poor people food

It seems like EVERY time I go to the store prices go up. So....I’m always looking for ways to save a buck or do better for less.

[ I, for some reason, have an amaaazing ability! No kidding, ask my BFF we have been grocery shopping together for probably 10 years now. I can usually guess my full cart within a dollar, either way. Her’s, I can get within 5 bucks, usually.] That didn't really pertain to anything,

So, I’m over there in the Bacon thread and Grayeagle confirmed that, my families weren't the only poor people eating bacon grease sandwiches, and what not.

People were broke and had to make do with what they had, more often than not. People had to be crafty to stretch that buck.

Tell me your tricks, help a sister out. Going shopping tomorrow

I’ll share mine:
From my Mum: Jiffy boxed pie crust, rolled flat, spread with butter, cover with cinnimin&sugar, roll, slice bake. It’s easy as pie, really. Extremely cheap and kids can participate.

Feel free to share any and all little known ideas about saving money.

SOS,

Sh$# on a shingle. Toast with gravy made from scratch poured on top. If your lucky you might get some meat in that gravy.

Also biscuit donuts. Can of super cheap buiscuits, stretched and made into rings and deep fried in minimal oil in a small sauce pan. Cinnamon. And sugar sprinkled on top and you are in poor heaven.

Fried rice. Anything you can fry in some rice. No recipe, just whatever is in the fridge or cabinet. There is usually some vegetable in the very back of the cabinet.

Pasta is always a good option when you look for a cheap option without sacrifice quality.

If you are looking for a good drink option instead of soda : buy a pineapple, eat the pulp anyway you like but don't throw the fruit shell, boil it all with a cinnamon stick in a pot with lots of water. Drain. Add sugar. Cool it down. It's delicious and a great diuretic.

reply to post by Trueman


I'm gona try that thank you! I Love pineapple and need diuretics so I can;t go wrong

reply to post by MidnightSunshine


Peanut butter sandwich.

Dunno if this would help but you could grow some of your own food indoors. A lot of plants like tomatoes, strawberries, etc can grow using a fluorescent light and just regular dirt from outside (steal it from your neighbor if you need it ). That's what my family does during the winter, its not a lot but it does help.

Another thing you could do is to buy flour and yeast (real yeast, not that quick stuff). Once you get real yeast you never have to buy yeast again as you can maintain the culture. But making your own bread, dumplings, udon and things like that are great fillers.

Another great idea I figured out in college, if you don't mind eating preservatives and what not is to buy that roast chicken in the store, here its about $5 for the whole chicken. That last's a long time. You can make it last even longer by re roasting and using the drippings for gravy for something else. Eat it with some rice and it'll last a long time.

Also if you ever go to a fast food place, get as many of the condiments as possible. I haven't bought ketchup or mustard for years and years.

Buy a water container, a good one. Fill your own water, filter it, boil it or whatever. If you don't like plain water, try tea leaves. Tea leaves last 7 times, meaning you can refill the container with leaves 7 times before it loses its flavor. As a tip, the 2nd or 3rd brew taste the best, flavor of tea has opened. Need sweets? use honey. forgot to mention you can take creamers and sugar, salt pepper from stores you visit

Also, on Mondays or Tuesdays, if you go to the seafood market you will be able to buy fish and other seafood for more than 50% off. That's when they restock their supplies and want to get rid of the old stuff. For meat you want to go for Tuesday or Wednesday, that would be when they are restocking and also getting rid of old stuff.

Coupons.....coupons are your best friend. Don't go overboard and crazy. Saving a dollar here and there is more than enough. Those coupon freaks spend hours and hours doing it, no need to waste so much time. But I'm sure you receive like a coupon magazine or newsletter every week in your mail.

You could also find out if you can raise hens. Having one hen can give you 1-2 eggs a day. And overall it'll be cheaper even with feed and other expenses. And fresh eggs taste great.

That's all I could think of at the top of my head. If there is more I'll try to add.

Can of beans w/pork.

Tap water.

Boiled rice or potatoes.

Any food marked as 'clearance'

umm, i'm super cheap and rice cakes are pretty cheap. and if you crush 2 up you can have a small bowl of rice bubbles.. rice is rice is rice, as long as it's not the rice crackers, but rice cakes (puffed) and as long as they dont have cheese powder on them.

not really that great, but less effort than a brownie in a mug. also I'm out of chocolate.

Oh yeah...most important cheap food....home grown veggies

reply to post by Svipdagr


Real yeast?

Yeast is yeast. If it's bakers yeast it's bakers yeast. If the yeast causes the bread to rise, it's alive... as in, real yeast. You can keep a culture of any yeast as long as it's viable.

Heck, they even restarted a type of beer that had not been made in over 100 years, after finding bottles of it on a sunken ship, they retrieved living yeast, and made a beer from the same recipe.

The only difference between yeasts are their tolerance. Some are kept for their ability to withstand high alcohol content, wine yeasts.. others average content, beer yeasts.. and some just want to fart a lot.. bakers yeast.

dunno why I caught onto that but had to say it.. made me hungry tho..

Originally posted by liejunkie01
Fried rice. Anything you can fry in some rice. No recipe, just whatever is in the fridge or cabinet. There is usually some vegetable in the very back of the cabinet.

Fried rice is a good one, we do that at home. Kids love it. Here is a good recipe :

Arroz chaufa is a great way to use leftover rice, and it's a one dish meal - what could be better? Add leftover roasted chicken, roasted pork, hot dogs (my kids' favorite), or just vegetables - it's a very flexible dish. It comes together in just minutes, once the simple prep work of chopping the vegetables and assembling the ingredients is done.

southamericanfood.about.com...

reply to post by MidnightSunshine


No, thank you for a useful thread

I happen to know I am getting a rice cooker for Christmas so....I'ts on

reply to post by liejunkie01

Also biscuit donuts. Can of super cheap buiscuits, stretched and made into rings and deep fried in minimal oil in a small sauce pan. Cinnamon. And sugar sprinkled on top and you are in poor heaven.

BISCUIT MUFFINS are AWESOMELY DELICIOUS AND CHEAP!

Thanks for the replies, guys.

reply to post by winofiend


sorry. I should've said instant yeast. That stuff is crap.

I make a lot of homemade chocolate chip cookies. Once you know the recipe, and get a system, they don't take long. I can make about 6-7 dozen in about an hour, hour+15 w/ clean up. Costs less than 7 bucks if you shop right.

Buy meat on sale and freeze what you do not need for a meal, also buy in bulk if possible, and re-package at home. For example where I live Pork Tenderloin is often on sale as a whole loin. When I get it home, I slice some of it into one inch thick pieces, for the freezer, these can be beaten flat, breaded then fried, or cubed and browned for a stew or soup, thinly sliced for a stir fry, etc. The remaining loin can be used as a roast. Just an idea.

A freezer is a huge help in saving money on groceries. You can often pick up a used chest model for a hundred bucks, it will pay for itself in no time, allowing you to buy meats in bulk when they are on sale.

You can't beat beans and cornbread for cheap and nutritious. Hamburger is also a great buy, can be made into chili, spaghetti, a variety of meals.

reply to post by Iamschist


Well, in my area Sandy made freezer useless for a while.

reply to post by Trueman


Labor day I made a vow to stop buying my lunch at work. (around $8 a day) Gas prices are killing me and with my long communte (an hour each way) I had to find a way to cut back. I figured $8 a day x 20 days of work a month = 3 tanks of gas!!

I bring those cup of noodle things (3 for a dollar), microwave popcorn (got it on sale for 5 bags for a dollar), spaghettios, ravioli etc ($1 a can). I spend on average $1.50 for my lunch each day. I do treat myself every other Friday on payday and buy my lunch.

Dinners we have cut back as well.

some of my favorites..

1) biscuits and gravy (total cost about $7 to feed a family of four)..homemade flour gravy, pack of sausage fried, and canned biscuits.
2) spaghetti with ground beef in the sauce instead of meatballs. (about $7 a meal) then the left overs are baked the next day with some mozerrella cheese for baked spaghetti. ($2 for the cheese) so $9 for 2 meals for a family of four.
3) chicken bake- (4 chicken breasts-$6), (pasta $1 a box), and fettucini sauce ($2 a jar)...
4) breakfast for dinner- pancakes or french toast with bacon ! My family loves this night!
5) papa murphy take and bake pizza on friday - $10 for an extra large pizza you take home and bake yourself
6) beef stew or veggie soup on saturdays in a crock pot
ANYTHING in a crock pot!!

Hope these ideas help!

My food budget is about $25 a week right now.

My staples are:
============
-tuna salad on white bread, with diced pickles (i use generic miracle whip instead of mayo)
-ham sandwiches on white bread
-salads (lettuce, tomato, carrot, onion, celery)
-frozen chicken breast (cooked with a little sage and paprika and put in salads)
-fish stick sandwiches on white bread
-shoestring (budget) french fries with a little canned hot-dog chili
-"baked" (microwaved) potatoes - (puncture with fork and microwave for 4-ish mins, depending on size)
-canned spinach
-frozen broccoli
-cheap cookies or mini donuts for dessert
-occasional .99 cent menu from Wendy's/Arby's

i need more calcium, but i do take a multi-vitamin occasionally and try to get sunlight

Most of the replies so far appear to be north american based but here is some tips for the UK.

Asda Smart Price Spaghetti - 24p a pack
Smart price tinned vegatables
Smart Price Noodles - 13p a pack
Dirty Potatoes for chips and boiled potatoes, you know the loose kind that you fill your own bag up with, these are cheapest variety.

I recently spent £10 on a weeks worth of food for one person.