College Student Budget Recipes

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marydhastings
marydhastings Posts: 132 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Okay, so I and probably many people on this site, are in college. Now I know that not every college student is dirt broke, but I know some are (like me..). I know it's hard to eat right on a small budget sometimes, because things can get expensive, especially if you live on your own.

SO, I wanted to create this thread to help everyone including me out!

If you have a recipe, or grocery list that is pocketbook friendly, post them, along with roughly how much you'll be spending! (:

Here's one for an example!

Vanilla Almond Greek Yogurt

What you'll need:
1 large tub plain non fat greek yogurt $5-8
1 tin unsalted whole almonds $ 5
Vanilla extract $ 3
Sweetner (optional) Varies on prices
Total: $23 and makes about 9 servings

Combine 1 cup of greek yogurt, 14 almonds, a dash of vanilla extract and 1 packet of sweetner, for a small light 236 calorie snack (:

Replies

  • cosmic8o8
    cosmic8o8 Posts: 131 Member
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    Egg and Bean Scramble

    4 eggs, whole and scrambled - $0.44
    1 can Van Camp's Pork and Beans - $0.50

    Heat skillet over medium heat. Add beans and heat until it starts to bubble and steam. Pour in eggs and scrambled until cooked. Makes two servings. 333 cals per serving, very filling for a whopping $0.47 per serving.
  • marydhastings
    marydhastings Posts: 132 Member
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    Nice (:
  • marydhastings
    marydhastings Posts: 132 Member
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    Black Bean Burrito
    1 whole wheat flour tortilla $4
    1/2 cup black beans $2
    2tbs salsa (homemade or store bought) varies
    Thin sliced cheddar $3
    1 cup spinach $ 4
    Price: $1.62 per burrito

    Brown tortilla in a pan, add spinach, beans, salsa, and cheese. Roll up and enjoy! *WARNING* it's a little messy (:
  • Cp731
    Cp731 Posts: 3,195 Member
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    ramen noodles
  • marydhastings
    marydhastings Posts: 132 Member
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    LOL. but ramen isn't exactly "heatlhy"
  • creatureofthewind
    creatureofthewind Posts: 34
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    I make french toast but use honey instead. If my eggs are getting near the due date, I hard boil them and make them into salads or sandwiches. I hear a lot of people are swapping mayo for avacoda. The thing I am trying to do to make ends meet is to learn how to freee fruits, meats, and veggies. Especially when they go on sale. I am going to look into making homemade granola bars.
  • LonLB
    LonLB Posts: 1,126 Member
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    Protein-eggs and chicken. Both are CHEAP.

    Watch and only buy pork when on sale. Can be CHEAP.

    Frozen vegetables....CHEAP.

    Fish-Pollack when on sale is usually cheap, but otherwise fish is going to be out of your/my price range.

    Most of all ONLY buy things that are on sale. Do this instead of buying what pops in your head and you can save huge. I may be older but am in the same boat. School full time, and broke as ****
  • JacksMom12
    JacksMom12 Posts: 1,044 Member
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    Rice and beans

    Huge pot of chili (can be frozen) I use lean ground beef, canned tomato sauce, rotel, kidney beans, black beans, spices etc. and make with crock pot.

    I buy "blue-tag" meat. Reduced price because it is about to expire. I use it the day I buy it.

    Eggs, eggs, and more eggs. (Egg salad, frittatas, scrambled with veggies)

    Seasonal fruits and veggies. Canned/frozen too.

    Oatmeal

    Canned chicken breast with bowtie pasta, chopped celery, light mayo salt and pepper
  • bad_hair_bear
    bad_hair_bear Posts: 56
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    Eggs - cheap, full of protein and really versatile.

    Chicken tends to be rather cheap too. Also look at cheaper cuts of meat - they usually take longer to cook (maybe invest in a slow cooker?), but are still tasty and can be healthy.

    I can't speak for the US, but in the UK at the end of the day supermarkets tend to reduce fresh meat prices if they're due to go out of date on that day - sometimes pretty heavily. If you have access to a freezer, these can be great deals. Buy the meat when it's reduced, freeze it and then defrost it as and when you need it.

    Bulk out your recipes. Meat tends to be the most expensive ingredient in any recipe, but if you can bulk out your recipes using cheaper ingredients like beans, veggies, pearl barley, quinoa etc., the meat will stretch much further and the meals will be healthy and filling.
  • kaylorraine44
    kaylorraine44 Posts: 135 Member
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    Small Spaghetti Squash - $2
    Marinara Sauce - $2
    Cook the spaghetti squash and eat it like real spaghetti - so good!

    Another:
    Butternut Squash Fries
    Medium Butternut Squash - $2.50
    Cut them up into wedges and bake them. Really yummy and fills you up.
  • marydhastings
    marydhastings Posts: 132 Member
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    I like squash :3
  • EpicPickle
    EpicPickle Posts: 35
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    If you buy chicken with the skin on it then take it off yourself, you can save about 50% off buying the already deboned and skinned chicken cuts.
  • salemnye
    salemnye Posts: 305 Member
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    Cheap food. I'm a pro at finding those ;)

    Chicken: most grocery stores will have sales a couple times a month where it's 99cents or lower a pound. That's when I stock up. They are usually chicken thighs or chicken quarters, either way it's still a good deal.

    My cheap dinner tonight:
    1 chicken quarter (just get rid of the skin and chop the meat off the bones)
    1 cup un cooked white rice = 3 cups cooked
    1 tin of beans
    2 oz servings from a cheese block

    I'm making a chicken rice bake :) That meal probably costs $3 and for sure over 4 servings :). Yes white rice isn't the healthiest but it's budget friendly :)
  • HollisGrant
    HollisGrant Posts: 2,022 Member
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    Lentils with butternut squash

    Put 1 cup dried lentils in a pot
    Chop a butternut squash into large pieces
    Put the squash in with the beans (you will have more squash than you need, so save some for another time)
    Fill the pot with water so it covers everything
    Bring to a boil, the lower the heat, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes, more or less, until the beans are done

    Serve with brown rice and steamed kale. You can put the kale on top of the squash and lentils for about 1 minute or steam separately.

    Season everything with a spoon or two of Tamari or shoyu (soy sauces) or a spoon of dry roasted sesame seeds (I toast them myself in a saucepan).

    Lentils are high in protein. The protein in one cup of lentils (18) equals the protein in 3 eggs (6 per egg).

    Cost: about $1.35 for a bag of lentils that will make several meals. Brown rice: cost varies, anywhere from $2.00 to $5.00 for a bag that will provide many meals. Squash: about $2.00. Kale: $1.00, more or less.

    I don't know the cost of the Tamari, shoyu, and sesame seeds, but it isn't that much. Buy sesame seeds in a large bag, not in the spice area of the grocery store. This seasoning is optional. You can just use sea salt or regular salt instead.
  • marydhastings
    marydhastings Posts: 132 Member
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    I like these ideas (:
  • laurenk1212
    laurenk1212 Posts: 1
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    Here's a link to an awesome website! She has tons of cheap meal recipes. I haven't made any of her stuff yet, but it looks good to me!

    http://www.5dollardinners.com/recipes/recipe-index/
  • ygglove
    ygglove Posts: 102 Member
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    I'm over estimating:

    2.5 Dozen Eggs - 5.00
    1 loaf of bread- 3.00
    1 Bottle of Mustard- 1.00 (80 cents but rounding up)
    1 Jar of Pickles- 3.00 (depending on the kind you like)
    5 cans of tuna- 3.00 (@ 60 cents a can, unless you want name brand then you can buy the 4 pack for under 5.00)
    Oranges-5.00
    Box of Triscuits- 4.00
    1 jar of peanut butter- 4.00
    1 jar of preserves or jam- 3.00

    Boil the 2 1/2 dozen eggs and this is what you get for a 5 day week:

    x5: Breakfast-
    2 hardboiled eggs
    1-2 pieces of toast (even if you do just 1 piece, cut it in half and put peanut butter on one and preserves on the other)
    1 orange cut up

    x5 Lunch:
    Tuna w/ mustard and pickle
    1 hard boiled egg you can put on the side or in the tuna (I hate eggs in tuna, so I put mine on the side)
    1 serving of Triscuits
    1 orange


    It adds up to a little over 2.00 a meal, with over estimating. Since we live in different areas, I tried to be fair ;p


    ***Note*** yes, you do have extra left over, so you're not actually having to buy this EVERY time.
  • marydhastings
    marydhastings Posts: 132 Member
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    This is awesome thanks for sharing :)
  • BexyGotEaten
    BexyGotEaten Posts: 6
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    I like this topic :)
    Does anyone from the UK have any suggestions? and if so which shops 'cause I know they all differ on prices.

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