Healthy Cheap recipes?/Things to do with Ramen?

ohmyshysamantha
ohmyshysamantha Posts: 138 Member
in Recipes
My friend and I are moving into an apartment and as we are in our 20s we dont exactly have tons of money. What are some things I can do with Ramen noodles (or other cheap foods) that are healthy?
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Replies

  • jd5351
    jd5351 Posts: 116 Member
    Ramen noodles aren't healthy...Too much sodium and like zero nutritional value.

    Stick with foods that aren't necessarily the cheapest, but more satisfying. Some nice green spinach with grilled chicken breast is inexpensive and would fill you up.
  • sarahharmintx
    sarahharmintx Posts: 868 Member
    Seasonal veggies. Watch for sales. I guess I dont have much advice.
  • Espressocycle
    Espressocycle Posts: 2,245 Member
    Ramen noodles are not only deep fried poison, they really aren't even that cheap. You want cheap, make a big pot of lentil soup with dried lentils. You will be eating healthfully for days on about $2.
  • morgansmom02
    morgansmom02 Posts: 1,131 Member
    Ramen is just empty calories. Get some fruit and veggies!
  • Pandorian
    Pandorian Posts: 2,055 Member
    Skip the ramen and it's high sodium buy bags of lentils, beans, rice etc.
    Sometimes it will pay to buy in bigger packages once you know you like certain items.
    For instance I can go to my local grocer and pay $10 for 10 lbs of flour or I can go to a whole-sale club (no memberships) or Costco and get a 25kg (call it 50 lbs) bag for $14... $4 more for 5 times as much flour... same with lentils you might find them at $1 per pound (lots of meals) at your grocery store but find a 25lb bag for $12-14 at same whole-sale clubs etc, so paying about half the price
  • mcedes02
    mcedes02 Posts: 56 Member
    Don't buy the Ramen!!! They are absolutely LOADED w/sodium!!!!! They contain about 1/2 of your daily sodium goal!! By a box of pasta (about 1.00) and you can get several meals out of it!! Add your fav veggies or sauce or just about anything you want! there are endless possibilities!!!
  • Crochetluvr
    Crochetluvr Posts: 3,328 Member
    I know ramen is cheap but its one of the WORST things you can eat. Honest.

    You can get tuna cheaply enough and its plenty of protein. Nut butter's too...not just peanut but almond and cashew butters. Beef jerky as well. Lots of protein to fill you up.
  • GhostPack
    GhostPack Posts: 197 Member
    Google images for how to eat Ramen Like a Boss. Best way to eat ramen. LOL

    If you want to eat ramen, use your own soup stock, not the packet, add in any vegetables and meat you want. It makes a good soup. The noodles have little to no value and just take up space, but at least you can spice it up this way. Sodium will still be a bit high.
  • CoffeeNBooze
    CoffeeNBooze Posts: 966 Member
    shop at save-a-lot, superwalmart, dollar general ... all great deals, and it doesn't have to be ramen. You can get bread for a buck, canned veggies for 80cents, a bag of frozen chicken breasts that will last you a few days for $7... And as far as ramen goes, how about make the noodles without the high sodium powdered broth thing they give you? Make the noodles and add your own toppings like your favorite spices and herbs, even some olive oil.
  • Annette8479
    Annette8479 Posts: 82 Member
    Saying the word Ramen and healthy in the same sentence is impossible
  • ShreddedTweet
    ShreddedTweet Posts: 1,326 Member
    The best thing you can do with Ramen is chuck them in the bin...seriously! They are not healthy by any stretch of the imagination.
  • peaceloveandtattoos
    peaceloveandtattoos Posts: 8
    no ramen please!
    lots of fruits and veggies (for my household of 5 i spend around $50 a week on fruits and veggies...and most even being organic!)
    Tuna is good and inexpensive too. Good luck!
  • _Elemenopee_
    _Elemenopee_ Posts: 2,665 Member
    :noway:
  • Ge0rgiana
    Ge0rgiana Posts: 1,649 Member
    Ramen is crap. For $2-3 you could cook yourself beans and rice. Much more nutritious. Ask for a crockpot for a house-warming if you don't have one already. Oh, and see if you have a co-op nearby. BountifulBaskets.org gives you a pretty good sized share of produce for $16.50 every 2 weeks.
  • PayneAS
    PayneAS Posts: 669 Member
    Ramen noodles aren't healthy...Too much sodium and like zero nutritional value.

    Exactly what I was going to say. You'd be better off buying spaghetti noodles and making your own sauce or buying spaghetti sauce. I lived off of spaghetti mixed with butter and garlic for awhile when I was hurting for money.
  • TeamNoExcuses
    TeamNoExcuses Posts: 66
    Everything in ramen is bad for you. It's deep fried processed noodles and msg/sodium.
  • Jac118
    Jac118 Posts: 34
    Ramen is terrible but if you must :)

    http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/03/ramen-hacks-30-easy-ways-to-upgrade-your-instant-noodles-japanese-what-to-do-with-ramen.html
  • ElleBee615
    ElleBee615 Posts: 177
    Are there any co-ops in your state? I get my fruits and veggies for $15/week...and it's a lot too!


    I use http://www.bountifulbaskets.org
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    Beans, rice, oats, potatoes, tuna, marinara sauce .....

    http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/cheap-healthy-15-nutritious-foods-about-2-dollars
  • smiley245
    smiley245 Posts: 420 Member
    lol wow people really hate ramen noodles.

    Although I havent eaten them since my teen years, I completely understand the lack of money when you are first setting off on your own. (was out of the house at 17.... cheese whiz sandwiches were plenty...)

    Do I advocate making ramen a daily staple....no, that being said, here is a great budget web site with plenty of low cost meals. Some quite healthy I might add (ramen free as well)

    http://www.budget101.com/frugal/ramen-noodle-recipes-1548/

    Coupons and sales. These are what you should watch for. Not too often you see coupons for produce. But if you save money with TP, shampoos and the like you will have extra money in your budget for fresh/frozen fruits and vegetables. :)
  • DonniesGirl69
    DonniesGirl69 Posts: 644 Member
    Get whole wheat pasta instead of Ramen noodles....WAY healthier and you'll get several meals from one box. Frozen veggies are great to top the pasta and some inexpensive marinara sauce or just toss it with olive oil and a little parm.
  • Muddy_Yogi
    Muddy_Yogi Posts: 1,459 Member
    Ramen = Healthy Ummmmmm :cry:
  • Discoveri
    Discoveri Posts: 435 Member
    Do you have an Aldi's grocery store near you? Check them out if you are near one. They also do price matches with walmart so if Aldi's produce looks a little gross, just take their flier over to walmart and but the produce there at a cheaper price.
  • cptdzastr
    cptdzastr Posts: 2 Member
    There's a web show that addresses exactly this issue called Hand 2 Mouth. You can find it here:

    https://www.youtube.com/user/Hand2MouthShow

    Having said that - the folks here make a very good point. There's not a lot of good nutrition in most cheap food, so make an effort to augment the cheap basics with whatever seasonal and sale nutrients you can get.
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  • cersela
    cersela Posts: 160 Member
    You can get quinoa in bulk much cheaper than ramen noodles and it's so much healthier for you.
  • msudaisy28
    msudaisy28 Posts: 267 Member
    Took a look at your profile to see where you're from and it's a small world! I live near Brighton, but my inlaws are in Waterford so I'm there all the time!

    Look for seasonal produce on sale. Buy frozen veggies if the fresh aren't on sale. Buy dried beans or lentils and use them to make soup with lots of veggies. Look at the "Reduced for Quick Sale" meat (I almost always find something good there and I either use it for dinner right away or freeze it for later use) - same is true by the bakery, but I rarely buy anything because they are usually leftover cupcakes, pastries or bagels.

    Use coupons. The Sunday Detroit Free Press is $1.50 in Oakland County and has tons of coupons almost every week (none on holiday weekends, so skip this Sunday). If you know someone who gets the paper (maybe your parents?) and doesn't use the coupons, ask if you can have theres! There are also tons of coupons that are online, and tons of websites on couponing which can help you match the sales price up with the coupons to get the best deals (bargainstobounty.com has matchups for the metro-Detroit area).

    If you shop at Kroger, sign up for a Plus card and after a few trips you'll start getting coupons in the mail that are based on things you buy. There's an Aldi in Waterford and they tend to have good deals. Meijer has the mPerks program which is an online coupon system that's linked to your phone number.

    Good luck with the move!
  • bleacheblonde
    bleacheblonde Posts: 333
    Ok well, I'm going to go against the grain here and not tell you ZOMG DONT BUY RAMEN. My dad makes what he calls "enhanced Ramen"...he puts a couple packets of noodles in the crock pot with some water and ONE of the seasoning packets, maybe some other seasonings too like dried parsley or onion flakes, and then dumps in a bag of frozen veggies (peas and carrots, for example) and then just cooks it until everything is cooked through. It's actually very good...tastes like chicken noodle soup. Just don't over-cook it.

    Beans, rice, and tuna are all good cheap staples. And potatoes. Buy a Sunday paper and look at ads for your local stores...you can save some $$ by clipping coupons and shopping certain stores on certain weeks based on what's on sale. Good luck!
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    Seasonal veggies. Watch for sales. I guess I dont have much advice.

    I would agree with this. Also, I would add to get the store brand frozen veggies too. They are about 25-50 cents per serving, low calorie, and filling. Ramen is not entirely devoid of nutrients. It does have a little bit of protein (not much) and it has carbs. It *is* high in sodium though, so drink extra water.
  • eatcleanNtraindirty
    eatcleanNtraindirty Posts: 444 Member
    There's really one thing that's healthy for you to do with Ramen noodles... cook them in hot water, add a little seasoning, and then pour them down the drain and never think about ramen noodles for a healthy diet again.

    If you have to use noodles then just use whole grain/whole wheat spaghetti noodles. At least this way you'll get some fiber and whole grains. Ramen noodles are garbage and I don't wish them upon my worst enemy.

    The same can be said about Syntha-6 protein powder or muscle milk. There's really one thing that's good to do with those if you have them... pour them down the drain!

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