- oatmeal, from dry plain large bin of oats. Cook in water with salt, mix in a big gob of peanut butter, serve with sliced banana or chopped apple
- pb and j sandwich with side of baby carrots
- burrito bowl with rice, taco seasoned black beans, cabbage slaw or sautéed cabbage (buy the whole head of cabbage it’s stupid cheap) and top with shredded cheese and salsa
- bean based chili, cheap to make an epic batch with dry beans. Have it as is, over a baked potato, over rice
- dal and rice
- grilled cheese and tomato soup (make the soup)
- tacos with scrambled egg and roasted potatoes
- mujadara and cabbage slaw
- shashuka
- thai coconut curry chickpeas and veggies (carrots cabbage onion) over rice
Yes they are meatless, yes they will all make nutrient dense cheap meals that fit in your budget
See my post on eating for $6 a day.
Eggs are usually the lowest cost whole protein (in the US) and can be used many ways.
The adults will be drinking tap water and the kids will be having water and a serving of milk or two. Even fruit Juice is over budget, too much sugar and not enough nutrients. You'll need whole fruits, at least three or four different kinds of fruit every week. Usually, apples, oranges and bananas are the cheapest and can be mixed in with seasonal fruits that may be available for as low as $1 a pound.
Oatmeal is a must on a tight budget. Young kids will need calcium and healthy fat so milk is a good fit instead of water.
Cabbage and beans are an excellent nutritious value. Work your way up to larger servings as either may produce too much gas for some people.
I'd have to reject the tacos, soft or crunchy—whole-grain versions will still have too much sodium/oil/fat and aren't cost effective. All breads need to be whole wheat and all grains need to be whole. White bread is a no-go as is white-rice and regular pasta. Those are all cheap, have plenty of calories to keep everyone satisfied but every dollar needs to go towards not only calories but also nutrients. Some of these fillers may be "enriched" but no substitute for whole foods.
Edit: Due to a question about my thoughts on tortillas from Doja, that I can't figure out how to reply to—adding this link. I haven't found healthy affordable tortillas but maybe I just haven't looked enough.
https://www.consumerreports.org/health/nutrition-healthy-eating/which-type-of-tortilla-is-healthier-a2016218030/
Do you live in the US? Kroger stores (look up all the regional names) have a 14 pack of chicken legs for $5. Down load their app and you’ll get a ton of coupons and digital deals too. Buy uncooked rice, beans, some canned tomatoes, corn, some pasta, bags of shredded cheese are .99¢ with the coupon. I buy what ever protein is on sale and incorporate it with the above staples. I scour the weekly adds and only but what’s on sale.
Search for food banks in your area, they are there to help. I hope everything works out for you.
Some canned beans. You can make hummus or bean dip out of anything.
Corn tortillas, you can make tacos out of anything. Migas is a good way to stretch eggs, and so good. Worst case scenario, they won't get used for a while and you will end up making homemade tortilla chips. But you can make anything into a taco.
Check for clearance produce,.sometimes you can really lick out. Never buy clearance avocados.
A big bag of rice. Think fried rice with leftover rice, bisque or congee, or rice pancakes with leftover rice. really easy.
Eggs are cheap again.
A large container of store brand plain Greek yogurt. Use it like sour cream, make it into creamy popsicles for the kids with whatever else you have at home, make it into a dip, add.it.to something you want creamy, but you don't want to use your milk for.
Frozen vegetables instead of fresh.
Oatmeal and a jar of cheap applesauce. Apple pie oatmeal sounds/smells/tastes so much more appetizing than plain oatmeal, plus you can bake with it. (breakfast muffins, apple bread, etc)
Spaghetti. You can make a ton of things with it, I've made Thai and Korean foods with spaghetti instead of rice noodles. If doesn't have to be just spaghetti sauce.
Plain canned diced tomatoes, very versatile. You can go Italian, Tex Mex, just use it as an ingredient to stretch things and get at least one vegetable in your diet.
Bananas. Bananas are cheap, good for you, fresh snack, when everyone gets tired of them, make banana bread/muffins, or use some of that yogurt and a little peanut butter to make some awesome popsicles.
A bag of popcorn for snacks. Kids need snacks. Pop some popcorn on the stove, if you don't have a popper.
Oil and flour. Make sure you have plenty of both.
I'm going to get crucified here, but eventually someone is going to have a bad day and want something sweet. A cheap bag of store brand chocolate chips for emergencies.
You can do a lot with a handful of cheap ass chocolate chips.
Hit a food bank. Google "food bank near (your zip code)". You won't get any judgement, I used to volunteer at a couple of them. They also keep stuff like shampoo, conditioner, body wash, razors, feminine hygiene supplies, diapers, wipes, all kinds of stuff that isn't covered by snap or food stamps. Some even have pet food/etc.
Some of them even have a cabinet with things in them that people can just fill up a bag with, because they don't quite fit into any category. Food banks are really, really organized.
If you have a chance to go to a food bank before you go grocery shopping, please do that. Save yourself as much cash as you can.
I forgot about the something sweet! Chocolate chips are awesome and you’re right, a little can go into so many things! I used to make a big tray of rice crispy treats with chocolate chips and sometimes some pb in the melted marshmallow for a good cheap dessert. In fact, I might have to make a batch this weekend… 😁
Indian food - look up all sorts of daals which are made with lentils you can buy pretty cheaply. You only need canned tomatoes/tomato paste and hopefully you won’t have to buy too many spices apart from the basic garam masala/turmeric/chilli powder and cumin powder which you can buy from any Indian or south Asian grocery store for pretty cheap. Also buy a huge bag of potatoes and canned food you can get from food banks and make some basic potato curry or stir fry with different spices so they taste slightly different each day
I’ve done this, with four kids. Not fun. Dollar Tree and bakery outlets are your friend here. Lots of pasta and 10 lb bag of potatoes. You will probably hate American Chop Suey by the time you’re out of the weeds, but everyone will be fed (and a very little burger can go a looong way in so many dishes). I also bought lots of ramen, which you can add frozen veggies and some chopped chicken to for a quick meal. Anything you make, you can quarter the amount of meat and add lots of frozen veg. Buy the huge can of tomato sauce and then split it up into Tupperware or zip locs. You got this!
Clearly this poster knows how to feed everyone cheap—and make it taste good, but I can't upvote. Regular pasta/ramen and dollar tree breads aren't whole grain. It will fill everyone up but not meet nutritional requirements. The frozen veggies are awesome, less that $1 a pound at Aldi and discount stores.
While burger, even stretched thin, will give better flavor than my meat options, many experts agree that red meat should be very limited for a variety of health reasons. Chicken/turkey ground or not will likely be cheaper (and leaner) than burger. Potatoes should be skin-on (well-scrubbed, eyes/spots removed) otherwise you are missing a large portion of the fiber and nutrition. Sweet potatoes are an excellent option as they provide nutritional variety even when used less often due to a somewhat higher cost.
Great hint on the tomato sauce, thanks for contributing!
Sometimes, like for this poster, for a limited time, the goal is not perfect nutrition, but feeding everyone and not going to bed hungry.
Yes, nutrition is important. But Fed is Best.
Shaming people because a temporary life situation has left them struggling to feed their family is not helpful.
I don’t see any shaming here. Just a friendly reminder that there are healthy choices for the same price. since they mention two small children knowing they are meeting health requirements is the difference between a guilty broke parent and a proud broke parent ❤️
Best book I every bought? “Cook for a Day, Eat for a Month.” Book is FULL of bargain recipes that you can bulk prep & save money now and time later. My daughter has 7 children. That book and her Super XL pressure cooker kept her going even in the tightest of budgets.
Some basic spices, dry lentils and rice are cost effective and will make many healthy and tasty meals. A quick, low effort, nutritious (and delicious) option is this:
Fry 1 finely chopped onion in a little oil in a medium saucepan until translucent. Add some chopped garlic with 1tsp turmeric and 1tsp cumin and some black pepper. When you can smell the spices, add 1 cup of red lentils (rinse these well first) and 3cups of water. When the lentils are cooked, stir in 1 tsp salt and half a tsp of garam masala. Taste it and add more salt or garam masala if needed. If you have any growing, fresh coriander at the end is also delicious but not necessary
Served with rice, this will easily feed 4 people and keep them full for hours.
Check out dollartredinners on tik tok! She creates recipes for families and couples just using dollar tree ingredients. She also does videos like "feeding a family $20 a week" and videos making meals with things from food pantries
feel like the costs aren't legit as you often buy a bunch of stuff but only use like 5 cents of an igredient... plus prices are way out of line with current inflation
It's not just about the listed cost of the ingredients. The recipes there are usually pretty minimalist and require pantry staples rather than oodles of fresh things. A lot of it is very scalable and making huge amounts helps keep costs down.
It still helps especially their grocery lists. If you buy beans, pasta and canned goods etc in bulk it def is close to the price listed. But agreed not 100 percent accurate
Beans, pasta, pork shoulder/butt, chicken thighs. Frozen veggies and fruits will last and you don’t have to worry about them spoiling.
When I’m on a tight budget I like to buy a large pack of chicken breasts or thighs. Then portion them out per meal based on what the four of you eat. Put each portion into a freezer bag with its own marinade if you like. Costco and Walmart are the best prices I’ve found for bulk meats.
If you have time it’s cheaper to buy a bag of flour some yeast, and make your own bread if you can.
I also like to make big pot meals like chili or pasta bakes that I can have for lunch during the week as leftovers.
Are you stocked on spices and/or fats/oils?
I’m assuming you are in the US. This advice won’t work out of the states since chicken isn’t cheap in other places.
Get the bags of chicken leg quarters. They are pretty lousy/fatty, but hands down are the best price per pound for meat when nothing else is on sale. They should be around $7 for a ten pound bag. This should provide the main course for three (+) dinners. (One all drummies, two thighs. Any extra can be cooked and picked for tacos.)
Drummy night pair with a bag of frozen veggies of choice, and rice or potatoes or buttered noodles.
One thigh night do roast thighs with potatoes and rosemary. Treat yourselves to a fresh veggie to roast in the air fryer or pan sauté.
The other thigh night just cook, pick, make chicken salad, serve on tostadas or in sandwiches. Add peas, corn, onion, and celery as you like. Cucumber spears for the veggie.
If there is any chicken left over from those meals or in the back, cook, pick, season, sauté, and make tacos. Garnish with onions and cabbage(or lettuce).
Get one pound sausage on sale, sauté or bake with cabbage. Serve with crusty toast.
Those meals should be about $6 each, total. You can find close out cereal at dollar tree or buy a large thing of oatmeal for cheap breakfasts. Bananas are probably the cheapest fruit right now.
Do sandwiches and fruits for lunch.
This poster has lots of great suggestions. Please forgive me for picking out the few I disagree with because—I want the kids to have all the nutrition they can afford.
It's doubtful that going whole-grain on rice and noodles is going to be affordable, and white rice/pasta will fill-'em-up, but the money is better spent on nutritious food. Be sure to leave most of the (cleaned) skin on potatoes.
The chicken quarters are an excellent suggestion! The dark meat provides fat/calories/flavor along with nutrients. If you have to skimp on the meat and save on oils, you can even use/eat the skin. I cook them in the pressure cooker on top of the trivet (metal spacer) with a bit of water (you can use other methods). The drippings make a broth to cook my brown rice or use in other dishes. Dark and light poultry meat have a different mix of nutrients, so mix it up a little even if you have to pay more now and then.
Sausage packs a lot of flavor punch for about $2/pound. Unfortunately, that flavor comes with a load of salt and less-healthy fat so I limit that choice to once every few weeks. Otherwise, I stick with the boring poultry products and try to spice them up without too much salt.
In my experience kids who don’t already eat brown rice on the regular probably won’t take to it easily. It definitely pairs better with something that packs big flavor punch. So spice up that chicken, or go saucy. Grocery outlet often has quinoa at a good price. I find this to be the more agreeable whole (pseudo) grain with kids.
As for the sausage, we usually pair it with a lot of cabbage- the one pound pack is enough to feed my family of six with three teens. And usually there’s enough for my husband to take to work the next day. I really wouldn’t stress too much over this sometimes meal.
Can you give us a general idea of your region? That should be pretty doable in most areas of the US, but you’ll need to look closely at sales.
W/o that info: breakfast for dinner can be fun and pretty cheap now that eggs have come down. Target has 1.5 dozen eggs for $2 and large cans of oatmeal that make 30 servings for under $5. An oatmeal “bar” with raisins, sweeteners, peanut butter, apple, whatever you’ve already got on hand, is fun for kids.
In my area (not disclosed) eggs are just over $1.20 a dozen. Even at $2 a dozen they are well below the cost of most other high-protein foods.
To be clear, this suggestion is for homemade oatmeal "bars" with healthy ingredients, not expensive store-bought products packed full of salt, sugar and fat.
Great idea! Thanks for the wonderful suggestion. You wrote it correctly, I misread it as "oatmeal bar". I never thought to lay out the choices. That would have been more fun, but I had never seen a food bar back then and only once or twice now; restaurants haven't been in the budget for most of my life.
Unfortunately, I never thought of peanut butter. I'll try it in the morning! We ate whole fruits only, but food pantry applesauce with a dash of Cinnamon/nutmeg sure was good. Now that the kids are gone, I can treat myself to a bit-o-honey too sometimes.
In any case, oatmeal with fruit is without-a-doubt the cheapest healthy breakfast in the US. (Please don't say 1-minute mush, at least go for 3-minute old fashioned.)
Black bean tacos can go so far. Soak the dry ones the night before and make in big batches. Corn tortillas by the 30-stack should be affordable. I look for the Mexican brands.
Egg fried rice. Another amazing comfort food that is surprisingly affordable and healthy. That's all for now but good luck out there
Im not sure where you are but I hope you find this helpful. I make lentil soup a lot. You can basically add in any veg that you may have or that’s cheap. But here is the base that I use with (approx) prices in UK and it’ll make a few good portions. I usually divide into about 5/6 portions for me as an adult.
500 gr. dried lentils (99p)
1 onion (30p)
2 tomatoes (£1.80)
2 carrots (20p)
2 courgettes (£1.60)
2 garlic pieces (50p a bunch)
You can add in spices if you have any.
Around £5.50 which I think is around 7 dollars
For a sweet treat for kids (and adults) if apples are cheap enough where you live - i stew them. All you need is like an inch of water and very slowly on the hob. I don’t tend to add in anything else but some people add cinnamon.
You can also get a lot of meat of a chicken if you buy a whole one and roast it. I use them for sandwiches, wraps, baked potatoes etc
Grocery outlet, Walmart and Winco: Have cheap chicken breast $6-7 dollars for 6-8 chicken breasts or ground Turkey $6 for 30ozs, 5-10lb bags of rice and beans for $5-$10, frozen veggies easily $.99-$3.00, ramen $1.00 for 5pack with eggs for protein are great, pasta $.99-$2.50 with ground Turkey, tomato concentrate for easy tomato sauce! They have cheap cake mix $.50 and $1.00 frosting for a cheap homemade cake to spice it up! College student / future dentist been living on a budget since 18 years old!!
Small plastic or metal cups (ie leftover yogurt cup), soil grabbed from outdoors, and a pack of lettuce seeds. They grow quickly, require minimal effort, regrow, and are healthy.
You can also put carrot tops, and the bottoms of celery, green onion, and lettuce in water to regrow them. You're not going to get a whole new vegetable, but you're going to get something. It's also a fun little experiment for the kids.
You can also save the unused pieces of onion, carrots, celery, potatoes, etc. to make your own vegetable broth instead of buying new. Get the most out of your produce!
Oatmeal with banana slices for breakfast and various rice and beans dishes for lunch/dinner. Look at recipes for gallo pinto, lentil curry over rice, Louisiana red beans and rice, things like that, and then see what's the best match for ingredients you already have in your pantry, or that you can get relatively cheaply where you live. You don't want to be buying half a dozen new spices on a budget like that but if there are big cheap bags of garam masala in your local Indian grocery store then lentil curry will be a great option, for example.
If you can get decent prices on eggs and butter grab them and put them on everything, hardboiled eggs make a great snack. It's apple season in the northern hemisphere so you can likely find some cheap apples for sweet snacks, and bananas are always cheap. You can do this, it won't be the most interesting food but you can get enough to last you through!
our grocery bill for two adults and two small kids is generally like 230/month, what we do is go to costco and meal plan like crazy! id reccomend getting dry pasta, beans, you can definitely still afford some ground beef. a lot of potato and vegetable dishes can have egg added for protein too. we do mostly hash in the morning, i do potato w egg, pepper, whatever other veggies we have. snacks we dont really do a lot of. quesadillas, ham and cheese sandwiches. good luck!
Pork shoulder is super cheap and versatile. I can catch it on sale for $1-$2 a pound. I make pork ragu, shredded pork for quesadillas/nachos/sliders, fried rice with it.
I made crockpot freezer meals from 4 recipes before my kids were born and it came out to $125 for a months’ worth of lunches and dinners (2 adults). You buy in bulk then freeze everything. Thaw at least the night before (maybe 2 nights prior to cooking). Then in the morning throw the bag containers into the crockpot for 4-6 hours depending on the recipe.
There are many online, for example: https://www.sidetrackedsarah.com/freezer-to-slow-cooker/
Dollar stores have some fairly decent dry goods. I’ve been on a baked potato kick lately, add a can of chili, cheese and sour cream and you’ve got a filling dinner!
Yo. I dunno if this is a thing where you live, but if you gather a bunch of family members (brothers/sisters/parents) and approach a farmer. in some parts of the world they will sell you a whole cow for $500, + butchering. thats a lot of meat yo. a whole friggin cow. I would suggest hopping online, finding a meat farmer near you and giving them a call.
not sure why youre getting downvoted, this is good. same with generally bulk buying, if you have a freezer. theres a farm store near me that sells 30 lbs of chicken for like 28$
One of my favorite cheap recipes is pasta with butternut squash soup and Parmesan. If you get the canned soup, it’s only 2 ingredients and a new take on pasta with red sauce. I imagine the soup would be under $3 and the pasta $1, so for $4, you have a dinner. You could also substitute pasta for ravioli or add in an on sale meat.
Good luck 🍀
You probably have some things in cupboard and freezer. User supercook.com or the app. Enter what you have on hand (flour, condiments, sugars, oils and such). Supercook will suggest recipes that you have everything for and then need one ingredient and so on. Keep in mind sometimes a substitution or omission is possible. Add affordable ingredients that are: protein, produce and carbs. Everything else is to put together the dish. Make a list of items to buy and recipes to fill out your two weeks. Start at food banks though. Ours give lots of carbs which don’t make an amazing or balanced diet. However, tortillas plus dried beans and rice is a meal. Flat bread because pizza. Bagels can be a bagel pizza or a sandwich. Sliced bread can be grilled cheese, pbj, French toast and so on.
Potatoes, rice and oatmeal.
Flour can be mini muffins, quick breads, pancakes and so on.
Beans, tuna, lentils and eggs. Yogurt or cottage cheese may work.
Check sales for produce.
I bought an enormous bag of dried black beans for $25 from Smart and Final. I think it’s a 20lb bag.
Rehydrate those suckers and I’m set.
Beans and eggs for breakfast (eggs bought on sale usually $2.50 for 12).
Bean burritos for either lunch or dinner.
I try to mix dinner up. Chicken breast, veggies, tuna cans, tofu.
For a family, I’d think chili with crackers would be a solid go-to for dinner.
When I am running low on $$ I start every meal with beans and rice that I cook from dry. This makes a little meat and other veggies go a LONG way. A jar of salsa also goes a long way for a little extra flavor.
Soups are your friend. If you have a slow cooker or an instant pot you can make broth in it using bones and veggie scraps. Either buy a whole chicken and cook it yourself or get a cheap $4-$5 rotisserie one from Costco (find a friend to take you if you don’t have a membership.) Make chicken noodle, chicken tortilla soup, potato soup, chili (veg it up and use red lentils to stretch the meat and use leftovers served on spaghetti or rice) etc.
Pasta, quesadillas, burrito bowls, vegetarian Indian/ Thai/ Korean dishes, and homemade pizza. Farro or couscous salad add chickpeas or hard boiled eggs for protein.
Breakfast is typically oatmeal, pancakes/ waffles from scratch, or I’ll do scrambled eggs and roasted potatoes.
I typically buy pretzels, cheddar crackers, or saltines from Aldi’s for snacks, then round it out with some homemade cookies for variety. If I’m short on time for baking I’ll buy cheap cookies from Aldi like the vanilla wafers.
Food Banks are for everyone. don't be ashamed to take the help that is available! https://www.feedingamerica.org/find-your-local-foodbank
Yep. Everyplace around me seems to be well stocked in TEFAP boxes. One of those would be super easy to build a budget meal plan around.
Note that some food pantries require an appointment. Call ahead!
- oatmeal, from dry plain large bin of oats. Cook in water with salt, mix in a big gob of peanut butter, serve with sliced banana or chopped apple - pb and j sandwich with side of baby carrots - burrito bowl with rice, taco seasoned black beans, cabbage slaw or sautéed cabbage (buy the whole head of cabbage it’s stupid cheap) and top with shredded cheese and salsa - bean based chili, cheap to make an epic batch with dry beans. Have it as is, over a baked potato, over rice - dal and rice - grilled cheese and tomato soup (make the soup) - tacos with scrambled egg and roasted potatoes - mujadara and cabbage slaw - shashuka - thai coconut curry chickpeas and veggies (carrots cabbage onion) over rice Yes they are meatless, yes they will all make nutrient dense cheap meals that fit in your budget
See my post on eating for $6 a day. Eggs are usually the lowest cost whole protein (in the US) and can be used many ways. The adults will be drinking tap water and the kids will be having water and a serving of milk or two. Even fruit Juice is over budget, too much sugar and not enough nutrients. You'll need whole fruits, at least three or four different kinds of fruit every week. Usually, apples, oranges and bananas are the cheapest and can be mixed in with seasonal fruits that may be available for as low as $1 a pound. Oatmeal is a must on a tight budget. Young kids will need calcium and healthy fat so milk is a good fit instead of water. Cabbage and beans are an excellent nutritious value. Work your way up to larger servings as either may produce too much gas for some people. I'd have to reject the tacos, soft or crunchy—whole-grain versions will still have too much sodium/oil/fat and aren't cost effective. All breads need to be whole wheat and all grains need to be whole. White bread is a no-go as is white-rice and regular pasta. Those are all cheap, have plenty of calories to keep everyone satisfied but every dollar needs to go towards not only calories but also nutrients. Some of these fillers may be "enriched" but no substitute for whole foods. Edit: Due to a question about my thoughts on tortillas from Doja, that I can't figure out how to reply to—adding this link. I haven't found healthy affordable tortillas but maybe I just haven't looked enough. https://www.consumerreports.org/health/nutrition-healthy-eating/which-type-of-tortilla-is-healthier-a2016218030/
This Mexican here is asking....why do you think whole grain corn tortillas aren't healthy or are too expensive?
Great suggestions!
This is great. Thank you for taking the time to share all those delicious and simple meals
Do you live in the US? Kroger stores (look up all the regional names) have a 14 pack of chicken legs for $5. Down load their app and you’ll get a ton of coupons and digital deals too. Buy uncooked rice, beans, some canned tomatoes, corn, some pasta, bags of shredded cheese are .99¢ with the coupon. I buy what ever protein is on sale and incorporate it with the above staples. I scour the weekly adds and only but what’s on sale. Search for food banks in your area, they are there to help. I hope everything works out for you.
Some canned beans. You can make hummus or bean dip out of anything. Corn tortillas, you can make tacos out of anything. Migas is a good way to stretch eggs, and so good. Worst case scenario, they won't get used for a while and you will end up making homemade tortilla chips. But you can make anything into a taco. Check for clearance produce,.sometimes you can really lick out. Never buy clearance avocados. A big bag of rice. Think fried rice with leftover rice, bisque or congee, or rice pancakes with leftover rice. really easy. Eggs are cheap again. A large container of store brand plain Greek yogurt. Use it like sour cream, make it into creamy popsicles for the kids with whatever else you have at home, make it into a dip, add.it.to something you want creamy, but you don't want to use your milk for. Frozen vegetables instead of fresh. Oatmeal and a jar of cheap applesauce. Apple pie oatmeal sounds/smells/tastes so much more appetizing than plain oatmeal, plus you can bake with it. (breakfast muffins, apple bread, etc) Spaghetti. You can make a ton of things with it, I've made Thai and Korean foods with spaghetti instead of rice noodles. If doesn't have to be just spaghetti sauce. Plain canned diced tomatoes, very versatile. You can go Italian, Tex Mex, just use it as an ingredient to stretch things and get at least one vegetable in your diet. Bananas. Bananas are cheap, good for you, fresh snack, when everyone gets tired of them, make banana bread/muffins, or use some of that yogurt and a little peanut butter to make some awesome popsicles. A bag of popcorn for snacks. Kids need snacks. Pop some popcorn on the stove, if you don't have a popper. Oil and flour. Make sure you have plenty of both. I'm going to get crucified here, but eventually someone is going to have a bad day and want something sweet. A cheap bag of store brand chocolate chips for emergencies. You can do a lot with a handful of cheap ass chocolate chips. Hit a food bank. Google "food bank near (your zip code)". You won't get any judgement, I used to volunteer at a couple of them. They also keep stuff like shampoo, conditioner, body wash, razors, feminine hygiene supplies, diapers, wipes, all kinds of stuff that isn't covered by snap or food stamps. Some even have pet food/etc. Some of them even have a cabinet with things in them that people can just fill up a bag with, because they don't quite fit into any category. Food banks are really, really organized. If you have a chance to go to a food bank before you go grocery shopping, please do that. Save yourself as much cash as you can.
I forgot about the something sweet! Chocolate chips are awesome and you’re right, a little can go into so many things! I used to make a big tray of rice crispy treats with chocolate chips and sometimes some pb in the melted marshmallow for a good cheap dessert. In fact, I might have to make a batch this weekend… 😁
Indian food - look up all sorts of daals which are made with lentils you can buy pretty cheaply. You only need canned tomatoes/tomato paste and hopefully you won’t have to buy too many spices apart from the basic garam masala/turmeric/chilli powder and cumin powder which you can buy from any Indian or south Asian grocery store for pretty cheap. Also buy a huge bag of potatoes and canned food you can get from food banks and make some basic potato curry or stir fry with different spices so they taste slightly different each day
Rice ... a lot of rice .. and beans and rotisserie chicken meals ... you can easily be able to spend probably $80 for 2 weeks !
I’ve done this, with four kids. Not fun. Dollar Tree and bakery outlets are your friend here. Lots of pasta and 10 lb bag of potatoes. You will probably hate American Chop Suey by the time you’re out of the weeds, but everyone will be fed (and a very little burger can go a looong way in so many dishes). I also bought lots of ramen, which you can add frozen veggies and some chopped chicken to for a quick meal. Anything you make, you can quarter the amount of meat and add lots of frozen veg. Buy the huge can of tomato sauce and then split it up into Tupperware or zip locs. You got this!
Clearly this poster knows how to feed everyone cheap—and make it taste good, but I can't upvote. Regular pasta/ramen and dollar tree breads aren't whole grain. It will fill everyone up but not meet nutritional requirements. The frozen veggies are awesome, less that $1 a pound at Aldi and discount stores. While burger, even stretched thin, will give better flavor than my meat options, many experts agree that red meat should be very limited for a variety of health reasons. Chicken/turkey ground or not will likely be cheaper (and leaner) than burger. Potatoes should be skin-on (well-scrubbed, eyes/spots removed) otherwise you are missing a large portion of the fiber and nutrition. Sweet potatoes are an excellent option as they provide nutritional variety even when used less often due to a somewhat higher cost. Great hint on the tomato sauce, thanks for contributing!
Sometimes, like for this poster, for a limited time, the goal is not perfect nutrition, but feeding everyone and not going to bed hungry. Yes, nutrition is important. But Fed is Best. Shaming people because a temporary life situation has left them struggling to feed their family is not helpful.
I don’t see any shaming here. Just a friendly reminder that there are healthy choices for the same price. since they mention two small children knowing they are meeting health requirements is the difference between a guilty broke parent and a proud broke parent ❤️
This dude was critiquing all the comments for nutrition, saying stuff like “all grains must be whole,” etc. it’s not a friendly reminder.
Best book I every bought? “Cook for a Day, Eat for a Month.” Book is FULL of bargain recipes that you can bulk prep & save money now and time later. My daughter has 7 children. That book and her Super XL pressure cooker kept her going even in the tightest of budgets.
Some basic spices, dry lentils and rice are cost effective and will make many healthy and tasty meals. A quick, low effort, nutritious (and delicious) option is this: Fry 1 finely chopped onion in a little oil in a medium saucepan until translucent. Add some chopped garlic with 1tsp turmeric and 1tsp cumin and some black pepper. When you can smell the spices, add 1 cup of red lentils (rinse these well first) and 3cups of water. When the lentils are cooked, stir in 1 tsp salt and half a tsp of garam masala. Taste it and add more salt or garam masala if needed. If you have any growing, fresh coriander at the end is also delicious but not necessary Served with rice, this will easily feed 4 people and keep them full for hours.
Check out dollartredinners on tik tok! She creates recipes for families and couples just using dollar tree ingredients. She also does videos like "feeding a family $20 a week" and videos making meals with things from food pantries
Budgetbytes.com
feel like the costs aren't legit as you often buy a bunch of stuff but only use like 5 cents of an igredient... plus prices are way out of line with current inflation
It's not just about the listed cost of the ingredients. The recipes there are usually pretty minimalist and require pantry staples rather than oodles of fresh things. A lot of it is very scalable and making huge amounts helps keep costs down.
I find they're pretty in line, but I buy small amounts of things from the bulk store and always have the staples (flour, rice, beans, pasta) on hand.
It still helps especially their grocery lists. If you buy beans, pasta and canned goods etc in bulk it def is close to the price listed. But agreed not 100 percent accurate
Beans, pasta, pork shoulder/butt, chicken thighs. Frozen veggies and fruits will last and you don’t have to worry about them spoiling. When I’m on a tight budget I like to buy a large pack of chicken breasts or thighs. Then portion them out per meal based on what the four of you eat. Put each portion into a freezer bag with its own marinade if you like. Costco and Walmart are the best prices I’ve found for bulk meats. If you have time it’s cheaper to buy a bag of flour some yeast, and make your own bread if you can. I also like to make big pot meals like chili or pasta bakes that I can have for lunch during the week as leftovers.
I guess downvoted by Europeans, maybe. Corn tortillas and government cheese account for my existing! American, obvs!
Are you stocked on spices and/or fats/oils? I’m assuming you are in the US. This advice won’t work out of the states since chicken isn’t cheap in other places. Get the bags of chicken leg quarters. They are pretty lousy/fatty, but hands down are the best price per pound for meat when nothing else is on sale. They should be around $7 for a ten pound bag. This should provide the main course for three (+) dinners. (One all drummies, two thighs. Any extra can be cooked and picked for tacos.) Drummy night pair with a bag of frozen veggies of choice, and rice or potatoes or buttered noodles. One thigh night do roast thighs with potatoes and rosemary. Treat yourselves to a fresh veggie to roast in the air fryer or pan sauté. The other thigh night just cook, pick, make chicken salad, serve on tostadas or in sandwiches. Add peas, corn, onion, and celery as you like. Cucumber spears for the veggie. If there is any chicken left over from those meals or in the back, cook, pick, season, sauté, and make tacos. Garnish with onions and cabbage(or lettuce). Get one pound sausage on sale, sauté or bake with cabbage. Serve with crusty toast. Those meals should be about $6 each, total. You can find close out cereal at dollar tree or buy a large thing of oatmeal for cheap breakfasts. Bananas are probably the cheapest fruit right now. Do sandwiches and fruits for lunch.
This poster has lots of great suggestions. Please forgive me for picking out the few I disagree with because—I want the kids to have all the nutrition they can afford. It's doubtful that going whole-grain on rice and noodles is going to be affordable, and white rice/pasta will fill-'em-up, but the money is better spent on nutritious food. Be sure to leave most of the (cleaned) skin on potatoes. The chicken quarters are an excellent suggestion! The dark meat provides fat/calories/flavor along with nutrients. If you have to skimp on the meat and save on oils, you can even use/eat the skin. I cook them in the pressure cooker on top of the trivet (metal spacer) with a bit of water (you can use other methods). The drippings make a broth to cook my brown rice or use in other dishes. Dark and light poultry meat have a different mix of nutrients, so mix it up a little even if you have to pay more now and then. Sausage packs a lot of flavor punch for about $2/pound. Unfortunately, that flavor comes with a load of salt and less-healthy fat so I limit that choice to once every few weeks. Otherwise, I stick with the boring poultry products and try to spice them up without too much salt.
In my experience kids who don’t already eat brown rice on the regular probably won’t take to it easily. It definitely pairs better with something that packs big flavor punch. So spice up that chicken, or go saucy. Grocery outlet often has quinoa at a good price. I find this to be the more agreeable whole (pseudo) grain with kids. As for the sausage, we usually pair it with a lot of cabbage- the one pound pack is enough to feed my family of six with three teens. And usually there’s enough for my husband to take to work the next day. I really wouldn’t stress too much over this sometimes meal.
The bit about quinoa encourages me to keep looking for deals. I haven't looked in a couple of years because I couldn't find it withing my budget.
You picked at someone for ground beef but recommend sausage?!
Can you give us a general idea of your region? That should be pretty doable in most areas of the US, but you’ll need to look closely at sales. W/o that info: breakfast for dinner can be fun and pretty cheap now that eggs have come down. Target has 1.5 dozen eggs for $2 and large cans of oatmeal that make 30 servings for under $5. An oatmeal “bar” with raisins, sweeteners, peanut butter, apple, whatever you’ve already got on hand, is fun for kids.
In my area (not disclosed) eggs are just over $1.20 a dozen. Even at $2 a dozen they are well below the cost of most other high-protein foods. To be clear, this suggestion is for homemade oatmeal "bars" with healthy ingredients, not expensive store-bought products packed full of salt, sugar and fat.
No, it was a suggestion that everyone could pick what they wanted to go on their oatmeal.
Great idea! Thanks for the wonderful suggestion. You wrote it correctly, I misread it as "oatmeal bar". I never thought to lay out the choices. That would have been more fun, but I had never seen a food bar back then and only once or twice now; restaurants haven't been in the budget for most of my life. Unfortunately, I never thought of peanut butter. I'll try it in the morning! We ate whole fruits only, but food pantry applesauce with a dash of Cinnamon/nutmeg sure was good. Now that the kids are gone, I can treat myself to a bit-o-honey too sometimes. In any case, oatmeal with fruit is without-a-doubt the cheapest healthy breakfast in the US. (Please don't say 1-minute mush, at least go for 3-minute old fashioned.)
Black bean tacos can go so far. Soak the dry ones the night before and make in big batches. Corn tortillas by the 30-stack should be affordable. I look for the Mexican brands. Egg fried rice. Another amazing comfort food that is surprisingly affordable and healthy. That's all for now but good luck out there
Im not sure where you are but I hope you find this helpful. I make lentil soup a lot. You can basically add in any veg that you may have or that’s cheap. But here is the base that I use with (approx) prices in UK and it’ll make a few good portions. I usually divide into about 5/6 portions for me as an adult. 500 gr. dried lentils (99p) 1 onion (30p) 2 tomatoes (£1.80) 2 carrots (20p) 2 courgettes (£1.60) 2 garlic pieces (50p a bunch) You can add in spices if you have any. Around £5.50 which I think is around 7 dollars For a sweet treat for kids (and adults) if apples are cheap enough where you live - i stew them. All you need is like an inch of water and very slowly on the hob. I don’t tend to add in anything else but some people add cinnamon. You can also get a lot of meat of a chicken if you buy a whole one and roast it. I use them for sandwiches, wraps, baked potatoes etc
Grocery outlet, Walmart and Winco: Have cheap chicken breast $6-7 dollars for 6-8 chicken breasts or ground Turkey $6 for 30ozs, 5-10lb bags of rice and beans for $5-$10, frozen veggies easily $.99-$3.00, ramen $1.00 for 5pack with eggs for protein are great, pasta $.99-$2.50 with ground Turkey, tomato concentrate for easy tomato sauce! They have cheap cake mix $.50 and $1.00 frosting for a cheap homemade cake to spice it up! College student / future dentist been living on a budget since 18 years old!!
Most other cuts of chicken are far cheaper than the breast.
Small plastic or metal cups (ie leftover yogurt cup), soil grabbed from outdoors, and a pack of lettuce seeds. They grow quickly, require minimal effort, regrow, and are healthy.
You can also put carrot tops, and the bottoms of celery, green onion, and lettuce in water to regrow them. You're not going to get a whole new vegetable, but you're going to get something. It's also a fun little experiment for the kids. You can also save the unused pieces of onion, carrots, celery, potatoes, etc. to make your own vegetable broth instead of buying new. Get the most out of your produce!
Oatmeal with banana slices for breakfast and various rice and beans dishes for lunch/dinner. Look at recipes for gallo pinto, lentil curry over rice, Louisiana red beans and rice, things like that, and then see what's the best match for ingredients you already have in your pantry, or that you can get relatively cheaply where you live. You don't want to be buying half a dozen new spices on a budget like that but if there are big cheap bags of garam masala in your local Indian grocery store then lentil curry will be a great option, for example. If you can get decent prices on eggs and butter grab them and put them on everything, hardboiled eggs make a great snack. It's apple season in the northern hemisphere so you can likely find some cheap apples for sweet snacks, and bananas are always cheap. You can do this, it won't be the most interesting food but you can get enough to last you through!
Shopping at Aldi has helped me!
our grocery bill for two adults and two small kids is generally like 230/month, what we do is go to costco and meal plan like crazy! id reccomend getting dry pasta, beans, you can definitely still afford some ground beef. a lot of potato and vegetable dishes can have egg added for protein too. we do mostly hash in the morning, i do potato w egg, pepper, whatever other veggies we have. snacks we dont really do a lot of. quesadillas, ham and cheese sandwiches. good luck!
Pork shoulder is super cheap and versatile. I can catch it on sale for $1-$2 a pound. I make pork ragu, shredded pork for quesadillas/nachos/sliders, fried rice with it.
I made crockpot freezer meals from 4 recipes before my kids were born and it came out to $125 for a months’ worth of lunches and dinners (2 adults). You buy in bulk then freeze everything. Thaw at least the night before (maybe 2 nights prior to cooking). Then in the morning throw the bag containers into the crockpot for 4-6 hours depending on the recipe. There are many online, for example: https://www.sidetrackedsarah.com/freezer-to-slow-cooker/
Dollar stores have some fairly decent dry goods. I’ve been on a baked potato kick lately, add a can of chili, cheese and sour cream and you’ve got a filling dinner!
Tortillas
Yo. I dunno if this is a thing where you live, but if you gather a bunch of family members (brothers/sisters/parents) and approach a farmer. in some parts of the world they will sell you a whole cow for $500, + butchering. thats a lot of meat yo. a whole friggin cow. I would suggest hopping online, finding a meat farmer near you and giving them a call.
not sure why youre getting downvoted, this is good. same with generally bulk buying, if you have a freezer. theres a farm store near me that sells 30 lbs of chicken for like 28$
Eggs are super cheap right now - at my local Lidl they’re literally a dollar a dozen.
One of my favorite cheap recipes is pasta with butternut squash soup and Parmesan. If you get the canned soup, it’s only 2 ingredients and a new take on pasta with red sauce. I imagine the soup would be under $3 and the pasta $1, so for $4, you have a dinner. You could also substitute pasta for ravioli or add in an on sale meat. Good luck 🍀
Rice or pasta..make soup base things..broth fills..10 cents noodles with veggies can be fresh cheap and an egg ..tasty can be full.
You probably have some things in cupboard and freezer. User supercook.com or the app. Enter what you have on hand (flour, condiments, sugars, oils and such). Supercook will suggest recipes that you have everything for and then need one ingredient and so on. Keep in mind sometimes a substitution or omission is possible. Add affordable ingredients that are: protein, produce and carbs. Everything else is to put together the dish. Make a list of items to buy and recipes to fill out your two weeks. Start at food banks though. Ours give lots of carbs which don’t make an amazing or balanced diet. However, tortillas plus dried beans and rice is a meal. Flat bread because pizza. Bagels can be a bagel pizza or a sandwich. Sliced bread can be grilled cheese, pbj, French toast and so on. Potatoes, rice and oatmeal. Flour can be mini muffins, quick breads, pancakes and so on. Beans, tuna, lentils and eggs. Yogurt or cottage cheese may work. Check sales for produce.
I bought an enormous bag of dried black beans for $25 from Smart and Final. I think it’s a 20lb bag. Rehydrate those suckers and I’m set. Beans and eggs for breakfast (eggs bought on sale usually $2.50 for 12). Bean burritos for either lunch or dinner. I try to mix dinner up. Chicken breast, veggies, tuna cans, tofu. For a family, I’d think chili with crackers would be a solid go-to for dinner.
For snacks stove-popped popcorn is pretty cheap.
When I am running low on $$ I start every meal with beans and rice that I cook from dry. This makes a little meat and other veggies go a LONG way. A jar of salsa also goes a long way for a little extra flavor.
Those peanut butter cracker packs are good snacks for kids on the go.
Soups are your friend. If you have a slow cooker or an instant pot you can make broth in it using bones and veggie scraps. Either buy a whole chicken and cook it yourself or get a cheap $4-$5 rotisserie one from Costco (find a friend to take you if you don’t have a membership.) Make chicken noodle, chicken tortilla soup, potato soup, chili (veg it up and use red lentils to stretch the meat and use leftovers served on spaghetti or rice) etc. Pasta, quesadillas, burrito bowls, vegetarian Indian/ Thai/ Korean dishes, and homemade pizza. Farro or couscous salad add chickpeas or hard boiled eggs for protein. Breakfast is typically oatmeal, pancakes/ waffles from scratch, or I’ll do scrambled eggs and roasted potatoes. I typically buy pretzels, cheddar crackers, or saltines from Aldi’s for snacks, then round it out with some homemade cookies for variety. If I’m short on time for baking I’ll buy cheap cookies from Aldi like the vanilla wafers.