lentils, pasta, tuna, flour, peanut butter, eggs, powdered milk, bread, chicken thighs or whole chicken, oatmeal, carrots, onions, potatoes, frozen vegetables, canned fruit tend to be low budget friendly foods. Instant pudding mixes are inexpensive.

Low budget menu planning and recipes:
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/40dollarmenu.htm
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/70dollarmenu.htm
http://www.budgetbytes.com
http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2013/03/35-meatless-meals.html
http://www.meatlessmonday.com/favorite-recipes/
http://www.lentils.org/recipes-cooking/recipes/

Some MFP threads you may find useful:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10518784/healthy-food-choice-on-a-budget/p1
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10500423/costing-a-lot-more-money-to-eat-healthier/p1
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10490067/most-healthy-food-options-are-very-expensive-and-im-on-a-very-poor-budget-what-to-do/p1
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10020804/looking-for-vegetarian-recipes#latest
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10142490/a-list-of-calorie-dense-foods/p1

nowine4me

Frozen broccoli, beans, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese and a crap ton of whatever fruit and vegetables are in season and on sale.

awholenewworld

Frozen veggies, tinned tuna, beans, rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, chicken, frozen fruit, any produce on sale, nuts in bulk, oatmeal, and quinoa.

bethany_rose8

Large 185g tins of flavoured tuna, butter, ground coffee, fruit, greens, dark chocolate and brown rice crackers

ElphabaWeasley

My boyfriend and I eat on about $60-80/week between the two of us (And he eats A LOT, he works manual labor). We also eat a vegetarian diet so not all of these may work for you, but you get the point. When we did eat meat we had about 3-4lb of boneless, skinless chicken breast or bone-in thighs/wk. Nowadays I always buy brown rice, lentils, pasta, and dried beans in bulk. I stock up on canned beans when I can get them for 50-60 cents/can. I get our tofu at an international store where I can get a 14oz block for $1.09 (We eat 1 block/week so that is less than $5 for the month). We also get our produce from a grocery outlet store and buy frozen, in bulk at the same outlet. Tuna fish is also another cheaper meat if that suits your likings. I also always have oats in the house (bought in bulk) and crackers, low-fat cheese, greek yogurt, and some kind of fruit (bananas are usually cheap. I get my eggs for 45 cents a dozen at Aldi. I would check in your area and see what is around. If you have a grocery outlet, check it out. I know they seem a little shady but if you are an attentive consumer you can find some great deals! Also Aldi and international markets are good places to look too. I hope this helps!

BrendaLee

- Romaine and dressing
- Bananas
- Apples
- Frozen veggies
- Pasta and sauce
- Rice
- Canned beans
- Tomato sauce for pita pizzas
- Bread, hamburger buns and pitas
- Veggie or ground chicken burgers
- Shredded cheese
- Peanut butter, condiments, etc.

cosmichvoyager

The ethnic/international stores are much cheaper, especially Chinatown but the veggies and fruit spoil faster so you gotta cook them right away. Sometimes I cook and freeze veggie soups and stews made from imperfect bargain produce. Dried beans are much cheaper than canned. Goya is a good cheap brand for pantry items like beans and grains.

cmtigger

Rice. Cottage cheese, plain yogurt and some jam. Tuna. Frozen veggies or if they have any near you hit up a farmer's market. Bananas. Eggs. I noticed the dollar tree had frozen meals for a dollar, I can't eat them now for medical reasons, but they were a brand I used to buy when I made a lot less.

Tuna and a little mayo, or chopped hard cooked eggs and mayo with whatever spices you like is good on sandwiches, crackers, tortillas, lettuce or even eaten as is. Both were staples when I had no food budget.

hesn92

I've noticed that the bulk of my grocery spend is is on stuff other than for my dinner meals. (Snacks, breakfasts for my kids and boyfriend, lunches) My suggestion is after you're done shopping, keep your list and receipts and just look them over and see where you're spending a lot of money and see what you can cut out. Or replace with less expensive things or make from scratch. I have a really hard time with grocery spending. My boyfriend is the opposite as Yours, eats like an olympic athlete. He's extremely active all day every day. It's hard for me to gauge how much to make and buy.

jennybearlv

Rice and beans. Buy the best price per weight you can afford. Whole chickens. Cut in half and roast. Eat for dinner and shred the rest for use on salads, sandwiches, or soup. Keep the bones and make stock for a big pot of soup. Buy big pieces of pork when they are in sale. Loins can be cut into chops and other cuts can be cooked low and slow, shredded and used like the chicken. Fatty ground beef isn't too expensive and what can't you make with ground beef? Fresh fruit and veggies are cheap if you aren't picky. The prices vary drastically month to month and you have to sometimes do a little math to figure out if something is a good deal when priced per pound, but something is always affordable. Add a dollar loaf of bread, a dozen eggs, milk if you drink it, any condiments you need for recipes, and a treat if you have the extra cash. Eat awesome food for a week.

raquele3394

Whole wheat bread, peanut butter, frozen fruit so you can add to plain Greek yogurt, lettuce, 3 tomatoes( which is on sale) cucumber. Brown rice, beans, whole wheat past, past sauce, eggs and a few items on deli. Salad dressing if you don't have any already. If you have some of the ingredients already replace with other ones for variety. Chicken thigh, ground lean beef. For meats I would buy what ever is on sale!

fcanad

Eggs.
Canned meat for soup
Frozen veggies
Beans and rice
Canned tomatoes
Frozen fruit
Bannans
Limited perishables
Powdered milk

savithny

Frozen cauliflower, spinach, and broccoli, in "family pack" value sizes.
Lentils
Black beans
onions and garlic
Cabbage
A "family pack" block of cheddar
A big bag of tortillas

zeejane03

OP what stores do you have available?

Cheap ingredients you can build meals around:

-eggs
-beans (I can get canned beans for .50 a can or a big bag fo around $1-look at dollar stores for the bags)
-cheapy bread and soft tortilla shells
-frozen veggies
-gallon of milk
-rice
-frozen meat-tubes of ground beef and turkey/bags of chicken tenderloins/breasts
-couple bags of shredded cheese (or block if its cheaper, but you need to be able to shred it)
-potatoes, potatoes and more potatoes (there's a million recipes out there that use potatoes as a base)
-bananas and any other fruit that's on sale (oranges are really cheap right now, look at store ads for the weekly loss leaders)
-fresh veggies that are cheap/on sale (carrots, onions, leafy greens etc)
-spices (hit the dollar store for these, for any that you're missing. You can use them to add flavor to dishes, make taco seasoning etc
-tub of margarine
-as funds allow-ketchup, syrup, mustard etc

Do you have any baking ingredients on hand? Things like flour, sugar, baking soda/powder, salt, chocolate chips etc. If you don't it's worth spending $10 or so of your budget getting these things-you can use them to make everything from snacks/desserts, to biscuits and bread, pancake mix etc etc. My baking cupboard is the most important cupboard in my kitchen and is ALWAYS fully stocked.

OP-I've been where you're at (except I was feeding a family of 5 on $60). What I've learned from that experience is to always buy 1-2 extra items every time I get groceries (sometimes I could only afford a can of corn, other weeks I could make it work to buy extra meat to go in the freezer etc). It took a while, but I now have a stocked kitchen/deep pantry and even if I couldn't get to the store for a few weeks my family would be fed well. Just something to think about as you go forward

Sunshine_And_Sand

Here's what I'd get, but your tastes may vary.
-Oatmeal (quick cooking and store brand, steel cut and organic isn't necessary unless it's just what you like)
-Large bag of shredded cheese (you can save a little with the bulk and separate it out into smaller bags and freeze or get a block and shredded it yourself and freeze)
-beans
-tortillas
-store brand bread
-bananas
-bag of apples
-bag of oranges
-bag of potatoes
-frozen chicken
-those steam in bag frozen veggies

Liamsm0m

If you have an Aldi, try there first. Your $50 will go much further. I would buy eggs (lots), lean turkey (at mine, it’s cheaper than the beef), canned tuna, cottage cheese, fruits, veggies... pasta is a good choice too.