I'm broke, I need good foods on a budget!
beautifultippz
Posts: 5 Member
Hi guys! So here's the thing: my grocery budget for my husband and is usually 150, and that has to last us for a good two weeks until we shop again. Living in the New Jersey/NYC area, food is pricey around us. Anyone can provide a list of foods we can get on a budget that are clean? I already gave up drinks, we only drink water, and he has coffee with skim milk and I with almond milk when craving coffee. Also, we do brown rice and cauliflower rice, a lot! Need sodium free condiments and gluten free and low carb foods. Any suggestions will be amazing. Thanks in advance! Tiff
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Replies
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Everything is reasonably priced if you are eating in reasonable portions....0
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budgetbytes.com/ is an awesome website for inexpensive meals.0
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Frozen vegetables
protein frozen in bulk0 -
150 every two weeks is pretty easy actually. I used to feed myself for about $20/week, sometimes less. Rice, split peas, beans, lentils, barley and dried beans are really inexpensive and excellent healthy food staples that are good sources of protein. Frozen veggies also generally pretty inexpensive and things like carrots and cabbage and onions also inexpensive and healthy. A bag of potatoes too. Get bags of frozen chicken breast tenderloin and look for good deals on bulk packages of meat that you can split up in freezer bags.
Any fresh veg that you can't eat before it spoils be sure to freeze so it does not go to waste.
Build up your collection of spices and seasonings.
With the above you can do lots of great soups and stir frys.0 -
Is this financial situation permanent or not? That will dictate your approach.
If you want to lose weight, all you have to do is eat less, and that should cost less. If you are on a tight budget, you need to make sure you get enough calories first. But you also want to be healthy. Keep some things in mind: Any restriction will add exponentially to the degree of difficulty in creating a good menu for a reasonable cost. Comply to the restrictions you have to, don't impose arbitrary rules on yourself. "Clean food" is a nebolus term that will make it especially difficult for you. Also consider if you need to eat low carb (carb is cheap) and cut gluten, sodium and dairy. Most foods can be part of a healthy diet. No foods are mandatory. I heard cauliflower was exceptionally exprensive in the US now. If so, don't buy lots of cauliflower. Some foods that are versatile and cheap: Eggs, tuna, chicken, pork, onions, potatoes, rice, pasta, oatmeal, canned tomatoes, dried beans and lentils, oil, frozen vegetables, apples, oranges, bananas, peanut butter. Cook your meals yourself (I think you already do that, continue). Don't overbuy, don't waste. Buy regular, not "organic" or name brand. Look at the unit price. Buy in season.0 -
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/08/01/337141837/cheap-eats-cookbook-shows-how-to-eat-well-on-a-food-stamp-budget
There are good recipes in here, I've made them before.
Also dried beans - really cheap, super good for you. Sweet potatoes, too.0 -
learn to coupon, shop the sale ads and combine coupons to lower your out of pocket. My family is on a budget too, I buy sunday papers and cut coupons, shop the sales and use store perk points/cash to get my groceries pretty cheap.0
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tuna0
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You can get bags of frozen veggies for less than a buck in some stores...also, look for your brown rice in a bulk section of the store, as it's usually cheaper to buy that way. Can you guys compromise on one milk for your coffee to cut down on buying two different types?0
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I buy my seasonings on line in bulk. Frontier Natural Products has a good all purpose herb blend and an Italian seasoning blend (both no salt) but you need to buy a pound to get the savings. It costs about $15 dollars for a pound instead of $3 for a tiny jar. If you can find some friends to split it with, it is a big savings.0
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Queenmunchy wrote: »budgetbytes.com/ is an awesome website for inexpensive meals.
this0 -
beautifultippz wrote: »Hi guys! So here's the thing: my grocery budget for my husband and is usually 150, and that has to last us for a good two weeks until we shop again. Living in the New Jersey/NYC area, food is pricey around us. Anyone can provide a list of foods we can get on a budget that are clean? I already gave up drinks, we only drink water, and he has coffee with skim milk and I with almond milk when craving coffee. Also, we do brown rice and cauliflower rice, a lot! Need sodium free condiments and gluten free and low carb foods. Any suggestions will be amazing. Thanks in advance! Tiff
my first question is why does it have to be sodium and gluten free and low carb?
Does either of you have Celiacs? or is this a personal choice?0 -
Shop Aldi and Save a Lot. Frozen veggies or local farmers markets are great for cheap produce. Skinless chicken breast is only $2/pound. Dried beans are inexpensive as are potatoes and sweet potatoes. Eat what's on sale. Check the store flyers and plan out your week.0
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Frozen chicken breast, yogurt, tuna, beans0
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My husband and I have less than $100 biweekly for groceries and one thing I've learned is to make large meals that last several days.
For example soups or lasagnas. You just new to pick a low sodium low carb gluten free meal, and make enough to last all week. Portion it out ahead of time so you won't eat tomorrow's lunch accidentally. If the food is not enough then supplement with salad.
Good luck!0 -
Saving money is pretty easy when you go back to basics, dry beans, rice, pasta, frozen veggies/fruit (which will eliminate spoilage which can be a big money waster) potatoes, oats etc
low sodium flavour additions can fairly simple - I opt for things like garlic, onion, chili peppers, ginger (which freezes great) You could also invest in a couple of windowsill herbs - they will keep giving back! (My grocery store sells sizable plants at about 3$, with spring upon us the local greenhouse might have it even cheaper since people are starting their gardens soon)
Gluten free can be pretty pricey because it's so trendy right now, I would stick to whole foods as they generally (minus my suggested pasta) are gluten free by nature.
Low carb, also trendy, and more difficult if you don't want to eat cheaper things like beans/legumes for protein sources. If you are looking at a big portion of your budget going to animal proteins then I would suggest taking a monthly trip to a big box store to stock up and freeze into portions (I used to do this years back when I was a meat eater and it really helped us stay on budget)
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My husband and I have less than $100 biweekly for groceries and one thing I've learned is to make large meals that last several days.
For example soups or lasagnas. You just new to pick a low sodium low carb gluten free meal, and make enough to last all week. Portion it out ahead of time so you won't eat tomorrow's lunch accidentally. If the food is not enough then supplement with salad.
Good luck!
Also we cut way back on meat and that saved us quite a bit. When you only eat 4 oz of chicken each, a bag of frozen chicken breasts lasts quite a while!0 -
My husband and I have less than $100 biweekly for groceries and one thing I've learned is to make large meals that last several days.
For example soups or lasagnas. You just new to pick a low sodium low carb gluten free meal, and make enough to last all week. Portion it out ahead of time so you won't eat tomorrow's lunch accidentally. If the food is not enough then supplement with salad.
Good luck!
I agree with the bolded part. My husband and I average $80/week for the two of us. To be fair, we live in the Southwest which is far cheaper than New Jersey/NYC. We typically make two dinners to last us for the week. Pasta, calzones, and pizza can all be made inexpensively and in large portions. Depending on what you put in them, quesadillas, enchiladas, burgers (meat or black bean), soups and casseroles are the same way. Vegetable soup will typically make 3-4 dinners for the two of us. We have made tomato soup from fresh tomatoes, corn chowder, butternut squash soup, and a hearty soup with lots of veggies and some beans and pasta. Beef chili is more expensive to make due to the meat, but we can typically stretch it a little farther since it is so heavy, especially when we have cornbread with it (very cheap to make).
I realize most of these are not low carb as you requested, but I suspect higher carb foods will generally make your dollar stretch farther, so if low carb isn't medically necessary you may want to reconsider that restriction for budget purposes.
As others have said, canned and frozen veggies can be cheap. Shop sales. Buy certain foods like beans and oatmeal in bulk. Freeze meat if you buy it in bulk for a savings.0 -
Omg these are all amazing suggestions. Thank you! I don't know how to reply individually so here it goes: we are actually learning to eat smaller portions and already see the difference! We definitely buy a lot of frozen veggies and chicken, that's helping. I have gluten intolerance and have Graves Disease and PCOS plus hypertension so it's important that I stay low sodium and low carb as well as low sugar. I'm definitely trying the links provided, already searching! We have grocery shopping coming up so let's see if we can keep it at less that 150 now! Also, this is our financial situation for a while; we used to spend so much more on food because we love to eat! But we cook a lot at home so I can see us saving more. Again. Thank you all. This is a great community! Bless y'all hearts!0
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I also suggest ALDI. They have items that are cheaper than anywhere, even Walmart. Greek yogurt for example 60 cents a piece where walmart is 1.00 usually if not more..I buy organic milk which is $3.69 at Walmart but only $2.39 at Aldi ( I just discovered Aldi yesterday and it rocked my world). They have plenty a nice healthy foods section..I got some frozen quinoa with spinach and garbanzo beans..lots of frozen meats general I would say it is one of the cheapest grocery stores with healthy options.0
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HealthierRayne wrote: »Saving money is pretty easy when you go back to basics, dry beans, rice, pasta, frozen veggies/fruit (which will eliminate spoilage which can be a big money waster) potatoes, oats etc
low sodium flavour additions can fairly simple - I opt for things like garlic, onion, chili peppers, ginger (which freezes great) You could also invest in a couple of windowsill herbs - they will keep giving back! (My grocery store sells sizable plants at about 3$, with spring upon us the local greenhouse might have it even cheaper since people are starting their gardens soon)
Gluten free can be pretty pricey because it's so trendy right now, I would stick to whole foods as they generally (minus my suggested pasta) are gluten free by nature.
Low carb, also trendy, and more difficult if you don't want to eat cheaper things like beans/legumes for protein sources. If you are looking at a big portion of your budget going to animal proteins then I would suggest taking a monthly trip to a big box store to stock up and freeze into portions (I used to do this years back when I was a meat eater and it really helped us stay on budget)
Thanks so much!0 -
funkymorganicsx wrote: »I also suggest ALDI. They have items that are cheaper than anywhere, even Walmart. Greek yogurt for example 60 cents a piece where walmart is 1.00 usually if not more..I buy organic milk which is $3.69 at Walmart but only $2.39 at Aldi ( I just discovered Aldi yesterday and it rocked my world). They have plenty a nice healthy foods section..I got some frozen quinoa with spinach and garbanzo beans..lots of frozen meats general I would say it is one of the cheapest grocery stores with healthy options.
I've been dying to go to ALDI! I'll find one nearby. Thank you!
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My husband and I have less than $100 biweekly for groceries and one thing I've learned is to make large meals that last several days.
For example soups or lasagnas. You just new to pick a low sodium low carb gluten free meal, and make enough to last all week. Portion it out ahead of time so you won't eat tomorrow's lunch accidentally. If the food is not enough then supplement with salad.
Good luck!
Thank you so much!! I've lost about 60lbs so far, just want to keep going. Will look for the frozen chicken bags for sure!0 -
Dried beans, eggs, peanut butter/peanuts, carrots, a big container of baby spinich lasts me a while.0
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First off congrats on losing so much already! Aldi is great and I highly suggest it. I live in the suburbs of NYC so I know how it is... I think at this point I'm probably just re-hasing what other people have said but definetly shop your store sales. Only plan to cook with what is on sale and if you know you will continue to use something buy it in bulk when it's cheap. We use chicken breasts almost every week so when Perdue was on sale for $1.69/ lb I bought 4 packs and froze them.
Me and my boyfriend are on a tight budget too and I cook our breakfast, lunch and dinner every week (we eat out maybe once a month) so if you want to friend me my diary is open so you can get some idea of meals to make.0 -
Wish we had an ALDI nearby- here's my experience with the others...
We're in NJ too, and A&P is now Acme. I have been getting most of our proteins there as they have been running Buy One Get One specials on everything from chicken breasts, pork chops to pretty nice steaks that are big enough for DH & I to split.
I find that produce at Acme is still overpriced, just like it was at A&P. Stop & Shop is pretty reasonable for produce, plus the quality is great IMO, but they're packaged good still seem pricey.
When I need to do a big food shopping, to replenish our pantry items (canned tomatoes, beans, dry goods) and frozen veg I go to Shoprite. Their produce & meat are priced well enough that I get those things there if we need them to avoid additional trips to one of the closer, but spendier stores.
I've scored other stuff like olive & coconut oils, balsamic and some Bobs Red Mill items for a song at Ocean State Job Lots. (Just check the expiration dates.)0 -
I know in NYC there a plenty of produce stands. Prices tend to be cheaper than the supermarket. Buy off brand. Whole wheat spaghetti and ground meat (chicken , beef or turkey). That goes a long way and freezes easily. Collard greens are also cheap and make big portions and freezes well too. Slow cooker chicken chili. Chicken thighs are very cheap, some beans (get a bag of beans, its cheaper and you get more in the long run without the sodium) and a few other cheap ingredients. Also find the wonder bread store. I know it's a dying breed but they have many cheap items like whole wheat bread for $. We had one in Queens for years, was pissed when they shut it down. Buy condiments at the $1 store. And coupons for the supermarket! Use www.couponmom.com I make $150 last every 2 weeks with me, husband,kids and a dog!0
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@beautifultippz we don't have an aldi near me.Closest one is 30-40 miles. I'm familiar with the are you seem to be in. (I'm in southern PA but my brother is up by Parsippany). That is an expensive area, but NJ has great farm markets. Do you have any nearby? I find that shopping local also helps lower costs and ours down here have all opened up in the past couple weeks.
I also recommend that you see if you can order online at any local stores. That way you can actually filter your results to show only what is on sale. Acme, shoprite, and giant all do online ordering where they pick your order and then you show up and pay and they load it in your car. It's like $5 or less for the service and it really lets you see the final total of your groceries and benefit from saving some time too. I use that alot.0 -
beautifultippz wrote: »funkymorganicsx wrote: »I also suggest ALDI. They have items that are cheaper than anywhere, even Walmart. Greek yogurt for example 60 cents a piece where walmart is 1.00 usually if not more..I buy organic milk which is $3.69 at Walmart but only $2.39 at Aldi ( I just discovered Aldi yesterday and it rocked my world). They have plenty a nice healthy foods section..I got some frozen quinoa with spinach and garbanzo beans..lots of frozen meats general I would say it is one of the cheapest grocery stores with healthy options.
I've been dying to go to ALDI! I'll find one nearby. Thank you!
Aldi is seriusly awesome-I just got back from my local one a few minutes ago
I spent $40 and walked out with 5 cloth bags full of food!
Also, during off growing seasons frozen veggies will be your best friend. I get bags of them for $1 or less. The dollar stores in my area now carry some frozen foods too and I can get bags of veggies and fruit there!0 -
Totally agree with shopping at Aldi! Your local Spanish or Asian grocery will probably have better produce at better prices than the chains and WAY cheaper spices. As far as foods themselves, bags of frozen chicken, EGGS, bags of apples and oranges, produce you have to cut yourself like cabbage and kale.0
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