Healthy Fresh Flavorful Meals on a Budget - Help!

[Mrs. Ciz]

Our budget is stretched pretty thin right now. We just set up our freshman DS's college room and board payment plan for this Fall (planned for in the budget), and I had emergency gall bladder surgery (not planned for in the budget). This is our first year with a high deductible health plan (only plan DH's company offered this time). We don't yet have enough in the health savings account to cover the deductible so things are going to be super tight for a few months.

I am looking to trim the grocery budget. I use coupons when I can, especially for toiletry and cleaning items, but most food coupons are for highly processed foods. We try to keep processed foods to a minimum. I can make a spaghetti dinner with jarred sauce and frozen meatballs very cheaply, but it doesn't taste very good, nor is it very good for me. I really like fresh food with fresh, highly flavorful ingredients...lots of fresh vegetable and herbs, cilantro, garlic, basil, etc, Thai food dishes and the like. Fresh ingredients are so expensive!!!!!

Please share your favorite cheap, fresh, flavorful recipes!!!!!!

 

[JenzyHP]

No recipes as I'm not a good cook, but you can get money back from fresh fruits and veggies if you use the ibotta app. We use The Pioneer Woman's spaghetti sauce recipe and freeze it into meal size portions. That doesn't cost much.

It is really easy to grow herbs instead of buying them.

 

[justme0729]

Might not be the most practical answer for you but If your climate allows it and it's not too late in the season, you could start a small garden. It might not take too long to grow if you get some plants that are already in pots and growing vs. Starting from scratch with seeds.

 

[Soulsearching]

I don't know where you live, but if you can get yourself to an Aldi's you will save alot on fruits and vegetables.

 

[worm761]

A lot of it depends on where you live and what you have available to you. I buy fresh veg at Sam's Club because it is the cheapest place for salad fixings. Breakfast for dinner is always a cheaper option.

When trying to save money I go with bigger cuts of meat. Target often has turkey breast on sale for 99 cents a pound. I roast a whole breast and make a turkey dinner. Then the leftover becomes turkey stew. If there's leftover stew, that becomes turkey pot pie. You can do the same thing with a chicken. A roast becomes beef stew. Ham will stretch to plenty of meals. I don't do jarred tomato sauces but I will buy some tomato paste and thin it out with water then add my own seasonings. This works for red sauce for pasta, pizza sauce, and enchilada sauce. As for fresh herbs, buy the plants they sell in the produce section and grow your own. Way cheaper that way! I am also willing to use frozen vegetables.

My frugal Pinterest board. I tried to keep it mostly healthy. https://www.pinterest.com/disneybug/frugal-meals/

 

[dalmatian7]

We eat minimally processed foods also. Right now we have a bumper crop of lettuce, cucumbers, and swiss chard in the garden so summer salads are cheap. Try to buy what is in season. Two weeks ago Wegmans had the big container of blueberries for only $1.99, they are normally $3.99 at least. So I have been eating a handful of blueberries on a salad with a splash of vinegrette and a handful of feta and some chicken breast for lunch. I am hoping to get another container at that price before the season is done. A whole chicken can easily be roasted in the croc pot and then used for a few meals.

I agree on growing your own herbs if you use a lot of fresh in your cooking. I also use frozen veg especially for things that we only eat cooked like broccoli and brussel sprouts. If you watch you can stock up when they are on sale.

I like the Newmans Own brand for tomato sauce. One of the lower sugar and salt brands and has lots of flavor. We often toss in a few handfuls of defrosted frozen spinach or broccoli to get that extra serving of veggies in.

We like tacos so I will brown and drain hamburger and add some canned beans (you can find lower sodium ones pretty easily, one of the reasons I like Wegmans is their focus on healthy options). I use just cumin and some salt and pepper to get the "taco seasoning" flavor without a heavy salt mix. If you like taco bowls, you can make them healthy by cooking a soft taco lightly sprayed with oil under the broiler using a ramekin to shape them. add you favorite fixings and you are done. The oven crisp bowls are so good compared to tortilla chips.

Apples and bananas make cheap snacks. And baby carrots can often be found cheaply.

I am lucky that I only have three of us to feed so we can get by on a smaller amount.

 

[hsmamato2]

buy what's on sale each week, whatever fresh fruits and veggies are discounted,enjoy them! rice and pasta can stretch your budget too, as can beans. I cook mainly non dairy gluten free foods,and VERY low on the carbs,so I use a lot of spices to make things taste great. grilling and roasting veggies with a little good oil and spices is wonderful,and even the picky ones in my house don't complain! One inexpensive meal they all love is anything taco-like... I stretch out the (organic) ground meat with some beans,refried or regular,and sautee some corn,onions,cut up traditional toppings.... (I eat mine on a bed of lettuce,they like taco shells etc)--- pasta sauce is easy to make with a little time....to 'cheat' use a jar of plain cheap sauce,add a can of plain tomato puree, to some browned/sauteed garlic- add spices,(and some cheap red wine) simmer for a couple of hours and it's delicious,and easy.(and cheap,costs about 3 dollars to make a LOT) again.... base your meals on sales at local stores,Aldi is my favorite to save.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I don't know where you live, but if you can get yourself to an Aldi's you will save alot on fruits and vegetables.

Well I am super excited to hear this! We have a brand new Aldi's going in around the corner from my house. It should be open within the month. The stores are new to our area so I had no idea about them. Thanks for the tip. I will check Aldi's out for sure!!!!

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

No recipes as I'm not a good cook, but you can get money back from fresh fruits and veggies if you use the ibotta app. We use The Pioneer Woman's spaghetti sauce recipe and freeze it into meal size portions. That doesn't cost much.

It is really easy to grow herbs instead of buying them.

I don't have a smart phone, but DD does. I will check out ibotta. Thanks!

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

Might not be the most practical answer for you but If your climate allows it and it's not too late in the season, you could start a small garden. It might not take too long to grow if you get some plants that are already in pots and growing vs. Starting from scratch with seeds.

I do grow herbs in pots on my deck, but I use them up faster than they can grow. I have thought about a garden. Two things have stopped me - a super shady back yard and squirrels. We live in the woods, and those darn squirrels eat everything (chair cushions, plants, rubber hoses on gas grill, pumpkins set out for Halloween, etc). They would eat up a garden too.

 

[LJSquishy]

We also eat a very minimal amount of processed foods and also eat all organic so I definitely know what you mean when you say it's expensive. We do choose to spend our money on high quality, healthy food and not worry so much about how much we spend on it....and we make cuts in other areas if needed.

This is my new favorite meal:
http://cookieandkate.com/2014/sweet-potato-and-black-bean-tacos-with-avocado-pepita-dip/

It is soooo delicious and after I saw your post it was the first recipe that popped into my head because it's dirt cheap to make. The pepitas give extra protein and we always have them on hand, but if you don't, just leave them out or substitute hulled sunflower seeds maybe.

I was also going to suggest you start making your own vegetable stock or chicken stock and freezing it. It will start saving you money in no time! I save clean veggie scraps in a freezer bag and when it's full, I make a batch of vegetable stock. I lean more vegan & vegetarian now (we currently do still have meat or other animal products about 3 times per week) so I don't make chicken stock any longer, but when I did, I'd use the bones from a whole chicken that I cooked and simmered it overnight in the crockpot. I make a lot of soups and each large batch calls for 3-6 cups of broth so it saves me $3-$6 each time by using my own and it's organic.

 

[LuvOrlando]

two of my favorite spices that I chop in my mini chopper and keep frozen are shallots & garlic. Lots of other spices like basil don't do well frozen alone but if you and merge them in canola oil you can break some off into little chunks and they stay fresh that way. this time year is the best time year to collect spices.

Basil in the mini chopper with parmasean cheese covered a layer of oil makes amazing pesto which can be put directly on the Posto or served over shellfish or fish or anything else you like to be honest.

I second the plan of keeping bones and making soup but I tend to take all the meat off for one set of meals and use the bones only for my broths. Again this is a great time of year to collect vegetables for chicken or turkey soup seal up servings in Ziploc and then just add them to the plain broth when you need it. same with beef and I use that broth for barley soup pork bones I make a broth for split pea.

If you want a quick and easy sauce just sauté some garlic & shallots in oil and slice some tomato and toss that in until it cooks just ever so slightly. This particular sauce is nice on anything whether it's asparagus cauliflower, pasta, fish, chicken doesn't matter it tastes good.

Giada DiLaurentis meatballs are amazing. I also love Lipton Soups 'souperior meatloaf' I wait until ground beef goes on sale, which I did last week and I bought about 6 pounds of it. I made 1/2 meatloaf, putting them on a cookie sheet raw to make 6 small ones I Popped into ziplocks when frozen through. Then I made a few dozen of the meatballs, these I baked first and then popped into ziplocks for storage as well. I found that as long as I have accessible quick meals I can rely on when time is short I never go to restaurants or eat junk anymore so thats good.

Ohhh, another cost saving measure is I have found that one package of chicken breast can make up to three meals. I lay them flat on a cutting board and slice the breast top into thin slices that I will use for chicken cutlets or marsala two per person. The bottom part of the breast doesn't really work well for that so I will chunk it up and make skillet chicken stew, chicken salad, marinade and put the chunks on skewers with fresh vegetables for the barbecue or freeze it to toss in my chicken soup for a later time

 

[KristinU]

Beans are a super great and super cheap protein source, especially if you cook them yourself. Very easy and quick if you have a pressure cooker. We throw them in stir fry, salads, tacos, of course regular old beans and rice.

Aldi is usually pretty decent for produce, and they are starting to carry a small amount of organic options as well. I also bought my last bag of quinoa there! Not as cheap as white rice, of course, but a nutritional powerhouse.

A cheap and quick standby for us is some diced up peppers, a generous handful of spinach, and some diced tomatoes (canned or fresh) sauteed with some onions and garlic and tossed with some whole grain pasta.

Eggs are a cheap option as well (well, they've gone up recently, but still relatively speaking for an animal protein they are). Google for a fritatta recipe that strikes you, there are a zillion out there. They are a great way to use up little bits and pieces from the fridge and you can easily substitute one thing for another.

Another vote for frozen veggies for ones you'd be cooking anyway. I've been happy with Aldi here as well.

Don't forget fish if you like it. Flounder is sustainable and tasty and wicked easy and quick to prepare either in the oven or on the grill (on top of foil)...a little dash of oil and a dash of your favorite herb mix and you're golden. Steam up a side of broccoli and you're all set!

Oh, something that a friend was just telling me about that I plan to try: cut zucchini in thin lengthwise strips and spread on a little herbed cheese like that Alouette or I was thinking even cottage cheese with my own herbs in it, then roll them up and put them in a baking dish with your favorite tomato sauce (we'd make our own using a combo of canned and fresh probably), and then bake them. We're getting to the season where Zucchini shows up on the free table at work or is handed over the fence from a neighbor

 

[unrequited23]

I also recommend Aldi for inexpensive groceries. Oatmeal, eggs, rice and beans are my go to items for stretching the budget. Chili, stews, soups, breakfast for dinner tend to work well for us.

 

[TwoMisfits]

I recommend Aldi's...but not as your sole grocery store. They are best at providing staples (flour, sugar, salt, milk, eggs, etc) and the produce picks...but I'd pick meats, fish, breads, and specialty stuff elsewhere. I go 2x/month when the produce picks are my favorites (they seem to alternate mostly fruit vs mostly veggie here) and make sure I get my staples that I need while there. I use my local grocery store Friday deals and personalized email deals to get really good food really cheaply the other weeks. Today, I got fresh farm-raised salmon fillets for $2/lb from my local store - I about fainted b/c it was an unadvertised special and my fam's favorite - even though we had it Tuesday (when it was $5.99/lb - my top buying price), we're now eating it again today as a treat, b/c $2/LB!!! Look for underadvertised protein specials and look for advertised ones and determine your top prices (for me, NY Strip Steaks, Salmon, and Jumbo Shrimp have to be under $6/lb, 90% Ground Beef/Ground Lamb/Ground Pork and White Fishes (like Tilapia and Cod) have to be under $4/lb, Off-the-Bone Chicken Breasts and Pork Chops have to be under $2/lb, Bone In chicken of any type and whole Turkey Breasts have to be under $1/lb, etc)...and buy extra and freeze any choices (except maybe fresh fish) you can't eat that week. For the really expensive proteins, have go-to cheap and healthy sides. Herbed white rice with dill vinegar cucumber salad or roasted fresh green beans with lemon zest are standard sides with my shrimp - amazingly cheap to make and prepare and very healthy. Also, make sure you never let the proteins go to waste - have plans for leftovers or leftover parts (like making broth or gravy)...

 

[DisLuv'nMama]

following...

 

[jt'smom]

Quinoa is my best friend. I make big batches of red or regular quinoa and mix it with everything from a bag of fresh spinach to roasted cherry tomatoes. I also make my own dressings and seasoning mixes, so I buy economy size containers of spices since I go through them so quickly. Our grocery bill is way cheaper now that I don't buy things like boxed stuff or jarred sauces. I don't give a rip if my produce is organic since I wash everything anyway, so I buy whatever is cheapest and on sale for the week. If you have a Fresh Market near you, check out their weekly specials. Ours has $2.99 boneless, skinless antibiotic-free chicken breasts on Tuesdays and if you have it in you to wait in a gigantic line with every golf-playing retired lady and young, rich mom with 3 kids, then you can score really good quality chicken for dirt cheap!

My other tip is that if you buy a lot of wine and beer, and you have a Winn Dixie near you, stock up on the brands that have big fuel perks attached to them. We go through at least 3 bottles of wine a week, so I always pick the least expensive bottles. And last but not least, if you eat out or order in weekly, try to pick something fabulous so it's a real treat and don't waste eating out money on fast foods or pizza, unless that's your thing. My husband LOVES sushi, so our deal is that he gets it once a month as long as he doesn't hit up convenience stores for water and diet soda on a daily basis.

 

[DisneyMandC]

In addition to Ibotta, try Checkout 51 and Savings Star. Not as many produce rebates as Ibotta, but they always have at least one a week!

 

[aprilchem]

Another non-processed food eater here who tries to stick with a budget. This summer, I've been feeding my family (of 5) on about $65 a week while I'm saving up for a half cow from our local farm. Here's what we've eaten this week:

• homemade pasta (I grind the wheat myself, since we don't use processed pasta) with homemade sauce and grass-fed, crumbled pork.
• grilled cheese made with homemade bread & tomato soup.
• pork kabobs with rice and feta (yes, I know rice is processed, but we love it) and a green salad from our garden.
• grilled organic sausages with a cucumber/tomato salad from the garden and quinoa.
• homemade lasagna (lasagna noodles are the easiest pasta to make, IMO).
• homemade pizza.

Breakfasts are smoothies, muffins or banana bread that I bake myself, or eggs. I buy my meat in bulk at $5.50 a lb from our local farm, and it's grass-fed and humanely raised. I buy wheat berries for my flour in 25 lb bags from Amazon and keep those in bulk, as I do rice. My secretary sells organically-fed, free range chicken eggs for $2.50 a dozen and I buy 3 dozen of those a week. So my grocery list is very simple and a lot of it is bulk purchases that only come once in a while - weekly purchases are usually just eggs, milk, olive oil, fruit for smoothies, and fruit for snacks. Once my garden peters out I will buy some veggies from the farmer's market (until it closes in October) and then buy in-season veggies from the grocery store or rely on food I've frozen from this summer.

I can't help you much on the fresh herbs, except to say they are easy to grow yourself. If you don't have enough from what you're growing maybe plant double that? But it's probably a bit late for that now, unless you are in the deep south.

 

[dja14]

I go to Aldi's too. It is quite a distance from my house so I try for twice a month, with the idea of fresh stuff the first week, canned the second. (walmart has run all of our local stores out so options are limited anyway) I have found our grocery bill greatly reduced and everything we have tried we have liked. Mostly we buy fresh stuff and I do buy a lot of our meat there (we eat mostly chicken and pork) Our store is so busy I think they have a turn over in fresh stuff fast so it not only seems fresh when I get it, it lasts for a couple weeks. I have been able to greatly increase our fresh fruits and vegetables and lower the budget. If you need a particular thing though you may have to go else where (ours seems to be low on Chinese type foods, for example)