Eating healthy on a budget

We are a family of 4 and spend almost 600.00 a month and still run out of food and have to eat out. I'd say (and its sad to acknowledge it) what you're spending now is probably normal. We do have a little more expense because I buy the "dirty dozen" veggies organic, and i buy organic milk and lunch meat since the kids consume so much. I'm not willing to give that up either.

I have several friends who "coupon" and they save a lot of money, but I've found that it takes so much time to organize that correctly, and you most likely will have to go to several different stores for all the bargins. :-/

I wish I had better advice for you, but I, myself have tried to find ways of cutting back and I haven't figured it out yet with a husband and 6 year old that take their lunches everyday, and trying to eat dinners through the week at home.

Foods in their natural state are going to be cheaper. Anytime you get something pre-cooked or pre-sliced your going to pay a lot more.

Frozen veggies are a good buy, and they won't go bad.

For lean meats: chicken (any) canned tuna or salmon, ground turkey

Oats, beans, lentils, potatoes

Fruits are harder - bananas and bagged apples are the cheapest. Some canned fruit is healthy, look for fruit packed in juice.

Peanut butter

Whole grain bread doesn't have to be pricey. See if there is a store brand available.

Do you have an Aldi near you. Lots of produce is cheap there.

I am a pretty frugal shopper. Here are some quick tips:

1) Plan your meals. This way, you can make a big batch of two or three (cheap) foods and eat on them all week.
2) Eat fruits and veggies that are in season.
3) Know when something is a good price and stock up on it. I use coupons and wait for a sale and then stock up on essentials like canned beans, canned tomatoes, oatmeal, cereal, pasta, pasta sauce, etc. I will buy and freeze chicken when it's a great price.
4) Buy frozen fruits, veggies, seafood, etc. It's often cheaper than fresh and just as healthy.
5) Get to know the sales at your stores. Get the sales flier every week and keep up with what a good price is on the stuff you buy. Most things will go on sale every 4-5 weeks. There are many websites that give great information about sales and coupons at specific stores. Totallytarget.com is one great example.

Use those five tips together. So, stock up on essentials at your store when they are on sale. Once a week, take stock of what you have and make a meal plan. You might have a good amount of rice, chicken, canned tuna, and cheese. Maybe broccoli, sweet potatoes, and green beans were in season and cheep that week. With a little creativity, you can make several meals out of that (stuffed sweet potatoes, cheesy tuna broccoli casserole, chicken with rice and green beans, etc.)

Do you have any bulk buying stores like Sam's Club, Costco's, or BJ's? They usually have a meat section and can run specials as well. Chicken breast bought in bulk and then frozen can be a way to save on the meats. Fruits and veggies can be found in bulk and frozen there too.

Then all the other ideas that were mentioned above. Sadly, my husband and I spend about $600/month also at the grocery store for just the two of us (it doesn't pay for us to get the bulk buying stores for just us two).

I use Costco and local farmers/fish markets and herd shares for organic meat. I also grow my own garden of herbs, tomatoes and peppers all of which are fairly easy to grow (I'm no green thumb). I'm not sure what you have near you but if you start looking into local farms and co-ops you might find some great deals.

I have been trying this for months.. and I just can't seem to keep it low. Although I do shop sales first and try to go without things that are not on sale. But i end up at the store any way later in the week to get it. I do have a Sams membership, and the chicken there is cheap. ($1.88 lb) of course it's probably the worst chicken you can get, but until I get a significant increase in salary or marry rich it is what it is. lol. I only shop for 2 and i'm easily over 400 per month. I don't buy junk. I buy fruits veggies and lean meats. I very rarely eat steak or pork and I don't eat a lot of starches. I don't buy pastries or cookies or chips or soda. I wish I had help for you, but aside from being really careful with portions and eating leftovers it's a tough endeavor.

I coupon shop at Kroger and Meijer. I've found that with meal planning, sale shopping, and couponing I have reduced my grocery budget.

Try the Kroger digital coupons and coupons.com for printable coupons if you don't have a lot of spare time. If you have more time to dedicate to it, The Krazy Coupon lady site has great information and tips.

But the trick to making this work is to buy things when they are on sale with the coupons (especially your non food items). That will free up your budget to buy the fresh items that rarely go on sale.

Best of luck!

I coupon shop at Kroger and Meijer. I've found that with meal planning, sale shopping, and couponing I have reduced my grocery budget.

Try the Kroger digital coupons and coupons.com for printable coupons if you don't have a lot of spare time. If you have more time to dedicate to it, The Krazy Coupon lady site has great information and tips.

But the trick to making this work is to buy things when they are on sale with the coupons (especially your non food items). That will free up your budget to buy the fresh items that rarely go on sale.

Best of luck!

I use manufact and online Kroger coupons and will stock up on cans of simple truth organic veggies/beans when they are 10 for 10--and usually buy the items on sale as long as it's made with decent ingrediants.
My problem is that we HAVE to have the essentials on hand at all times and that alone takes up about $150.00 a week--so I don't feel that I have the extra $$ to buy 2 cases of water for .50 off because it's not using money wisely--thats another 7.00 above what i have already spent.
If i only bought the items i had coupons for, my pantry would only be filled with crackers, cookies, chips, instant potatoes, brown sugar, sweet and low, monster energy drinks and gatorade and my fridge would be packed with butter, breakfast sandwiches, cheese and condiments. I dont know about you, but there's nothing "healthy" about that. I understand stocking up, but most of the time, coupons only help me about 1/4 of the time.

We live in southern California and are a family of 6; Me, Derrick and our kiddos who are 10, 7, 4 & 1.

We budget. A lot. I spend less than $125 a week on groceries.

Feel free to add me, check out my Food Diary and check out my Instagram; (@Mermadeintheshade) where I post every meal I eat and a recipe link.

Two suggestions: Get a membership at Costco/Sam's Club, and plant your own veggies. Yes, the second one requires a lot of prep and work, but with a good yield, you can fill your freezer with veggies to last all winter.

I'm from the Netherlands so prices are different here, but I spend €200,- ($260) a month for 2 persons. But my strategy is the same: dried beans instead of canned (to make your own humus!), no 'pastasauce' but canned tomatoes (makes a better sauce with less sodium and sugar), less meat (and when we eat meat, we eat relatively small portions). Making multiple batches, freeze them for later. No soda. Lots of all purpose flour to make muffins and cakes (which I freeze as well) and pizza's. You can make pizza out of French baguettes! Coffee I do buy, that's expensive here. Almost no alcoholic beverages.

Try following some foodblogs that focus on cooking on a budget. www.budgetbytes.com, http://goodcheapeats.com/, http://www.poorgirleatswell.com/ Maybe you can get some inspiration there? I alway buy seasonal, and then Google for recipes that sound tasty and cheap. Sometimes it works to just leave out the expensive stuff