Healthy foods on a very strict budget?

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xMiracat
xMiracat Posts: 67 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I was wondering if anyone can give me ideas on what to eat on a very small budget I'm talking like 30$-40$ a week and if I'm lucky maybe 60$ a week. I work a part time job and I'm a college student and on top of all that I have to pay bills so you can see why I have a small budget for food.

Long story short I noticed I been gaining a lot of weight because I try to just go for the cheap frozen foods or fast foods and don't work out. But I can't do that anymore.

It would also help if any of you have a website that posts healthy recipes for a good price.

Please keep in mind I am only counting calories because I will be trying my best to work out as much as I can too. So I am only counting how much calories I eat and burn.

Thank you!

Replies

  • echmainfit619
    echmainfit619 Posts: 333 Member
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    Cheap frozen foods?

    At my grocery store the prepared, frozen stuff is always much more expensive than cooking something yourself with basic ingredients.
  • Queenmunchy
    Queenmunchy Posts: 3,380 Member
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    Check out www.budgetbytes.com
  • Four_Leaf_Clover
    Four_Leaf_Clover Posts: 332 Member
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    Dry beans and legumes
    Canned tuna and salmon
    Chicken (watch for sales)
    Cottage cheese
    Yogurt (larger container is cheaper per serving)
    Eggs
    Brown rice
    Oats
    Potatoes
    Dried pasta (whole wheat)
    Frozen vegetables
    Canned veggies (like tomatoes)
    In season produce (apples, pears, etc.)
    Popcorn kernels for a snack
    Peanut butter


  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    http://umaine.edu/publications/4331e/
    https://snap.nal.usda.gov/resource-library/handouts-and-web-sites/meal-planning-shopping-and-budgeting
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
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    Frozen vegetables should be your staple. Eggs, canned tuna, canned beans and cottage cheese are great protein sources. Oats, brown rice or whole wheat pasta are all relatively inexpensive starches. These are inexpensive and relatively easy to throw together to make healthy meals.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
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    Lizzy622 wrote: »
    Frozen vegetables should be your staple. Eggs, canned tuna, canned beans and cottage cheese are great protein sources. Oats, brown rice or whole wheat pasta are all relatively inexpensive starches. These are inexpensive and relatively easy to throw together to make healthy meals.

    All of this. Dried beans are even cheaper than canned, though they take longer to cook.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,645 Member
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    Dried beans or rice (or similar long-cooking inexpensive grains): Periodically cook a huge batch, portion them out (muffin pan from Goodwill store works great), freeze, then store frozen in a plastic bag to reheat when needed. Easy to find the time if you do it while home studying.

    Also, if you like & will use fresh veg, try some of the oddball ones that are typically cheap (and keep well), and see if you like them: Winter squash, onions, turnips, parsnips, carrots, beets, etc. Good roasted, and can also be frozen cooked.
  • flaminica
    flaminica Posts: 304 Member
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    Lots of meals here at a dollar a plate or less.
  • gaelicstorm26
    gaelicstorm26 Posts: 589 Member
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    This is very do-able. I spend less than $40/person weekly for my family. One of the keys is to not buy tiny portions. Just batch cook and freeze. You will save money this way.
  • zikarra
    zikarra Posts: 16 Member
    edited September 2015
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    We spend just under 100$ for two people and we eat a lot,I buy expensive food (organic,vegetarian burgers etc) so 40-50 $ is a lot for food - my friends have 20-30$ a week :)

    My ingredients for most meals:
    Wholemeal rice,noodles & bread
    Potatoes,Sweet Potatoes
    Carrots,onions,parsley,basil,garlic
    Tomato Pureé or readymade basil+tomato sauce
    Cheese
    Teriyaki sauce,Cornstarch
    Brokkoli
    Kidney Beans,Chickpeas,Lentils
    Eggs,Milk,Greek yoghurt,Low fat cream (taking acidity from tomatos f.e)
    Plain Tofu,Smoked Tofu,Dried Soy

    I make stir frys with vegetables & noodles (or zoodles) and stews like lentil stew and chana massala and bolognese with carrot,onion,marinated soy chunks and canned tomatos.
    I`m not actually vegetarian but I find it nicer to cook without meat,you don't have to worry about dried soy going out of date,it's much cheaper and just as versatile.

    The most important part: invest in some spices and herbs (even frozen) even if they are expensive.
    I must have at least 30 different spices that i collected from my parents,my boyfriend mum and various supermarkets in the UK and Germany.

    I can cook thai,chinese,italian,indian just because I have most of the important spices. Some massala,cumin and turmeric turn your sauce indian whereas basil and oregano make a great base for a bolognese or make it sweet and spicy for a hearty chili con or sin carne.

    Best of luck :)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    when I was dirt poor, I pretty much lived off of:

    dried legumes
    rice
    whole chickens
    other meat when it was on sale
    potatoes
    eggs
    cabbage
    broccoli
    peanut butter sandwiches

    most of those things remain staples of my diet even now. unfortunately, i can't have peanut butter in the house these days as my youngest is allergic to peanuts.
  • xMiracat
    xMiracat Posts: 67 Member
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    thanks a lot everyone for your replies they were really helpful I will start looking out for some frozen veggies and fruits.

    I forgot to mention that I live in the desert so nothing grows here and it all has to be shipped which is why fresh foods is a lot more expensive here than frozen foods is.

    And I'm in love with that budget bytes website now!

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