A general discussion on cheaply eating in America - everybody is eating, eating USA

[Neo-Holstien]

hello I am making this thread because Null regularly mentions that poor people often make poor choices in groceries and wanted to see what the farms thoughts on how to eat cheaply in the Continental United States, I myself hope to try and get by on $40-60 USD for two weeks at a time, I would also like to hear what other people in a similar pickle have come up with. my current strategy has been going heavy with rice and enriched pasta's, with meat and veggies taking a back seat.

 

[Rand /pol/]

Domino's pizza and Coke is totally fine for all three meals don't @ me.

 

[VQ 569]

If you're not already, start going to wholesale type stores for bulk goods which costs less by weight. I'm talking like getting 50 lb bags of rice, 5 gallons of cooking oil, or 20 lb boxes of chicken and unfreezing a few portions as you eat them.

 

[Recoil]

Eggs can last a month in the fridge, up to a year in the freezer. Consider buying them in bulk.

 

[wylfım]

Is your goal to eat healthy and cheap, or just to eat cheap?
Because rice and enriched pastas are cheap, but definitely not healthy.

 

[Shoggoth]

Excellent initiative.
Besides buying in bulk like meat turd said, get lentils, beans, chick peas, etc. Nutritious, varied and cheap. Buy some spices.
I have no idea what you got there in the frozen veggies and weird red packs. Can you get fresh food?
Your main expenses will be meat and eggs.
Good luck, and try focusing on one kitchen at a time

 

[Midlife Sperglord]

My usual cheap staple meal is brown rice, beans, frozen vegetables and Sriracha. Turns out the Sriracha is the most expensive part of it all.

 

[Maggots on a Train v2]

It depends on how healthy you want to be. Two strips of bacon can flavor two pounds of dried beans. I usually try to buy whole grain pasta. Dollar Tree is sporadically good for regular loaves of whole grain bread, 12-packs of smaller goofy looking eggs, 12-16oz packs of frozen chicken pieces, Silver State 8oz block cheese (the only real cheese in the store), and frozen fruit.

 

[Nykysnottrans]

A couple of years ago Youtuber Brittany had a video on this topic:

 

[wokelizard]

Rice is best because no gluten. Pick white rice because it will last a lot longer than brown, probably a decade. Eggs are good for protein. You could get a chicken and convert rice->protein as required. Have you considered freeganism? Nothing cheaper than free.

 

[Unog]

Spoiler: This with multivitamins

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Also, with a bit of this in it:

Spoiler: Good shit

 

[Recoil]

freeganism

I did that in college but I hear that some stores have started pouring bleach over their (perfectly good) discarded food because every now and then a hobo gets a tummy ache and sues the shit out of everyone involved.
It's worth looking into tho, for real. If you have the initiative to look into when certain stores trash their shit (talk to their workers), you can get there right in time and make off like a bandit. Having an extra hundred or two in your pocket because you cheesed the system is a great feel.

 

[IN 041]

Avoid processed foods. The health benefits are going to save you a lot of money in the long run.

 

[spurger king]

$40-$60 for two weeks? Lmao what a chump. It's like you guys don't even get food stamps.

 

[Thomas Paine]

Ghetto Casserole, chopped up hotdogs and mac 'n cheese baby.

 

[Some Manajerk]

Steamed brown rice, bakes beans and a side of greens isn't half bad.

 

[The Shadow]

The reason poor people don't make good food choices is often convenience. Good quality food often requires prep time and fresh ingredients. If you're working two jobs just to feed your gaggle of whelps you're gonna buy a ton of chicken nuggets you can microwave or hit up Micky D's.

 

[Trig.Point]

Rice is best because no gluten. Pick white rice because it will last a lot longer than brown, probably a decade. Eggs are good for protein. You could get a chicken and convert rice->protein as required. Have you considered freeganism? Nothing cheaper than free.

Freeganism? As in fishing food out of the skip like Vegan Gains?

 

[Neo-Holstien]

The reason poor people don't make good food choices is often convenience. Good quality food often requires prep time and fresh ingredients. If you're working two jobs just to feed your gaggle of whelps you're gonna buy a ton of chicken nuggets you can microwave or hit up Micky D's.

that does make sense

I did that in college but I hear that some stores have started pouring bleach over their (perfectly good) discarded food because every now and then a hobo gets a tummy ache and sues the shit out of everyone involved.
It's worth looking into tho, for real. If you have the initiative to look into when certain stores trash their shit (talk to their workers), you can get there right in time and make off like a bandit. Having an extra hundred or two in your pocket because you cheesed the system is a great feel.

as some who works at a grocery store all the edible shrink is sold to food banks and the rest is rotton or covered in strange goo ( meth head juice)

Spoiler: This with multivitamins

[/img]

Also, with a bit of this in it:

Spoiler: Good shit

the Mexican powder is cheaper, and you do not need to add bouillon to ramen they come with it

If you're not already, start going to wholesale type stores for bulk goods which costs less by weight. I'm talking like getting 50 lb bags of rice, 5 gallons of cooking oil, or 20 lb boxes of chicken and unfreezing a few portions as you eat them.

i don't know if a costco card is worth it for one person tho (we have fred meyer, safeway, and several local stores, nothing that has more then 10lb rice bags)

 

[Durable Mike Malloy]

Assuming you have routine access to a kitchen with adequate storage, functioning appliances, and working utilities:

Don't stock up on shit you won't use. It's probably a bad idea to buy a 50lb bag of rice if you aren't already in the habit of cooking and eating rice dishes. Establish the habit first and make sure you'll stick with it. Otherwise you'll just be throwing out a shitload of infested rice.

Unless you're one of those people who sees bean weevils and thinks meh, extra protein, you will want to commit to keeping a very clean pantry and make sure your kitchen hygiene is on point before you invest in bulk staples. Research how to store your provisions to keep pests out and prevent spoilage. Divide your purchases into smaller containers, so if one gets contaminated, becomes infested, goes bad, or spills, you'll only be throwing out a relatively small amount of food.

Every week, try to put aside a portion of your grocery budget for one spendier pantry item like olive oil, chili oil, miso paste, gochujang, soy sauce, hot sauce, or whatever spices you like. Once you build up a library of flavors, you can coax more variety out of your inexpensive staples and your thrifty ways will be more sustainable. That is, unless you like eating the same predictable meals day in and day out, in which case enjoy your autism.

It's a good idea to buy produce at peak season when it's cheaper; what's the best value at which time of year will vary based on where you live, and you can probably find a handy local produce guide online. Sometimes, you buy produce only to find that its texture is off, it doesn't have much flavor, or it's about to go bad. Learn how to roast, season, macerate, or hide these disappointing purchases in other recipes, or else you'll just push them to the back of the fridge until they go bad and you end up wasting them. It's easy to prepare quick, simple, delicious meals with fresh, high-quality ingredients, but learning how to make something palatable out of suboptimal provisions is trickier. Compare prices between fresh, frozen, and canned fruit and veg, and challenge yourself to use the tougher or less palatable bits like leathery beet greens or fibrous broccoli stems.

In a similar vein, I'm sure you've noticed that a lot of inexpensive ingredients tend to be dry, tough, or fibrous. These attributes make them cheaper and easier to harvest, transport, and store, but you'll often have to cook them longer to end up with something palatable. If you pay for your own utilities and especially if you are cooking for one, consider investing in a small slow cooker. For example, you can prep dry beans for a few meals without ending up with an absurd quantity of beans because you tried to optimize energy use, and without heating up your house in the summer.