Low Income and On A Budget... HELP!

bump

I think the best things you can do to keep things low budget are

1. Make your own stuff - processed food and pre packed stuff is almost always more expensive than doing it yourself. Buy a bag of rice instead of the little individual meal mixes. Buy snacks or crackers in a big container and portion them out yourself for the kids instead of buying individual sized packets. etc. The one exception to this is:
2. Frozen veggies. Especially for soups, winter casseroles etc. I am in love with frozen diced onions, mirpoix, cajun mirpoix, etc.. and they can be tossed in a crock pot with beans, soup, a roast or what have you. Kroger sells them for about a dollar.
3. Cheaper cuts of meat. Skin on chicken thighs. Ground beef with actual fat in it. Liver, if you like it. You can make tons of stuff with cheaper cuts, especially if you get to know your crock pot. Watch for sales and buy extra, or buy in the family size and portion out in little freezer bags.
4. In season fruits and veggies are generally cheaper. I often pick my fruits/veggies for the week based on the sales.
5. Dried beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, banana's, etc.. are some cheap staple foods with good nutrition.

Also, as mentioned, breakfast for dinner is awesomly cheap and tasty to boot.

It can be done, although I know boy's eat a ton. Good luck!

Hi,

I know how it is to have a tight budget. Here are my suggestions:

Core bassics:
-Bananas
-Sweet Potatoes
-Lean ground Turkey
-Lettuce ( I mix spring mix and kale)
-Eggs
-Apples
-Oatmeal

Bump for all the awesome ideas!

"frugal" is a great search word for finding lots of inexpensive recipes. Search "frugal recipes" or "frugal food" or even something like "frugal chicken" and you'll find lots of online suggestions.

I wring lots of meals out of a chicken. Always keep the bones and scraps to boil up to make stock. A head of cabbage makes a whole lot of cole slaw and kids actually like cole slaw. Boiled dry beans can be frozen in small amounts to use like canned. Save energy by filling your oven with extra stuff when you cook. For example, while roasting a chicken, wrap beets. sweet potatoes, white potatoes, etc. separately in foil. When you can poke a fork in they they are done. Store in the fridge for up to a week to use on other meals. Tonight we are having a mashed sweet potato that was baked next to a loaf of bread the other day.

You talked about "plain" chicken. No need to have it plain. Spices may be expensive on the grocery shelves but there are ways to accumulate them that are fairly cheap. On my blog here and on my hobby cooking blog, I have some suggestions for accumulating spices, etc., cheaply.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/roundgal/view/cheap-herb-spice-party-plan-552363

http://heidicookssupper.com/blog/2009/03/06/travel-to-exotic-places-like-cincinnati-and-buy-spices/

http://heidicookssupper.com/blog/2009/03/06/squits-and-dollops-of-flavor-or-stocking-your-refrigerator-door/

Brown rice, Dried beans, frozen veg (you get more for your money but is sometimes cheaper than fresh) The discount bin for fruit or veg for that day saves money too. If you discount bin meat remember to use it THAT day or freeze it as soon as you get home. I make my own wheat bread (less salt and no preservatives). I have a family of six so I understand cooking on a budget. Oatmeal (not instant) is a cheap breakfast alternative then you can add what you want in it. I buy olive oil and stuff when it is on sale (usually near holidays) it keeps well same goes for spices and sugars. Bulk items for rice or other grains/dried foods can help get through a tight month. Allrecipes is an amazing place for simple and tasty recipes too.

Good luck!

A quick, easy and cheap meal at my house is French toast and eggs. This is really good if you have some bread that is going stale so you don't waste it. I use unsweetened jam on mine instead of syrup to mind my calories (and actually am starting to prefer it that way). For the toast, I just mix one egg per two pieces of bread (my family of three eats two pieces each, so I use three eggs), some almond milk (any milk with do), nutmeg, and cinnamon. Dip the bread in the egg mixture and cook on the skillet.

You're not buying "bad" things, so pay more attention to how you're cooking them. Oven roasting and grilling are my faves.

bump for great food ideas.

Beans, of course, are a good lean source of protein. My advice is to buy the produce that is in season for healthy eating.