Very very cheap healthy meal ideas

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countessvonfangbang
countessvonfangbang Posts: 22 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have about $50 to last me until the 25th. I'm used to being broke and I've found a decent menu for myself but I'm getting tired of it, so I need some new ideas.

Right now I'm eating oatmeal and a banana for breakfast, hard boiled eggs for snacks, black bean burgers for lunch (homemade: 2 cans of beans, onion, egg and bread crumbs about $5 per batch) and tuna noodle (2 cans tuna, cream of mushroom, frozen broccoli, can of peas, can of mushrooms and about a half cup of noodles about $7 per batch). The tuna noodle isn't that healthy but I don't use a lot of noodles, I use low sodium cream of mushroom and at least 3/4 of it are veggies.

Other than bananas and onions I don't have much money for fresh fruit and veggies so almost all of my veggies come in my casserole (which I am willing to play around with).

The only thing is I don't eat any meat except for fish and I hate potatoes and apples.
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Replies

  • holothuroidea
    holothuroidea Posts: 772 Member
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    Frozen veggies are your friend. I've been known to cook an eat an entire 2lb bag of frozen spinach by myself. >.<

    Rice and beans, rice and beans. Rice and beans! More beans than rice, for the protein. Season with soy sauce and a little oil.

    Can you grow some veggies? Some things do really well even in containers on a balcony. Lettuces, kale and strawberries are good things to plant this time of year.

    I have no advice on mixing things up or recipes or whatnot. I'm the worst at that stuff. I'm a little bit of a food minimalist, I like things simple and repetitive. (Rice and beans!)
  • Autazell
    Autazell Posts: 54 Member
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    You could look for some Shirataki noodles? They are about $1.50 at my local grocery, very versatile and quite filling.
  • Dee_84
    Dee_84 Posts: 431 Member
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    How about a stir-fry for dinner?
    Brown rice (super cheap!) with different veggies (great and affordable: cabbage, carrots, broccoli, mushrooms, onions), scramble in some eggs for protein, season with stir fry sauce, soy sauce, some peanut butter, hot sauce, whatever you fancy.
    You could also use tofu instead of the eggs.

    Or a vegetarian chili, canned beans, tomatoes, corn, some spices. Top with sour cream or greek yogurt, shredded cheese. Can also be served over rice or with cornbread (cornbread mix can be bought for under 1$).
  • countessvonfangbang
    countessvonfangbang Posts: 22 Member
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    Unfortunately I'm moving out of state in about a month so growing anything myself is out.

    I do really really like rice and beans, same with stir fries. I just need to learn how to cook rice lol I have this crazy mental block with it where no matter how hard I try it always ends up crunchy or overcooked lol.

    I'll work on that and try some stir fries and rice and bean dishes. Especially spanish rice and beans that is one of my absolute favorite foods from Mexican restaurants.
  • redraidergirl2009
    redraidergirl2009 Posts: 2,560 Member
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    my local dollar store has frozen veggies...
  • sunshyncatra
    sunshyncatra Posts: 598 Member
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    Hummus!
    Roasted cabbage/brussel sprouts/cauliflower
    Salad
    Low-fat yogurt
    Cottage cheese
  • QBSue
    QBSue Posts: 2 Member
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    invest in a rice cooker, you can buy some pretty cheap ones at crazy clarks or similar discount places. even perhaps put one on layby and pay it off over a couple of paydays, perfect rice every time then. i know as i cant cook rice either. go to your public library and check out the cookbooks, sometimes you can get some cheap and versatile recipes from them. just take a pad and pen and write it out that way you dont have to pay for the printout from a computer.
  • paintlisapurple
    paintlisapurple Posts: 982 Member
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    Unfortunately I'm moving out of state in about a month so growing anything myself is out.

    I do really really like rice and beans, same with stir fries. I just need to learn how to cook rice lol I have this crazy mental block with it where no matter how hard I try it always ends up crunchy or overcooked lol.

    I'll work on that and try some stir fries and rice and bean dishes. Especially spanish rice and beans that is one of my absolute favorite foods from Mexican restaurants.

    Dang! I forget where I learned this, but here is a no fail way to cook rice. (The cheap rice in bags, not the preseasoned too expensive probably over processed stuff)
    Add as much rice to the pot as you want to cook (I do a whole small bag as I have to feed a crew every night)
    Rinse in warm water
    Put your pointer finger touching the top of the rice in the pot (Position so it looks as if you are just pointing at the rice straight up and down)
    Add only enough water to reach your first knuckle (the one directly above your fingernail, below the middle knuckle)
    Put cover on pot and bring to a boil
    Reduce heat and simmer until all of the liquid is gone (I usually stir once or twice to see how things are developing and check the water level)
    Once the water is gone, POOF Perfectly cooked rice every time.
    I've tried this with both white rice (which I've since given up) and brown rice (thankfully my family tolerates brown rice!)

    Take care and happy cooking! :flowerforyou:
  • holothuroidea
    holothuroidea Posts: 772 Member
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    Unfortunately I'm moving out of state in about a month so growing anything myself is out.

    I do really really like rice and beans, same with stir fries. I just need to learn how to cook rice lol I have this crazy mental block with it where no matter how hard I try it always ends up crunchy or overcooked lol.

    I'll work on that and try some stir fries and rice and bean dishes. Especially spanish rice and beans that is one of my absolute favorite foods from Mexican restaurants.

    If you're just going to stir the rice in with beans and stuff, you can take the easy way out and cook it in an excess amount of water and drain it when it's done.

    If you want to really learn how to cook rice, though, here is where I learned how to cook rice on the stovetop: http://justhungry.com/2003/11/japanese_basics_1.html

    It takes practice, because the amount of water and cooking times vary not only on the type of rice, but the air temperature and humidity, the age of the rice, etc. You have to play around with it until you find what works for you. Practice, practice, practice. :)
  • Amas77
    Amas77 Posts: 118 Member
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    Lentils are super cheap. Couscous goes a long way, too and it's a no brainer in terms of cooking (just soak it in hot water for a few minutes). You can get a big bag and just cook 1/3 of a cup at a time and add it to some lentils that you cook in advance. Very filling. If you want to get fancy, add cumin and sautee some onion to mix in. It's nice with a yogurt cucumber sauce on the side.
  • Cherp18
    Cherp18 Posts: 224 Member
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    Lentils are super cheap. Couscous goes a long way, too and it's a no brainer in terms of cooking (just soak it in hot water for a few minutes). You can get a big bag and just cook 1/3 of a cup at a time and add it to some lentils that you cook in advance. Very filling. If you want to get fancy, add cumin and sautee some onion to mix in. It's nice with a yogurt cucumber sauce on the side.

    Yum! That sounds great! I'm going to have that one night :) Thanks!
  • vlmcwilliams
    vlmcwilliams Posts: 46 Member
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    Chickpea curry can be really inexpensive and it makes a heap - just need a tin of chickpeas, a tin of tomatoes (whole peeled or diced), the recipe calls for a couple of potatoes but I make mine with 1 sweet potato and some pumpkin (so much yummier), a couple diced onions, a couple cloves of garlic (crushed) a bit of oil and the spices. You can either just use curry powder (1-2 tablespoons) or mix together the spices: I personally like chilli, cumin, paprika, fenugreek and tumeric (about 1 teaspoon of each). Costs around $7-8 (NZ$) and makes around 4-5 servings
  • countessvonfangbang
    countessvonfangbang Posts: 22 Member
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    Chickpea curry can be really inexpensive and it makes a heap - just need a tin of chickpeas, a tin of tomatoes (whole peeled or diced), the recipe calls for a couple of potatoes but I make mine with 1 sweet potato and some pumpkin (so much yummier), a couple diced onions, a couple cloves of garlic (crushed) a bit of oil and the spices. You can either just use curry powder (1-2 tablespoons) or mix together the spices: I personally like chilli, cumin, paprika, fenugreek and tumeric (about 1 teaspoon of each). Costs around $7-8 (NZ$) and makes around 4-5 servings

    That sounds awesome. I love chickpeas.
  • herblackwings39
    herblackwings39 Posts: 3,930 Member
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    Unfortunately I'm moving out of state in about a month so growing anything myself is out.

    I do really really like rice and beans, same with stir fries. I just need to learn how to cook rice lol I have this crazy mental block with it where no matter how hard I try it always ends up crunchy or overcooked lol.

    I'll work on that and try some stir fries and rice and bean dishes. Especially spanish rice and beans that is one of my absolute favorite foods from Mexican restaurants.

    If you have issues with cooking rice try making it like you would pasta. Boil your water, dump in your rice and cook it the recommended cooking time then drain. No risk of scorching it.
  • SteelySunshine
    SteelySunshine Posts: 1,092 Member
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    I love black beans and shells it's pretty easy too.

    You can do this with dried black beans or canned, but canned are way expensive.

    So, make a pot of black beans you will have more than the cup and a half this recipe calls for.


    Black Beans and Shells

    1 1/2 cup prepared black beans

    2 tomatoes or can of diced tomato if you are making the tomato from scratch dice it and saute it in a little oil you can also saute an onion first and then add the tomato after the onion is clear Add a little vegetable broth too if you are doing this homemade

    1 cup of cooked shells

    1 teaspoon onion powder

    1 teaspoon garlic

    add some cumin, chili powder, or as much cayenne as you can tolerate or not

    salt to taste

    Serves one or two depending on your macros and if you are going to have a salad or some other sides.

    If I am in a lazy mood most my ingredients are canned. But, it tastes really good either way. Oh and if you are using canned black beans drain and rinse cuz they are pretty high in sodium. If you use canned tomatoes you will be likely be over on your sodium intake for the day, but this doesn't turn out well with drained canned tomatoes, so if you absolutely have to avoid sodium fresh tomatoes is a much better choice.
  • ParkerH47
    ParkerH47 Posts: 463 Member
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    soup!!!! soup is the best because you can use water a bunch of veggies and beans and puree it up with spices and salt and pepper and you are good for a huge batch of soup that lasts all week. if you use dried beans and soak them first it is much cheaper

    http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=43963 - just one example the internet is your friend you can find something to suit your tastes and change the recipes if you want fiddle around with it
  • JosieRawr
    JosieRawr Posts: 788 Member
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    bump for ideas
  • DawnEH612
    DawnEH612 Posts: 574 Member
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    Buy seasonal veggies.. Meaning whats in season as they are always less expensive. Try to find a local produce place, i just went to a local produce place and bought 5 pounds of bananas for $2!!! Try experimenting with different veggies. I fond a n favorite in swiss green or red chard. Cabbage is always cheap and one head can be cut in quarters for 4 nights. You can use the leaves to make wraps with green peppers, onions, mushrooms, edamame, brown rice (which by the way is way much cheaper from an indian, mexican or asian grocer). Also, Dole sells frozen fruits in large bags.. I love the frozen mango which is about $7.50 for a 4 pound bag but that is 13 servings. You can even split up those servings more.. Make oatmeal pancakes buy using one egg, one serving oatmeal, sweetener (if you choose) or cinnamon and adding fruit. Cook like a pancake. You can top ith peanut butter or fresh /frozen fruit.
  • ParkerH47
    ParkerH47 Posts: 463 Member
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    also - a link to cook perfect rice :)

    http://summertomato.com/simple-gourmet-rice-for-dummies/
  • sunshyncatra
    sunshyncatra Posts: 598 Member
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    I didn't like cabbage, but I tried this on St. Patrick's day, and it is amazing: http://www.marthastewart.com/315062/roasted-cabbage-wedges

    You can do the same thing with cauliflower. Roasting is delicious, cheap, and easy. I mostly do brussel sprouts with sweet potato wedges. If you don't have spices, a little olive oil and black pepper with a sprinkle of salt are all you really need to make the flavor come to life.

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