I'm Running Out of Food

MagJam2004

Sorry Bellusion, we were typing at the same time. Just for the record, I shop at HEB, Wal-Mart, and Super S.

amaysngrace

I spend 235 a month for me and my 6-year-old. I buy most of my ingredients in bulks and buy my fruit in bulks sometime, if I eat it daily. I eat bananas and kiwi fruit everyday, putting them in salads, pancakes and my oatmeal. I buy a big box of slow cooked Quaker dry oats in bulk, a case of diced tomatoes, diced tomato sauce, tomato paste, a bag of cranberries, milk, a large tub of plain yogurt, butternut squash, granola, ground beef, eggs, chicken, fish, black and dark red kidney beans, quinoa, and pasta and cheese.

I can make Mexican casserole, chili, butternut squash soup, grilled cheese, tomato soup, etc. I freeze my bananas after they become too ripe and can throw them in a smoothie later on. I keep my kiwi in the basement along with everything else and I have a deep freezer. I put my bag of fresh cranberries in the freezer to preserve them and use them to make cranberry pancakes or throw them in my oatmeal. I keep my cheese and bread in the freezer until I get ready to use them. I only go to the grocery store once a month. Do they have a wholesale club, where you live?

subsonicbassist

I quit being a food snob and shopping exclusively at Whole Foods (if I had the money, I still would for the amazing meat/beer selection and great customer service), and now I shop at Costco and Winco (basically WalMart with more groceries). Although the stores are always crowded and have some sketchy people, I manage to feed myself, my wife and 18-month old son for about $500 a month. I buy organic produce when I can and when it makes financial sense to, and aim for more natural foods for the majority of my diet. But, I buy some sort of ice cream every time, my wife and son love nuggets, and there is usually some 0-cal soda or soft drink in there. Don't be ashamed to shop in the "cheap" stores, they have good deals. Whenever I hear people talking about the amazing gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free wine cheese balls wrapped in organic virgin Brazilian walnuts, I just roll my eyes and dig in to my big bowl of sugary cereal!

FoxyLifter

Eggs are good.

My wife and I are pricing out the lumber to build a couple box gardens in the backyard to keep up with my sudden spike in spinach consumption. That is one money pit right there, buying tubs of greens all the time.

I'm not sure what you're using spinach for, but if you're adding it to a green smoothie, I highly suggest kale. It's way cheaper and just as nutritious.

ETA: I spend about $1.25 on organic kale per week, which is just enough to make 5 of my breakfast smoothies.

amaysngrace

One Imaginary Girl, Sailor Moon for the win...

You guys have been awesome.

Step one, get online and find some recipes.
Step two, build a week long meal plan, and stick to it
Step three, get my wife a crock pot
Step four, get my wife some flowers and chocolate
Step five, shop around

I've never even considered frozen veggies, so that I will need to try.

I have frozen veggies, fresh and I keep canned veggies as a backup.

lseed87

In the same boat. Basically nothing here but have to wait til tomorrow or sometime over the weekend to shop

sypop

I spend $200 a MONTH on food for my family of 4
I coupon and I shop whats on sale

Charlinia

This is a great list!

dicoveringwhoIam

I spend $250 every 2wks for 2adults, 4kids (3 are teenage boys), 3dogs, and 4 cats... We run thin but not out of food. We plant a garden and can or freeze a lot of veggies and fruit, plus we make our own jam. We eat a lot of beans with meals, also alot of chicken, turkey, and fish. We also raise our own eggs. If you can go to a local farmers market and shop for veggies and fruit in season it tends to be cheaper. Plus beans are great

mortuseon

Cheap stuff to stock your cupboard (I live in the UK so it might be a bit different for me):

Pasta, rice, oats...poss. flour

Dried fruit

Tins of chopped tomatoes or passata, for soup and sauce bases

Tins of beans (even cheaper dry, but take longer to prepare)

Tins of anchovies (make really good cheap pasta sauce like puttanesca) and tuna (cheapish protein source)

Jarred stuff that will last you e.g. olives, capers, pesto

Tomato purée, stock cubes, spices, dried herbs

So I plan my meals every week and hence plan what I'll buy. Meals are based on what I've got in the cupboard, then I 'top up' with the fresh stuff - if I have to buy too much extra, I'll wait and make something else. Each week I'll go and buy eggs, milk, vegetables, Greek yoghurt and maybe meat/Quorn...but I always spend <£30 and sometimes <£20. Meals get made and portioned out as planned.
You don't need to spend a fortune on fresh produce and special virginal bread; a little can go a long way when making use of the cheaper stuff to bulk out recipes and spices/seasoning to ensure it tastes good. Pre-logging can also really help.
I've got lots of recipes if you'd like them! Some examples include paprikash, puttanesca, caponata, pizza, lentil soup...the list goes on

gramarye

If you eat chicken and soups (I do -- a lot) buy a whole chicken. I shred it up and freeze it in portions for recipes, and then make broth (stock? I don't even know) from the leftover parts.

That said, that works for a single mom and a part-time child. For a large family, I have no idea how far the whole chicken would go. Between the meaty bits and the broth/stock, I usually get several meals out of one chicken.

Achrya

I spend a bit more than this a week but...I live in Hawaii. There is no cheaper option, except don't live in Hawaii. You just learn to cope and not let left overs go to waste. Annnd I don't eat vegetables but once or twice a day. I save a lot of money that way.

Brownsbacker4evr

I usually have $100 or less to go on a family of four for a whole month. So I know the struggle. I buy what's cheap and not terribly awful for you. Hard to eat healthy when you have to stretch every penny you spend on food.

ElizaB84

Dang I guess me living in the middle of nowhere pays off. We spend about $100-150 on 2 weeks of food for 4 people, a dog and a cat.

We don't buy a huge amount of fresh veggies though
Most of our fresh food is apples, bananas, pears and peaches.

When we see something on sale we try to buy extras of that, to get a little stockpile going.
Beans and rice never fail. One bag of rice that's $3 will last us a month or more and its really versatile.
We make mac and cheese from scratch. A big box of noodles is around $1.50-$2.50 and lasts a while too. That way we can also make exactly how much we need and not have to waste any (picky eaters in my house don't do leftover mac n cheese).
We buy our meat in bulk and then seperate it and freeze it, cheaper that way.
Always check to dented can box (if your store has one). We can usually find a few cans of stuff for half off or more.

Planning out meals before you shop will also keep you from buying stuff you don't really need.

grneyes0908

I use to spend that with all the kids at home -- But since I started couponing -- I save tons and have it done to about 250 a month with the weekly fruits, veggies, milk..eggs.

But since the dr limited my fats to around 30g and carbs around 130g.... I am having the same issues of finding meals for myself. I am not a big vegetable eater( only corn and potatoes <

---

and cant have those)

twixlepennie

uuuuuuum where I shop it costs me over 450.00 weekly to buy enough food to feed my family of 4 ! I don`t know how people just getting a job and living on their own are suppose to make it in life !!

This made me choke on my diet soda-family of five here with a $90 a week grocery budget. Can I come and live with you and your kitchen, pretty please :laugh:

twixlepennie

Dark, I am going to skip the Simon and Garfunkel reference and just say thank you.

Ampersa, I'll see about that. My fear is when you said "Target...Card". I think my wife heard you type it and I'm afraid of having that in the house. Might be worth it for the coupons but might cost more in the kids clothes, household decorations, bathroom rugs, etc....

:laugh:

I skimmed through the posts, so maybe this has already been suggested, but some dollar stores now have a freezer section. I can get bags of frozen (nothing added) fruit for $1 a bag. Same bag at the grocery store is $4. Great for smoothies, baking, and to add in oatmeal.

FaylinaMeir

holy crap I feed 2 people for about 225-250 a month depending on the season (less in the summer!)
Unlike a lot of people we load up on our carbs! Potatoes, rice, grains etc, super cheap! (also great for weight loss! The asians can't be wrong sorry!) I also feel like you don't need to eat more than maybe 1/2 pound of meat a week so we don't buy a lot but I do purchase a lot more organic or free range meats. Most of my produce is organic and I buy it at costco and trader joes except in the summer when 99% of my produce is seasonal from the farmers market. I also like eggs, we go through a dozen a week. I do a lot of shopping at costco and trader joes and then I do whole foods for bulk items like sprouted flours or whole grain oragnic wheat berries
I live in Nebraska before anyone asks.


oh and don't waste food!! It sounds too simple to have to say but so many people waste food. & prep food yourself. Buy a whole chicken and fillet it up into like breast, wings, legs, etc. Take the bones and make chicken stock. just 1 3.5lb chicken gave me 3 3/4 quarts of chicken stock. It's hard to go into details but I hope maybe that helps?

Ready2Rock206

I suck at shopping. I think there should be a rule if you use one of the small carts in the store your bill shouldn't be over $100. The stores disagree with me. I went to 2 stores last night, spent almost $200 and I don't think I even have food for one meal. I do not have the thrifty gene. At all.