healthy grocery shopping with no money

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lisamurphy7227
lisamurphy7227 Posts: 26
in Food and Nutrition
i need some grocery shopping advice. weve been super low on cash, and the money we do have, we spend in all the wrong places. if you have zero food (very limited condiments) and only $100, how would you spend it? (obviously we are dieting) bad food is always the cheapest food. semi vegetarian, low sugar, low sodium, high potasium diet. $100 has to last at least a week to feed 2 people.
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  • SuffolkSally
    SuffolkSally Posts: 964 Member
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    Check out ethnic stores - get big bags of rice and beans. Find a farmer's market for vegetables. If you eat any meat - look for cheap cuts like chicken thighs or shin of beef, or cheap white fish like dabs etc.
  • FTIM2015
    FTIM2015 Posts: 460 Member
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    Frozen is the way to go.

    I prefer the idea of fresh veg but often he frozen stuff is got before it can loose the nutrients which fresh can do sat in a store. If you eat fish have a look at getting multi packs of fillets, ditto chicken breast. Pasta and rice as usually pretty cheap to bulk buy and very filling, liven a cheap pasta sauce up with some extra veg (peppers, onion, mushrooms etc), pasta salad is great for lunch too.

    Not a fan of bread so don't tend to eat a huge aount as it bloats me, but when I do i tend to make my own. If you like pizza make your own base (bread flour, yeast, water, sugar) i use either pizza base sauce, tomato puree with herbs an garlic, or pasta sauce and you can control what you put on it then and it's a proper pizza base rather than tasting like cardboard!


    I'll 2nd the chicken thighs! Great to use in a stir fry or curry as more flavour than breast.
  • chatipati1
    chatipati1 Posts: 211 Member
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    I would buy veggies (depending on where you live..stop by and Aldi's first)..then I would make soup...if using a chicken ( semi vegitarian u list so idk) make chicken soup..buy noodles etc on the cheap. Use the legs etc in the soup. Save the chicken breast for another dinner. Buy 10 lbs of potatoes for like $1.50. Have baked potatoes one day..potatoe soup one day ..buy two bread bowls to put it in..I would buy beans to make bean burgers (recipes on net) cheapy buns at aldi's..yogurts, salads, fruits for lunches..You get the idea. I think in order to get by, you have to cook for a day for the week and you will be fine. Tuna salads...etc. Onc enight maybe have breakfast for dinner...banana pancakes with maple syrup I love sometimes!
  • katevarner
    katevarner Posts: 884 Member
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    Frozen veggies if the fresh ones are too expensive. You can even get frozen fruit. Canned tuna is fine if you watch the sodium, and it's not expensive, then get the leanest cuts of meat you can afford if that's possible on "semi-vegetarian." Some of the roasts are not too expensive and will go a long way--I usually buy a bottom round roast most weeks and it lasts more than one meal with little fat and lots of potassium. If you stay away from beef, eggs aren't that expensive unless you get organic (which you should if you can afford it), there are cheap fish for sale at most stores each week, and you can get cottage cheese or yogurt if you eat dairy. And chicken is still pretty cheap. You can eat healthy on $100 a week at least as easily as you can eat unhealthy. Drink water and it will save you a bunch--sodas, teas, juices are expensive and have no real nutritional benefit.
  • katevarner
    katevarner Posts: 884 Member
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    Also, if you buy dried beans instead of canned you can save a bunch, and they aren't hard to cook, just take a little more time for the soaking overnight.
  • Tymeshia
    Tymeshia Posts: 194 Member
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    I'm not sure what area you from, but I shop at Fresh & Easy and Trader Joes.
  • JESSJESJ
    JESSJESJ Posts: 121 Member
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    $100 can definitely feed 2 people for a week. You just need to be flexible in meal planning and will take more work in terms of cooking, but can definitely be down. when I was out of work I tried to keep food down to $50 / week for two.

    1. Look for sale items and coupons on staples.
    2. look for the produce on the rack with the "managers specials" they are usually cheap, and can be used in cooking i.e. bruised apples can be made into applesauce (cut up, rinse and put in a pot on low), bruised peppers canbe used for peppers and onions or fajitas. or you can through that over rice and beans.
    3. rice and beans,
    4. make soup,
    5. yogurt can be found a few containers for a dollar, or buy a big tub and put in individual tupperware.
    6. Roast a chicken, can make chicken sandwiches, and save carcass for soup. you'd get a few meals out of that.
    7. eggs. good protein & cheap.
  • Jkmumma
    Jkmumma Posts: 254
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    Farmer's Markets and off brands, buy in bulk, shot from discount grocers. Sometimes, it's a surprise what amazing things you can find at super low prices.
  • jaimatjak
    jaimatjak Posts: 4 Member
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    This sounds extremely difficult, but doable.
    Make chilli and freeze into personal portions and you can do the same with oatmeal. You can blend up expiring fruit as a healthy topping.
    Check the sale or clearance racks (often hidden at the back of store).
    Freeze all your leftovers, even if it's not much. It comes in handy, when you least expect it.
    Lots of places, Wal-Mart, and other grocers will honor flyers too. I bought chicken for half the price, due to a nice lady sharing her flyer with me at the store. Give that flyer away when you're done with it, for that feel-good feeling.
    Pasta is inexpensive.
    Talk to the manager at the store and explain your situation, he/she may let you buy the food that was damaged (still good, don't worry), that they are just tossing away.
    Freeze bread. Just use a half loaf at a time.
    Junk food/processed foods are expensive.
    Hope this helps.
  • Cyngen
    Cyngen Posts: 557 Member
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    I'll agree with the farmers markets for veggies and fruits. Always get some great deals here.

    Get frozen veggies for those you can't find. Beans and rice and pasta are good for fillers.
  • saraphim41
    saraphim41 Posts: 205 Member
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    Dry beans, black beans and pinto or great northern and lentils
    Collards, kale, spinach
    Ham chunks or ham hocks, for seasoning
    2 lb. bag of corn meal
    2 dozen eggs
    thick sliced bacon (limit 2 slices per serving)
    small box Bisquick
    2 cans evaporated milk
    ground chicken or turkey
    potatoes
    pasta
    canned spaghetti sauce or chopped tomatoes
    onions
    lettuce
    celery
    cucumber (if you like them)
    tuna, canned
    3-5 lb eye round roast (beef)--ask the butcher to slice off 2 steaks and grind the rest for you
    whole grain bread, sliced
    frozen mixed vegetables
    small can kernel corn
    fresh tomatoes



    Soak the dry beans in water for 20-30 min (add baking soda to the water, rinse well, then cook--reduces gassy effect)
    Bisquick makes pancakes, biscuits, etc.
    corn meal is for corn bread--skip if you don't like--make in muffin tins for serving size
    kernel corn to mix with black beans, add chopped tomato, if desired
    one meal with steak, ground beef should give you 2-3 more meals--and no pink slime

    This is what I buy all the time. With additions, since my budget isn't QUITE that strapped.

    Just MHO.
  • karaks
    karaks Posts: 108 Member
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    1. Get coupons out of the Sunday paper. I usually save an average of $40-50 each shopping trip using coupons. You can also go to websites like coupons.com and print out coupons. Just check with your local store to see what their coupon policy is. Mine will double any coupon .50 and under, so a .50 coupon will get me $1 off.

    2. Look for Manager's Specials in meat and produce. My store gives major discounts on items that are expiring that day or the next. I will buy whatever hits me as a good deal and then have it for dinner that night or freeze it and use it later.

    3. Think about crock pot meals. The same ingredients for a dinner for two can be stretched in a crock pot to make a few more meals.for the week.

    4. Use salads as filler. A meal may look kind of small, but add a side salad and it will look a lot better. You can usually get a head of lettuce for around $1-1.50. Don't buy the bagged lettuce and pre-made salads, unless they are on sale or you have a coupon.

    5. Buy rice and beans in bags instead of cans. It'll cut down on sodium and you get a lot more for your money. It does involve a little more preparation sometimes, but it's usually worth it.

    6. Buy store brands instead of name brands. Most stores pay to have food private labeled to their store brand. Most of the time, the ingredients are exactly the same, or extremely close, as what's in the name brands.

    Hope this helps! Good luck!
  • Oh_Em_Jayyy
    Oh_Em_Jayyy Posts: 56 Member
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    Everyone else has already posted my tricks for stretching my dollar at the grocery store. One thing that also really saves is buying whole meats (i.e. bone in, skin on, etc) and doing the butchering yourself. Ground turkey/beef is very versatile and canned chicken is good for quick added protein to spaghetti sauce. My local grocery store, HEB, has whole wheat pastas for about $1 box.
  • caitles14
    caitles14 Posts: 89
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    i have limited money to spend on grocery shopping too, but i always buy fresh fruits & veggies first and use them for the bulk of my meals. and bananas are always super cheap...they're a lifesaver! i also buy frozen veggie burgers and canned soup. my personal downfall is wanting to buy stuff like nuts or trail mix...i love those things, but they are ridiculously expensive so i try not to buy them! not to mention i have a hard time limiting my portions of them!
  • Hearts_2015
    Hearts_2015 Posts: 12,031 Member
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    i need some grocery shopping advice. weve been super low on cash, and the money we do have, we spend in all the wrong places. if you have zero food (very limited condiments) and only $100, how would you spend it? (obviously we are dieting) bad food is always the cheapest food. semi vegetarian, low sugar, low sodium, high potasium diet. $100 has to last at least a week to feed 2 people.

    Personally I don't agree that bad food is the cheapest. Buy in bulk: rice, so many types of beans, Quinoa, oats, wheatberry, farmers markets or on sale frozen veggies (from the States with nothing else added). Purchase eggs on sale, make your own Greek yogurt or regular (search Google, tons of ideas on making your own..pretty much whatever you're looking to make, to save loads of money). Buy in Season!

    Take some beans, Quinoa etc. and sprout them for a variety, oh...the list is endless... Seek and you will find good healthy food out there for pennies! Particularly if you're semi-vegetarian as you shared, it's even easier.

    Healthy food IS cheaper than buying junk, if you make the right choices, the healthy food will keep you satiated far longer and you won't waste money on sugar, preservatives, extra salt, packaging etc.

    All the best!
    Here in Pittsburgh (western PA) we have a lot of local farms. They sell these CSA boxes of produce .... a ton of produce for $25.00. You place an order and then pick up your box at a specific location. The boxes are overwhelming for one or two people so sometimes people share a box. I'm pretty sure you can subscribe to a CSA box/bag anywhere in the US.

    Here is a little blurb I pulled from the web:

    Thinking about signing up for a CSA but want to learn more about the idea before you commit? Read on.

    Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.
    Love, love, LOVE my CSA each week, it's a lifesaver!
    Definitely agree with everything said here. I think you got all the answers you need!

    But gotta say about that CSA...good luck. We did that one summer and our "varied" boxes were always full of eggplant and fruit flies.
    I think you might need to seek out a more legit CSA as I've been using my local CSA and never ever had a problem. Ah and learn to embrace Eggplant, so ways to use it, Eggplant Lasagna, roasted eggplant, salads.. Google for a ton more ways to enjoy it, so healthy for you too!
  • caitles14
    caitles14 Posts: 89
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    oh and another suggestion: get in a routine and know EXACTLY how much of everything u need for a typical week. i'm not very good at this, but my fiance has it down to an exact science for himself haha. that way u dont waste any food. it's kinda monotonous though...
  • jonilynn70
    jonilynn70 Posts: 145 Member
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    www.mygrocerydeals.com - use this website. Choose all the stores within a 100 mile radius of you, then take your list to Walmart grocery store and they will match all the prices. I have been saving $10 - $20 a week with this and not having to shop at particular stores wasting gas. Ground beef for 2.99 instead of 4.68 in one pound packages. I bought several to freeze and some to use during the week. They also had chicken breasts buy one get one free. Who can beat that? You always save on milk - each week someone has it on store and since the regular price at my Walmart yesterday was over $4 a gallon, it paid to take a few minutes to pull the ads together for price matching. I am feeding 3 of us (including a growing teenage boy) for about $80 a week right now average. Some weeks more, some weeks less.
  • missprincessgina
    missprincessgina Posts: 446 Member
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    Here in Pittsburgh (western PA) we have a lot of local farms. They sell these CSA boxes of produce .... a ton of produce for $25.00. You place an order and then pick up your box at a specific location. The boxes are overwhelming for one or two people so sometimes people share a box. I'm pretty sure you can subscribe to a CSA box/bag anywhere in the US.

    Here is a little blurb I pulled from the web:

    Thinking about signing up for a CSA but want to learn more about the idea before you commit? Read on.

    Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.
  • hmstarbuck
    hmstarbuck Posts: 152 Member
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    If you have an Aldi's around you, $100 for 2 people could last you a month. Their produce is super cheap and good. Their yogurts are great and their chicken is always on sale. They have a great variety. I can spend a $100 a month and feed our family of 4, easily. But we eat left overs and I love to try to make everything stretch.

    Soups and casseroles are the best route. MOST things can be frozen in portions and heated just like those expensive, sodium filled meals that people buy
  • hellohappylisa
    hellohappylisa Posts: 141 Member
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    Definitely agree with everything said here. I think you got all the answers you need!

    But gotta say about that CSA...good luck. We did that one summer and our "varied" boxes were always full of eggplant and fruit flies.

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