How to afford healthy meals??
ChristinaPruitt276
Posts: 5 Member
I am on the low income scale, no food stamps, and due to formula issues I have to pay out of pocket for my daughters formula. So I don't have much money to spare on groceries most of the time. How do you get healthy meals without paying an arm and leg? I've tried buying fresh fruit but it's so expensive!
Any help would be appreciated!
Any help would be appreciated!
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Replies
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It can be tough. It helps to know the area where you live - sometimes there are options with better prices, such as farmer's markets. In my neighborhood the Mexican market has great produce and fish prices. If you know someone who has a membership someplace like Costco and can take you, it's possible to stock up on inexpensive meats and nuts. Freeze the meat you don't use immediately.
Dried beans and grains are inexpensive. Frozen fruit can be cheaper and is just as nutritious as fresh. My morning breakfast involves oatmeal and milk, both of which are cheap. Eggs are inexpensive.
Planning ahead is the most important thing. Nothing is as expensive as food that goes to waste. That, and paying attention to what's on sale and in season.14 -
Are you in the USA? Have you checked into WIC? Vouchers for formula and food for pregnant or nursing women, infants, and children with different requirements than food stamps. Is baby breast feeding at all or exclusively on formula? The person above gave lots of good information so I won't repeat.4
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Fresh fruit is expensive! In season fresh vegetables are usually cheaper; you could also try frozen veg and dried beans. Dried fruit is okay, I like it as an alternative to sweets but it isn't very filling so it could be easy to overeat (depends how you do - I weigh mine to avoid that).
I buy packets of mince that're on special offer and make up a whole bunch of things like chilli, bolognese, shepherd's pie filling and freeze in indiviual portions. That helps to even out the cost from week to week if you can manage that. Bigger packets are usually cheaper per portion. I bulk out the mince with grated carrots and lentils
It's also worth checking the freezer section for meat and fish, it can be cheaper there.
You also have to define what you think healthy is... Mine is lots of vegetables and a little bit of everything else so if I'm cooking from scratch it ends up being pretty cheap by default. If you want, post up some meals you like and we'll try and figure out how to make them more cheaply/healthily ?2 -
Rosemary's advice about buying cheap bulk like mince when it's on offer, and batch cooking for the freezer, is great. Besides bulking it out with lentils and carrot, you can also bulk out mince with some oatmeal to make it go further.
There are only two of us at home, and the cheap deals are often for bulk buys, so this is what I do.
Frozen fruit can be cheaper than fresh, and probably just as good.
Also, never throw away the fat from cooking fatty meat. Strain it and keep it, then use it to cook with. I do this with goose, duck, lamb and pork fats. You'll always find a jar of rendered down fat in my fridge. If I cook bacon I even reuse the fat from that to saute mushrooms. (I am on Atkins, so fat is my friend)3 -
How to afford healthy meals? You spend the same money on those meals, that you were/are/would spend on unhealthy meals. First define healthy. What do you think it is? Is it expensive food? Is it boring food? Maybe you're not thinking about it like that, but if your idea of healthy food is "organic" and "health food" and preposterous claims of the item's health benefits on the front of the package, everything you buy will be expensive, and if you don't know how to plan and cook, your meals will be tasteless and unbalanced and monotonous. You may end up throwing out a large portion of it, and that's money down the drain.
Balance your meals nutritionally so that you get in enough but not too many calories, enough but not excessive protein, plenty of fat, and a wide range of vitamins and minerals. Starches are cheap, and easy to make delicious, so this will take up a big chunk of your calories.
Base your intake on cheap staples, and add on with small amounts of more expensive items occasionally.
Look for good deals in each category. Compare prices correctly.
Cook at home.
Decide whether precut, mixed, precooked etc is worth the price (time is money).
Don't pay extra for "snack" foods, fancy packaging, heavily marketed foods, food directed at kids.
Limit juice, soda, candy.
Buy in season. Prices vary. Get to know those patterns.
Buy sensible amounts, but stock up when low prices, if you can store it properly, and eat it up.
Go for frozen berries and vegetables.
Up your intake of sturdy vegetables like potatoes, onion, carrots, cabbage.
Buy canned beans and tomatoes.
Look at your diet as a whole and decide what can add to it, not what is "healthy"/"unhealthy".
Buy good quality, but don't be fussy.
Respect real medical issues, like allergies, don't just avoid foods for no good reason.
You have to eat up, so stick mostly to what you know you like, but if you try new things occasionally, you can develop new preferences, and you'll be more flexible as well as better nourished.18 -
Wonder why my post was wooed...4
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maryannprt wrote: »Are you in the USA? Have you checked into WIC? Vouchers for formula and food for pregnant or nursing women, infants, and children with different requirements than food stamps. Is baby breast feeding at all or exclusively on formula? The person above gave lots of good information so I won't repeat.
We are technically on WIC but my daughter is having tolerance issues so the only formula she can handle isn't WIC approved. Even getting an Rx from her doctor didn't help. So I'm paying out of pocket. She'll be a year old in Dec so She will start getting actual food. Formula is just retarded expensive. Spending around $200 a month just on her.
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kommodevaran wrote: »Wonder why my post was wooed...
i have noticed a lot of weird 'wooing' in the last couple of weeks, i presume its newbies thinking it is a positive thing... that or people just going round troll wooing.10 -
ChristinaPruitt276 wrote: »maryannprt wrote: »Are you in the USA? Have you checked into WIC? Vouchers for formula and food for pregnant or nursing women, infants, and children with different requirements than food stamps. Is baby breast feeding at all or exclusively on formula? The person above gave lots of good information so I won't repeat.
We are technically on WIC but my daughter is having tolerance issues so the only formula she can handle isn't WIC approved. Even getting an Rx from her doctor didn't help. So I'm paying out of pocket. She'll be a year old in Dec so She will start getting actual food. Formula is just retarded expensive. Spending around $200 a month just on her.
'retarded expensive'?? :huh:
why not start weaning now?4 -
TavistockToad wrote: »ChristinaPruitt276 wrote: »maryannprt wrote: »Are you in the USA? Have you checked into WIC? Vouchers for formula and food for pregnant or nursing women, infants, and children with different requirements than food stamps. Is baby breast feeding at all or exclusively on formula? The person above gave lots of good information so I won't repeat.
We are technically on WIC but my daughter is having tolerance issues so the only formula she can handle isn't WIC approved. Even getting an Rx from her doctor didn't help. So I'm paying out of pocket. She'll be a year old in Dec so She will start getting actual food. Formula is just retarded expensive. Spending around $200 a month just on her.
'retarded expensive'?? :huh:
why not start weaning now?
She is only 10 months old and a heart baby so we have to be careful of what we give her. I wish I could though
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Well, I guess the plus side of that is that you'll have a reasonable amount of money for food once your daughter is weaned! How long do you think that might be (I have no idea about kids...)?
If it isn't too long, maybe just stick with whatever is cheap and not too much of it for now, and look to feed yourself and daughter more healthily once you can? You don't have to do everything at once. One step at a time is fine and if you're aiming to lose weight then that'll have health benefits however you do it. How much do you have available for your groceries? 0 -
depends on where you are and your food costs, i suppose.
I can buy family packs that will last my son and I 3 or 4 days (and when my fiance is here, 2-3 days) of meat for under $10. Chicken is cheap and flexible.
veggies here in the south arent expensive (nor are fruits in season). But even a frozen bag of veggies that would last several days is only a couple of bucks.
Rice, pasta, beans and potatoes and onions and garlic are cheap.
Thats the basics for most all of my cooking. minus the rice, simply cause i dont care for it lol
what ups my grocery bill is the lunch and breakfast stuff for my son.
i SPEND a lot on groceries but its because i am able to. When times are tighter, I can still do a healthy well balanced meal and bring it in at under $10 (for dinner) for a family of 3 per day.0 -
Now I'm double-wooed. I'll just assume it's trolling then.TavistockToad wrote: »kommodevaran wrote: »Wonder why my post was wooed...
i have noticed a lot of weird 'wooing' in the last couple of weeks, i presume its newbies thinking it is a positive thing... that or people just going round troll wooing.5 -
kommodevaran wrote: »
Now I'm double-wooed. I'll just assume it's trolling then.TavistockToad wrote: »kommodevaran wrote: »Wonder why my post was wooed...
i have noticed a lot of weird 'wooing' in the last couple of weeks, i presume its newbies thinking it is a positive thing... that or people just going round troll wooing.
i thought woo was good? like whooooo! yay!
guess i learned something (no i didnt woo you LOLOL)4 -
It can mean anything - just like healthy food, clean eating, and negativity. Must not get too hung upcallsitlikeiseeit wrote: »kommodevaran wrote: »
Now I'm double-wooed. I'll just assume it's trolling then.TavistockToad wrote: »kommodevaran wrote: »Wonder why my post was wooed...
i have noticed a lot of weird 'wooing' in the last couple of weeks, i presume its newbies thinking it is a positive thing... that or people just going round troll wooing.
i thought woo was good? like whooooo! yay!
guess i learned something (no i didnt woo you LOLOL)
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ChristinaPruitt276 wrote: »maryannprt wrote: »Are you in the USA? Have you checked into WIC? Vouchers for formula and food for pregnant or nursing women, infants, and children with different requirements than food stamps. Is baby breast feeding at all or exclusively on formula? The person above gave lots of good information so I won't repeat.
We are technically on WIC but my daughter is having tolerance issues so the only formula she can handle isn't WIC approved. Even getting an Rx from her doctor didn't help. So I'm paying out of pocket. She'll be a year old in Dec so She will start getting actual food. Formula is just retarded expensive. Spending around $200 a month just on her.
"Retarded" is considered offensive, at least in the US. I'm guessing that is why @TavistockToad gave the shocked emoji.5 -
Keep inexpensive staples on hand. Eggs are my favorite! Oatmeal, rice, frozen/can veggies, meats when they’re on sale/marked down, freeze them in portions til ready to use. Fruit I buy when it’s at a good price so I check sales ads. Some places, like Walmart, will price match stuff including produce.4
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A few things
1. Frozen veggies, canned beans,eggs,frozenfish are all great and cheap.eggs in particular are filling work for all meals and yum
2. Coupons smartly done. I like crazy coupon lady site. I also like coupons.com and Ibotta apps. In the last week i have gotten 4 different yogurts, a thing of mashed potatoes, two snack bars, a dozen eggs , oh and some candy going into the christmas stocking stuffer pile all free after coupons. Except the candy all healthy stuff.
3. Aldi, great prices. You have to bring your own bags but other then that fantastic prices.1 -
I was in your shoes for awhile. I would buy a whole frozen turkey once every two weeks, I’d cut it apart and cook it in my two big crock pots, pull the meat off and freeze in bags. You can also boil the bones w some veggie scraps for broth. That’s all sort of a pain
but it’s the cheapest thing I found for meat. I don’t eat much red meat, but in the past, I’d get a big round roast when on sale and cut it into smaller parts, which I’d use for pot roast, or stew.
Whole grains like brown rice, barley, oats, and buckwheat are inexpensive and versatile. I also always keep around wheat ‘just add water’ pancake mix. It can be used for a lot of things and kids will usually eat pancakes and eggs, even for dinner. It’s actully oddly good w a drained scan of spinach. Or you can make corn pancakes. Whole wheat pasta is pretty inexpensive now days too. And ofcouse, dried beans, lentils, and peas. I have money now, but I’m making split pea soup w barley and cream of mushroom this morning. It’s still my son’s favorite.
Frozen and canned greens, like mustard, spinach, and turnip. Frozen green beans, cauliflower, and broccoli. Fresh whole carrots, onions, potatoes, and celery. Frozen berries. Fresh citrus, pears, or apples. Whatever is in season.
Spices: get a used spinning spice rack from a thrift store, wash it, and fill w bulk, or bagged spices as you can buy some. Having an assortment of spices saves a lot of money in the long run.
One of my favorite cheap recipes is to make up a batch of black bean patties and freeze. They come to ab .25 each. 2 lbs black beans cooked till mushy w some chili powers, cumin, and onion. Add in enough cooked quinoa to make a thick paste, and some bread crumbs. Form into 1/3 cup patties, sprinkle w bbq seasoning, and freeze folded in parchment. They are best fried, but my boyfriend just microwaves them. Also good made from left over red beans.
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Can you get WIC? They often have different requirements than food stamps and that can help with the formula and some basics (milk, bread, cheese, and juice I think)
https://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/women-infants-and-children-wic
Also, does your state have a heating assistance for winter? They also have their own set of standards (I qualify for HEAP but not food stamps for example). That can help free up some funds to help offset formula costs.
Ok, as for food- look for the 10 for $10 deals with frozen veggies or soups, santa fe soup is also quite inexpensive but lots of beans to fill you up (http://12tomatoes.com/santa-fe-soup/), and try to go on double coupon days if your has it. Many local libraries do a coupon exchange so that may be worth looking into.1 -
I eat a lot of brown rice, beans, oatmeal, bananas, eggs, pork chops, chicken, peanut butter.
I get brown rice 20 lbs for $11 at the local Indian food store.
Check my diary for what I eat.
The above are not too expensive.
Anything processed is usually expensive like Hamburger Helper, little boxes of rice mixes, etc. Don't buy that stuff.
Shop at Aldi's if you have one nearby. It's cheap.
Buy meat when on sale. Watch your local supermarkets for sales.
Get a freezer so you can buy in quantity when on sale. Years ago I bought a used one for $50 which lasted a good many years.
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The way to get cheaper over time is to take advantage of sales and stock up. Re-invest some of those savings the next sale you see. Over time you have more staples at home and it gets easier and easier. Home cooking except for breads, pastries, and tomato sauce is cheaper.
Inexpensive breakfast: oatmeal
Inexpensive lunch: leftovers. Have wraps on hand.
Inexpensive dinners: soups, stews, chilies. I'll take a family pack of hamburger and make up a whole tray of meatballs and freeze them. Instant ready meals.
Inexpensive vegetables: potatoes, carrots, cabbage because they keep so well, and frozen veggies
Inexpensive fruits: check the freezer aisle. There's always bananas, too.3 -
Going to go a few different ways with my answer. When you eat healthier, nutrient dense foods, you consume less and feel satiated longer. Avoid all types of sugar, except honey and 'snacky' cravings will all but disappear. Don't get trapped in the mindset that you are "poor", or are a victim of the food industry and stuck with the "cheaper choices" they offer. Think outside the box, as well as long-term. Get a fruit tree: the caveat being, you must nurture it, be ready to do the work, repotting, planting, fertilizing. It is hard to commit to things like that, hard to find time and energy with a little baby, but also can be a rewarding family experience that includes the child. Think about what people did for food before there were Supermarkets on every corner. Backyard chickens? Eggs are cheap, but "healthy" eggs aren't so cheap... and there is a difference. Perhaps, while waiting for your fruit tree to mature, or while your baby is still a handful, you might consider being neighborly with someone who has mature fruit trees/berry bushes. While you're strolling your baby, if you see someone out, you may strike a co-op type deal that might sound like this: "Would it be a help to you, if I pick some fruit off your tree for you? In return for the work, would it be ok, if I kept a portion of the harvest?" Often, people with fruit trees get busy, lazy, tired of the fruit, or just too much harvest. Be sure to inquire about fertilizer and pesticide use. Best wishes for the health of you and your family. I know you wouldn't be on this website, if you didn't really want to make a better life. You are searching... and so you will find answers. But, will you use them?3
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I am on a tight budget, so I do almost all my grocery shopping at Aldi, and from the loss leaders at Sprouts and HyVee. I look at the sales ads as soon as practical after midnight on Wednesday morning (where I lives most grocery sales run Wednesday to Tuesday) and plan my meals for the week.
This week, for example, I got 2 large butternut squashes and 1 large spaghetti squash for 99 cents each, so I'm making butternut squash soup, roasted butternut squash, and spaghetti squash puttanesca. I got onions at 69 cents for 3 lbs, so I bought 6 lbs and am making french onion soup. They had 5 lb bags of gold potatoes for 99 cents, and I know I'm going to make mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving, so I bought extra, some to fry for breakfast and some to have as baked potatoes and some to mash at the end of the month. And green peppers were super cheap so I'm putting them with some onions and making a black bean chili.
Apples on the other hand were relatively expensive this week, so I bought just a few and got more bananas and will be picking up a cantaloupe. You pick up a rhythm after a while.
Beans are incredibly cheap and really good for you. A 2 lb package of beans will often sell for $1.49 or less where I live. You can cook up half a package and it will make around 3 cans worth of cooked beans which you can then freeze. Make sure to season your beans so they taste as delicious as they can.
When you get discouraged, remember, things will only be this tight for a little while longer. Sending you warm thoughts and support.8 -
Make it a practice to never throw away food! Don't let food spoil. If food is going bad uncooked: you've over-purchased and under-planned your trip to the grocer. If cooked food is going bad: reduce the recipe you are cooking to lesser portion sizes. Some people just can't do leftovers more than once, or at all. So many really great posts have been made here to conquer this hurdle. You can do it girl!5
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nickssweetheart wrote: »I am on a tight budget, so I do almost all my grocery shopping at Aldi, and from the loss leaders at Sprouts and HyVee. I look at the sales ads as soon as practical after midnight on Wednesday morning (where I lives most grocery sales run Wednesday to Tuesday) and plan my meals for the week.
This week, for example, I got 2 large butternut squashes and 1 large spaghetti squash for 99 cents each, so I'm making butternut squash soup, roasted butternut squash, and spaghetti squash puttanesca. I got onions at 69 cents for 3 lbs, so I bought 6 lbs and am making french onion soup. They had 5 lb bags of gold potatoes for 99 cents, and I know I'm going to make mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving, so I bought extra, some to fry for breakfast and some to have as baked potatoes and some to mash at the end of the month. And green peppers were super cheap so I'm putting them with some onions and making a black bean chili.
Apples on the other hand were relatively expensive this week, so I bought just a few and got more bananas and will be picking up a cantaloupe. You pick up a rhythm after a while.
Beans are incredibly cheap and really good for you. A 2 lb package of beans will often sell for $1.49 or less where I live. You can cook up half a package and it will make around 3 cans worth of cooked beans which you can then freeze. Make sure to season your beans so they taste as delicious as they can.
When you get discouraged, remember, things will only be this tight for a little while longer. Sending you warm thoughts and support.
You can also freeze the caramelized onions, before adding the broth, in ice cube trays. Then just use a couple, and some canned broth for soup. The broth will all be on sale in a week or so 0 -
Oh, and if you think it's prudent, and you're working, or you have a significant other who works, ask for a raise. So many companies these days are awful about giving raises, and won't do it UNLESS YOU ASK. Of course, that is only an idea for consideration; it's for you to decide whether or not it's a good idea to bark up that tree.0
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Perhaps a bit more practical than planting a fruit tree might be looking for one already in your area... public land obviously, but take a look down the side of the road (quieter roads are better ofc). We have some very tasty apple trees near us just growing at the side of a road! Plums, greengauges and cherries as well. And blackberry brambles - loads of them! It's the wrong time of year for it now, but mark them for next autumn...
If you have the space then a bit of growing is pretty cheap. I live in a flat and I can get salad greens to grow on the windowsill 1 -
TavistockToad wrote: »kommodevaran wrote: »Wonder why my post was wooed...
i have noticed a lot of weird 'wooing' in the last couple of weeks, i presume its newbies thinking it is a positive thing... that or people just going round troll wooing.
From the explanation on the new woo button:
Woo can mean two things. You can click it both to mean woo as in woo-hoo or to express that you think an idea or approach is too good to be true.
We hope you enjoy the new reaction!!
The MFP Community Team 0 -
Have you seen this cookbook? Good eats on the cheap!
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/08/01/337141837/cheap-eats-cookbook-shows-how-to-eat-well-on-a-food-stamp-budget
Also:
Dried beans: open bag, rinse, soak overnight.
Next day: Do whatever you want with them, warmed up with sauce, or, the way I like them is with salsa and sour cream.
beans beans the magical fruit!
(Seriously, they're cheap! and filling! And have fiber! And vitamins!)
have you heard of Blue Zones? It's areas of the world where people regularly live to be over 100 years old.
You know what all of their diets have in common?
Beans.
They all eat beans, various kinds, regularly.
it's the cheapest health food I've ever found.
Also, eggs...eggs are cheap protein and they can taste like anything you want them to.
Mix with a little flour, put in a fry pan with PAM and make a crepe - you can make it savory or sweet by adding a little sugar.
I know money's tight, I bought a countertop egg boiler - it's small. I use it ALL THE TIME. And it makes the eggs easy to peel!! Set it and forgt it - throw them on salad.
Soups are also a cheaper health food - they're mostly water.
Good luck!!!
(I had twins on formula...after they were on real food I felt rich!)
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