How to survive on 40-50 dollars per month on food.

Here's something I've had lately. Cook a pot of brown rice, about 5-6 cups, when done add a drained can of tuna, and 1/2 can of mushroom or cream of chicken Campbell's condensed soup. Stir it all together while hot. You could add some frozen peas too. Not fancy food, but I think it's pretty healthy and you can eat it for a few nights. :flowerforyou:

Ugh... I spend way too much on food.

$1.33-$1.66/day is pretty challenging. The funny thing about your requirements and your particular luck with regards to cheap produce is that if you focus on eating enough vegetables and getting enough protein I think your diet will be healthier than most and you can afford "unhealthy" options like gravy, etc. because it's hard for you to over indulge.

Beans (esp. dried and soaked) are definitely a strong cornerstone for cheap balanced eating- I'd prefer higher protein to carbohydrate ratio beans since your diet is, IMO, already destined to be carb heavy. Bulk rice, potato, and pasta are dirt cheap. Of the three, I think I'd prefer the whole potato but variety is king, IMO.

I need to check out my local farmer's market as I'm in an agricultural area... b/c, man, those prices are really good. Also, you need to figure out if/any foods are local; e.g. I live in pork country and it's $1.2/lb for the cheaper, ironically the higher calorie and, sadly, tasty cuts. But if you're really cutting the budget and trying to eat that cheaply I think it'd be difficult to get too much saturated fat since a lot of your protein will be vegetable source.

Learn some basic cooking methods, e.g.:

Season your food: Vegetables in particular, but everything really, can benefit from decent seasoning. The cost of seasoning, if you use it regularly and don't just let it go bad/bland, is minimal. To my taste a little pepper and butter on broccoli takes it from barely palatable to tasty. Salt, pepper, garlic, and maybe some tabasco or paprika will go a long way. Add Bay leaves, oregano, thyme if you like Italian. I second Indian but Indian is an orgy of spices, from what I've read, though you can certainly pick recipes by their spice requirements.

Cheap cuts: Stuff like ribs, brisket needs to be slow cooked and can be quite good. If you don't have a crockpot, grilling can be a bit pricey with the upfront costs, though. Cheaper cuts can be marinated, imparting flavor and reducing toughness. A big ole' ham can be cooked at 300F until it's done and then used for omelets, sandwiches, leftovers...

Roux: equal parts flour and oil (or butter) used to make gravies or thicken just about anything. Best done a good non-stick pan. Stir over medium (or lower if your pan is of dubious quality) until starchy smell/taste is gone. Since the proto-roux doesn't have water it easily gets to napalm temperature so be careful tasting it. Cook further for more flavor but less thickening power. Add a cup of stock(or broth or ramen noodle packet...) or two to a pan you just cooked a meat in and then add, carefully, the warm roux until the gravy is a little thinner than you'd like since it will thicken as it warms. Make sure to whisk or mash the roux into the sauce- roux lumps are better than flour gravy lumps but they're both worse than no lumps.

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