Ask Lemmy

For dinners and lunches, buy grains like rice, bulgar, farro in bulk. International grocery stores sell big bags on the cheap. Buy protein in bulk at a store like Aldi. Simple meals are 2 parts grain, one part protein, one part vegetable. Sautee or roast and sauce.

Breakfast, buy oats. Lots of ways to do oatmeal/hot cereal.

Cooking for yourself is the cheapest way to eat. My wife and I spend around $120 per week for all the meals for a family of 4 because we can cook.

eating out is likely the biggest culprit, estimated to be 70-100$/day. and i know some people who eat like this and is doing it OUT of thier means. also look at what you are buying, you are buying more expensive brands,organic foods? try conventional and in-store brands. Also asian markets have alot of variety and cheaper compared to english ones, plus kitchen essentials like chopping board, utensils,,,,etc.

It really depends on circumstance. Do you have a broad pallette, do you cook, do you have access to land or community garden to grow pricer food per calorie (lettuce, fruit), will you lower your meat intake, can you reduce meals on the go or nights out?

There are a lot of ways to reduce your food budget, the biggest is refraining from eating out. Probably followed by more meals without meat, which is healthier anyway. Americans eat way too much meat. If you are a creative cook you can make the food you have on hand go further, instead of letting random ingredients go to waste.

While pretty much everyone here is taking a moment to talk about beans, peas are higher in a lot of nutrients and a lot easier to digest (I think they are tastier to). You can often get them frozen in bulk if you don't want to deal with dried and they can disappear into a lot of recipes.

Consider backing up your rice dishes with peas if you aren't a bean fan.

Plant-based diet. I still see inflation but avoided the worst of it

Learning to cook and making your meals based on whatever protein is on sale does wonders for affordability without putting you in depression territory (rice and beans, rice and beans).

When I had no money and no time, I relied heavily on a rotation of the following meals, with current 2026 costs in my expensive city:

• Chili Mac: 1 lb dried pasta ($1.25 for 1600 calories, 54g protein) boiled in salty water (let's call salt and water basically free), a can of chili ($2.50 for 540 calories, 32g protein), 2 oz of shredded cheese ($1 for 220 calories, 12g protein), 0.25 oz of hot sauce ($0.25 for flavor but negligible calories/protein). Total: $5, 2360 calories, 98g protein.
• Stir fried chicken and broccoli on rice: 1 lb chicken thigh ($4.50, 600 calories, 87g protein), 1 lb broccoli ($1.50, 150 calories, 9g protein), 1 lb rice ($1.50 for 1600 calories, 32g protein), $0.50 of condiments/seasoning. Total: $8, 2350 calories, 128g protein.
• Ramen with enough stuff to make it not suck: 1 package of Shin Ramyun ($2 for 500 calories, 10 g protein), 2 eggs ($0.30, 150 calories, 12g protein), 4 oz frozen edamame ($2, 90 calories, 9g protein), 2 oz scallions ($0.20, let's round down to 0 calories and 0g protein). Total: $4.50, 740 calories, 31g protein.

Bulk on the dry staples. I’ve found that a good hack for saving on having to buy on storage containers is buy the giant pickle jars and then reusing them for beans, rice, and oats. I break down my prices per ounce, so while most of my food comes from Winco, there’s a few things I get at Albertsons on occasion because their overpriced foods are less likely to sell and end up on exceptional markdowns. I hit food banks.

I’m fortunate to have a lot of growing space and ramped up my casual, for fun garden to an actual food producing garden. I’m planting in waves, little fast growers like radishes in the boxes the tomatoes are starting in. Eventually the tomatoes will block but I can get a few cycles of the radishes before that happens. Also built a coop and have four lovely little hens that should start laying in a couple more weeks. The trade off is that all of this takes a lot of time.

I bought quality pressure cooker and make giant batches of beans that can be divided and frozen. About every three weeks I have to cook a batch but they work as burrito filling, nacho topper, taco salad fill. I do a lot of stir fries with frozen veggies and ramen or brown rice I made in the pressure cooker.

Bread machines are a frequent find at thrift shops. People buy them, never use them, dump them, so they’re brand new but 1/10 the cost. You can get fancy with them or just spend about 10min getting the ingredients assembled, set it and forget it. It’s been one of the best investments I’ve made.

Dried, Canned, Frozen, Fresh in that order of preference for us anyways. Off-screen half size chest freezer we've finally just finished the frozen sour cherries from the backyard tree last year that's now budding for spring. Besides that it usually has a bunch of frozen baked potatoes from my backyard again, pork cuts that were on sale, Mennonite colony DIY chicken. Vacuum packing keeps away the freezer burn. I have the choice of three discount grocery/markets near me where I can buy fresh produce it's just b-grade/misshapen. I've been slowly adding more backyard planters too but I focus on fruit tree/berry bushes since I'm a shite veggie gardener. Too lazy for the upkeep so just hardy stuff that I can't easily kill from neglect in our short growing season, hardiness zone 3B. Potatoes are easy at least but we ran out half way through winter.

Bonus: This week's slop pots. Metal pot used textured vegetable protein: https://i.postimg.cc/xdm5S0c8/signal-2026-05-14-144201.jpg

Nutrition is expensive, and controlling waste is crucial. So yes, if you can get a price break on anything essential, consider freezing and pickling (veggies) what would otherwise spoil. In general, try to learn about how different vegetables and meats will keep.

Rice, beans, and potatoes are great staples that last a while and are good for you.

Lower-end "potted meat product" and similar canned meats may be less expensive per ounce than full cuts. That said, it's usually full of sodium and is usually only good on sandwiches and things like that.

Some grocery stores sell cooked rotisserie chicken as a loss-leader (discount). That said, cost-compare against whole birds in the freezer section just in case. Besides, you can't beat home-made roast chicken, and it's fairly easy to do.

I was broke-as-a-joke back in the 2000's. So the following advice may have aged like the milk I bought back then:

• Obviously, go down-market on your grocery store chain. Cost-compare if your time/energy budget allows it.
• Learn how to cook what's cheap. What's not imported and in season is usually (not always) in this category.
• Avoid box-mixes (e.g. hamburger helper). Buy raw ingredients and consider seasoning packets or bulk seasoning to make the same dishes.
• Bologna, souise loaf, and pickle loaf (if they even still make that) can be cheaper than non-processed cuts
• Bananas and corn are subsidized as fuck. There are likely others. As a result, they're artificially cheap.
• Regularly check the store circular (those newspaper things nobody reads) and jump on limited store specials and BOGOs.
• Tofu can be pretty cheap IF you buy it at an asian grocery store; there may even be bulk options. Making these can be a chore, but a huge bargain if you buy soybeans in bulk. It also freezes okay too, but it does change the texture (some recipes use this).

Start with a goal of no food waste. If you manage your food inventory like rations in a bunker then the savings on wasted food can help offset the expense.

Together with inventory management is preserving your food. Not jarring your stuff or pickling. Utilizing your fridge and freezer to limit food waste is good at saving you money.

Learning to cook and tapering your food expectations helps a lot with savings. Also learning that cooking with vinegar or acid can extend cooked food just like sweeter food lasting longer.

Or get a partner that came from poverty and learn how to cook(/s).

Rice and beans. I can still get a weeks worth of meat for 20$ if I am only serving myself.

Aldi and Lidl.

I have a farm share (CSA). At the start of the year, you pay up front for a share; in return, you get boxes of veggies during the season. Since the farmer is paid up front, they don't need to borrow money from the bank and hope for a decent harvest to repay the loan, so there's less pressure on them: they know their farm will still be around next year. And you get boxes of veggies that were picked within the past 24 hours, so they're all incredibly fresh. You'll get some stuff you can find in the grocery store (ex: roma tomatoes, bell peppers) but since all the middlemen have been cut out, they last a long time (I've had heads of lettuce last like a month); and you'll get some that's either heirloom varieties (too fragile for handling by the supply chain feeding grocery stores) or unusual (ex: pawpaws, ground cherries).

I'm going to say up front that a farm share isn't for everyone; it takes some adjustment and a bit of work to make it work well, but for me it's worth it. I'll note that I'm single (so it all falls on me) and vegetarian (so I can sometimes eat a lot of veggies).

Each farm chooses how to operate, so I can only speak in generalities. To accommodate different family sizes, some farms offer boxes of different sizes/prices; others offer a half-share, so instead of getting a box every week for 20-26 weeks, you get a box for 10-13 weeks (you choose which weeks you want a box). You can also find a friend to split the cost and content of a share, either splitting each box, or alternating pickup weeks.

Some farms will pre-pack the boxes for you; others will put the veggies on a table and let you choose among them; for example, this week's share might be something like "choose 3 zucchinis/eggplants; choose 2 lbs of a bunch of different types of tomatoes; choose 4 varieties of hot peppers", etc. Some farms you have to pick up at the farm itself; other farms have distribution points in outlying areas, will let you pick up at local farmers markets, or have home delivery for an additional fee. Some farms have work shares: instead of paying for a share, you can choose to work like 4 hours a week during the season and get a box of veggies each week in return. Most farms have pick-your-own availability for veggies that may not be to everyone's taste (okra, herbs), where some people may want extras (tomatoes, peppers, beans), or where personal taste is important (flowers).

I've been with a bunch of different farms over the years (I've moved several times; and sometimes I've joined a farm that isn't a great fit for me). For the past couple years, I've been getting my own box instead of splitting a share, and I've opted to get a 10-week share (I choose the weeks). One thing I like with the 10-week share is that I'm not facing fresh veggies to work with every week; sometimes a weekly share can seem overwhelming!

Most people make some adaptations to make a CSA work for them. It's taken me a while, but I've finally come up with a set a recipes for stuff that I like, that uses the veggies I tend to get, much of which stores well; and I have a pattern of processing that works for me:

Each week, the farm sends out an email ahead of time, letting you know what's in season and sometimes with a rough idea of how much to expect ("this'll be the last week for blackberries, but we have lots of tomatoes!"); that helps me plan what to do ahead of time.

On weeks that I have a share, I go to the farm, do the PYO (it's included in my share, and my starving Irish ancestors would be upset if I didn't get them!), and choose the veggies for my box. When I get home, I wash everything, then sit in front of the tv, watching my guilty-pleasure shows and processing the veggies - as applicable, I trim, peel, slice, dice, mince, etc. As I finish each veggie, it goes into a sealed bowl or a Ziploc and goes into the fridge. I also have a spare bowl for scraps - ends and peels of onions and carrots, trimmings from peppers and leeks, etc. Those join other scraps in a big Ziploc in the freezer; when I have enough scraps, I use it to make veggie stock. And there's another bowl for stuff I can't use, that either goes in the garbage or a compost pile (I've stopped composting in recent years).

On Saturday, I spend a couple hours cooking, usually 2-3 big dishes or 4-5 smaller ones - it depends on my mood and what's in season. Then half the food gets portion-sized and frozen; the other half gets eaten over the week or so following. While cooking, I may pickle some veggies. Pickling is easy: you put your chosen veggies and spices in a jar, heat up your pickling brine, pour the brine over the veggies, and seal the jar. During a season, I may pickle dilly beans, beets, giardinieri, garlic, onions, cucumbers, etc; I may eat them out of the jar or use them as ingredients in future dishes.

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I'm an old guy. I usually go to my local grocery store when the kids get out from school for lunch. It gets really crowded in there and everyone is looking at the kids with suspicion while I'm shoving cans of beans and lunchmeat into my haversack.

Only buy in bulk what you can and WILL eat before it spoils. Staring into a cupboard that's empty except for a huge box of something that seemed like a deal but now makes you gag is .... a life lesson.

Since it's just you, buy cooking vegetables frozen in bags, so you can take out one serving and don't have to hurry to eat up the broccoli wilting in the fridge. Unlike canned, frozen veg keep their nutrients. Which you do need. Being unhealthy isn't frugal.

Where I live, oats or potatoes are even cheaper than beans and rice. Dairy (milk, yoghurt etc), peanuts and eggs are also cheap here. Meat is expensive but frozen is cheaper.

Anything that is in season and produced locally/in my country (and/or has excellent shelf-life) tend to be what I look for.

A bowl of oats, yoghurt and peanuts is a simple and filling staple when I don't feel like cooking something "proper".

Step No. 1 is find the lowest cost grocery store in your area. Stores like Lidl and Aldi are usually substantially cheaper than other big name alternatives, even Walmart.

Step No 2. Especially if you’re talking about actual food insecurity, is shaping what you eat. A pound of spaghetti and red sauce will feed 4 people for less than $5. Actual sacks of rice and orzo are extremely cost effective. If you have an honest to goodness local meat butchers around (these aren’t so common so you may have to go looking), they will often have bulk deals in meat you can buy and freeze. This is much more cost effective than $8-$12 a pound refrigerated ground beef in your local grocery store.

Step No 3. Is something to approach with caution, but certain credit cards often have good cash back rates on grocery stores. If you use them exclusively for grocery and gas purchases, and only use them to pre-spend the money in your checking account so you’re never carrying a balance or paying any interest, they can save you some money. American Express for example has a no-fee rewards card that gives you 3% back on groceries, and a higher tier one that was a $100 annual fee that gives you 6% back on groceries and 3% on gas. Make it your dedicated gas and groceries card, don’t spend more on it than you have money to pay for, and you get a nice little break on two of the most expensive costs of living right now. Something else that might work in this arena is to join a bulk membership store like BJs, Sam’s Club, or Costco and they might have a rewards credit card or even just a store card that puts a little money back into your pocket when you use it.

I know BJs has a program too where if you spend a certain amount on groceries you get a discount on gas if you fill up that day at one of their gas stations, which are usually already cheaper than regular gas stations.

If things are very dicey you can always visit a food pantry. Some Christian churches also do weekly/monthly free meals no questions asked. I know Episcopal churches are usually big on this.

Learning to cook for yourself is helpful, and that means not just avoiding eating out, but avoiding the purchase of prepared foods.

For instance: Instead of buying a jar of Spaghetti sauce, get a large can of crushed tomatoes, add garlic and Italian herbs, and let it simmer for several hours. It's super easy, and tastes far better, and is much cheaper. Cook up several cans in a giant pot, and freeze the sauce in single or double containers.

Chili is another cheap, nutritious meal that freezes easily. Just ground meat, beans, a can of diced tomatoes, and herbs. Just don't forget the Cumin, that's the taste of Chili.

When pork shoulders are on sale, cook one up in a slow cooker, and freeze that. Cheap pulled pork available whenever you want it. Do the same with chicken breast and/or thighs, when they're on sale.

Do one of those, and a couple more, every Sunday, and you'll have a lot of cheap meals for the next month or two.

Rice, lentils, potato are super cheap and healthy.

Reduce meat and add protein via plants or milk products. You don't need to eliminate all meat, just the expensive ones (depends on your location). Aim for 1g per kg of body weight and it'd be a healthy replacement. Reducing meat brings some headache on nutrition planning but a lot of savings as well.

Cook from scratch and learn how to make stews, curry's and pasta dishes from scratch. Eating less meat will drastically lower your food bill and improve your heart and bowel health no end.

Stealing/grifting from the conservatives who caused it.

Food pantry. It'll be full of stuff that's grocery overstock or about to expire. You'll have to toss some fresh fruit and veg that's gone off, and the breads will mold in a day or two, but otherwise it's the same stuff that's on the shelves at the store, just a more limited selection.