Cost of food rant

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Replies

  • Prilla04
    Prilla04 Posts: 174 Member
    You won't find any 'tips' here - just agreement. Yes!!!! You are CORRECT! Food is too expensive. These fools are smoking the crack pipe when they are pricing this stuff! :smokin: Five bucks for a box of cereal? Ten bucks for balsamic vinegar? SERIOUSLY??? Grrr! :explode:
  • HealthyBodySickMind
    HealthyBodySickMind Posts: 1,207 Member
    Also, and I'll admit it's been a long time since I've gone, but soooo much food is thrown out if you live in the U.S. Aldi's is a great place to get free produce, from the dumpster after they close. Stores throw out stuff when it's just past the expiration and it's still pretty safe to use. Cans get thrown out when they are badly dented, but the contents are still good. In the winter, the meat that's just past expiration goes from the refrigerated display out to the dumpster, where it's quickly frozen (where I live anyway). I've made many a meal from stuff grocery stores have thrown away. Dumpster diving isn't for everyone, but done judiciously it's a relatively safe way to get free food.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    I come upon this right after thinking maybe I should increase my grocery budget, which is difficult because as a single mom there isn't a lot of wiggle room in my budget. I was actually going to post asking for feedback on what people's grocery budget is. I made a list of some cheap dinners like sandwiches or eggs and biscuits. We don't have a Trader Joe's or even a health food store at all in my town. I buy a lot of stuff from Publix when it is BOGO. Especially cereal because I can get it for under $2 a box. Check out some of the coupon blogs. moneysavingmom.com, southernsavers.com, and crazycouponlady.com. Honestly 90% of my budget and healthy eating gets blown by buying fast food since we are always on the go. I'm committed to going the next 5 weeks without any eating out just to see how much better my food budget is at the end of the month.
    If you haven't already, invest in a crockpot. In combination with meal planning, it's been a huge time and money saver for me. There's only three of us at home but I work full time and am going to school part time. There are so many days where I just don't want to cook after a 10 hour day especially when I know I have homework or a paper due. Planning my meals out for the week, and using the crockpot as much as possible, has been huge. I'll make a double batch of chili or whatever and it's ready when I get home. We'll eat it for dinner and then each of us can take leftovers for lunch the next couple of days. I can prep the food in the crockpot and throw the ceramic insert in the fridge until the next morning. I put it in the heating unit and turn it on before I leave. I come home to a house that smells great, make a salad or a side dish, if needed, and set the table.
  • pistachiopeas
    pistachiopeas Posts: 165 Member
    There is a really great new cookbook - completely free and in PDF form - called "Good and Cheap." The author, Leanne Brown, did a Kickstarter to get it going and she is distributing free printed copies to communities in needs. It is excellent. Great, wholesome recipes and she puts the cost of each meal next to the recipe. I supported the Kickstarter because we need more projects like this. NO ONE in the U.S. should have to eat poorly because of lack of funds.

    Here's the link:
    http://www.leannebrown.com/s/good-and-cheap.pdf

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