In college I had a coworker tell me she fed her family of 5 for less than a dollar a day. My first reaction was to be impressed because I as a single girl couldn’t feed myself for a dollar a day much less anyone else. But then I remembered that this was the same woman who believed me when I told her at the company Christmas party that I had made the sugar cookies with the Santa face in the middle by painstakingly tinting three different colors of dough, shaping Santa Claus by hand and then rolling it all up into a log before cutting and cooking them. Yeah, they were totally those Pillsbury cookie rolls (that always remind me of the packages of liverwurst my dad used to eat on crackers) that the lazy among us use when we don’t feel like cooking. So her judgement might have been a bit spotty when it comes to food, is what I’m saying. Sure enough my suspicions were confirmed when she invited me over for dinner. It turns out you can eat for less than a dollar a day – no telethon needed! – if all you eat is 25 cent mac-n-cheese and 8-for-a-dollar “hot dogs.”
It has long been stated as fact by hand-wringing politicians that part of the very real toll on poor people’s health is their lack of access to affordable healthy food. While I don’t wish to minimize the plight of the poor, there are ways to eat cheaply while not getting rickets. I do not claim to be an expert at budgeting, cooking or, well anything really, and yet when I got this e-mail from Reader Brittney I got all giddy:
I know in the past you have mentioned having a grocery budget and your home baking (bread, etc) to help keep costs down. Would you mind sharing more of your cost saving tips with me? I searched your blog (maybe I missed it if you did a past post please let me know) but couldn’t find one about that topic.
Brittney, girl, you are not alone. Who among us hasn’t needed to do some belt tightening these days? Thanks to my good friend and money mentor Shellie, grocery budgeting has recently become my passion. See, Shellie manages to feed her family of 6 on a budget of 3-4$ per person/day and still stays true to her priority of feeding her kids organic fruits and veggies, whole grains and organic dairy. Here are a few tips I have picked up from her:
1. Make a month’s menu in advance. It’s really not as daunting as it sounds, especially when you consider that you eat the same 15 or so meals over and over again. Make a calendar and write down your dinner for that day. I like to add in some fun by making theme days like Fish Friday and Mexican Monday (we’re not Catholic or Mexican but I can’t resist a good alliteration!). I also have a crockpot day, a soup night and a vegetarian night where I shamelessly try to wean my family off their dependence on dead animals. Plus the kids each get to pick a meal each week that they choose, prep and help me cook.
2. From your menu, come up with a master grocery list and do ALL your shopping for the month in one ginormous trip. You can buy all your non-perishables for the month in one fell swoop and then just have a short list of 5 or 6 perishable items like produce and milk that you buy each week. At the beginning of each month I hit the super-discount food store Aldi first. Then I buy whatever I can’t find there at Costco and Target. It’s a lot of work but I leave the kids with my husband, buy myself a smoothie and call it a mini vacay.
These two steps alone have helped me slash (so violent!) my spending by HALF. It’s amazing what having a list and sticking to it will do for your budget. Some people prefer to plan out two weeks in advance rather than a whole month and I say do whatever works best for you but keep in mind that every time you enter a store, you are going to see things you want to buy so just minimize the number of times you have to go in each store. (i.e. If I had to go into Costco every 2 weeks instead of once a month, I’d have to leave one of our children in hoc to pay the bill. Yeah, I love Costco that much.)
3. Cook more. So many things – but not everything! – are cheaper to make than to buy. While I totally suck at cooking, I do actually kind of enjoy it so it doesn’t feel like a burden to me to cook a lot. Out of the 21 meals we eat every week, I cook (and clean up, SIGH) 20 of them. My good friend Beth rescued a used bread maker for me and I use that thing almost daily. I also make our breakfast foods in big batches so I can freeze them and reheat them for quicker mornings. (Apparently I’m obsessed with themes and alliteration because our breakfasts are: Monday muffins, Tuesday Toast & eggs, Wednesday waffles, Thursday (French) Toast, Friday Free-for-all meaning oatmeal, chicken sausage, soy patty “mcmuffins” or whatever. Saturday is the only day the kids get to eat cereal and then I make them mix the sugary stuff half and half with a healthier variety. Sundays are protein Smoothies.) I also make my own yogurt in the crockpot (not that I can eat it any more). Make the crock pot your new best friend. Home cooked meals don’t have to be elaborate to be healthy and tasty!
4. Don’t be afraid of discount stores. One of you commented on my post about food snobbery that you buy fresh produce at the dollar store. While my dollar store doesn’t sell produce, they do have nuts, beans (canned & dry), canned fruits and veggies that are usually a good deal – not to mention the large array of cheap costume jewelry that I simply cannot resist. (Do the math though because sometimes the dollar store rips you off in container sizes.) Farmer’s markets and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) boxes – for those of you who live in an area where food can actually be grown (i.e. not Minnesota in the winter) – can be a gold mine of fresh*, local produce. Check out Asian and Hispanic markets in your area as well as specialty items are often much cheaper there. Plus you can call it a cultural experience and practice your “Donde esta el servicio?” skills!
5. Once the money’s gone, it’s gone. This is the hardest step. I spend over half my budget during that one massive shopping trip at the beginning of the month and if I haven’t planned well and the money runs out before the next paycheck then I just don’t buy anything else. It’s tempting to whip out the ol’ credit card but then you just start the next month in a hole. You’ll be surprised what you have left in your fridge and cabinets! You may have to get creative but you probably won’t starve.
You may have noticed one thing not on my list: coupons. There are lots of you out there who are much better homemakers than I am (probably all of you actually, you should see the state of my kitchen right now – you’d think we live in the Roadhouse Cafe what with all the pistachio shells littering the floor) and who have figured out the whole coupon thing. Whole websites exist dedicated to the art and science of couponing whereby you get free stuff – and sometimes even get them to pay you! – by combining store sales with coupons. Gym Buddy Allison is the Zen Master at couponing and I’m constantly amazed by what all she manages to get but for myself, I haven’t figured out a way to do it in a time effective manner. I simply have too many kids to drag them into 6 different stores every week. So while I applaud those of you that do, I don’t coupon. My point: You don’t need to be a master cook or a coupon expert or a dumpster diver to eat very well for very cheaply.
This method works for me. It’s not for everyone – there are many different ways to stretch a penny! Let me know your best healthy eating on a budget tip! Do you make your own pasta? Share a CSA box with a neighbor? Grow a garden? Ferment your own vanilla in a bottle of vodka hidden in the back of your closet??
Note: This tip courtesy of supermodel Angie Everhardt will save you money and help you lose weight but I wouldn’t call it healthy. Turns out she lost all her baby weight by “going 3 or 4 days without eating.” Nice.
*Thanks to all of you who pointed out in the comments of my Food Snobbery post that the purpose of eating organic foods is not just their possible health benefits but that it is better for the environment and is more sustainable in the long run. You are, of course, exactly right and I regret my overly narrow focus.
I find making my own pasta sauce with cheap tomatoes (the ones that are on sale because they're very ripe) and fresh vege's. I freeze batches and have it over pasta when I'm too lazy to cook, or I'm saving money. It ends up being a very cheap meal.
I also make my own salsa; guacamole and beans. This save a heap of money and tastes much better.
I've found that usually the packaged products end up more expensive than spending the time and making it myself.
I'm not a great cook and don't really enjoy cooking, unless I've purchased myself a new gadget, and then it's more about playing than cooking !
I find that buying things like toilet paper in bulk at somewhere like Aldi can really save me a bit.
I'm also looking into buying a yogurt maker. The price of yogurt is getting ridiculous !
Thanks Charlotte! Great tips as always. It seems like breakfast cereal is continually eating a bigger hole in my grocery wallet (darn those growing kids) so I may have to try some of your breakfast alliterations. Do you make those (muffins, waffles, etc) every morning or bake and freeze in batches?
We make large batches and freeze pasta sauce, enchiladas and pancakes, but now I have more ideas to test out!
Thanks for the great post! I've been struggling trying to buy more organic food and swearing off of meat for a few nights a week in order to buy chicken breasts from chickens that weren't tortured! Surprisingly it has gone really well, I just buy much less meat, which saves money in the long run and then stock up when there is a pre-seasoned tofu sale (I have yet to see the chicken go on sale). Probably would be more cost effective if I could figure out how to cook tofu myself without deep frying it! I also make a lot of bean-based dishes if I don't want/don't have tofu.
I only have to worry about feeding myself, so I generally stick to either making very moderately sized meals (only cooking what I will eat) or making a large batch of something I can freeze or eat for lunch. Homemade soup is my favorite big batch meal. I save a ton of money just by making sure I have a home-cooked meal for lunch every day instead of eating out.
I plan a menu for a month at a time and do one big shopping trip, too. It works very well! Besides, I don't have to think everyday about what I'm going to eat.
Also, if I decide not to have something on one day, I just switch it with something already on my menu so I already have the ingredients.
And get this, I have breakfast theme days, too. I think we must have had these kinds of discussions at playgroups or something!
Love the post- I plan my meal and grocery shopping too and it's the best- but I really have to comment on the organic part. My brother is passionate about NOT buying organic because about 40% of the world would starve if everyone ate organic due to the fall in food production. How's that for unethical?
Nicely done Charlotte, those be some killer tips. Tips I'll be incorporating.
For the dudes who want to gain MASS on the cheap, here is my top list of foods for the mass builder on a budget:
Peanut-butter
Oatmeal
Eggs (Whole! Eggwhite is for dorks)
Oliveoil
Cottagecheese
Tuna
Chicken
Kidney Beans
Great post, Charlotte! I'm terrible about my food budget, but I do a lot of home cooking, canning, freezing, etc. and don't buy the packaged stuff (all those preservatives and the expense) except for an occasional frozen pizza for the days when I'm just too busy (lazy?) to cook.
Hubby is a "meat & potatoes" kind of guy, and prefers home cooked meals. I make big batches of soup, stew and pasta sauce and freeze the extra portions.
And I grow a garden. Which means absolutely nothing in the winter, except that we can eat the veggies that I prepped and froze in the fall (peas, green beans, carrots) and the tomatoes I canned.
(Wow, my comment is almost as long as your post was! Sorry!)
I do a montha t a time shopping too…our local store has a 10% off day once a month and we do the majority of our shopping then, armed with a master list. Sure we end up having to go back for some things throughout the month, but the $$ we save on the discount pretty much covers that.
I do spend money on food. Healthy food. I cut costs when I can, but for me, low preservatives in food I largely cook myself has made a huge difference in our health and our grocery bill.
I love to cook, so it's no biggie. My hardest thing is choosing what to make. I put a list of our favourite 10 or so meals on the fridge so if I don't know what to make I just look at the list and pick one…it helps.
Cooking for yourself takes time. But it's healthier and so tasty…J and I just hang out and talk about our day after work as I make supper. It's nice. On weekend I make more elaborate stuff as there is more time. Having a breadmaker is awesome too…
I gotta admit, recently renoing my kitchen was nice too. My kitchen is so much nicer to be in now š
The thing about everything you just described – cooking, planning, even coupon cutting – is the amount of time it takes. When you're working more than overtime, and picking up side jobs, to help pay the bills, it gets a lot harder do all that.
My main trick is that there is a Trader Joe's (super healthy, tons of organic and WAAAAY cheap food) about two blocks from my parents. When I visit, I buy as much as my budget (and my cooler) will allow, and then freeze. I usually get 1-3 months worth, and I focus on the things with the greatest savings. I also buy produce from the farmers markets here in bulk when it's in season and freeze – a lot of the farmers don't market themselves as organic, but really are. But I live in a place with a pretty good variety of produce in the summer.
As far as the rest, though, I simply work too much to have the time to cook anything more than the most basic meals. It's interesting – Gawker (a political blog) had some items yesterday about the cause of obesity and whether seats should be made bigger. Several people commented that some healthy foods are cheap (lettuce, beans and rice were mentioned). But a lot of people pointed out that to eat healthy, you have to either spend more money or spend time, or both – it's REALLY hard to eat healthily, cheaply AND quickly. It doesn't always mean people who hit the drive through or heat a frozen meal are more lazy than those who cook from scratch – sometimes it just means that after working more than 12 hours in one day, getting ready for a second job, we're tired! We need sleep, and it's hard to then cook a healthy meal from scratch.
Thanks for this post! We don't have a family yet but I will be looking at this post again when we do…right now shopping and planning weekly works, even if I end up buying, erm, Dunkaroos or Chinese sesame snacks just for fun.
LG
very sensible tips. i wish my family was willing to do these.
i think too many families, though, WANT to believe that they can only afford junk food. it's like the world says "eating healthy is really hard for poorer folks" and they take it as law rather than work to find solutions, it's almost like giving them licenses to eat poorly.
I do not really follow a budget or plan any more than a few days in advance – used to do 2 weeks at at time, need to get back to that. That said, last year I did have a ban on shopping for anything other than fruit, veggies, milk while we worked our way through the freezer and pantry. I had stockpiled from here and there but then forget what I buy and buy more. It is amazing how long you can go when you do that. To make it easier to go through, I typed up a list of everything in the freezer and categorized it and then crossed it off when we used it. The last few meals were a bit odd but still tasty. Actually, could probably use another shopping ban looking at the pantry.
My food bills are high, as my husband and I eat out a lot. The problem is that I work full time and I'm in graduate school full time as well. I also have a long commute to and from work each day and often work Saturdays too. I would love to cook our nightly meals and plan meals in advance (and I have tried) but whenever things start getting more stressful and papers are due or I have a juggle a paper and a work assignment, the first thing that gets ignored in my meal plan. Most of the time, I'm actually happy to just eat some kind of sandwich or to microwave something and my husband, also a student, agrees. I've noticed that in the end we've actually wound up wasting money by planning our meals and buying groceries, because many times we never actually get the chance to cook. I hope that when I finish graduate school or get a new job (or both, hopefully!) I will have more time to organize my life in other areas. Also, we're both in our mid-20's and not planning on having children for another 5 years or so, but by then I hope to have my act together.
Awesome post. I'm sending my readers over to you today — this is an awesome supplement to some posts I wrote about managing a healthy kitchen.
http://theclothesmakethegirl.blogspot.com/2010/01/paleo-kitchen-stocking-up.html
http://theclothesmakethegirl.blogspot.com/2010/01/paleo-kitchen-method-behind-my-madness.html
Thanks, as always, for your kickass content. You're on the top of my "start the day" blog list.
I dream of being one of those people who spends all Sunday clipping coupons and making a giant trip to the grocery store (saving lots and lots of money of course). Iām the most horrible grocery shopper ever. I never plan meals. And my biggest non-rent expense is food. I keep telling myself this is the week where I buckle down and start being a smart shopper but then I get sidetracked. So this is the week. Really.
We have joined Bountiful Baskets at bountifulbaskets.org. For $16.50 you get two small laundry baskets full of fresh and healthy fruits and veggies. It is always a surprise inside and it is fun to figure out how to use the produce that I would never buy on my own. We live off this and we are so much healthier. If we get some chickens I will never have to go to the store again. (For food)
I buy organic where possible for the health and environmental benefits. For coupons on healthy foods go to mambosprouts.com they offer coupons of a variety of natural/organic foods. This season they have a coupon for clif bars, what athletic person doesn't use these occasionally?
I buy lots of fresh fruits and veggies, and no it doesn't cost an arm and a leg. Cheap processed foods are only cheap because the government subsidizes certain crops. Plus if people cared more about theirs and their childrens health they'd opt for more healthy foods rather then the quick and convenient options
Charlotte,
What breakmaker do you use? I'm considering getting one, but I want one that you can turn the alarm off of (in case I want to bake it overnight), and one that won't break quickly.
haha, smoothie=mini vacay! To be sure!!
Gosh I admire you for planning out a whole month. You thrive on structure and that's really cool- I see a lot of folks in the b-sphere doing that. I am a 'seat of my pants' kind of gal. Hmm what do I feel like eating tonight at 5:59pm. But I am toying with the idea of planning a few weeks worth of eats and see how that goes. I must say it does make it exciting to look forward to something in particular.
I JUST JUST bought a crockpot- could you elaborate on making yogurt in it?????? Can one make Greek yogurt in it????
PS Allie at Pimp My Protein Shake is a coupon goddess- she does most of the stuff online fyi.
Great post! I'm impressed at your ability to plan a month in advance. Wow!
I've always planned a week at a time. This strategy has worked fairly well over the years. But with my daughter now grown, my husband and I often end up with more food than we need. As a nutritionist I don't like to admit this but we occasionally have some waste. Sigh…(My husband does the grocery shopping. Does that count as an excuse?)
I had an unusual opportunity this winter to live on my own as a "snowbird" in Florida. Had to stock an empty cabin kitchen with pantry items and cook only for myself.
With just a few basic items such as whole grains, beans,and nuts. I could feed myself very cheaply and easily. I simply supplemented my basic items with fresh fruits and vegetables, low fat dairy, and eggs as needed. I ate mostly vegetarian to save money. I didn't eat out at all or buy convenience foods. Even so I only had to cook 1-2 days a week.(Made use of the freezer!)
After establishing my pantry my food costs were about 30-35 dollars a week. That surprised me.
Deb – It's soooooo easy! I follow these instructions. I use whole milk but others use lower fat versions and it works with those too. To make it "greek" – line a strainer with cheesecloth or a coffee filter (for an individual serving) and pour the yogurt into it. let it sit for a bit (save the whey that drains off for pancakes etc!) and there you have it! Enjoy your crockpot!
Lethological – I wouldn't necessarily recommend my brand of breadmaker (it was free so I won't complain about it!) but it doesn't have the features you are looking for. If you find a good one, please let me know!!
Great post! If you're looking for good healthy whole food on a budget, you def have to make things from scratch. I bake and freeze muffins and breads so there's always quick foods on hand. I do coupon and bulk shop though. I have 4 kiddos so it can be done š I only shop one grocery store though. I found one of the sites that you wrote about that list the deals for that store and the coupon match ups. Let someone else to the work for me š I shop henry's for produce and costco for the items that are cheaper there. Sure I could buy my produce there for a decent price, but honestly I can't pay a dollar for an avocado when I know I can get 3 for a dollar somewhere else. I go through about 5 gallons of milk a week though so I usually make weekly grocery stops. For anyone just starting out, I just recommend start making one thing at home from scratch that you normally buy. When that becomes a habit, move on to another.
This is a GREAT idea!!!! I'm gonna try it! I wish we had an Aldi's…
In defense of working poor folks, though: there are a lot of single parents out there, and folks who rely on public transportation, who don't always have grocery stores nearby. It's not always easy to get to the good stuff, even when it's affordable.
I've seen a lot of people tout the value of menu-planning for a month, but I actually do the opposite. Now, the effectiveness of this will depend a lot upon where your grocery store is, but I live in NYC and my grocery store is right under my apartment, so I go to the grocery several times a week and just buy whatever is on sale and looks fresh. When there's something good that is nonperishable (that includes meat, which I can stick in the freezer), I stock up while it's on sale.
Then, I find recipes that fit those ingredients (FoodNetwork.com is great for plugging your ingredients into the search box and seeing what comes up). I never waste things because they've gone bad, and I'm always getting my ingredients at laughably cheap prices.
I also completely disagree with anyone who says they're too tired to cook. You need to explore some new recipes that can be made in the same time as a frozen dinner! In my previous job, I worked 60-80 hours/week AND made time to go to the gym AND made time to cook. It's all about priorities. If it's that you honestly just want time to watch TV, find a way to get a TV into the kitchen so you can multitask and cook while you work. Really, there are solutions…
While Rachael Ray's recipes aren't always the healthiest, I find that they can usually be modified to be super healthy (e.g. limit the cooking oil, sub out some fresh veggies for the starches, etc) and they're all ready in 30 minutes or less. (Some in 10 minutes!) I'm single and cook only for myself, but I always make at least two servings and then either stick one in the fridge for lunch the next day or in the freezer for days when I REALLY don't want to cook. There is just no excuse for eating processed ready-to-eat foods.
Thanks for this post! It's inspired me to try planning my meals ahead of time. I usually do some planning before grocery shopping each week….but I always managed to get sidetracked by new items and end up buying more than I should.
So I'm going to try planning out a week to see how that goes. Maybe one day I'll be able to work up to planning several weeks in advance.
At least planning meals gives me another excuse to create a new spreadsheet. š
Oh, and love the Aldi tip. I started going to my local Aldi last year and you can really find some great deals if you know what you're looking for.
I try to plan ahead and am pretty good about buying just what we need. My new years resolution this year was to use more coupons, but of course as a full time working mom it is hard to do. I definitely have done better, I try to get coupons and put them directly into my purse so they are always on hand. One great website that really helps me, is http://www.shortcuts.com. If you have a discount card for like King Soopers, Kroger, Smiths…whatever your local grocer is, you can directly put coupons onto your discount card! Its like clipping coupons without having to carry them around! Works for people like me!
charlotte! You are my hero. We recently went all Dave Ramsey in our house (cash based system) and I was looking for ways to cut down our food budget and still eat healthy. I made an amazing amount of dinners (wow! 27!) using organic meats and chicken and veggies and saved a ton of money. Plus now all I have to do is prepare a salad and veggies every night. You are awesome. Thanks for the idea. My wallet and husband now love you too!
Great post – I should try the "shopping for a month" thing once…however, since half my cart each week is produce I'm not 100% sure it will help me so much š
I make a menu for the week, try to use what is already in the house, then a list each week, and head to two grocery stores – our hippie dippie grocery store for the produce, meat, and some other random stuff (their canned tomato sauce and olives are only a little more than the chain store but SOOOO much better). Then I get the rest at our chain store. We do costco about once a month/every 2 months for big bags of chicken, fish, veggie burgers, frozen veggies, and protein bars.
The biggest challenge is the weekends. You'd think having more time would = more cooking, but we get lazy and just want to go out. We're down to about 3-4 times out per week max, AND since my parents got us an entertainment coupon book, most of those are buy one get one free!
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Totally doesn’t work when you’re Paleo. I don’t eat anything from the middle isles of the store. Produce and meats is all we eat at home.
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