Struggling and Poor

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2

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  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
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    If you have a Trader Joe's near you, shop there. I get TONS of fresh produce, delicious cheese and other great food for much cheaper than "regular" grocery stores.
  • Sweet_Potato
    Sweet_Potato Posts: 1,119 Member
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    Do you have an Asian grocery near you? The produce there costs 1/3rd of what it does at regular grocery stores.
  • misslissa121
    misslissa121 Posts: 126
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    We have a large family, and we have found that buying meat at a local meat market is a lot cheaper, leaner, and taste sooooo much better. Meijer cost $3.49/lb for ground round which when brown produces about a cup of grease to drain off. Local place is 2.99/lb forground round and I have to watch it or it will scorch the pan. Our girls refused to eat much meat till we switched over tothe local butcher.
  • albinogorilla
    albinogorilla Posts: 1,056 Member
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    my wife is all about coupons, i myself, prefer the "buy whats cheap" method
    stores do sales weekly. when rice is on sale, stock up, when oatmeal is on sale, stock up
    eat whats cheap, packaged salad on sale, buy it, when its not, buy a head of lettuce insrtead and make your own.

    Meats, of which I eat all, when tuna is onsale, buy a ton...........good standbuy when fresh meats aren't on sale.
    Usually chicken, beef, or pork, one will be on sale. Eat whichever is cheapest, and if none on sale, eat the tuna.

    dont be picky
  • Milliebear66
    Milliebear66 Posts: 23 Member
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    hi, how about cooking in bulk then freezing?? Saving money all ways there.. Wishing you good luck :)
  • teacup8285
    teacup8285 Posts: 26
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    There are lots of places on line that offer coupons and we get them in our sunday paper here. You just need to be careful to actually get what is the better value, sometimes the coupons are not. Also there are blogs and crock pot site galore that might help with your budget. Check them out. At home here when we have supper we eat meat free just about every other night and when we have chicken we split it if it is a chicken breast. I make a spaghetti and only use 1/3 of a package of beef but make the full recipe, so we get some beef but it helps make it go farther. Soups are a great and can make multiple meals for the week. Make a couple and alternate so you don't get tired of them. I make most of our food and don't buy a lot of pre packaged snacks. I know it is really hard, especially hard these days, but know you can do it. It takes a bit of time to but make yourself a menu for each week and only purchase what is on there. It costs more now to eat well but not in the long run, when you don't get some awful disease. I hope this works out for you.
  • llahairdna
    llahairdna Posts: 521 Member
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    Look up www.bountifulbaskets.org. If there is a site near you, you can order a basket, which includes A LOT of produce (half fruits, half veggies), every week for $15. I get a basket every other week because you get so much in each one. Then, I plan my meals for the next 2 weeks based on what fruits and veggies I get to make sure that I use everything. It has made my grocery bill so much less!!
  • dmpizza
    dmpizza Posts: 3,321 Member
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    You are young.
    I know the economy is insane, but is it possible to use this to motivate you to get a better job?
  • angraham2
    angraham2 Posts: 128
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    Looks like you have lots of good advice here. I would do a search for dine on a dime. I feed my family of 4 on $50 a week. I do use cupons, and local produce, we eat what is in season, and what ever meat I can find that is marked down. We love dried beans, and eat a ton of rice, barley, quinoa and other items I can get in bulk.
  • Jesea
    Jesea Posts: 374 Member
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    Check out "poor girl eats well" great ideas!
  • amoeba15
    amoeba15 Posts: 38 Member
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    I'm vegan and prepare my own meals most of the time. My daughter (an omnivore) and I eat for about $200 a month (including the 8% sales tax on groceries in my state). I'd suggest eating meat-free a few days a week to save money (Meatless Mondays, for example).

    Tips:

    1. Buy produce that is in season or use frozen produce (not the butter-sauce or cheese-drenched junk but the plain stuff).
    2. Eat more whole grains (brown rice, quinoa, barley, etc.). Carbs aren't your enemy if you chose the right kind.
    3. Cook your own beans (a slow cooker comes in handy for this). You can freeze them in portioned batches if you want, too. Cheaper than canned and healthier, too, since canned often includes a lot of added sodium.
    4. Don't buy stuff just because you have a coupon for it. Use the coupons for things you actually use. (Look at various milk/soy milk producers' websites for good coupons you can print off every week, for example.)
    5. Buy generic when possible for things you can't make yourself (flour, sugar, cooking oil, etc.) unless you find a coupon for the brand name that makes it cheaper. Some things I have to buy brand name because there isn't a generic version that meets my needs, like tofu, Vegenaise and Earth Balance margarine.
    6. Plan your meals for at least a week at a time (include days for leftovers, too, obviously).
    7. If you eat meat, ask the store you shop at what day they mark down the meat and pick some up then and freeze it. It'll keep in the freezer for 3 to 6 months.
    8. Invest in a slow-cooker and a combination steamer/rice cooker. It helps in preparing foods from bulk with little actual work for you, particularly if they have built-in timers.
    9. If you live near a health-food store that has a bulk bin section, use it. The prices are lower for bulk-bin items and you can buy just what you need. I get enough beans and grains (particularly amaranth and quinoa) to last at least two months since I live 30 miles away from Earth Fare and it's not worth driving there constantly.

    Check out this blog, too: http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/ She posts some great recipes and includes the cost per serving!
  • ChristineS_51
    ChristineS_51 Posts: 872 Member
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    May I say what a great range of food you have - lovely healthy choices - well done! You sound like you ae doing everything right as far as other things are concerned as well. I am in Australia so can't comment on costs and stuff in the US, but I am a member of an Australian website called Simple Savings - it does have a free download page where you might pick up some hints. http://www.simplesavings.com.au/downloads/

    The least processed foods, and buying in bulk, generic brands would probably be cheapest, as others have suggested. Beans and lentils (get the dry ones and soak them) are great value. What are eggs like in the US - are they expensive? Here a dozen eggs (varies) is about $A2-5 a dozen.

    Good luck, keep up your great food choices :flowerforyou:
  • jewelswye
    jewelswye Posts: 49 Member
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    I dont think anyones put this previously but what about going to the supermarket as they reduce the price of fresh produce. you can get fruit and veg for less than half price this way. obviously it will spoil sooner tho. I love it when they reduce ready meals or bread coz I just put it in the freezer till I want or need it :)
  • todaysanewday
    todaysanewday Posts: 91
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    Hey man, I notice that you're buying a lot of brand names and organics. It probably won't hurt you to buy generics once in a while. They're not always quite as healthy as the brand names, but if money is that much of an issue then it might help.

    Do you buy in bulk? I save a lot of cash by waiting for a sale and stocking up, or just by buying the biggest container (most stores have a per unit cost in small writing beneath the price so you can compare more accurately).

    Farmers markets are always great places for affordable fruit and veg.

    You can also purchase large slabs of meat from local farmers at surprisingly low cost. If you have access to a chest freezer you can literally get a whole cow.

    Use coupons. I save anything from $10-$30 on a $100 grocery trip. That really adds up. Although there aren't often coupons for fruit and veg.

    Financially, you can examine your expenditure and income and see where the problem lies. If it's too little income then you need to either find a better paid career or try to open up more streams of revenue. There's a lot of ways you can generate passive income streams (i.e. income that you don't really have to work for once you've set it up initially). I earn about $10 a month from Squidoo for example... by doing nothing at all. You can also earn dribs and drabs from online surveys, competitions, adspace etc. Just approach it carefully and do your research because there are a lot of scams out there.

    If the problem is on the other end - too great expenditure - then you may need to hit the big things first. Move into a smaller place, buy a more affordable car etc. After that you can concentrate it down to the smaller things (usually subscriptions to entertainment like magazines or netflix have to go first).

    Best advice I ever got for being better off was this: Pay yourself FIRST. Take 10-15% of your income and put it into a credit union every month without fail. Pay yourself even before you pay your landlord or mortgage. Consider it the most important check you write. It might mean struggling like hell for a while but in the end it really pays off. Once you've built up a decent safety net (3-6 months living expenses) then you can start putting your money to work for you - investing in bonds or low risk mutual funds will generate even more passive streams of income. It's not hard, it's only hard at the beginning.

    Good luck man, hope something here helps!

    What is squidoo and what sort of work do you do on there. Can you share some specifics. Thanks :)
  • thepanttherlady
    thepanttherlady Posts: 258 Member
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    I'm a single mother of 3 (I have 5 but only 3 are still at home), and sometimes grocery money is tight. The paychecks I have a little extra to spend on are the checks I stock up on seasonings etc that I use to cook recipes. The rest of the paychecks I usually buy a package or two of chicken breasts (works for 2-3 dinners for the four of us). Fish (I've been buying Swai) is usually pretty inexpensive if you buy frozen. A frozen pack of boneless, skinless chicken breasts can make MANY meals for a single person as can a package of Tilapia, Swai or other fish that is wrapped indiviually. If you cook a recipe that makes 4 servings, freeze the remaining servings for future dinners. :)

    Another thing I didn't know until recently is that if you have any swapmeets that have vendors selling fruit/veggies, they tend to drastically mark their prices down to move the produce before the end of the day. There is a swapmeet here in So Cal that you can get into free towards the end of the day. A co-worker told me she goes and about an hour or two before closing the fruit/veggie vendors are selling their items for cents on the dollar.
  • amoeba15
    amoeba15 Posts: 38 Member
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    I dont think anyones put this previously but what about going to the supermarket as they reduce the price of fresh produce. you can get fruit and veg for less than half price this way. obviously it will spoil sooner tho. I love it when they reduce ready meals or bread coz I just put it in the freezer till I want or need it :)

    I do this and get fruits and veggies that I can cut up and freeze well. When avocados go on sale I'll mash them and freeze it. Thaw it, add in chopped tomato and onion and I've got some guacamole. :-)
  • becoming_a_new_me
    becoming_a_new_me Posts: 1,860 Member
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    Hi everyone,

    I have been doing pretty good with the big changes I have made to my eating lifestyle. i love the healthy foods and dont have much of a problem in that regard. The problem I am having is financial. I have cut all my bills as much I can and am still struggling to get by. I dont go out, I dont buy anything really. All my money goes to bills. This is really starting to cause me stress and I'm not sure what to do.

    The only place I can see cutting more money out is in groceries. But i really dont want to go back to eating the cheap unhealthy crap I did before.

    Can someone please teach me how to both eat healthy and very cheap?

    I pretty much live off of salads, chicken and fruit and veggies. I have switched to frozen veggies. Feel free to take a look at my diary and offer ways I can make changes that will save me money.

    Thank You

    If you have a farmers market, that is usually much less expensive than the supermarket and you are supporting local farmers. I go when they are pulling their "about to spoil" merchandise and marking it down, then I freeze the produce. Works great to do it this way. I also buy beans in bulk...black, red, white, lentils, etc. Cheap and easy to make. For my 11-yr old daughter and I, it is about $50-75 per week in food...less in the summer because of the family garden
  • hsmithway
    hsmithway Posts: 191
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    I forgot to add that if you have an extra bit of time, you could work for a CSA.

    My CSA requires people to work for 4 hours a week in exchange for two grocery bags of produce (at least a $75 dollar value if you are buying organic at a store). If you have the time, it's a very good deal.

    That was going to be my suggestion as well. I find it to be one of the best ways for people to get a great deal on fabulous locally grown produce.
  • Gwenski
    Gwenski Posts: 348 Member
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    Souper Inexpensive Soup Recipe:

    Golden Carrot Soup

    1/3 cup margarine
    1/2 cup chopped onion
    2 cups thinly sliced carrots
    3 chicken bouillon cubes (or three tablespoons of liquid chicken flavouring)
    3 cups of boiling water (or, just 3 cups of chicken stock)
    1/4 cup long grain rice
    1/2 tsp salt ( omit to save on sodium)
    2 cups milk (1%)


    In a medium saucepan saute onions in butter until golden. Add carrots and toss until coated with butter. Add bouillion cubes, water and rice, cover and simmer until carrots are fork tender and rice is cooked. Add salt. Add to blender 1/3 at a time and blend until smooth. (or stick the beaters in the pot and do it there) Return to saucepan, add milk and heat. Makes six 8 ounce servings.

    98 cals, 5g fat, 290g sodium 1g fibre adn 3g protein per bowl.. and DELICIOUS!
  • cmeade20
    cmeade20 Posts: 1,238 Member
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    I buy a lot of produce at a farm stand or farmers market-much cheaper and usually fresher. Things like oatmeal,cereal, greek yogurt, protein bars I get at BJs. For meat I pay attention to the sales flyers every week and when I see a good deal I buy a lot and freeze it.Good luck!

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