Eating Healthy On A Budget

abby0200762
abby0200762 Posts: 4 Member
edited November 27 in Food and Nutrition
I need some help with dieting. I want to start eating healthier, but I dont know what I should and shouldn't eat, and it doesn't help that I dont make much money to go towards food. So if anyone has any experience with dieting on a budget, please share your methods!

Replies

  • MelaniaTrump
    MelaniaTrump Posts: 2,694 Member
    edited December 2015
    1 package of red beans and rice cooked, 1 can of beans, extra brown rice cooked - dinner on the cheap
    Milk also has a lot of protein and calcium that can help you feel full.
  • macgurlnet
    macgurlnet Posts: 1,946 Member
    Head on over to www.budgetbytes.com for recipe ideas :)

    You shouldn't eat things that you're allergic to and/or that you've tried and not liked. That's about it. Nothing is off-limits as long as it's in your budget.

    You don't have to spend the money on organic foods or out-of-season fruits and veggies.

    Check the ads for your local grocery store(s) and see what's on sale that sounds yummy. Get frozen or canned veggies (I prefer frozen) if fresh is expensive right now.

    Beans and lentils are super cheap, especially if you just buy bags of dried ones. Takes a touch longer to cook dry beans, though, so keep that in mind.

    ~Lyssa
  • clairew931
    clairew931 Posts: 89 Member
    Try frozen fruit and veg! Often under appreciated and last longer! Try buying protein from a bigger place like Costco...or a butcher! Tends to be cheaper too! Lots of root veg tends to be cheap and can help make great soups...cheap and warming meals
  • abby0200762
    abby0200762 Posts: 4 Member
    Thank you, everyone!
  • minniestar55
    minniestar55 Posts: 350 Member
    See if you can find a slow cooker (aka Crock Pot) on sale, or maybe a family member has either an extra one, or one they don't use you can have, I use mine to make all sorts of great, healthy meals & I use cheap cuts of meat, & veg from the bargain bin (it's not pretty veg, but still edible & within fresh date). Some spices & herbs (you can grow your own herbs easily & cheaply) & check the 'net for recipes, & you have a way to make a huge variety of very cheap but tasty & healthy budget meals.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Bulk buy chicken etc when it's on offer
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
    Go shopping at the end of the day, 1 hour or so before the shops shut. You can pick up meat, fish and veggies for just pennies.
    Tonight I got 380g of river cobbler (smoked fish that is like cod) for 92p
    Pack of celery 10p
    Big bunch of greens 10p
    2x Cauliflower for 10p each
    2x brussels sprouts packs 10p each
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,261 Member
    Good suggestions above. Also, for fresh vegetables, look at unusual vegetables to see if you can find inexpensive ones - this varies by your location & time of year - and try them to see if you like them. Here, in winter, root vegetables (parsnips, turnips, etc.), winter squash, and cabbage tend to be pretty affordable. The root veg are *great* roasted, squash can be roasted or steamed/mashed, cabbage steamed, stir-fried, roasted or eaten as salad. Onions are usually affordable, and can be roasted/baked and eaten in larger quantities (though you may want to scale up quantities gradually, as some people have . . . um, intestinal distress, if they suddenly eat large amounts.

    Also, cooking from scratch is usually cheaper and healthier than buying pre-portioned, pre-cooked, packaged products. For example, bulk oatmeal is cheaper than the pre-flavored packets, and cooks in about the same amount of time in the microwave. Add your own flavor - fruit or sweetening.
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