How to eat healthy on a budget?!

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AlwaysWanderer
AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
in Recipes
I have a very limited food budget for the next few months, so I need cheap healthy recipes. And I dont like beans & pulses, I just cant stand them... and no salads either... bleh :(
Any sugestions? Please?
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Replies

  • HannahPendrigh
    HannahPendrigh Posts: 147 Member
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    baked sweet potato with topping of your choice (i use tuna and sweetcorn) :)
  • gingeriner
    gingeriner Posts: 8 Member
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    tuna is super cheap! as are potatoes. tuna you can put on bread with some italian dressing. that is good.
    oatmeal is also cheap, apples etc. you just have to shop sales and that really helps too.
  • marquesajen
    marquesajen Posts: 641
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    Sweet corn, tomatoes, pretty much anything that is in season should hopefully be less expensive.
  • Cherishanne
    Cherishanne Posts: 50 Member
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    It's time consuming, but I really rely on coupons and matching them up with what's on sale. Sweet baked potatos are the best, very filling and healthy for us.
  • shootoutx3
    shootoutx3 Posts: 24
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    I'm not sure where you live but perhaps going to a cheaper store like Aldi's or Save-A-Lot? They have healthy stuff just like regular grocery stores, but much cheaper.
  • losethechalupa
    losethechalupa Posts: 51 Member
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    Hi,

    Purchase meat in bulk if you can. I buy bags of individual frozen boneless skinless chicken breast. Its only me and hubby and one breast is rather large so one chicken breast makes dinner. I usually marinate in the morning and throw on the grill after work. Its done in less than 5 minutes on the George Foreman. I steam a bag of frozen mixed veggies and some brown rice and thats whats for dinner.

    You can do so much with chicken.

    Chicken Parm - I lightly bread the raw chicken with bread crumbs and fry a bit on each side with evoo and then top with a little sauce and part skim mozzarella adn poip in the oven to finish off then depending on how hungry I am, I will just eat the chicken with a side salad or with a little whole wheat angel hair pasta.

    Here is one more for you

    sautee onions, peppers and chopped chicken breast in a little evoo with seasonings of your choice, roll into a tortilla with a lil light plain yogurt or sour cream, diced tomato and viola! to add in some more veggies, you can throw in some mixed veggies to sautee at the end when the chicken is almost done.

    Hope this helps
  • fionarama
    fionarama Posts: 788 Member
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    I've never understood why people think you can't eat healthily on a budget. For a start - no bought takeaways etc saves a fortune. Chicken is cheap. Fresh salmon is cheap. apples are cheap. low fat budget yoghurt is cheap. Buy plain oatmeal as cereal instead of prepared cereals. rice. potatoes. frozen vegies. Personally I don't do recipes, just the plain cheap meals, cereal for breakfast, a simple sandwich and fruit for lunch and grilled meat and veges for dinner. Oh and baked beans are a cheap staple too.
  • AlwaysWanderer
    AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
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    Thanks guys! Def going to try sweet potato, havent had one of these yet... and tortilla, thats a good one!
    I live in the UK, and shop in Tesco... I tried to plan my meals for the week, and its so much easier to eat unhealthy stuff! I need to cook twice, for me and hubby, as he wont eat anything if there's a slight risk it might be healthy... Grilled chicken and fresh veg are quite expensive these days... I dont want to slip back into old habits and have spag bol for dinner 3 times a week! :grumble:
  • AlwaysWanderer
    AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
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    Chicken is cheap. Fresh salmon is cheap.
    Please will you tell me where you live so I can come and do my shopping there? I pay £13/kilo of chicken breast!!! And its £6 for 2 salmon fillets!
  • pedagopractice
    pedagopractice Posts: 16 Member
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    Ground turkey burgers -- mix in wilted spinach, a little lemon zest, mashed up garlic, and S&P. Grill them and serve on a whole wheat bun!
  • sunnyrunner23
    sunnyrunner23 Posts: 182 Member
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    Thanks guys! Def going to try sweet potato, havent had one of these yet... and tortilla, thats a good one!
    I live in the UK, and shop in Tesco... I tried to plan my meals for the week, and its so much easier to eat unhealthy stuff! I need to cook twice, for me and hubby, as he wont eat anything if there's a slight risk it might be healthy... Grilled chicken and fresh veg are quite expensive these days... I dont want to slip back into old habits and have spag bol for dinner 3 times a week! :grumble:


    UGH! HUSBANDS!!!!
  • AlwaysWanderer
    AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
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    Thanks guys! Def going to try sweet potato, havent had one of these yet... and tortilla, thats a good one!
    I live in the UK, and shop in Tesco... I tried to plan my meals for the week, and its so much easier to eat unhealthy stuff! I need to cook twice, for me and hubby, as he wont eat anything if there's a slight risk it might be healthy... Grilled chicken and fresh veg are quite expensive these days... I dont want to slip back into old habits and have spag bol for dinner 3 times a week! :grumble:


    UGH! HUSBANDS!!!!
    Tell me about it!!!
  • tararocks
    tararocks Posts: 287 Member
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    although they do not pack quite the same nutrients, frozen and canned vegetables are still low calorie and still better for you than fast food. As far as sweet potatoes, i highly recommend doing oven roasted sweet potatoes, especially if you have never had them, they can be a little overpowering at first but to do oven roasted, wash them peel and cube them, boil them for a few minutes until fork tender, then put on a baking sheet sprayed with non-stick spray, then season-i use salt pepper and rosemary but you can use whatever seasonings you want. bake-they are amazing. Not sure about where you are but here i can buy a bag of mixed fruit, apples and oranges for significantly cheaper than buying them individually.
  • rmancha
    rmancha Posts: 14 Member
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    I don't know if this will help but it has helped me. Before I tried losing weight I would buy clothes all the time trying to "hide" my gaining weight problem. But when I had to buy a 16 a tight one at that I decided that was it. So at that point I stopped buying clothes and told myself I wasn't going to buy more clothes until I could fit in to my 12's again. This helped because now I had extra money to spend on food. I am back in 12's and part of me doesn't want to buy anymore clothes until I get to 10 only because I want to keep going (I am getting greedy here hehe). Either way an ugly size 12 pants makes me feel way better than a brand new size 16 did.
    As for my shopping I try to cook different things but my staples are egg beaters, shredded cheese (goes a long way), frozen veggies, brown rice, chicken breasts, pork (its cheaper than beef), baby carrots, tuna, wheat bread, and cooking spray oh and coffee it always does the trick! But at times when I don't have time to cook or can't afford it I buy smart ones or lean cuisines, I love the feeling of eating pizza for around 300 calories.
    Hope this helps!...Good Luck!
  • janeite1990
    janeite1990 Posts: 694 Member
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    Boiled eggs are cheap, good protein. Easy to boil several, refrigerate, and have ready to go.
  • amybrauch
    amybrauch Posts: 250 Member
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    Cabbage. I have been shredding it & stir frying it w/ some soy sauce & a little olive oil & garlic & spices & it is good. Just like the inside of an eggroll!
  • jeffhop75
    jeffhop75 Posts: 8
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    try going shopping at tesco`s after 5pm as they usually reduce a lot of the food by then thats close to its sell by date which is a con anyway, you can pick up plenty of fresh fruit and veg at a quarter of the price, its what we do and have probably saved a fortune over the years, as for tuna being cheap?? someone is having a laugh!
  • gmhvin
    gmhvin Posts: 29 Member
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    Thanks guys! Def going to try sweet potato, havent had one of these yet... and tortilla, thats a good one!
    I live in the UK, and shop in Tesco... I tried to plan my meals for the week, and its so much easier to eat unhealthy stuff! I need to cook twice, for me and hubby, as he wont eat anything if there's a slight risk it might be healthy... Grilled chicken and fresh veg are quite expensive these days... I dont want to slip back into old habits and have spag bol for dinner 3 times a week! :grumble:


    UGH! HUSBANDS!!!!
    Tell me about it!!!

    I've got one of those too! I am trying to come up with recipes that he will eat and I will want to eat!
  • mndbbr
    mndbbr Posts: 2
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    -baked potato with "I can't believe its not butter" SPRAY
    -tuna with mustard, pepper, & pickle juice wrapped in lettuce leaves

    Filling and cheap : )

    You can also make you own black bean burgers
  • MrsJax11
    MrsJax11 Posts: 354 Member
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    Try a whole chicken -- here it is about a dollar a lb. We can roast a chicken and both eat it for two days.
    We also get rolled oats and rice in bulk. Don't think you have to cut out pasta entirely-- just measure out portions and fill up with veggies in it. If you take 2 oz of pasta, 4 oz of chicken and 2 cups of veggies like tomato, broccoli and onion, you would be surprised how filling it is, and low on the cals for one dinner :)
    Make sure you are measuring your portions and be open to trying new things! We also make our own salad dressings that are way better than anything you can buy in a store!

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