$30, 9 days, empty fridge

callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »

lauries8888 wrote: »

"TeaBea wrote: »

Yeast packets (baking aisle....probably top shelf) aren't cheap when sold individually. You have to buy a jar ($5+) to get a good price.

Not in PA. The yeast (packets and jars) are in the refrigerator section.

i wonder why? Here in NC its on the baking aisle.

Also in PA and yep...it's with the refrigerated stuff and is really cheap per packet. My husband makes his own soft pretzels so we frequently buy the individual packets.

Look around your house. If there is something you have not used in a year, sell it. If you live in a residential area, look for any houses with leaves over-flowing the gutters. Knock on the door, introduce yourself as a neighbor and ask them if they would like to save $1000 dollars, because that is what it will cost to replace the gutters. The weekend is coming, make flyers, put it on 50 doors - saying some things you are willing to do.

Chances are you will be eating steak on Monday eve - she says with a smile.

Check out your food bank goodies before you go shopping. No matter the expense, please keep eggs on your list. Flour too if you can swing it. With a little salt, margarine or butter and baking soda you can with these ingredients make scrambled eggs, pancakes, biscuits, dumplings, pie crust, or noodles (in order of difficulty).

I find chick peas/garbanzos to be the least gassy. Rinse their soaking water and cook in fresh to reduce the gassiness.

The empty fridge is short of vegetables and fruit and that will be your biggest expense. Cabbage is very sturdy and inexpensive. An onion too can be used in dozens of ways.

I don't know whether you have an equivalent, but here in the UK, the supermarkets have 'yellow stickers' on produce that is end-dated, usually in the early evening, a few hours before closing. I've picked up bread and veg for 10p, sliced meats for 20p, and large pots of natural yogurt for a similar amount. It's luck of the draw, of course, but when I was on Job Seekers Allowance (£75 per week), I had so little money left to buy food after I'd paid my bills. I went several times a week, and nearly always got something that was useful. Don't get hung up on expiry dates - if it's meat or fish, and you don't plan to use that day or the next, freeze it. Veg, bread goods and dairy can be safely used beyond sell-by and even use-by dates - use your eyes and nose, not blindly following manufacturer-logged dates. But my advice is to find the discount stores - we have 'pound shops' and similar discount 'warehouse' style shops, where tinned and packaged goods are at least half the price of a normal supermarket. They were a life saver for me!

My shopping basket, in your circumstances, would have oatmeal, milk, eggs, flour, pasta, potatoes, carrots, cabbage (cheap veg), tins of tuna and beans (dried and tinned). Perhaps a cheap, strong flavoured cheese (strong cheddar), which can zip up all kinds of veggie or pasta dishes. If you have stale bread, wizz it in the processor and make breadcrumbs, or use some for baked croutons - again freezable. Finally, make sure you know what's lurking right at the back of your store cupboards - it's amazing what you find! Don't throw any food away until you know for sure it's completely unusable for anything!

A girl called jack....she's a food blogger who spends pence on food.....check her out.

Learn to like pumpkin for a week and render one of those giant ones people usually buy to stick on their front porch. Everything but the skin and stringy part of the guts can be eaten. Pull the guts and save the seeds. Cut into chunks with the skin still on and bake at 300 degrees in deep baking dishes until the skin can be peeled. There will be sweet water that will pool in the baking dishes and there will will be some in the chunks. They come out pretty waterlogged.
The water can be spiced and boiled down into a syrup that must be kept in the fridge. Give at least part of this away to people who will use it as this stuff doesn't last. Seeds can be soaked in saltwater and baked until dry. Portions destined for the freezer should have the skin peeled but kept waterlogged. Portions to be pureed should have the skin peeled and excess water squeezed out with a mesh strainer after being run through the blender.

Chicken leg quarters come in massive bags. Separate the skin and bone from the meat. Use the meat as normal. Crack the bones and boil them along with the skin for soup base.

Also, find out if there are any out of town farmers that sell directly to people. Some are as expensive as the regular store but others are obscenely cheap.

Here's how the shopping list would go... pumpkin, potatoes, onions, carrots, pasta, chicken, and processed tomato things. There would be a solid day and a half in the kitchen but it would work.

Packets of dried legumes are awesome. They are filled with lots of protein, fiber and carbs and are satisfying and cheap. Or after you get paid if you can afford it plant some kale and spinach etc and you wont have to buy those you can just get it from the backyard.

spacelump wrote: »

Alright, you savvy MFP's. I have $30, 9 days til payday, and an empty fridge but for about a pound of chicken and bag of brown rice.

Please share all your frugal meal suggestions for this broke little dieter trying to stay on the fed and healthy path.

I intend to buy skim milk, bananas, some tuna, and eggs. What else might I add as filling staples for meals?

Thank you all in advance!

I would buy things like oatmeal, dry beans or lentils, bread, peanut butter, potatoes, onions, carrots, canned tomato.
Soup is a good dollar stretcher. Bean or lentil soup can be very inexpensive and filling to make.
I use onions and garlic a lot in recipes.
A large container of yogurt usually lasts me a week.
I would cut up or shred your chicken and put it in soup, stir fry or casseroles.
You can do a lot with beans or lentils-> http://www.lentils.ca/recipes-cooking/recipes/
budgetbytes.com has many recipes that my family has enjoyed.

melodicraven wrote: »

Black eyed peas and Lima beans are both easy to make. And potatoes are inexpensive as well. Big 8-10 lb bag will only set you back a $2-3 and you can do a lot with them (baked, boiled, soup, oven fries, etc).

I've got a recipe for sausage veggie soup that runs me about $10 for everything, but it makes this gigantic stock pot of soup if you're interested.

You can also puree them in chicken stock and add salsa to freeze. Trying it with garbanzo beans this weekend.