Hmm...where do you usually shop? Maybe they have coupons for produce and other healthy foods that are on sale. Maybe canned veggies are cheaper than fresh? Are you looking at fruits that are out of season? I'm sure if you had a budget and really searched around for the best bargains you would be able to afford enough food. Don't be afraid to switch supermarkets if one sells produce cheaper than the other.

Also, what about a local food bank or food drive? There should be at least one available for people struggling. They usually offer mostly healthy food anyway. Worth checking out even just as a last resort. Good luck! :)

1 person can eat 3 meals a day for $100. month.
rest $1.00 speicals and $1.00 menu and some pizza places have $6 pizza. that's how many slices for how many days.
head of luttace is mose costly than a bag of salad at wal mart.
off brand salad dress is what $2.00
I like beans, fruit, sunflower seeds. 5 wal nuts is best, in green leaf salad.
Cold home made pasta salad.
off brand of can chicken breast at wal mart $1,00 noodles aprox $1,50 off brand of creamy light dressing aprox $2.00
bag of soup beans, boxed corn bread mix aprox $1.50.
I use white corn mill and 2 eggs and butter milk. I don't add oil/butter... to batter. I grease the baking pan.
.
That's based on myself. may it be benifitual to you.

My DS acct may be deleted. It has been nice to have somewhat met you. take care

There is a lot of information on the internet about how to stretch food dollars. I recommend spending some time reading up on the topic. There may also be books about this topic at the library. This is an area where I think educating yourself could help a lot. .

My personal opinion is that buying and cooking a whole chicken is one of the most economical things you can do. What I do is roast the chicken and have a meal of roast chicken. When I roast the chicken, I roast the liver and I eat that as a meal, and I roast the gizzard and give that to the dog as a treat. I pull all of the meat off of the chicken and use it for other meals - chicken enchiladas, chicken casserole, chicken salad, etc. I take the carcass, bones, skin, neck, etc. and make stock out of it. I use the stock to make soup or to flavor rice or other dishes.

If you did something like this with a turkey and froze the meat and some of the stock, it might last you an entire month.

If I were on a super strict food budget, in addition to whole chickens or turkeys, I would buy fresh onions, garlic, carrots, and celery, brown rice, dried beans, peas, and lentils in bulk, bags of frozen vegetables, oatmeal, brown sugar, whole wheat pasta, canned tomatoes, whole wheat bread (you've got that covered), fresh, lean ground beef, and cottage cheese. And olive oil. Possibly eggs, but maybe not because I don't like eggs that much. Cans of tuna and sardines. I would make some kind of vegetable or bean soup (or both - like minestrone) at least once a week. I would learn to make economical dishes in the crockpot. I would master the art of cooking big, cheap cuts of meat and learn how to make them taste great and how to defat the cooked meat. (I do know how to do this.) If I had any money left over, I would spend it on fresh vegetables and fruit. A bag of apples or oranges would be pretty close to the top of my list - they keep pretty well and can be fairly economical. Also sweet potatoes - lots of nutritional bang for your buck there and they are usually pretty cheap. I'd try to have a dark green vegetable as often as possible, but it might have to be frozen spinach if fresh vegetables were too expensive.

In my opinion, making vegetable juice is a waste of money when you are on a tight budget unless you get a bunch of vegetables for free. When you are on a budget, I think you need the fiber and nourishment that come from fresh vegetables. Making soup is a much better option - just my opinion. I also would not spend money on processed items like Rice a Roni. Too expensive, too processed. Brown rice cooked in chicken or turkey stock and livened up with a little sauted carrots, onion, celery and garlic is a better choice in my book. Same thing for the bologna and top ramen - sure, they are cheap, but they are highly processed and have little nutritional value. They might even be bad for you.

It's great that you are making your own bread. Good luck with this. Eating healthy on a strict budget isn't easy, but it is doable.

You can buy frozen veggies and steam them? Do you have also by you? They have really cheap produce and frozen veggies and canned product.

Water is the best for you and its free. By produce on sale or in the frozen section....Beesley gave you awesome advice.

I buy a lot of canned beans at Aldi...protein and fiber are excellent and filling.

Processed food seams cheaper but if you buy your own rice..you get way more for your money and way less sodium. How far does that box of rice a roni really go?!

Also if you are in such dire straights...churches and food banks can help you with non perishables also plenty of government programs I'm sure.

Food costs vary greatly by location. I'm in Southern Ontario. Food can be really pricey here but in comparison to Northern Ontario we have nothing to complain about. I've watched an episode of extreme couponing and marveled at it. That wouldn't be possible up here but if you're in the states it might be worth checking it out to get ideas.

Our food banks do not always have healthy food. They have shelf stable food products from marshmallow cereals to dried pasta and canned beans. If there is one in your area you should look into it. If you're choosey you might be able to supplement your grocery dollars.

I agree that making your own juice is a waste of money. Making your own soup is not. It will go great with the homemade bread and most recipes freeze very well so that you can buy what's on sale and make soup/stew from that instead of going to the store with a wish list you might not be able to afford. The more often you cook the more comfortable you'll become with "winging it" and taking advantage of sale prices.

If there is a bulk food store in your area that is also a good place to go for replacements of your Rice a Roni and Ramen.

Lastly and depending on your location you might want to check out farmer's markets. Looking out my window my fields are still frozen and covered in snow and ice but the market is full of fresh produce coming up out of the states and most farmers will sell cheaper by the bushel which is great if you're into canning or have extra freezer space.

Great information here. I would also add that making bread and vegetable juice would be the furthest things from my mind. Gluten and sugar are not my friends. I agree that cooking up a chicken can last a while, making chicken soup, etc. There are ways to do this. I know someone who buys wild caught canned salmon and has that with some black beans and brown rice. He scours the net for recipes to make these thing tasty and healthful. He rinses the black beans to get the excess salt off of them.

You can do this. :)

If it's veggies you're wanting to add, frozen veg is the cheapest. Watch your store's sales because sometimes you get 10 bags for 10$ etc and a bag is usually at least a pound.

Buying your beans dried is cheaper than buying them in cans. A pound of dried beans is an ungodly amount of servings and a can of beans is just 2.5 servings.

I would advise against juice. You get more nutrition from fruits and vegetables if you eat them whole rather than making juice from them. (More fiber etc.) So if you are going to buy fresh veggies and fruits you might as well eat them!

It really sucks that it's cheaper to buy bologna and boxes of mac and cheese than it is to buy the stuff that's good for us and keeps us healthy!

doller stores can be a real help. watch for those sale ads... if pasta is 2 for a doller... buy 5.00 worth. it will last! measure your food by the cup or scales. 1 lb of meat + 4 servings of 4 oz each! Every time you cook meat, when its done, add 1/4 cup- 1/2 cup water to pan and save that stock! put it in freezer...its soup, or a base for anything.

hello, i am an indian and live in india, i know very little about american food market or prices there,
but just a suggestion, there is an indian dish named 'PULAO', this is very easy to make and is made in a pressure cooker and takes just few minutes to get ready, there are thousands of variety of PULAO

You can search it on net, u can make it very tasty and healthy, u can use brown rice, various kinds of diced vegetables, meat, soya chunks, cottage cheese etc
u can use frozen veggies to make it
You will need 15-20 min only to make a fresh, tasty, healthy and wholesome meal

one more thing
i have very small piece of ground in which i hv sown some vegetable seeds, and lo, now we have spinach, coriander etc ready to be picked and radishes and other veggies are growing

it is very easy to make a small kitchen garden, just get some bags of good soil, sand and compost, mix them well (i added some neem (indian lilac) too)

and then spread the seeds, just water them daily and u will have fresh veggies at your home

Shop around and shop in season, ie: berries are very expensive right now and cheaper in the Summer. Frozen fruits and veggies often go on sale. Canned fruits, like peaches or pineapple are good if packed in juice.

We don't have an Aldi's around here. I hear they are great. But we do have Trader Joe's and their foods are very fresh and very reasonable.

It sounds like you are already using sacks of flour. The 25lb sacks of flours are about $8 at my local bulk/restaurant supply store. Rice in bulk is a lot cheaper than rice-a-roni. Bulk beans are a good deal, too-- 1lb of dried beans yields about 6 cups of cooked beans or over 3 cans worth. A pot of beans once a week is a healthy way to stretch a food budget.
Seasonal foods: Cabbage, broccoli & cauliflower are usually on sale during the winter and be eaten raw or cooked. Carrots are a good deal now, too. Apples, pears and oranges are also pretty abundant this time of year. Poblano chiles and Anaheim chiles are reasonably priced alternatives to bell peppers and are very flavorful. Roma tomatoes are very meaty for their size. Frozen chopped spinach and cut green beans are less costly than fresh. Make your own salad dressings with oil, vinegar, lemon juice, mayo, mustard, catsup, etc. Lots of recipes on the web for dressings. Add fresh where you can- use real garlic and real Italian parsley. The recipe below lasts for a couple weeks in a mason jar and adds healthy, fresh flavor to just about everything- veggies, beans, meats, etc. It can be used as a marinade or in a recipe or as a fresh condiment.
1/2 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
1-2 cloves garlic (minced finely)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, or other good quality salad oil
Pinch salt, freshly ground black pepper

The cost of fresh vegetables is pretty steep. Do you have room to grow leafy greens? Leafy lettuce matures fairly quickly and is super easy to grow.

Best of luck!

With respect to leafy greens. I used to grow a mix for the market. I averaged three cuts (from the same plants) before I was unhappy with quality. Keep in minds I was shearing rather than cutting individually with a sharp knife.

For at home, if you planted 3 large patio planters 5 days apart and cut carefully you could have a continuous supply for months. Then just replant(in new soil) one planter at a time. Very fresh and economical.

Greens like it cool so if your someplace above freezing a cold frame will get you there (grown in the ground against the sunny side of the house) If you not someplace warm (like me) patio pots inside (if your house isn't too warm) near a sunny window.

Good luck to anyone who wants to try it.