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Any tips for eating primal on a budget?

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mistybkarma
mistybkarma Posts: 30 Member
in Social Groups
I am on day 6 of eating primal, and I am really starting to enjoy it. The only problem is that the food cost is breaking me. Anyone have any tips?

Thanks :)

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  • 1twistedjew
    1twistedjew Posts: 14 Member
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    I would say, buy all of your produce at farmers markets or Trader Joes. Meat is a tough one because the grass fed beef I found was way out of my price range so I am eating organic. Try your best to find organic if you can't afford that try to find the cleanest meat you can. I found this article quite helpful for meat. http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/2012/06/antibiotics-are-widely-used-by-u-s-meat-industry/index.htm Also, check to see if your are has a food co-op. I save quite a bit on produce that way. Also, check your local butchers if you have any. I had to look as I didn't realize they still existed. I found some great deals on meat that way that wasn't necessarily grass fed, but not full of hormones and antibiotics.
  • eig6
    eig6 Posts: 249 Member
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    Hunt if you can. Fish if you can. Cuts my cost of meat to only $2 a lb for some nice free range grass fed deer. Other than that- eating meat rather than grains is #1 in my humble opinion. I would buy grain fed if you cant afford it before quitting paleo. Chicken thighs are dirt cheap in AZ at least (in HI at the moment but last time I was there was only 2 months ago). So is ground beef that's mixed up cuts. Eggs are on sale for only 1 buck a dozen quite often at Bashes. Buy all veggies and fruits in season at the farmers market or trader joes sort of store.
  • Fairysoul
    Fairysoul Posts: 1,361 Member
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    I am also on a tight budget, but It hasn't seemed to cost too much more.... My best advice is to plan your meals. I plan all meals for one week, and shop for that week. Then I plan the next week on what I have left meat wise and add a few things in.
  • booyainyoface
    booyainyoface Posts: 409 Member
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    it hasn't cost me any extra over normal shopping! look at the grocery sale flyer and buy family sized meats and just portion them out yourself...family sized is always cheaper. shop at an ethnic market for veggies/curries/sauces, and buy in-season produce from a "health food store" cause it actually costs WAY less than buying at a normal grocery store (here we have Sprouts or mexican supermarkets) or check out the farmers markets.

    once you have your kitchen stocked i think its surprising how much cheaper it is to cook instead of buying all these pre-packaged snacks.
  • SweetxCatastrophe
    SweetxCatastrophe Posts: 593 Member
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    I second the ethnic market idea! I shop at a Latin market and get like 4bunches of radishes for a buck, 2 heads of lettuce for the same price, got a 2pack of fresh whole chickens for $8 (I wouldn't do the meat everywhere, but this market is small and I live in a farming town so I know the exact farm the chickens come from and they're pastured). I also have a multi-country (latin, middle eastern, african,eastern European...It's amazing) ethnic market a little further from me but with decent prices. I've found shopping these markets and being open and creative in my cooking doesn't cost me anymore than before... Probably less even

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