$100 Budget for Food....need help

lyrical_melody

I am a graduate student working at an internship and I am EXTREMLEY poor. I can barley make my rent and car payment, but I am still trying to eat healthy.

Anyone have any tips or advice on food?

I dont go out to eat (maybe ONCE a month)...I dont drink in bars/restaurant......I buy mostly fruits and veggies (frozen and fresh) and every now and then will buy some chicken.

I dont want to just buy ramen noodles (even though they are SO SO cheap) because I want to be healthier, regardless of how much $$ I have.

HELP! I only have $100 each month to spend on food.

erinsueburns

Chicken thighs, they tend to be way cheaper than breasts Around here for a family pack you are looking at a dollar a pound vs 6-7 dollars per pound.

Peanut butter. Not expensive but filling with good fats just so long as you don't buy one of those highly sweetened with corn syrup ones.

Nuts, buy them from the baking aisle where they aren't labeled for snack food. That way they aren't extra salted or sweetened and tend to be much cheaper per ounce.

Buy the fruits and veggies that are on sale because they have just passed their peak of loveliness. You won't care if they are lovely if you throw them in a soup or smoothie.

Make soup in bulk from those past their prime veggies, then freeze the remainder for left over consumption.

Don't ever let leftovers have to be thrown away. I do things like make meats and veggies that I know that if I do not finish them I can throw in a pot with some broth and make soup with, and of course if there is soup left I freeze it for later consumption.

Buy fruits and veggies that keep longer. Apples and oranges keep well, strawberries and raspberries not so well for me.

tekwriter

chicken quarters are the cheapest chicken in the market. They are a bit of work to get ready though. You can cook the entire 10 lb bag and then skin bone and defat the broth and freeze in portions or clean them up before cooking and portion.

Farmers markets and fruit stands are the best place to buy your fruits and veggies when it starts to warm up.

Eggs go into a million different things and are relatively cheap and filling. They go with a ton of veggies also.

Legumes are a great source of protien and very filling as well as cheap.

Lastly the good old standby peanut butter and low fat jam on bread is healthier and more filling than ramen.

Best of luck.

Jaulen

I'd add to erinsueburns' post (hers are all great tips):

Rice....not instant. You pay for convience. You can cook a big pot and freeze the left overs, and then just reheat as needed. I used to throw out so much uneaten rice until I learned this trick.

Beans. If I'm making soups or chilis I add lots of beans. It's a good way to stretch meat in a meal.

Eggs.

Leftovers for lunch, or for dinner the next day. This is also a time saver for me.


Example: I made a roast chicken for dinner. Leftover chicken was shredded for roast chicken salads for dinner the next day. The carcass of the chicken was boiled to make chicken stock...the leftover chicken meat was added to the stock with veggies (that were past their prime) and rice to make chicken rice soup (and the soup was multiple meals).


Added: In my area the farmer's markets are way pricier than buying at a grocery store.

sally_jeffswife

Buy the cheaper unbreaded fish in the frozen section, Mix Fennel,mayonnaise,lemon,pepper,little salt together in a bowl. Put the fish on the bottom of a glass baking pan and then put the fennel mayonnaise mixture over it and cook it in the oven tastes really good really low calories....(pick up stuff to make soup, Hamburger,Cabbage,Tomatoe,Tomatoe Puree,Onion,Pepper,Carrots,Corn,Beef Broth,add a little Crab Broil is really good and low calories),Apples are good not too high in calories or Pears, Eggs are always good....I would pick up stuff to make soup that goes a long way and is fairly inexpensive.

erin4455

Do a Google search for "cheap dinners" etc. There are so many websites that offer recipes and advise for low-cost eating as well as prewritten meal plans. Buying foods that are on sale, or utilizing coupons can obviously help and a nice-sized freezer would be a definite plus (not sure if you have a freezer though).

Jaulen

Oatmeal....not the Quaker instant oats packs...but the kind in the big tubs where you have to measure out to make it. Was a staple for me in my college days.

Frozen veggies, cheaper than fresh (and more often has better nutritional values sue to processing practically right after picking instead of being trucked for days)

Frozen fruits too.

Yogurt in the big tubs instead of single serve packs.

Store brand.

Coupons....look for the weekly grocery add and plan meals based on what's available. You can use a store coupon with a manufacturers coupon.

Twasney

Hey There,

I know where you are coming from, my husband was out of work for a year and I was working and going to school. Now I have been laid off so we are back to 1 income again!

Dependent on where you are, shop at the bargain shopping store. For example here in vancouver we have No frills it is the stripped to the basics shopping store and you can save a TON of money. They have 1, 2, 3 dollar days all the time. I also buy some items from the dollar store, like dry pasta, canned goods (always check the dates).

A great way to also save money is to work with some friends and cook big meals. Then you share the cost of ingredients and you can each get a few meals out of the same stuff.

You need to plan when you have a small budget. gather coupons, look at flyers, get the best deals and meal plan. Cook a large chicken, then pull off all the meat, make stock from the carcass! throw extra meat into other meals (chicken salad sandwich, add to pasta) or put it in the freezer for another meal. When you buy veggies if they are getting limp, cut them up and throw them in the freezer that way you can add them to soups, sauces or casseroles.

if you have a bit of left over meat and veggies in your freezer, you can go to the dollar store and pay 2 bucks for dry pasta and a can of sauce, add the veggies and meat and now you can freeze the left over sauce!

Feel free to pm me if you need other ideas!!

dakotawitch

Do you have an Aldi where you are? We feed two people, one vegetarian and one flexitarian, on $50 a week total and we shop at Aldi. We usually only spend about $20 at Aldi, the other $30 goes to Costco or to grocery stores like Sprouts for things we can't get at Aldi (like tofu). Sprouts Market has the best price on tofu and often on produce, so look for one of those as well.

Here's what we eat:

Fresh veggies -- lots, in stir fries, soups, salad, and raw as snacks. Carrots, broccoli, peppers (when cheap), and celery

Tofu

Chicken breasts or thighs sometimes, for me (the flexitarian)

Salad greens. We get the big tub at Costco usually or buy from the bulk bin at Sprouts

Nuts. Bulk bins at Sprouts if we can, if not Aldi's packages are cheap.

Cheese. We don't do the low fat kind -- we just eat the regular stuff in moderation

Brown rice, again in bulk -- don't pay for packaging if you don't have to.

Beans. We go for canned, and rinse to reduce sodium. Dried are cheaper, but canned are more convenient for us. We eat lots of chilis, curries, hummus, and other bean dishes. Filling, lots of fiber, and cheap

Eggs. A complete protein that is relatively cheap. We get a dozen free range grain fed eggs for $1.39

It doesn't have to be expensive to eat healthy. I think most of us need to break the habit of buying so-called healthy packaged food and just eat as many whole foods as we can. Shop around. If you have an Indian or Asian market near you, they will give you a lot of bang for your buck.

whatjesseats

Generally, avoid convenience foods -- unless you can shop sales and use coupons to keep the prices down.

Learn to love leftovers and bulk items such as rice, dried beans, lentils, and oats. Eggs are another cheap, versatile staple.

purple_tux1

Rice, eggs. Food bank, also. Don't feel bad if you need to go there. Maybe take on some extra work if you can manage the time. Cleaners make good money here and you can set your own hours.

erinsueburns

I'd add to erinsueburns' post (hers are all great tips):

Rice....not instant. You pay for convience. You can cook a big pot and freeze the left overs, and then just reheat as needed. I used to throw out so much uneaten rice until I learned this trick.

Beans. If I'm making soups or chilis I add lots of beans. It's a good way to stretch meat in a meal.

Eggs.

Leftovers for lunch, or for dinner the next day. This is also a time saver for me.


Example: I made a roast chicken for dinner. Leftover chicken was shredded for roast chicken salads for dinner the next day. The carcass of the chicken was boiled to make chicken stock...the leftover chicken meat was added to the stock with veggies (that were past their prime) and rice to make chicken rice soup (and the soup was multiple meals).


Added: In my area the farmer's markets are way pricier than buying at a grocery store.

I can't believe I forgot bulk rice and beans

To that lets add barley, which is quite cheap and filling and healthy (and which I like better than rice anyway)

melissamarah

I'm in the same boat as you. And I love everyone's ideas so far.

We get dry beans, since they're cheaper than canned, and a ton less sodium. In LA, we have Smart & Final, where you can get bulk stuff without any membership fees. Most of it is junk food, but we got 6 frozen salmon filets for $10.

kerriberry74

Lots of good ideas here... I never thought of freezing leftover rice. Funny considering I freeze nearly everything else. I'm having to really buckle down and do some serious budgeting. Planning the menu ahead of time and sticking with the list really helps. I usually go by what is on sale in the store fliers and what I have coupons for.

Soups/chili are a great route to go and they freeze well- I measure it out into individual containers for my lunch at work. It also allows for a bit of variety- I can only eat the same thing for so long before I need something different. By doing this, I can throw a container in my bag & go. Things like barley & split peas work well in this regard along with chili (and they can be fairly filling).

Another possibility is getting some things in bulk ie. rice. It will last for ages. This is much easier if you know someone who has a membership to sam's/costco. I've been working on my baking skills in the last year, so I picked up flour in bulk- i've made bread, pretzels & a pasta attempt is on at some point in the near future.

Check out food.com- there's a ton of recipes. You can put in one ingredient and it will usually come up with a lot of possibilities.

Good luck!

kansasbelle

Quaker weight control oatmeal for breakfast... it's cheap and filling plus yummy. Jasmine rice is inexpensive and easy to fix has tons of flavor. I go to Krogers and Dillons and buy tons of fronzen vegies at a dollar a bag. Then I hit up the marked down meats and vegies. Eggs are a good cheap source of protien. I have a very tight budget as well. I know this is crazy but hey a papa murphys vegi pizza family size is 10 dollars on tuesday on the crispy crust and you can eat 4 or 5 meals off it. Plus it's yummy. They always have whole grain pasta on sale at Krogers/dillons for a dollar something a box, crushed tomatoes make a wonderful sauce, Beans are and excellent source of protein and cost just pennies a serving. You can get the Hunts tomato sauce in a can for a dollar a can and it tastes better than the jarred stuff and has half the calories. Peanut butter... you can find bread on sale and keep in freezer. Watch the sale ads...Use coupons... A lot can be downloaded to your shoppers card and can even give you a discount on gas. Shred your own cheese...I went through a horrifc divorce where I actually had to go to the food bank at one point and still have about a 150 dollar budget. You can do it... A lot of times you can find leg and thigh quarters for about 8 dollars a bag for 10 pounds and you can bake or boil them and it's not bad calorie wise. I buy meat on sale and pre-portion it in my fridge. So good luck you can do this..

efirkey

I know around here the grocery stores reduce the meat prices when they get close to expiration usually at night. I am often able to pick up a pound of top round for $2 or $3 and either cook it right away or freeze it. I usually get 3 meals out of a pound of meat.