Eating right on a budget

TheFitHooker
TheFitHooker Posts: 3,357 Member
edited October 6 in Food and Nutrition
So do you guys have any budget friendly dinner ideas? Until Probably Feb we're going to be on a very tight budget, I'm talking like $50.00 (maybe $100) a week budget on groceries, and with 4 (2 adults, 8 year old, and 1 yr old) of us in the house, we're gonna have to make this stretch. I keep hearing that it's just as much to eat healthy as it is to eat non healthy, so give me some healthy meal ideas please?
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Replies

  • MiniMichelle
    MiniMichelle Posts: 801 Member
    bump
  • ymhand
    ymhand Posts: 188
    I keep seeing the word "BUMP" what does this mean?
  • TheFitHooker
    TheFitHooker Posts: 3,357 Member
    I keep seeing the word "BUMP" what does this mean?
    I believe it's just a way to post it to your profile and not let it get lost.
  • BlueLikeJazz
    BlueLikeJazz Posts: 219 Member
    I keep seeing the word "BUMP" what does this mean?
    I believe it's just a way to post it to your profile and not let it get lost.

    It's also a way to "bump" the post to the top of the list in the forum so it's more likely to get answered.
  • shovav91
    shovav91 Posts: 2,335 Member
    I'm in the same boat hon. This site has some great ideas!
    http://www.poorgirleatswell.com/

    Best of luck!
  • sarahgilmore
    sarahgilmore Posts: 572 Member
    frozen veg - heaps cheaper and just as nutritious (sometimes moreso) as fresh

    fruit tinned in natural juice can be cheaper than fresh fruit, too, and its healthier than the stuff in heavy syrup.

    be creative with leftovers, and alternative protein sources - eggs, legumes etc.

    if powdered milk is cheaper there than fresh (it's about 1/3 the price here - and dairy is our backbone, go figure :huh: ) consider that for your 1 year old. Make it up with cold water 24 hours in advance so the taste develops properly (tastes awful first up) and add a drop or two of vanilla essence. Most kids won't know the diff, and it's good to use in baking and cooking if not for drinking. You can also use it to make your own yoghurt.

    Don't buy out-of-season produce, its costly. Just be creative with what's in season and cheap.

    You can grate cheap vegetables into stuff like sauces and meatloaf to bulk it out, or add lentils.

    Pumpkin Soup is an awesome cheap meal. What I call a pumpkin I think you lot call a squash http://www.wefs.co.nz/pumpkin-crown/ . 1 or 2 depending on size, peel and chip, cook until tender (boil, or roast for a sweeter flavour) then blend with some water to make a thick soup and season to taste. I like to add some onion, bacon and sour cream to mine, but it's not essential. It's my daughter's favourite thing ever. 1 big pumpkin can make 2 or 3 meals. It freezes great for lunches, too.

    When I make spaghetti sauce I use about 8 oz of ground beef, and loads of tinned tomatoes that I puree (like 4 x 14oz tins). That makes the meat go a long way and it generally does 2 meals.
  • nikkijay25
    nikkijay25 Posts: 42 Member
    Try coupons. I use them all the time. You can find them online and in the Sundays paper.
  • skinnypigeon
    skinnypigeon Posts: 107 Member
    Bean Beans the a magical fruit...

    ...they fill you up, for little loot!

    =)
  • youuluvashh
    youuluvashh Posts: 247 Member
    Bump
  • Livin_Large
    Livin_Large Posts: 104 Member
    Boneless chicken thighs are cheap and low calorie. I love roasting a chicken, have that for dinner one night, chicken wraps, chicken soup....it goes far! Turkey burger is pretty cheap, frozen veggies, eggs...breakfast for dinner...
  • aklitten
    aklitten Posts: 237 Member
    http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103470173

    These might not all be *totally* healthy, but they are modifiable!
  • lakersfan4life
    lakersfan4life Posts: 322 Member
    if you like fish, tilapia is cheap.
  • OSUalum
    OSUalum Posts: 449 Member
    Check this out! Great site!

    http://www.poorgirleatswell.com/
  • firedragon064
    firedragon064 Posts: 1,082 Member
    bump
  • TheFitHooker
    TheFitHooker Posts: 3,357 Member
    Thanks guys, the "poor girl Eats well" site is awesome. My mouth is watering lol.
  • aklitten
    aklitten Posts: 237 Member
    http://www.myrecipes.com/convenience/budget-recipes/dinner-on-a-dime-00420000001304/

    http://www.foodonthetable.com/homepages/Meal-Planning/cooking-on-a-budget?trackid=mealplanning&flow=pw,nops&cpcgoal=testing&gclid=CK2ziL_Q86wCFcHe4AodLkcrMQ

    I Googled "cooking healthy on a budget" and came up with a TON of stuff!
  • premiumchilenita
    premiumchilenita Posts: 600 Member
    I do the powdered milk thing as well. My kids love it. I buy lots of self raising flour and make lots of different things with it. I can "not" add lots of ingredients and it still tastes great.

    I make pancakes; 4 cups flour, 1.5 milk/2 water(depending on thickness) and 1 egg, this makes enough for about 20 people, so it goes a long way. Sometimes I don't even add the egg (hehe)

    Cheese pizza; doe, flour, butter and milk, roll it out, I use condensed tomato soup for the base, light cheese and oregano. My kids love this, great for lunch box as well.

    Muffins; I just got the recipe from the net and tweaked it to what I like and you can make savoury and sweet, healthy (and unhealthy.lol)

    I make lasagne with loads of veggies and the kids normally don't even notice, because I chop them up really small, Lentils, mushrooms, onions and eggplant. Although fresh veggies can be expensive, I find they are way cheaper than meat.

    Soups are great because you can add anything that's in your cupboard. And I don't know about you but here the pasta is dirt cheap, so make pasta with all the sauces you can imagine.

    If the kids don't like the sauce, just puree it, then it's red, green, orange or what ever colour it comes out.
  • fordster99
    fordster99 Posts: 181 Member
    Look for sales. Also price match when you can. When you find a really good deal, stock up. I sometimes find boneless, skinless chicken breast really cheap and I buy several packages which last for a while. Tuna, brown rice and frozen veggies are also good to stock up on and are healthy for you. Good luck. It can be done.
  • capriciousmoon
    capriciousmoon Posts: 1,263 Member
    Bagged frozen chicken, frozen veggies, oatmeal, eggs, pasta, apples, and bananas are all cheap.

    I only have myself to worry about, but when I really try I can shop for about $20 a week.
  • Kimmer2011
    Kimmer2011 Posts: 569 Member
    Stir fry and fried rice are a great way to use less meat, more vegetables.

    Eggs are also a fairly cheap source of protein.

    When I roast a chicken, I take all the meat off the bones to use in various meals, then chuck the bones, along with a cut up onion, carrot & celery stalk in the crockpot. Cover with water, and a few hours later you've got fabulous chicken stock. Drain it and you're halfway to soup.

    Meatballs are good for portion control, and are very versatile.

    Soup is another good one. I make potato soup with half cauliflower, plenty of onions, and a little ham--no dairy needed. I make tomato soup with frozen or canned tomatoes and broth/stock. I'd really like to try making matzo ball soup sometime soon.

    I'm a big fan of Aldi for staples like milk, eggs, flour, sugar, tortillas, etc. There's also a nearby produce market that has great bakery breads. Our weekly budget is $50 - $100 (2 adults/2kids), depending on if I'm stocking up on meat or there's meat in the freezer.
  • capriciousmoon
    capriciousmoon Posts: 1,263 Member
    Sometimes you can get good deals on cereal and some other food items at Dollar Tree or Big Lots. Not sure if you have either of those near you. Big Lots here usually has good brand cereals like Kashi for only $2.
  • Kebby83
    Kebby83 Posts: 232 Member
    I was going to say Aldi too. I just shopped there today and bought snacks (junk for my boyfriend) and fruit quite a bit else including meat and it came to $40.
  • baisleac
    baisleac Posts: 2,019 Member
    Copied from an earlier post on another thread:

    What I do:

    Breakfast is pretty basic. I have either eggs with cheese or steel cut oats/oatmeal. Both are quick and easy for a workday morning.

    Lunch - Planned overs. i.e. planned leftovers from dinner the night before.

    Dinner - Here's where the shopping list comes in.
    * We (we = husband and I) get the weekly store ads on Wednesday.
    * We make note of what's on sale (veggies, meats, and staples like flours, beans, tuna, etc.)
    * We flip through cookbooks, kind of randomly, and pick out 7 recipes that look yummy, then write them on the fridge (piece of paper works, we have a magnetic white board), plus one "lazy back up" meal just in case we have a "I don't really want to cook" night.
    * Any ingredients for those recipes that we don't have on hand (note, we've stocked up when certain staples, mentioned above, were on sale previously) go on to the grocery list.
    * We go through our envelope of coupons to see if we have one for anything that's on the list.
    * One of us goes to the grocery store and buys what's on the list.
    * Each morning we get out the meat/fish/whatever's frozen out of the freezer for that night's planned meal.
    * Each night, we cook the pre-planned recipe and store the planned overs for the next day's lunch.

    Saves money and makes list making plus grocery shopping a breeze.

    p.s. We cook for 2 adults and a 2.5 yo on $50/week with an occasional $100 "splurge" week.
    p.p.s. We cooked a Turkey (on sale these days) on Tuesday with rice stuffing (http://healthydoesntmeanboring.blogspot.com/2011/05/rice-stuffing.html) and have been/will be eating this through Saturday, at the minimum (it's so good you don't get bored with it. :smile:)... and the bones turned into broth for future recipes.
  • jenn_is_trouble
    jenn_is_trouble Posts: 114
    Bump.
  • MarySunshine70
    MarySunshine70 Posts: 118
    OK - I know that some are going to find this barbaric... but hunt elk.
    There's no better clean/low fat meat... the trick is butchering it yourself and DO NOT add fat to it.
    Way cheaper in the long run
  • JulieBoBoo
    JulieBoBoo Posts: 642
    Some of the things that help me eat healthy are apples, cabbage, turnip/rutabaga and carrots. I eat apples and shredded cabbage as snacks every day and eat turnip and carrots several times a week as a dinner side. Turnip is a fabulous carb replacement for dinner and has very few calories. I just chunk it and boil it and serve it with a touch of butter but you could also roast it or boil it with some carrots and mash them together for a lovely puree (this would be great for your 1 year old).

    I also have oatmeal for breakfast and buy it in the big pack (quick oats) and them make it in the crock pot overnight. It's delish and you can control the sodium and sugar which is nice. It's also very filling and easy on the pocketbook. I sometimes send some to school for the kids in a thermos.

    The biggest way to save money and stay healthy is to try to eat less meat. Meat is expensive and there are some good cheaper alternatives. Add bulgur to spaghetti sauce instead of ground beef, make a shepherd's pie or moussaka with lentils instead of lamb, try making chick pea and rice burgers instead of ground beef or chicken. These stretch the budget without being empty calories and keep you full and properly fueled.

    Good luck!
  • bonnykate
    bonnykate Posts: 123
    bump this!
  • baisleac
    baisleac Posts: 2,019 Member
    Add bulgur to spaghetti sauce instead of ground beef,

    I so need to try this!
  • annabellj
    annabellj Posts: 1,337 Member
    eggs are super cheap and you can make pancakes, or waffles from bisquick cheaply or make your own mix. spaghetti is cheap, homemade soup with broth, chili, anything vegetarian, the less meat, the less money, homemade hamburger mac with a can of soup and macaroni and cheese, a can of corn and a little burger thrown in, grilled cheese and tomato soup, french toast(we have chickens so we eat a lot of stuff with eggs in them!) pretty much anything not processed that doesnt come in a box is cheaper than prepackaged. look up ten dollar dinners
  • lil_pulp
    lil_pulp Posts: 701 Member
    Chili tends to be a pretty cost-effective dinner for me--you can bulk it up with beans, which are pretty cheap.
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