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Trying to eat on $100 a month

TheWorthyEdge

TheWorthyEdge

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,814
Hey ERA. I'm a college kid and I'm broke as fuck trying to spend the least amount of money on a good diet. I have an Aldi's near me and a WinCo but I've come to ask what you would recommend getting for the cheap. What recipes should I be looking at, what fills you up the most, and most importantly what tastes the best? I have a whole kitchen at my disposal. Looking to cook things that are quick, and tasty. Thanks.
 

Bundy

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
20,931
TheWorthyEdge said:
Hey ERA. I'm a college kid and I'm broke as fuck trying to spend the least amount of money on a good diet. I have an Aldi's near me and a WinCo but I've come to ask what you would recommend getting for the cheap. What recipes should I be looking at, what fills you up the most, and most importantly what tastes the best? I have a whole kitchen at my disposal. Looking to cook things that are quick, and tasty. Thanks.
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Rice and some tomato/curry sauce. Cheap, more healthy and fills you up the most. Gives you enough energy, thanks to the rice.
Get some chicken twice a week.
 
OrangeNova

OrangeNova

Member
Oct 30, 2017
12,651
Canada
Vegetables, and get frozen meats from a dollar store if you want meat.

Also Rice.

I used to do $85 a month, Walmart and Giant Tiger were my best friends, Dollarama had seasoning/hotsauce for cheap too.
 
Dennis8K

Dennis8K

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
20,161
Rice and beans.

Cheap as fuck. Tastes good. Needs some flavorings but those can be cheap too.

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FriendlyNPC

FriendlyNPC

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,601
Oatmeal for breakfast is my recommendation! Incredibly cheap and very filling. Taste isn't all that amazing though but you certainly can get used to it. You can add some fruits/honey to make it taste better but that'll make it less money efficient. Get the no-/store brand stuff!
 
FreezePeach

FreezePeach

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
12,811
Rice is one of the greatest things invented for people on a low budget. 20 pound bag can last a long long time. I found buying some cheap spicy salad dressings, usually in the ranch range, mixed veggie bags that are cheap, and occasionally chicken breast you can mix it together with some hot sauce and heat it up for something that tastes good, is fairly healthy, and is cheap.
 
pokeystaples

pokeystaples

Member
Oct 27, 2017
5,353
Beans, veggies and rice will carry you pretty far at that amount. Bulk rice and beans are pretty cheap. The veggies might be harder to do, but look for grocery sales and roll with whatever is cheapest that week.
 
Hours Left

Hours Left

Member
Oct 26, 2017
18,414
Rice. Beans. Eggs. Pasta. Peanut Butter.

Look for inexpensive proteins on sale like canned tuna, breakfast sausage, cheap cuts of meat. Get vegetables when possible.

Buy some key condiments like hot sauce and mustard. Steal spices from your family and friends.

Sell your body for cheese.
 
timshundo

timshundo

CANCEL YOUR AMAZON PRIME
Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,160
CA
Back during a time when I was broke AND trying to gain weight in the gym I got REALLY creative with eggs, peanut butter, and bread. Make toast, spread on peanut butter, and plop on a fried egg. Make two of those and u got a good, proteiny, albeit a bit heavy, meal!
 
Pikachu

Pikachu

Traded his Bone Marrow for Pizza
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
6,402
This is a dumb question but I thought rice wasn't healthy?
 
Deception

Deception

Member
Nov 15, 2017
8,430
If you are struggling this bad then why not try and apply for some public assistance or food banks?
 

Deleted member 33887

User requested account closure
Banned
Nov 20, 2017
2,109
As others mentioned, rice, beans, and bulk eggs are probably your best bet. Maybe get some hot sauce to spice your eggs and beans. Also dried beans are a lot cheaper than cannned ones, but you have to presoak them before cooking them.
 
pikachief

pikachief

Prophet of Truth
Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,526
Rice, eggs, pasta, ramen, beans, some chicken here and there + spices and creativity go a long way with low funds.

The first 3 months of my marriage our budget was $20-$25 a week for both of us. Pork chops or bacon were our splurge days when we had extra cash that week.
 
Starviper

Starviper

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
1,431
Minneapolis
Hours Left said:
Rice. Beans. Eggs. Pasta. Peanut Butter.

Look for inexpensive proteins on sale like canned tuna, breakfast sausage, cheap cuts of meat. Get vegetables when possible.

Buy some key condiments like hot sauce and mustard.

Sell your body for cheese.
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This is on point. I'd recommend bell peppers for easy filler with any dish; buy meat that's on sale. Hummus is an excellent snack and usually not too expensive; goes great with pretzels, pita, corn chips.

Cheese can be expensive but one workaround if you wanna be really cheap is to get cheese sticks.

There's also the classic staple of Ramen; if you got Amazon Prime there are some great brands that are a million times more tasty than the maruchan junk, and still really cheap.

One super tasty thing I always seem to forget about is you can make quesadillas or pita bread pizza extremely easily and for relatively cheap so keep that in mind.
 

TronLight

Member
Jun 17, 2018
2,457
Buy some ground spices. Black pepper, paprika, nutmeg, powdered onion and garlic, stuff like that. Learn to use them and it'll help make bland stuff more tasty.
 
Chopchop

Chopchop

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,171
Mostly rice based dishes, I think. You can make lots of different kinds of fried rice to keep variety.

Get frozen vegetables like peas and corn, since they go well in fried rice.

If you like curry, a pack of curry makes enough to go for a week or so.

For meats, chicken drumsticks are usually the cheapest.
 
Dozer

Dozer

Member
May 30, 2019
889
Orlando, FL
See if you can get your hands on a used instant pot OP. Any sort of off brand pressure cooker works too.

Then buy a big bag of brown rice, a big bag of dried beans, and a good cheap seasoning (Adobo comes to mind but you'll prabably want to change it up). 2 cups rice, 2 cups beans, 8 cups water, some seasoning.

30 minutes, one pot, 4+ meals, less than a dollar.
 
Deception

Deception

Member
Nov 15, 2017
8,430
TheWorthyEdge said:
I'm doing 'fine' I guess. Just don't want to spend a lot of money on groceries when I have to worry about gas.
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Still, if you have gotten to the point where you feel you should only be spending $100 a month then maybe you should seek aid. I know it might be a "pride" thing but i'm not ashamed to admit that I was on public aid while in Uni while working two jobs and if it wasn't for that additional $200 a month in food stamps then i'm not sure I would have been able to finish.
 
nullref

nullref

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,052
Dennis8K said:
Rice and beans.

Cheap as fuck. Tastes good. Needs some flavorings but those can be cheap too.
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Yup. Rice, dried beans & lentils, and some cheap vegetables (fresh or frozen) forms a good foundation for a really cheap (healthy) diet. Takes a bit of know-how to make that taste good and have some variety, but there are plenty of recipes out there. The bulk spices and aromatic vegetables (onion, garlic, chiles, ginger, etc.) you'll need are pretty cheap as well. Takes some time, but you can prepare it in bulk.

Eggs are versatile and pretty cheap as well.
 

Deleted member 8561

user requested account closure
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
11,284
Hard to know what you should get, what is the general price of chicken and pork where you live?

Where I live I can eat on $100 a month in Mass rather easy living alone. Learn to buy in bulk, take advantage of sales to stock up on meats that you can freeze or kitchen supplies that can be stored away.

You can buy whole "young" chickens for around 90 cents / a dollar a pound. Bring it home and break it down yourself. Usually around five pounds per chicken

1 Spine (great for stocks)
2 Bone in Split Chicken Breasts
2 Thighs
2 Drum sticks

If you supplement that with rice, potatoes and other cheap but filling veggies, you'll be able to make that chicken last around 4-5 days depending on how much you eat for dinner.

Don't buy processed or shit food. Everything you buy should basically be things you need to cook and make yourself. Eggs and rice are a simple, easy and quick breakfast. Overnight oats are filling and cheap as well. Learn to mix and match your produce, utilize left overs on a regular basis (honestly you shouldn't be throwing anything away on your budget and living alone)
 
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