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

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  • Francesca3162
    Francesca3162 Posts: 520 Member
    To save money on fresh produce try going to a farmer's market! You can buy a TON of produce for super cheap.



    If it is only available on a certain date, for a certain time. then go towards the end, most of the vendors will give you a deal, if you ask, rather than pack up their wares and bring it back home.
  • Mindmovesbody
    Mindmovesbody Posts: 399 Member
    To save money on fresh produce try going to a farmer's market! You can buy a TON of produce for super cheap.

    I second this! I love the farmers market!!! I cannot imagine spending 50 a month on groceries! I spend about 800 for our family! Sickening isn't it! Also, beans and lentils go a long way. Good Luck!
  • Biggipooh
    Biggipooh Posts: 350
    To save money on fresh produce try going to a farmer's market! You can buy a TON of produce for super cheap.

    Really? Our farmers market is a lot more expensive than any grocery store.
  • debstanley4
    debstanley4 Posts: 208 Member
    bump
  • castadiva
    castadiva Posts: 2,016 Member
    If you have storage space available, it can work out much more cheaply to bulk buy dry and canned items/ingredients from a caterers' store or similar. You may have to pay a small joining fee, but the price/lb is usually much, much lower than in a supermarket.

    Also, frozen fruit & vegetables are often cheaper than fresh and work well for cooking, though it seems that may not be your problem in CA!

    I'm sure others have already mentioned this, but making things from scratch is almost always more cost-effective (and better for the waistline).

    Slow-cooked meats (so you can use cheaper cuts) and beans/pulses are also cost-effective, in general - look at recipes from France, Italy and the Middle East.

    Making your own bread can also be inexpensive - a foccaccia recipe is simple to make (no breadmaker required!), and you end up eating less of it, I find, as the loaf is thinner. You could also look into bulk buying and preserving fruits and veg in season, to eat later in the year.
    Good luck! Even a reasonably frugal shop for two people in the UK is hard to bring in at under £50 a week... Food costs are skyrocketing.
  • cardiokitten
    cardiokitten Posts: 401 Member
    bump
  • tansygreen
    tansygreen Posts: 85 Member
    Seems like you've got the right idea already. Cooking everything form scratch is a lot cheaper, and when you use pulses always use the dried ones, they go so much further than tinned ones. It can sometimes cost more at first, but if you are buying loads of veggies and spices and whatever, then making several dishes, and freezing some, it starts to get cheaper, and take up less of your time after a week or two.

    Personally I spend WAY less on food if I make a mealplan, for at least a weeks meals (most of the meals you can make double and freeze) then AFTER the mealplan make a shopping list and you should have very little waste. The following week you can do the same, and dip into the frozen meals, whilst getting some more frozen meals in, and so on.

    You can do it, it is amazing how much you can cut back when you really need to. I have been doing this for a few weeks now and I could probably live out of my freezer for a week if I had to. Good luck, $50 is achievable!
  • Suzieb353
    Suzieb353 Posts: 1
    lentils rock as a staple - curry them with a daal recipe. Tins of tomatoes - best tomato sauce recipe given to me by a boyfriend from Venice. Tin of tomatoes, saucepan, boil seasoned tomatoes until reduced enough to take a spoon through them and a track is left where you can see the pan bottom. Mash roughly with a potato masher. Add garlic, chilli, basil, herbs, soft cheese (creamy sauce). Can add a dash of olive oil to loosen and glaze. From his Mama, with love.

    And never waste a veggie - make soup.
  • jkleon86
    jkleon86 Posts: 245 Member
    check out exstream couponing on youtube it is so cool how people with the time and the mind to do it can really save. Me, I don't have the kind of mind it takes for it to keep it all organized and to put all the deals together . My sister does and really saves big time and says she wishes she was on t this when her boys were small say they would have never went without anything :happy:
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    I don't have a tremendous amount to add, but as mentioned already I'd like to throw my hat in for freezing.

    Since produce at farmer's markets is as cheap for you as it is, make up stews/chilis/soups for a month ahead of time and freeze it. I know you mentioned eating mostly vegetarian, but if you want to add meat buy the whole chicken/turkey for cooking rather than piecemeal to save some cash as well.

    With your budget, bulk is almost definitely the way to go.
  • unsuspectingfish
    unsuspectingfish Posts: 1,176 Member
    check out exstream couponing on youtube it is so cool how people with the time and the mind to do it can really save. Me, I don't have the kind of mind it takes for it to keep it all organized and to put all the deals together . My sister does and really saves big time and says she wishes she was on t this when her boys were small say they would have never went without anything :happy:

    As a retail employee, I advise you against this.
  • smileyface45
    smileyface45 Posts: 146 Member
    BUMP
  • californiansun
    californiansun Posts: 392 Member
    Wow! I didn't know this thread was still going, I thought it died! I will read all of your tips! Thanks!!!
  • alladream
    alladream Posts: 261 Member
    Lentils and quinoa come to mind, both under a buck or two a pound, even organic: good protein, very decent for taste when in with soups or other stew ingredients. Good luck!
  • RAFValentina
    RAFValentina Posts: 1,231 Member
    Buy the staples but try and grow some of your own stuff like tomatoes, lettuce, beetroot etc... in the summer you can eat healthy and fresh and then use the root veg and other seasonal veg to augment your shop and cook to the season... we grow loads of squash, and pumpkin for the autumn, courgettes, beans, salad, artichokes, beet root etc etc through the summer... apples and pears the same! Eating seasonal produce is good too as there's some good science inthe fact that eating the seasonal veg is better for our health through those seasons!
  • FluttershySweetie
    FluttershySweetie Posts: 216 Member
    Wow! My groceries for the month are about $800!! going to keep this thread in mind!
  • californiansun
    californiansun Posts: 392 Member
    Where the heck do you live? I want to move there....(In reference to getting all that for such LOW prices!!)

    Fresno/Clovis, CA :)
    I live in Fresno/Clovis - where do you shop??? I have not seen bananas or eggs that cheap! :tongue:

    Winco, Foodmaxx, Foods Co, Grocery outlet. Those prices were from when I bought groceries the last time (when I posted this), the prices went up due to gas. lol. You're right, I don't see those prices anymore either! But I did just bought a 5 pound bag of apples at Foodmaxx for 2.50! :D

    I went grocery shopping at Foodmaxx a month and a half ago and spent 44.97. I'm still going on food! :p

    I bought 5 lb apples, rice, canned chicken, frozen veggies, eggs, frozen strawberries, jalapenos, onion, 2 gallons of milk, frozen fish, two loaves of bread, tortillas, salsa, cream of mushroom soup, 5 pound bag of potatoes, cheese, black beans, kidney beans, seasoning, oatmeal, peanut butter and butter.

    I made chili, fish tacos, fried rice, sandwiches, casseroles, eggs and potatoes, baked potatoes, mexican rice, egg salad, hard boiled eggs, baked apples, cinnamon and apple oatmeal, smoothies, etc.
  • californiansun
    californiansun Posts: 392 Member
    Seems like you've got the right idea already. Cooking everything form scratch is a lot cheaper, and when you use pulses always use the dried ones, they go so much further than tinned ones. It can sometimes cost more at first, but if you are buying loads of veggies and spices and whatever, then making several dishes, and freezing some, it starts to get cheaper, and take up less of your time after a week or two.

    Personally I spend WAY less on food if I make a mealplan, for at least a weeks meals (most of the meals you can make double and freeze) then AFTER the mealplan make a shopping list and you should have very little waste. The following week you can do the same, and dip into the frozen meals, whilst getting some more frozen meals in, and so on.

    You can do it, it is amazing how much you can cut back when you really need to. I have been doing this for a few weeks now and I could probably live out of my freezer for a week if I had to. Good luck, $50 is achievable!

    Thank you!

    I also bought some cookbooks, and a lot of the recipes are extremely cheap. The recipes make about 5-6 servings, which is amazing for me! The Campbells cookbook has a lot of great ideas that you can make healthier! :)
  • paint_it_black
    paint_it_black Posts: 208 Member
    Do you have enough space for a couple of hens? They are super easy to care for very cheap to feed and help keep pests in check in the garden. With a specific egg producing breed you could get 5-6 eggs per week per hen. right now I keep 6 and sell the surplus eggs to pay for their feed and make a little profit from them too.

    And they really are quite entertaining to watch
  • californiansun
    californiansun Posts: 392 Member
    Do you have enough space for a couple of hens? They are super easy to care for very cheap to feed and help keep pests in check in the garden. With a specific egg producing breed you could get 5-6 eggs per week per hen. right now I keep 6 and sell the surplus eggs to pay for their feed and make a little profit from them too.

    And they really are quite entertaining to watch

    I live in an apartment complex.

    When I had my house, I had a full blown garden. When I get another house, I will be gardening and things! :)
  • krisaddress
    krisaddress Posts: 43 Member
    $50 a month!! Id starve! I spend around $120 per week.... maybe oz is expensive?
  • aba160
    aba160 Posts: 37 Member
    Bump for later.
  • californiansun
    californiansun Posts: 392 Member
    $50 a month!! Id starve! I spend around $120 per week.... maybe oz is expensive?

    Maybe so! I probably don't eat as healthy either... but I gotta do what I gotta do!
  • feistyhorsegal
    feistyhorsegal Posts: 109 Member
    I spend over $500 a fortnight on food for myself and my family (2 adults and 2 kids). There is no way I could do it for $50 per month
  • Kikers123
    Kikers123 Posts: 101 Member
    Bump! Thanks for this ? OP! It was really helpful. I did a question a while back asking how to eat healthy on a a tight budget. I'll post the link in a sec. I got some really good responses there too!

    *Edit: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/599763-how-to-eat-healthy-on-a-tight-budget
  • jillcwhite
    jillcwhite Posts: 181 Member
    Hopefully you have friends & family who will invite you over for dinner :smile: that can save $$
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,337 Member
    Dried beans are good. Dried Lentil are good as well. In the long run the cheaper way to purchase them is in a large bag which would mean a more expensive month one month, but the very large bags will last for months after that. I believe we paid about $12-15 dollars for a large bag of lentils about 6 months back, and still have lots left. The big advantage of lentils is they can be cooked without long soak times. About 45 minutes and they are done.
  • Twilightsunflower
    Twilightsunflower Posts: 324 Member
    bump
  • californiansun
    californiansun Posts: 392 Member
    Hopefully you have friends & family who will invite you over for dinner :smile: that can save $$

    My parents always invite us college kids to dinner. :p
  • Amberchalon
    Amberchalon Posts: 207 Member
    Purchasing couscous and lentils is a good option because you can even get the organic kind from whole foods for 1.19 a pound and a pound of couscous or lentils goes a LONG way--also try shopping at ethnic stores such as Asian, Hispanic ect as foods are often cheaper there
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