Family of four on under $200/month?

Yar! Shop your favorite store's ads, throw in some Ibotta rebates, Checkout 51 rebates, and Coupons.com coupons. Plan meals around that.

Our meal plan, this week?

Monday - Leftovers Casserole (leftover black bean taco filling, leftover tomato sauce, and leftover chicken tossed over pasta and baked with cheese)

Tuesday - Chicken & Sweet Pepper Beans (Costco canned chicken, sauteed with mini-bell peppers, garlic, spinach, and pink beans with lime & yogurt sauce)

Wednesday - Chicken & Refried Beans Enchiladas (got a free can of enchilada sauce via our Safeway app and Fajita sized tortillas for a final cost of $0.50 per package with club deal plus coupons. Sweet!)

Thursday - Chicken Thighs & Beans with Tzatziki dressing (and use up leftover tortillas, if any)

Friday - Use up all the leftover Veggies w/some kind of beans Casserole

Lots of chickens and beans, using spices and produce for variety.

Replies

  • OhCora
    OhCora Posts: 72 Member
    So that's 5 meals. you would need 35 in a week. x 4.2 = a month
    yummy ideas tho.
  • ZombieSlayer
    ZombieSlayer Posts: 369 Member
    True, but dinner is generally the sticking point for a lot of people. And our total grocery bill; including breakfast, lunch, and snacks is under $200 a month. 5 dinners this week actually total less than $20 cost.

    Lunch is often leftover dinner... or Planned Overs.
  • OhCora
    OhCora Posts: 72 Member
    pretty thrifty. feeding my family of 5 (3 teens) even growing my veggies costs at least $600 a month. I use checkout 51, but most of their sales are not items I use. mostly prepackaged stuff, I also price match, and...what are leftovers?? :-P
  • Having beans every day (twice a day considering lunch and dinner) would probably give me enough gas to power the city.
  • ZombieSlayer
    ZombieSlayer Posts: 369 Member
    what are leftovers?? :-P

    Hee!

    That's why we call them Planned Overs. We've figured out how much we eat and make sure the meal prepared is big enough that some will be left over:smile: .
  • ZombieSlayer
    ZombieSlayer Posts: 369 Member
    Having beans every day (twice a day considering lunch and dinner) would probably give me enough gas to power the city.

    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
  • srmchan
    srmchan Posts: 206 Member
    True, but dinner is generally the sticking point for a lot of people. And our total grocery bill; including breakfast, lunch, and snacks is under $200 a month. 5 dinners this week actually total less than $20 cost.

    Good gravy... I've got a lot of room for improvement in the area of planning & budgeting. My grocery bill for a family of four is in excess of $1,000 per month. That includes 2 teenage boys. I buy a lot of fresh veggies (organic when the price is not 2x of the non-organic), fresh meat and practically nothing packaged. I also like to cook.

    Here's my meal plan for the week to give an idea. My breakfasts and lunches (salad or leftovers) are all pretty much the same; only dinner is changed up night to night.

    Sat
    - garlic lemon chicken breasts pan seared
    - broccoli steamed

    Sun
    (concert)

    Mon
    - ribeye steaks grilled
    - prosciutto wrapped grilled asparagus
    - burgundy mushroom sauce

    Tue
    - salmon sous vide
    - broccoli
    - squash

    Wed
    - flat iron sous vide/pan seared
    - bruschetta
    - sautéed spinach

    Thu
    - spatchcock herbed chicken applewood smoked
    - Provençal summer vegetable gratin

    Fri
    - tri-tip sirloin grilled
    - guacamole

    Sam
  • Carnivor0us
    Carnivor0us Posts: 1,752 Member
    Having beans every day (twice a day considering lunch and dinner) would probably give me enough gas to power the city.

    Not to mention I'd just *kitten* it all out.
  • weightliftingdiva
    weightliftingdiva Posts: 522 Member
    True, but dinner is generally the sticking point for a lot of people. And our total grocery bill; including breakfast, lunch, and snacks is under $200 a month. 5 dinners this week actually total less than $20 cost.

    Good gravy... I've got a lot of room for improvement in the area of planning & budgeting. My grocery bill for a family of four is in excess of $1,000 per month. That includes 2 teenage boys. I buy a lot of fresh veggies (organic when the price is not 2x of the non-organic), fresh meat and practically nothing packaged. I also like to cook.

    Here's my meal plan for the week to give an idea. My breakfasts and lunches (salad or leftovers) are all pretty much the same; only dinner is changed up night to night.

    Sat
    - garlic lemon chicken breasts pan seared
    - broccoli steamed

    Sun
    (concert)

    Mon
    - ribeye steaks grilled
    - prosciutto wrapped grilled asparagus
    - burgundy mushroom sauce

    Tue
    - salmon sous vide
    - broccoli
    - squash

    Wed
    - flat iron sous vide/pan seared
    - bruschetta
    - sautéed spinach

    Thu
    - spatchcock herbed chicken applewood smoked
    - Provençal summer vegetable gratin

    Fri
    - tri-tip sirloin grilled
    - guacamole

    Sam

    As a budgeted college student this made me drool. Ribeye....
  • srmchan
    srmchan Posts: 206 Member

    As a budgeted college student this made me drool. Ribeye....

    I remember those days well. I had lots of grilled ham & cheese sandwiches and spaghetti when I was in college. I earned $2 something per hour helping students in the computer lab - so the only time I had steak was when a family member visited and took me out to eat.

    If you happen to be in the Raleigh-Durham area, my family and I would be happy to make an extra ribeye steak for you one weekend. I roast mine after indirect heat with hickory smoke to medium-rare, then I sear it over a very hot fire. It's divine when topped with burgundy mushrooms!

    Sam
  • weightliftingdiva
    weightliftingdiva Posts: 522 Member

    As a budgeted college student this made me drool. Ribeye....

    I remember those days well. I had lots of grilled ham & cheese sandwiches and spaghetti when I was in college. I earned $2 something per hour helping students in the computer lab - so the only time I had steak was when a family member visited and took me out to eat.

    If you happen to be in the Raleigh-Durham area, my family and I would be happy to make an extra ribeye steak for you one weekend. I roast mine after indirect heat with hickory smoke to medium-rare, then I sear it over a very hot fire. It's divine when topped with burgundy mushrooms!

    Sam

    That sounds AMAZING. Unfortunately after a summer in Austin I will be heading back to the Northeast to finish school. But maybe one day I will pass through there!