$100 per month budget ideas?

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tzipporah
tzipporah Posts: 42 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all,

So, I'm a college student staying at her university over the summer to work there... I'm keeping myself to a strict budget of $100/month for food. I drink pretty much water only so buying drinks/soda isn't an issue.

Does anyone have any ideas/tips for money saving food ideas? I'm a vegetarian, so that already lessens my budget a little. ANY tips, tricks, recipes are welcome. I totally appreciate it.

Thanks,
T

Replies

  • BrendaLee
    BrendaLee Posts: 4,463 Member
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    Frozen veggies and bulk brown rice. Plan and shop the sales- you can save a lot by stocking up on bread and other basics when there's a good deal. Don't go shopping without a list. :)
  • HealthyChanges2010
    HealthyChanges2010 Posts: 5,831 Member
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    Might check out your local Farmers Markets in the area if you're fortunate enough to have some. We have a number of them in our area. We also have the chance to have a community garden plot for $10 with all the seeds/starter plants and use of tools available. You garden according to your own scedule since you get your own plot. Might be something worth checking into since it can be so much fun, great excercise, be outside, make new friends and best of all try out all sorts of new veggies in your diet, well and of course save big $$. lol

    I found out about it through my local Health Coop. But I know there's info on them online as well.

    Good luck,
    Becca:flowerforyou:
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
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    Dried beans: black, garbanzo, whatever. Despite popular belief, they aren't hard to cook at all, it just takes some advance planning. You can cook a whole heap of them and have lunch for a week for CHEAP.
  • tzipporah
    tzipporah Posts: 42 Member
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    We do have a farmer's market....it starts in mid-June. I can't have a garden, but I do love the Farmer's Market :)
  • nakrya
    nakrya Posts: 191
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    Hi all,

    So, I'm a college student staying at her university over the summer to work there... I'm keeping myself to a strict budget of $100/month for food. I drink pretty much water only so buying drinks/soda isn't an issue.

    Does anyone have any ideas/tips for money saving food ideas? I'm a vegetarian, so that already lessens my budget a little. ANY tips, tricks, recipes are welcome. I totally appreciate it.

    Thanks,
    T

    Stick to easy one pot meals like chilli, soups, etc. and you'll save tons. Also, keep it simple, whole grains, fruits, veggies, protein, dairy and you won't break your budget.
  • saram21
    saram21 Posts: 88
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    Walmart honors other stores sales ads. All you have to do is get all the local areas sales ads (I get them in the mail) and look through them for things you need. To make it easier, go through your list at home, and make a list of all the sales you want to take advantage of, but be sure to categorize them by store so you will know which ad to show the cashier. Then go to couponmom.com and browse and print all the coupons that you will need (totally free.) Then bring your coupons and sales ads to Walmart and get all of your groceries. While shopping be sure to make sure that the sale item that you are purchasing is the exact kind and size specified, otherwise it will not be honored. Some cashiers will need to see the ads so have them ready. Most of the cahiers are familiar with the sales so it isn't a huge issue. It is a little more time consuming when you do it this way but you really can save a lot of money. On my usual trips to the store, I would save about $30 with coupons alone. So it is worth the time.

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