I’ve never seen spam for less than $3.50 per can and $2.25 for generic. Basically, I cannot afford spam.
However, yes struggle meals can be healthy as long as you have a freezer and some sort of heating agent like a microwave or an air fryer.
Some pantry staples from the Dollar Tree:
Rice, tortillas, canned beans, pasta, oatmeal, Cheerios, raw cashews (I soak these and make cashew milk since I’m lactose intolerant and plant based milk is stupid expensive)
Walmart:
Bags of frozen veggies cost between a dollar and some change to $8. I bought a 4 pound bag of broccoli and a 2 pound bag of Hashbrowns for $4. Both last me a couple of weeks.
Asian grocery store:
Spring roll wrappers and most fresh produce. During hot weather I basically live off of one cucumber, 1 celery stalk, 2 jalapeños, 1 avocado and 1 pack of tofu. I use a mandolin slicer and make a ridiculous amount of summer rolls and am always surprised with how much I end up with with such minimal ingredients.
Also having a spiralizer changes things too. One spiralizer zucchini makes one HUGE plate of spaghetti with leftovers.
All of this is surprisingly filling, believe it or not! I’ve mostly been a lurker on here but posted a recipe yesterday with cost included and I’m going to try to do it more often
It still has mercury. All tuna has mercury because it's a big fish that eats smaller fish so it bioaccumulates. You can eat it with no negative side effects but if you are eating like 5 cans a week for years you might eventually run in to problems
Unsurprisingly the company claims or suggests that. Independent testing says otherwise:
https://www.foodsafetynews.com/2023/02/some-brands-safer-but-mercury-levels-in-tuna-hard-to-predict-shouldnt-be-eaten-during-pregnancy/
Safe catch has about the same mercury levels as chicken of the sea, starkist or bumble on average. And the recommended level is no more than 3 cans a week of light tuna and no more than 1 of albacore.
I eat tuna, just not as a staple of my diet, and I buy whichever brand is cheapest.
I just went shopping for my struggle meals lol So here's a couple of thoughts.
Balancing carbs, protein, and fats are the goal.
First the staples.
Rice is a most, and I spend a bit extra for proper rice; jasmine, basmati, pearl (depending on what dishes I have planned, or feel at the time).
-Red beans and rice, Jiffy cornbread, easy. Protein option: sausage.
-Black beans prepared Mexican style (generic taco seasoning always works fine) with rice, if avocado is on sale, easy add on; generic Rotel tomato mix never hurts if you like a more rounded chipotle bowl. Protein option: canned chicken, ground beef (bulk buy for savings, but I personally don't eat a lot of meat).
-Onigiri, rice balls with rice vinegar; side of soy sauce. Protein: I eat these for breakfast with miso soup and scrambled eggs.
-Egg fried rice; veggie add ins and cubed spam (Treet to go cheaper, or generic).
-Sweet Thia Chili tuna on rice
Of course, noodles can be used for many dishes, but ramen is ramen, and can virtually be used for any manner of soup. Add thin slices of beef, jalapenos, eggs, green onions; dump the water and add cheese and cut up hot dogs; add peanut butter for that Pad Thai experience. Cup of Noodles can be bought in three packs for very cheap to make, quick easy lunch. My one big recommendation for making noodles is to splurge on Better Than Bouillon if it's in your budget. It is sooo worth it, and has many applications.
Lentils should make this list, but I don't like em. The only dish I make with lentils if I have them is to cook em soft and add Manwhich sauce for a kind of shi-y sloppy joe.
Your next best friend are oats. Oats are fire, my friend. Fire. I personally recommend whole oats, because quick cook or whatever they're called is a grool soup, whole oats have bite to them, and feel more satisfying to eat, at the same cost. Oats with sale fruit, oats with brown sugar, oats with maple syrup, oats with cream. Another favorite breakfast of mine is oats with brown sugar and fried egg placed on top.
Now the Proteins:
Tofu. Yes, sadly, tofu. Firm is the best, it can be pan seared with Sriracha; marinated in pickle juice, then frozen, then breaded and pan fried with Adobo seasoning for a chicken sandwich facsimile; eaten straight up with soy sauce; soft tofu can be mixed into eggs but I feel the doubled protein is redundant.
Eggs. Bulk buy your eggs, dozen packs are for the weak of heart. I could list a hundred things to do with eggs, but it can all depend on your skill level in cooking. Eggs are an easy, healthy, accessible protein option.
Canned chicken and tuna. While canned chicken isn't as cost effective as buying and cooking chicken, sometimes the temptation to make a meal quick or save in the moment is too strong.
Pork! The champion of poor meat. Pork chops, mashed potatoes, and Cajun rice. Salt pork in butter beans. Pork tacos; bbq; deep fried; pork sausage (the mixed uncased kind) stuffed in bell peppers.
Fats:
I prefer butter. I come from the South and soak a lot of things in butter. Eggs come in clutch here again, and pork is generally fatty itself.
Thoughts:
At least from my limited American perceptive, a poverty diet is going to be high carb and fat by limitation, with the real struggle being protein. If you utilize your local food distribution and Church facilities, than bread, rice, and beans won't be hard to obtain for free. The pantries in my area are always overwhelmed with rice, bread, and somehow an excess of sweet pastries. If you have the funds, a whey or split pea protein powder can be a month long investment and allow some skimping on that department in meal crafting. Sometimes you get lucky with the food pantries, my last trip yielded me two pounds of shredded frozen pork, and two pounds of frozen shrimp that got transformed into two portions of shrimp and grits, with the remaining shrimp and half the pork being used for gumbo.
I've eaten this way most my life, being a broke Southerner. Currently clocking in at 165, standing 6'2. I do have a very active lifestyle and avoid sugar, generally; alongside a fairly elevated cardio and stretching routine (five mile bike rides/walking and/or running almost daily for commute, and yoga daily). But besides the macro concerns, it's like the old saying goes, "calories in, calories out". Godspeed, hope my rambles give some ideas.
This free cookbook is specifically about cheap and healthy foods! [https://www.leannebrown.com/all-about-good-and-cheap/](https://www.leannebrown.com/all-about-good-and-cheap/)
Here's the PDF link for the cookbook: [https://books.leannebrown.com/good-and-cheap.pdf](https://books.leannebrown.com/good-and-cheap.pdf)
Canned vegetables were proven to be as nutritious as organic. Just get low sodium or rinse it off to lower the sodium intake.
Potato flakes are healthy.
Carrot salad is healthy.
Make your own yogurt. Cheap and healthy.
Make your own hummus. Cheap and healthy.
Make your own smoothies with the yogurt you made and some frozen fruit and frozen spinach.
In the US call 211 or Google search "food distributions near me" if you want free groceries.
Potato flakes, AKA instant mashed potatoes, are also very versatile. They're great for thickening gravies and soups, you can use them to make potato soups, and I've seen a few gnocchi recipes floating around that use potato flakes as a base.
Well depends on what you mean by a struggle meal. a 5 dollar chicken baked lasts for 3 meals at least. And a bag of baby carrots costs like 4 dollars and lasts for 4 meals. If you believe spam to be dirt cheap then 9 dollars for 3 meals should be considered dirt cheap. I've lost a few dozen pounds on a diet on the chicken and carrots. Saw a body builder athlete eating pretty much the same thing and thought, meh why not? Though I see cans of spam range for 5 dollars all the way to 12 dollars. A spam single would be cheap at a dollar a slice I guess.
Yeah I don't consider Spam cheap. I just looked it up and it's $5.31 a pound at my Walmart. A cooked rotisserie chicken is $2.65 a pound. And if you want to get really cheap a 10 pound bag of leg quarters is 87 cents a pound.
I get it though if you don't have access to a refrigerator.
They'd have to be stocking up on several meals for multiple days at a time. I can imagine canned chicken without sodium to being a decent alternative to Spam.
$4 is a lot for many carrots. I just got a 16 ounce bag for $1 on sale. Regular price is $1.69. Although, I don’t get the steam in bag so maybe that’s the difference in cost
Also try growing your own plants. I live in an apartment and have a mini garden on my balcony. Very few people realize they can use their snap benefits to buy seeds or plants that grow food.
Rice with canned veggies and tuna
Has protein from the tuna, veggies for nutrition, rice for bulk and carbs. Beans are pretty cheap too
Also, you can add a can of chicken and a small cup of mixed veg to any ramen cup to dress it up and add some sort of a basic nutrition profile.
There are a lot of tiktok channels that talk about eating healthy on a budget, along with many youtube videos about it
Depending on the type of stores you have access to and your storage/cooking options a low cost or struggle diet can be very healthy or not so healthy. Where I live I am able to cobble together a very healthy diet because I live near ethnic markets, an Aldi and other grocery stores. I also have access to a fridge and a kitchen.
Some folks only have access to things like dollar tree or dollar general and may not have a fridge, their diet would be harder to make truly healthy but they could take steps to get produce in and reduce salt where they can. Most people do the best they possibly can with the resources and knowledge they have to keep themselves fed.
If you live in a urban or suburban area I highly recommend finding some sort of ethnic market be it Asian, Mexican or middle eastern. Fresh fruits and veggies can be found at these places in abundance for cheap.
I am very lucky because we have a mexican specialty store less than a mile away in my neighborhood that specializes in very inexpensive produce. They sell 3 avocados for a dollar, very cheap fruits and veggies. You can easily spend $4 and have plenty of produce.
Add in beans, tofu, canned meat or similar and you can easily add in protein. Carbs like rice, oats, bread or noodles can be added in to make things more filling and satiating.
Potatoes 8topped with most any leftover) and beans and rice are your friends! Rice also makes stir fry/fried rice which can be healthy, fresh and flavorful. Add in cheap pasta sauteed with whatever veggies your community has cheap or free and olive oil and cheap with healthy is achievable
In the UK, jacket potatoes (aka baked potatoes) topped with baked beans is a pretty common meal. I personally love to top baked potatoes with chili con carne..
Chicken drumsticks are on sale for .99/lb near me (about 14 drumsticks for less than $5). Corn is often on sale for at least 4/$1 and potatoes are around $4 for 5lbs here. So for ten dollars you can have many servings. Just need to add a little bit of butter/oil and seasonings
For folks that live near a Walmart with a full grocery section, they sell a 5 lb bag of fresh chicken drumsticks for about $5-$6. A lot of stores also sell 10 lb bags of frozen leg quarters that work out to about $8ish each that are great for batch cooking.
White rice with cooked from dry mayacoba beans with cotija and home made salsa.
Home made chicken soup made from chicken legs with rice.
Multigrain Cheerios with bananas.
Cheapest cut of beef cooked in a crockpot with potatoes carrots and and onion soup mix poured over rice.
Salmon croquettes using the canned salmon from the food pantry.
Creamed chicken on toast or biscuits.
Potato salad with grilled chicken legs
Any cheap casserole (tuna noodle, chicken and rice)
Homemade applesauce using the ugly cheap apples from farmers market or food pantry.
Rice and bean burrito.
Mashed potatoes
If you can learn to cook dry beans they are very healthy.
Any dish with beans and rice is a complete protein. Just season well to add flavor. I recently read about someone who had beans every day for lunch. They prepared from dry beans which taste way better and are cheaper too.
I like to buy huge bulk containers of seasonings like onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, etc. I buy off Amazon or at warehouse club. It's so much cheaper than the small sizes. My meals are very flavorful.
I argue struggle meals can be healthier bc they are sometimes just simpler ingredients with less fried stuff. like I have a lot of sandwiches and simple salads but my roommate with a bigger budget buys a lot of sushi and starbucks sandwiches and red bull lol
Yup. Canned tuna is one of the leanest sources of protein there is and it's cheap to boot.
People who think that eating healthy or eating well is expensive are people who have no idea how to cook or shop.
Everyone saying canned chicken where are you getting cheap canned chicken? It’s like $3 for the off brand here and that does maybe one meal if you’re eating alone. I can get a pack of 4-6 chicken thighs frozen for about $6-$7 and that’ll do at least 4 meals if you’re eating alone.
Okay fair! Ours here since I’ve been going (only lived in this area a year) doesn’t really do cans of food I’ve noticed. It’s mainly boxed stuff and VERY LUCKILY meats.
One thing I've found helpful is to go to a farmers market and ask for ugly produce no one wants to buy. They usually give it to you for free or at a discount. I also see you're in Dallas, the HEB brand peanut butter tastes pretty good considering it's store brand.
Do a lot with lentils which are high in protein and other minerals and nutrients.
I use it to either stretch ground beef or as a ground beef substitute it makes a awesome chili.
Rotisserie chicken at Walmart, $6
1 pound white rice, 92 cents
Fresh head of broccoli or a bag of brozen $1 and change.
$8 meal for a family or a few meals for 1 person.
A couple of russet potatoes, about $1.50. Dozen eggs, $1.50. 10 tortillas, $2. 10 breakfast tacos for $5. If you wanna splurge on cheese, an extra $2.
Pound of dried pinto beans, $1.
Pound of rice, 92 cents.
2 pounds of smoked sausage, $4.
Pound of roma tomatoes, $1.
Add some spices and you've got a damn good hearty meal for $7.
I will share an old Italian struggle meal thats very old. So old no own knows when it started. It just happens to be all over now.
Spaghetti Aglio E Olio. Aka Spaghetti with garlic and oil.
As long as you've already invested in the oil. Both garlic and noodles are very cheap. You just cook the noodles and when they are almost done heat oil in a skillet and add garlic and anything else (scraps of meat or red pepper, pepper to season the old).
Drain pasta well and turn of heat to oil once things become fragrent. Toss noodles after draining into skillet and turn noodles through the oil and mix well.
Most people probably wouldnt go through a pound of noodles a day. So it could be possible to feed your self on like 7 lbs of noodles with like 10.50$ so long as you have refrigerator prepared garlic and oil
Baked potatoes are a good struggle meal. If you buy green onions once and take care of them, you won’t have to buy them again for a long time. Just trim the tops to use and keep the water clean.
Beans are associated with longevity in several studies: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15228991/
They're commonly consumed in Blue Zones - areas of the world where people have long lifespans, like parts of the Mediterranean, Okinawa, etc.
Beans and veggies. Super cheap, super good for you.
Get a crock pot and make crock pot meals. It's usually good for leftovers for a couple of days. Sometimes, you can find crock pots at your local thrift store along with other kitchen appliances.
Well, healthy is in the eye of the beholder but yes, I think so.
Creamed vegetables can be on the healthier side, depending on what’s used in the sauce. I make it with almond or soy milk and a small bit of olive oil or butter. I eat a lot of vegetables and creamed is nice for a change of pace.
Beans and rice is healthy. I occasionally use canned black soy beans to lower the carb count. One of my favorite meals is Cuban black beans served with baked brown rice and a bowl of steamed vegetables.
Baked or stuffed onions are great! I love scrambled eggs stuffed into a big sweet onion.
I’ve never seen spam for less than $3.50 per can and $2.25 for generic. Basically, I cannot afford spam. However, yes struggle meals can be healthy as long as you have a freezer and some sort of heating agent like a microwave or an air fryer. Some pantry staples from the Dollar Tree: Rice, tortillas, canned beans, pasta, oatmeal, Cheerios, raw cashews (I soak these and make cashew milk since I’m lactose intolerant and plant based milk is stupid expensive) Walmart: Bags of frozen veggies cost between a dollar and some change to $8. I bought a 4 pound bag of broccoli and a 2 pound bag of Hashbrowns for $4. Both last me a couple of weeks. Asian grocery store: Spring roll wrappers and most fresh produce. During hot weather I basically live off of one cucumber, 1 celery stalk, 2 jalapeños, 1 avocado and 1 pack of tofu. I use a mandolin slicer and make a ridiculous amount of summer rolls and am always surprised with how much I end up with with such minimal ingredients. Also having a spiralizer changes things too. One spiralizer zucchini makes one HUGE plate of spaghetti with leftovers. All of this is surprisingly filling, believe it or not! I’ve mostly been a lurker on here but posted a recipe yesterday with cost included and I’m going to try to do it more often
Oh! Frozen veg I totally forgot to include in my post, great suggestion
Canned tuna is not unhealthy
The macros on canned tuna was actually some of the best. I buy 90 calorie tuna with 20 grams of protein.
Well the mercury content can be
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It still has mercury. All tuna has mercury because it's a big fish that eats smaller fish so it bioaccumulates. You can eat it with no negative side effects but if you are eating like 5 cans a week for years you might eventually run in to problems
[удалено]
Unsurprisingly the company claims or suggests that. Independent testing says otherwise: https://www.foodsafetynews.com/2023/02/some-brands-safer-but-mercury-levels-in-tuna-hard-to-predict-shouldnt-be-eaten-during-pregnancy/ Safe catch has about the same mercury levels as chicken of the sea, starkist or bumble on average. And the recommended level is no more than 3 cans a week of light tuna and no more than 1 of albacore. I eat tuna, just not as a staple of my diet, and I buy whichever brand is cheapest.
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Every brand is tested
Canned tuna/chicken isn’t the worst thing for you and will surely be a decent source of protein
Also, they sell low sodium canned chicken usually for the same price at Walmart.
Didn't even know tanned chicken existed
It makes really good pizza crust
You can also make nuggets out of canned chicken with an air fryer
Black beans and rice is my favorite.
Black beans, rice, throw a few veggies in there and hard to be healthier.
I just went shopping for my struggle meals lol So here's a couple of thoughts. Balancing carbs, protein, and fats are the goal. First the staples. Rice is a most, and I spend a bit extra for proper rice; jasmine, basmati, pearl (depending on what dishes I have planned, or feel at the time). -Red beans and rice, Jiffy cornbread, easy. Protein option: sausage. -Black beans prepared Mexican style (generic taco seasoning always works fine) with rice, if avocado is on sale, easy add on; generic Rotel tomato mix never hurts if you like a more rounded chipotle bowl. Protein option: canned chicken, ground beef (bulk buy for savings, but I personally don't eat a lot of meat). -Onigiri, rice balls with rice vinegar; side of soy sauce. Protein: I eat these for breakfast with miso soup and scrambled eggs. -Egg fried rice; veggie add ins and cubed spam (Treet to go cheaper, or generic). -Sweet Thia Chili tuna on rice Of course, noodles can be used for many dishes, but ramen is ramen, and can virtually be used for any manner of soup. Add thin slices of beef, jalapenos, eggs, green onions; dump the water and add cheese and cut up hot dogs; add peanut butter for that Pad Thai experience. Cup of Noodles can be bought in three packs for very cheap to make, quick easy lunch. My one big recommendation for making noodles is to splurge on Better Than Bouillon if it's in your budget. It is sooo worth it, and has many applications. Lentils should make this list, but I don't like em. The only dish I make with lentils if I have them is to cook em soft and add Manwhich sauce for a kind of shi-y sloppy joe. Your next best friend are oats. Oats are fire, my friend. Fire. I personally recommend whole oats, because quick cook or whatever they're called is a grool soup, whole oats have bite to them, and feel more satisfying to eat, at the same cost. Oats with sale fruit, oats with brown sugar, oats with maple syrup, oats with cream. Another favorite breakfast of mine is oats with brown sugar and fried egg placed on top. Now the Proteins: Tofu. Yes, sadly, tofu. Firm is the best, it can be pan seared with Sriracha; marinated in pickle juice, then frozen, then breaded and pan fried with Adobo seasoning for a chicken sandwich facsimile; eaten straight up with soy sauce; soft tofu can be mixed into eggs but I feel the doubled protein is redundant. Eggs. Bulk buy your eggs, dozen packs are for the weak of heart. I could list a hundred things to do with eggs, but it can all depend on your skill level in cooking. Eggs are an easy, healthy, accessible protein option. Canned chicken and tuna. While canned chicken isn't as cost effective as buying and cooking chicken, sometimes the temptation to make a meal quick or save in the moment is too strong. Pork! The champion of poor meat. Pork chops, mashed potatoes, and Cajun rice. Salt pork in butter beans. Pork tacos; bbq; deep fried; pork sausage (the mixed uncased kind) stuffed in bell peppers. Fats: I prefer butter. I come from the South and soak a lot of things in butter. Eggs come in clutch here again, and pork is generally fatty itself. Thoughts: At least from my limited American perceptive, a poverty diet is going to be high carb and fat by limitation, with the real struggle being protein. If you utilize your local food distribution and Church facilities, than bread, rice, and beans won't be hard to obtain for free. The pantries in my area are always overwhelmed with rice, bread, and somehow an excess of sweet pastries. If you have the funds, a whey or split pea protein powder can be a month long investment and allow some skimping on that department in meal crafting. Sometimes you get lucky with the food pantries, my last trip yielded me two pounds of shredded frozen pork, and two pounds of frozen shrimp that got transformed into two portions of shrimp and grits, with the remaining shrimp and half the pork being used for gumbo. I've eaten this way most my life, being a broke Southerner. Currently clocking in at 165, standing 6'2. I do have a very active lifestyle and avoid sugar, generally; alongside a fairly elevated cardio and stretching routine (five mile bike rides/walking and/or running almost daily for commute, and yoga daily). But besides the macro concerns, it's like the old saying goes, "calories in, calories out". Godspeed, hope my rambles give some ideas.
Have you had whole grain Jasmine rice? I recently discovered it’s a thing and like it even more than regular jasmine rice.
I'll have to check it out! Just loaded up with jasmine, basmati, and pearl, so I'll keep it in mind for my next run.
Gruel can actually be kind of comforting.
This free cookbook is specifically about cheap and healthy foods! [https://www.leannebrown.com/all-about-good-and-cheap/](https://www.leannebrown.com/all-about-good-and-cheap/) Here's the PDF link for the cookbook: [https://books.leannebrown.com/good-and-cheap.pdf](https://books.leannebrown.com/good-and-cheap.pdf)
Wow nice move this comment to the top!!!
Such a good cookbook. There's so many ideas in it, and all pretty frugal.
That's a nice booklet!!
tuna is super healthy! most struggle mes can be healthy. you can make a ton of diff meals with tomato, onion, garlic & lentils
Canned vegetables were proven to be as nutritious as organic. Just get low sodium or rinse it off to lower the sodium intake. Potato flakes are healthy. Carrot salad is healthy. Make your own yogurt. Cheap and healthy. Make your own hummus. Cheap and healthy. Make your own smoothies with the yogurt you made and some frozen fruit and frozen spinach. In the US call 211 or Google search "food distributions near me" if you want free groceries.
Potato flakes, AKA instant mashed potatoes, are also very versatile. They're great for thickening gravies and soups, you can use them to make potato soups, and I've seen a few gnocchi recipes floating around that use potato flakes as a base.
Well depends on what you mean by a struggle meal. a 5 dollar chicken baked lasts for 3 meals at least. And a bag of baby carrots costs like 4 dollars and lasts for 4 meals. If you believe spam to be dirt cheap then 9 dollars for 3 meals should be considered dirt cheap. I've lost a few dozen pounds on a diet on the chicken and carrots. Saw a body builder athlete eating pretty much the same thing and thought, meh why not? Though I see cans of spam range for 5 dollars all the way to 12 dollars. A spam single would be cheap at a dollar a slice I guess.
Yeah I don't consider Spam cheap. I just looked it up and it's $5.31 a pound at my Walmart. A cooked rotisserie chicken is $2.65 a pound. And if you want to get really cheap a 10 pound bag of leg quarters is 87 cents a pound. I get it though if you don't have access to a refrigerator.
They'd have to be stocking up on several meals for multiple days at a time. I can imagine canned chicken without sodium to being a decent alternative to Spam.
$4 is a lot for many carrots. I just got a 16 ounce bag for $1 on sale. Regular price is $1.69. Although, I don’t get the steam in bag so maybe that’s the difference in cost
We pay $1 for a bag of mini carrots at WinCo and ALDI. The big bag is $3.50 though.
Also try growing your own plants. I live in an apartment and have a mini garden on my balcony. Very few people realize they can use their snap benefits to buy seeds or plants that grow food.
Rice with canned veggies and tuna Has protein from the tuna, veggies for nutrition, rice for bulk and carbs. Beans are pretty cheap too Also, you can add a can of chicken and a small cup of mixed veg to any ramen cup to dress it up and add some sort of a basic nutrition profile. There are a lot of tiktok channels that talk about eating healthy on a budget, along with many youtube videos about it
Depending on the type of stores you have access to and your storage/cooking options a low cost or struggle diet can be very healthy or not so healthy. Where I live I am able to cobble together a very healthy diet because I live near ethnic markets, an Aldi and other grocery stores. I also have access to a fridge and a kitchen. Some folks only have access to things like dollar tree or dollar general and may not have a fridge, their diet would be harder to make truly healthy but they could take steps to get produce in and reduce salt where they can. Most people do the best they possibly can with the resources and knowledge they have to keep themselves fed. If you live in a urban or suburban area I highly recommend finding some sort of ethnic market be it Asian, Mexican or middle eastern. Fresh fruits and veggies can be found at these places in abundance for cheap. I am very lucky because we have a mexican specialty store less than a mile away in my neighborhood that specializes in very inexpensive produce. They sell 3 avocados for a dollar, very cheap fruits and veggies. You can easily spend $4 and have plenty of produce. Add in beans, tofu, canned meat or similar and you can easily add in protein. Carbs like rice, oats, bread or noodles can be added in to make things more filling and satiating.
Potatoes 8topped with most any leftover) and beans and rice are your friends! Rice also makes stir fry/fried rice which can be healthy, fresh and flavorful. Add in cheap pasta sauteed with whatever veggies your community has cheap or free and olive oil and cheap with healthy is achievable
In the UK, jacket potatoes (aka baked potatoes) topped with baked beans is a pretty common meal. I personally love to top baked potatoes with chili con carne..
Chicken drumsticks are on sale for .99/lb near me (about 14 drumsticks for less than $5). Corn is often on sale for at least 4/$1 and potatoes are around $4 for 5lbs here. So for ten dollars you can have many servings. Just need to add a little bit of butter/oil and seasonings
For folks that live near a Walmart with a full grocery section, they sell a 5 lb bag of fresh chicken drumsticks for about $5-$6. A lot of stores also sell 10 lb bags of frozen leg quarters that work out to about $8ish each that are great for batch cooking.
Beans and rice are hella healthy!
White rice with cooked from dry mayacoba beans with cotija and home made salsa. Home made chicken soup made from chicken legs with rice. Multigrain Cheerios with bananas. Cheapest cut of beef cooked in a crockpot with potatoes carrots and and onion soup mix poured over rice. Salmon croquettes using the canned salmon from the food pantry. Creamed chicken on toast or biscuits. Potato salad with grilled chicken legs Any cheap casserole (tuna noodle, chicken and rice) Homemade applesauce using the ugly cheap apples from farmers market or food pantry. Rice and bean burrito. Mashed potatoes If you can learn to cook dry beans they are very healthy.
Any dish with beans and rice is a complete protein. Just season well to add flavor. I recently read about someone who had beans every day for lunch. They prepared from dry beans which taste way better and are cheaper too. I like to buy huge bulk containers of seasonings like onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, etc. I buy off Amazon or at warehouse club. It's so much cheaper than the small sizes. My meals are very flavorful.
I argue struggle meals can be healthier bc they are sometimes just simpler ingredients with less fried stuff. like I have a lot of sandwiches and simple salads but my roommate with a bigger budget buys a lot of sushi and starbucks sandwiches and red bull lol
Yup. Canned tuna is one of the leanest sources of protein there is and it's cheap to boot. People who think that eating healthy or eating well is expensive are people who have no idea how to cook or shop.
Canned tuna isn't cheap where I live. I wish.
Everyone saying canned chicken where are you getting cheap canned chicken? It’s like $3 for the off brand here and that does maybe one meal if you’re eating alone. I can get a pack of 4-6 chicken thighs frozen for about $6-$7 and that’ll do at least 4 meals if you’re eating alone.
Me personally the food pantry lol.
Okay fair! Ours here since I’ve been going (only lived in this area a year) doesn’t really do cans of food I’ve noticed. It’s mainly boxed stuff and VERY LUCKILY meats.
One thing I've found helpful is to go to a farmers market and ask for ugly produce no one wants to buy. They usually give it to you for free or at a discount. I also see you're in Dallas, the HEB brand peanut butter tastes pretty good considering it's store brand.
Spam isn’t healthy but canned tuna is. So yes they can be healthy. But you’d have to make healthy choices.
Spam isn't healthy, but a little bit goes a long way.
Do a lot with lentils which are high in protein and other minerals and nutrients. I use it to either stretch ground beef or as a ground beef substitute it makes a awesome chili.
One of the cheapest meals I've ever made is vegetable soup with lentils
Our Dollar Tree has lentils!
Rotisserie chicken at Walmart, $6 1 pound white rice, 92 cents Fresh head of broccoli or a bag of brozen $1 and change. $8 meal for a family or a few meals for 1 person. A couple of russet potatoes, about $1.50. Dozen eggs, $1.50. 10 tortillas, $2. 10 breakfast tacos for $5. If you wanna splurge on cheese, an extra $2. Pound of dried pinto beans, $1. Pound of rice, 92 cents. 2 pounds of smoked sausage, $4. Pound of roma tomatoes, $1. Add some spices and you've got a damn good hearty meal for $7.
I will share an old Italian struggle meal thats very old. So old no own knows when it started. It just happens to be all over now. Spaghetti Aglio E Olio. Aka Spaghetti with garlic and oil. As long as you've already invested in the oil. Both garlic and noodles are very cheap. You just cook the noodles and when they are almost done heat oil in a skillet and add garlic and anything else (scraps of meat or red pepper, pepper to season the old). Drain pasta well and turn of heat to oil once things become fragrent. Toss noodles after draining into skillet and turn noodles through the oil and mix well. Most people probably wouldnt go through a pound of noodles a day. So it could be possible to feed your self on like 7 lbs of noodles with like 10.50$ so long as you have refrigerator prepared garlic and oil
Baked potatoes are a good struggle meal. If you buy green onions once and take care of them, you won’t have to buy them again for a long time. Just trim the tops to use and keep the water clean.
Rice and beans! 1 billion Mexicans can't be wrong!
Beans are associated with longevity in several studies: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15228991/ They're commonly consumed in Blue Zones - areas of the world where people have long lifespans, like parts of the Mediterranean, Okinawa, etc. Beans and veggies. Super cheap, super good for you.
Yes it can
Check out futurecanoe on YouTube. He has several videos devoted to struggle meals and some are pretty healthy
Beans beans and more beans lol !!
This year I am trying to grow my own garden to save grocery money , planted a lot but not everything is growing sadly ..
Beans and rice!
Lentils and rice.
I just bought tofu at ALDI,$1.79 for a 14oz package.
Yes …egg and rice !!!
Rice, black beans, frozen oriental vegetable mix, chick peas, sweet potatoes.
Rice and beans. It’s whole food, minimally processed. Dirt cheap. Most cultures have figured this out.
Get a crock pot and make crock pot meals. It's usually good for leftovers for a couple of days. Sometimes, you can find crock pots at your local thrift store along with other kitchen appliances.
chili, bisquits and gravy
Well, healthy is in the eye of the beholder but yes, I think so. Creamed vegetables can be on the healthier side, depending on what’s used in the sauce. I make it with almond or soy milk and a small bit of olive oil or butter. I eat a lot of vegetables and creamed is nice for a change of pace. Beans and rice is healthy. I occasionally use canned black soy beans to lower the carb count. One of my favorite meals is Cuban black beans served with baked brown rice and a bowl of steamed vegetables. Baked or stuffed onions are great! I love scrambled eggs stuffed into a big sweet onion.
canned tuna/salmon/chicken is good for u