How to clean up my diet on a budget?

I am interested in ideas as well! Good luck

I buy all of my groceries at Wal-Mart. I have recently switched my regular stuff to whole wheat, low fat, sugar free, etc. A box of whole wheat pasta is $1.00 and a jar of Great Value sauce is $1.50ish; a bag of salad is only a couple of dollars; and that makes a meal for my family. Tuna packed in water is cheap and makes great sandwiches with fat free Miracle Whip and whole wheat bread. Chicken breasts in light Italian dressing cooked on low in the crock pot for 8 hours makes a great cheap easy dinner; serve with a salad.

Is there a fruit/veg/meat market nearby you live? I used to buy fruits/veg/meat from Safeway and Coles until I discovered a market 10 mins away from me and it cut my grocery by about 150 a month. Of course I still need to get things like milk, flour and bread from Safeway but it's SO much cheaper to get the other things from the market. It also encourages you to cook more at home!

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I need some ideas too, haha

Beans and other legumes are wonderful. Buy them dry and just soak them...they are cheap and filling, full of nutrients, and protein.
Frozen veggies as long as there is no sauce are wonderful and easy to steam. If you can make your own breads, do so...it's much cheaper and you'll know exactly what goes into them. I try to make from scratch as often as possible. I am also on a budget and it can be difficult at times. It's all a matter of scanning ads and coupons and budgeting.

I like Walmart's yogurt selection and prices..and yogurt is always good to have on hand and even makes a pretty take-along snack. I have been eating a lot of celery lately - 99 cents at Aldi's. I also buy their 3-pack of red, orange and yellow peppers - I can't remember how much they are, but I really like them cut up as a "side" with sandwiches, instead of the dreaded chips.

Walmart's flat breads or english muffins (various brands) are great to have on hand, and I use 'em for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks, with different toppings (turkey, pepper jack cheese, light cream cheese and sugar free preserves, light velveeta or american cheese or mozzarella with pizza sauce and some italian seasoning, etc, etc)

Cereal is good, and you can get store brands cheap, if you like 'em. Some are pretty good.

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Buy eggs in bulk (I get mine at Costco - 5 dozen at a time!) and hard-boil a whole bunch (I use my veggie steamer and they come out perfectly every time!). Then peel them and put them into ziploc bags, 4 or 5 in each. I have at least 4 per day - 3 whites and 1 whole egg. Great source of protein and good energy. I pair this with some mini-cucumbers or cut up veggies. This is generally what I have for my morning snack, and it keeps me going until lunch. I know, not a lunch recipe, but something to take with you to eat during the day

My Turkey Tacos ( 2 tacos 596 calories ) you could skip the cheese and save 200 calories.
Jennie-O - Ground Turkey 90/10, 4 oz. (112g) 160 Cals
Taco Bell - Taco Seasoning Mix - Home Originals, 1 serving (6 g) 20 cals
Generic - Romaine Lettuce - 1 Cup Shredded, 1 cup shredded 8 cals
La Banderita - Fat Free Soft Taco, 2 Tortilla 178 cals
Chi-Chi's - Salsa - Medium Original Recipe, 6 Tbsp (30g) 30 cals
Sargento Artisan Blends - Authentic Mexican Cheese, 1/2 cup (28g) 200 cals

Dessert Schwans Lite Ice Cream Sandwich 100 calories

Here's one idea: buy a bag of coleslaw mix. It's cheap, fresh, and lasts longer than salad in the fridge. Use as a salad with calorie-wise coleslaw dressing, a few roasted almonds and maybe a few raisins or dried cranberries. Even cut up an apple in there. Use it as an ingredient in stove-top items ... add a handful to a stir fry or throw it into homemade soups or even an omelet.

Speaking of homemade soups (and stews), these are awesome and very budget friendly. Do a big batch on the weekend or in a crock-pot work before work one morning and enjoy leftovers that take only a couple of minutes to reheat. There are lots of great recipes online that are pretty healthy. Try a recipe with dried beans (or even canned ones) ... good for protein and fiber, satisfying, and very economical.

Good luck!

I have been buying dark chocolate for a snack and also pumpkin and sunflower seeds. You can get a big bag for cheap and it's a snack that really lasts a long time. I also found a recipe on-line for homemade graham crackers and once you have the ingredients, you can make as many as you want for really cheap. I also make homemade spaghetti sauce which is a huge value. I make a huge pot for only a couple dollars and freeze it and that will last months!

I love Aldi too! I just bought several boxes of whole wheat pastas--and they were only 89c per box! Also, our Aldi has great produce... avocados were on sale for 25c each last week and a bag of baby carrots was just 99c. If you don't have access to an Aldi, you can find lots of good things for cheap at Walmart.

Here are a few shopping list ideas:
- Lowfat cottage cheese (lots of protein, low calories)
- Grape or cherry tomatoes
- Oatmeal (plain is best for you... add a little honey if you need the sweetness)
- Spinach
- Sweet potatoes (very filling)
- Salmon (they have this in the frozen section... it's usually less than $5/bag and you can get several meals out of it. Easiest way to prep it: thaw one fillet, sprinkle dill, Kosher salt, and lemon pepper on it, and broil for 5-10 mins)
- Whole grain/whole wheat pastas and bread
- Whatever fresh fruits and veggies look good to you
- Dark chocolate (60% and higher is best)
- Basically, as my dad says... try to eat things as close to how God made it as you can (i.e. a fresh apple is so much better for you than a cup of jarred, sweetened, preservatives-added apple sauce)

Taco Soup:
1 can black beans
1 can light red kidney beans
1 can dark red kidney beans
1 can no salt added corn
2 cans diced, no salt added tomatoes (or sub 1 can of diced for 1 can of Rotel-style tomatoes)
1 lb of ground (and browned) turkey or beef (optional--it tastes great without and is still loaded with protein)
1/2 packet of Taco or Fajita Seasoning (or whatever Mexican/Taco-inspired seasonings you like. Tabasco is good, too!)

You can heat this all up quick in a sauce pan or you can let it simmer in a crockpot for several hours until it's hot.

I see lots of people posting about Aldi, as far as I know, there is no Aldi in America (definitley not in Canada). this is unfortunate because I LOVE Aldi, the frozen fish and inexpensive produce was amazing while I was living in Switzerland (especially if we bought it all in Germany).

So, in North America. I shop at the lowest-price grocery store. The produce doesn't all LOOK as good as the expensive stores, but it's still good and does the job! I buy a lot of frozen fruit, this is how I get most of my fruit. A massive bag of frozen berries if $5.00, when $5.00 only gets you a tiny little package of fresh blueberries. I also have found out what veggies are the cheapest, and I tend to stick to those: squashes (my favourite), sweet potatoes, carrots (don't waste your money on baby carrots, last week I got a 3pound bag of fresh carrots for a dollar! I can peel and slice them myself if they only cost a dollar). I buy the generic brand breads and paw attention to sales as well. That being said, don't waste gas or bus fare as well as your time roaming around looking for the right deal, stick to what's close.

Canned beans and dried lentils are also a big favourite, I usually make a salad for lunch using one of those two as the main ingredient.

Frozen or canned fish is great as well, just watch the sodium

if you have a horrible sweet tooth, learn to make smoothies. You can buy frozen fruit, fresh fruit or even the quick sale fruit. Toss it into a blender. Add a banana and it makes a great breakfast. I've read that when you crave sweets it's your body's way of trying to get the nutrients found in fruit so if you get enough fruit it helps kill that sweet craving.