Family Eating on a budget????

Triciasal19

I need help!

We are trying to eat better but our problem is that food is so expensive for the good and healthy stuff.
We have 2 adults and 2 little ones to feed on only $180 a month, no reason to go into why it is so little but that is what we can afford after bills and what not)
Our kids are easy to feed and always choose fruits and vegetables over sweets (which we don't really buy as it is) and they could live off of PB sandwiches, yogurt, spaghetti, and vegetables/fruit, if I allowed it but that doesn't make a very diverse diet

What are the best shopping methods you have to get good food on a super tight budget.
We do coupon whenever we can but out here it is very poor.
I do make homemade breads and what not.

Lizzy622

For protein- eggs and cottage cheese and beans (especially if you buy dry and cook them yourself) are cheap healthy alternatives
For veggies- look for sales and what is in season or on the mark down racks because they don't look so good - carrots and potatoes are usually a good buy and two of my main staples- bananas are 49 cents a pound by me this week
For whole grains- I love oatmeal and eat it savory (with an egg and splash of soy sauce) or sweet (with banana)
Good Luck- Healthy does not have to be expensive

avskk

Big packs of meat, break them down yourself (I like the 10lb. bags of chicken leg quarters that go on sale once a month or so -- whole pork tenderloins and cheaper beef roasts are another option if you're willing to cut them into smaller roasts, chops, and steaks yourself). Frozen veggies instead of fresh (except for what's in season and on sale). Bulk grains, rices, and legumes. Eggs until you think you might birth a chicken yourself. The one thing I wouldn't skimp on is bread, if you guys use it a lot. Completely whole-grain, corn syrup-free stuff is pricey but it makes a huge health difference. Anytime you have a little extra cash, invest in some tasty spices and sauces -- you'd be surprised how different even the same old things taste and feel when you vary the seasoning.

Don't worry too much about diversity. As long as you guys are eating decent protein, plenty of vegetables, and a little fat, it doesn't really matter if you have the same lunch every day or rotate between the same three dinners all the time.

Four_Leaf_Clover

The best thing I have done to save money is to plan our meals for the whole month. I can schedule them to make the most out of things (roast chicken on Sunday, chicken soup later in the week, etc.). I also know what I am planning and buy things when they are on sale and freeze them. I shop weekly and then have everything on hand to make the week's meals.

Do you have a crockpot? Great way to cook less expensive cuts of meat and make soups and stews. I use mine at least once or twice a week.

Here is an article that has some good information as well

http://www.ellenskitchen.com/faqs/improv.html

MinnieInMaine

Watch the sales fliers. If you don't get them in the mail, most stores provide you with the ability to sign up on their websites to have the flier, or a link to it, emailed to you ever week. This also tends to put you in the running for any other promotions they may have.

Buy in bulk. Going back to the flier thing, at least around here, they tend to put the bulk packages on sale more than the ones that only have 1-2 pounds. Either way, you're getting the better deal by buying a bunch and splitting them up yourself.

Plan your meals so there's no waste. If you're making a big batch of chili, either plan to have the leftover for dinner in the next week or two or just wait a couple of days and repurpose that chili to make sloppy joes. When I make meat sauce for spaghetti, it's usually enough for 3 servings and since there's only me and Hubs, that's 1 serving leftover. I usually freeze that last serving and then repurpose it a week or so later for another pasta and sauce dinner by adding a can of diced tomatoes and meatballs.

For veg (and even some fruits), if you're worried about them going bad before they are eaten up, buy frozen instead. They last forever and you can sometimes buy in bulk too. I get a huge bag of broccoli florets at WalMart every couple weeks.

P.S. Check your prices. Most shelf labeling provides you with a "per unit" price which backs up the reason to buy in bulk (cheaper per unit). However sometimes they don't so make sure you have a calculator handy (or cell phone since most have a calculator app) and figure it out yourself. I did this while buying sandwich baggies last week. You'd think the box that has 240 bags would be cheaper per unit than the one that has 120 bags. However, the 120 bag was actually a deal because you usually only get 100 bags at that price. It wasn't a huge savings but those little things do add up over time.

skullshank

i love the celeste individual pizzas.
usually 5 for $5 at my grocery store.

you can cook 2 of them, invert one, and put them together (cheese side to cheese side) and eat it like a sandwich.

http://www.celestepizza.com/


you;re welcome.

dumb_blondes_rock

www.5dollardinners.com

Beckboo0912

I always stock up on frozen veggies when they are on sale...the store brand usually goes for a $1 a bag for the steam kind...easy to make or add to soups or something like that

wheird

As another poster mentioned, plan your meals based on the weekly fliers and buy in a way that reduces waste. Meat can be bought in bulk when on sale and frozen, so that is easy. Rice and beans can be bought on sale dry and are extremely cost effective. Veggies can be bought when on sale, prepped, blanched, and flash frozen for incredibly easy dinners.

Really it just takes a bit of planning and prep, but eating "healthy" can be incredibly cheap.

mikeykhan2003

The best money saving thing I ever did was start taking advantage of the meat sales, followed closely by canned veggies on sale.

ChrisM8971

This is a bit of a more long term plan but even if you have a small yard you should get into container gardening, you can grow plenty of veggies and fresh herbs in pots. Its a little bit more work to keep them watered but is well worth it. The kids will love it and for the price of a few seeds you can have fresh, organic veg through the summer :-)

GadgetGuy2

People have already mentioned bulk purchases/coupons/sales etc. For me, this meant investing in a chest freezer.
You mention you make bread. For me, I invested in canning gear (pressure cooker).

I was AMAZED how much money I could save by making things from scratch and canning them.

Currently, I spend about 1.5 days cooking for a 3 month supply (freezer, canner) using bulk purchases (e.g. wheat kernels from the Internet) of:

Chili ( I save $350/yr vs a meaty can of chili from the store)
Spaghetti sauce
Boston Baked Beans
Refried Beans
Belgium Waffles
Cinnamon Rolls
Wheat Bread
Chicken soup
French Onion soup

It's fun. I get to control the quality and quantity of the ingredients, AND I am saving money.

Key to the above....bulk purchases, chest freezer (solar panel driven) and pressure cooker/canner. These allowed me to cut out many of the "middlemen": food processors, distributors, advertisers etc.

Good luck!

wheird

This is a bit of a more long term plan but even if you have a small yard you should get into container gardening, you can grow plenty of veggies and fresh herbs in pots. Its a little bit more work to keep them watered but is well worth it. The kids will love it and for the price of a few seeds you can have fresh, organic veg through the summer :-)

This. If you have a window in your kitchen, you can have a small fresh herb garden.

bcattoes

Our kids are easy to feed and always choose fruits and vegetables over sweets (which we don't really buy as it is) and they could live off of PB sandwiches, yogurt, spaghetti, and vegetables/fruit, if I allowed it but that doesn't make a very diverse diet

First of all, this ^^ is great. Those are healthy foods and assuming there is meat in the spaghetti sauce and you used a variety of fruits/veg, you could make a fairly healthy diet of that and nothing else.

It is cheaper to eat healthy. Prepackaged meals, take out, fast food, restaurants, chips, candy .. all that is very expensive.

Fish - some like tilapia, cod, haddock are usually as afforadable as any protein source
Eggs
Dried beans - usually the best bang for your buck nutritionally
Frozen vegetables - especially frozen greens (kale, spinach , collards, turnip). These are a small fraction of the cost of the raw it would take to make them. The nutrtional content of frozen is as good or better than fresh from the store.
Rice is cheap, even brown rice is usually cheap.

Buy fresh produce and meat when it's on sale. Stock up on non-perishables when they are on sale.

wheird

People have already mentioned bulk purchases/coupons/sales etc. For me, this meant investing in a chest freezer.
You mention you make bread. For me, I invested in canning gear (pressure cooker).

I was AMAZED how much money I could save by making things from scratch and canning them.

Currently, I spend about 1.5 days cooking for a 3 month supply (freezer, canner) using bulk purchases (e.g. wheat kernels from the Internet) of:

Chili ( I save $350/yr vs a meaty can of chili from the store)
Spaghetti sauce
Boston Baked Beans
Refried Beans
Belgium Waffles
Cinnamon Rolls
Wheat Bread
Chicken soup
French Onion soup

It's fun. I get to control the quality and quantity of the ingredients, AND I am saving money.

Key to the above....bulk purchases, chest freezer (solar panel driven) and pressure cooker/canner. These allowed me to cut out many of the "middlemen": food processors, distributors, advertisers etc.

Good luck!

Canning is a great recommendation. I do mostly water bath canning as I havent bought a pressure canner yet, but it can be a good way to bond with your family if you get an assembly line going.

Candi_land

In my experience a lot of Hispanic based supermarkets (if you have any in your area) have things like 20lb bags of rice, cans of beans or dried beans, potatoes, canned or frozen veggies, and meats (especially meats in large quantities) for super cheap.

wheird

In my experience a lot of Hispanic based supermarkets (if you have any in your area) have things like 20lb bags of rice, cans of beans or dried beans, potatoes, canned or frozen veggies, and meats (especially meats in large quantities) for super cheap.

Yeah, I buy my veggies and dry goods from Cardenas.

amgreenwell

I am fortunate enough to have a place here in town called United Grocery Outlet. If you can find something similar it is a budget saver. It is like the Big Lots of grocery stores.
You budget is low but you can make it work...
Remember, even if you are shopping at the regular grocery store, only shop around the perimeter. Don't go down the aisles unless you need some quinoa or couscous or other grain that you can make in bulk and keep in the fridge. Beans is another good, nutritious staple to have on hand and buying dry beans is very cheap.

BeachIron

In my experience a lot of Hispanic based supermarkets (if you have any in your area) have things like 20lb bags of rice, cans of beans or dried beans, potatoes, canned or frozen veggies, and meats (especially meats in large quantities) for super cheap.

^ Agreed. You save a bundle avoiding top end grocery stores and instead shopping around at specialty markets. I've gotten some amazing deals at the smaller meat markets and places like Aldi.

SkinnyFatAlbert

When people say eating healthy costs more I can't help but think all they're doing is comparing "regular" products to the "low fat" version or maybe how a cheeseburger at McDonalds is cheaper than a salad. That's doing it wrong. It's actually cheaper to eat healthier. I lost the bulk of my weight eating mostly chicken, fish, and vegetables. The chicken and fish I bought in bulk from Walmart. The vegetables I either bought at the farmers market or frozen at Walmart also in large bags. Canned beans and large bags of rice are good carb source choices.

_AlabamaSlamma_

My wife and I feed 10 kids, so everything we buy HAS to be economical. We really don't have any other choice but to buy in bulk, but one thing we've tried is whenever we go to the store, be it Sam's or whatever, we try to stock up on some items, mostly things that last a while. For example, 50 lbs of rice will last a long time, even in our family. Large cans of tomatoes, flour, sugar, beans, etc. Over time we can build up some basics and help cut back on the hit we take at the store. Hope this helps.