Cheap, Quick & Healthy - does it exist?

L

laraqua

0
I'm an over-stressed uni student on a shoestring budget. I look through recipe books that claim to be healthy and cheap and I see demands for 500g of chicken breast or this or that (even if they were at $5 a go, which they're not unless they're reduced, that'd be $45 a week on meat alone). Most recipe books also like to splash out with ingredients that are rarely used - meaning unused parts of it will likely spoil. I'm at my wit's end. I just want a simple, easy, week's worth of meals. I don't mind if it takes a half hour to make, I just want it to use only a few ordinary ingredients at a go. Yet few recipe books take into account the limited pantry space and budgets of students.

I don't suppose the rest of y'all know cheap, easy and healthy foods?
 
there are tons
yogurt, eggs on toast (wholemeal) , inventive salads (with different nuts croutons etc), most food is ok that you usually eat. Just stay away from cheeses and mayos and deep fried or coated stuff.
 
Love my chili. I need meat in mine...I either use extra lean ground beef, or ground chicken. If you load it up with beans you don't need a lot of meat, and I get quite a few meals out of one batch.

Also, you don't have to use chicken breast. It's my favorite, but when I really need to tighten the budget, I use cheap chicken parts and just remove the skin.
 
yeah i have to admit, i use frozen veg a lot - i bulk out normal meals like nachos and stuff with packet cheese sauces (so i know the calories) and tons of frozen veg. Lots less fatty mince stuff :D
 
I'm a uni student with a baby - we're on a tight budget too!

We have no takeout - that saves a lot of money. I actually found that it was cheaper to shop at smaller, busy stores than at the supermarkets (like >$50 per week) and the food is often fresher too. We go to the supermarket for 'aisle' stuff - like canned tomatoes and toilet paper, because it's cheaper there.

My fave cheapest recipe is chilli bean tortillas. we buy bulk burrito breads and freeze what we don't use. We buy a lot of bulk meat.

I think investing in some good spices and herbs meant that we aren't sick of eating the same basic foods because I dress them up differently every night.

Something I do splurge on is salmon, you can get frozen 140g portions for $7 and I toss 1portion through a cup of pasta with lemon juice and some herbs and you've got 2 serves.

Frozen vegies are awesome, especially peas, because they bulk out your meal and are a easy way to add greens with no waste. They can be more nutritious than the supermarket stuff too.

I'll get my 'cheap cooking book' that i've compiled myself and put some recipes up here for you.
 
I agree with Wishes that eggs are fantastic value for nutrition. They're packed with protein, and they don't actually affect your cholesterol as lots of people think.

Try tinned tuna, which is low-calorie and full of protein.

Are there are large outdoor markets around you? Buying fish from a market is often much cheaper, and might be fresher than from a supermarket.

Also try buying frozen chicken breasts and frozen fish. These are around half the price.

Another idea is to go to the supermarket near closing time. You'll find lots of things are marked down in price because they're trying to get rid of it.
 
We should come up with a list of cheap, healthy and most cheap recipes here, then. Doesn't matter if no one else might like them, just write what you like.

A can of curry but instead of putting in the meat like it says, put in carrots, broccoli, potato, sweet potato. Dunno what other vegetables would fit. This is quite low calorie so long as you resist and don't put it on a bed of rice. Not sure what bed of stuff I could use...
 
I'm a skint student too :) and I live in London, where food is a lot more expensive than in the US. I'm also wheat intolerant so I usually have to spend a bit more than most people, but still manage to get off for little money.

0) Starting costs when you start cooking new things are going to be higher, but because I love cooking, I've accumulated all sorts of cooking sauces, oils, vinegars, herbs and spices over the years. That also includes things like jam, peanut butter, spread etc.

1) I bulk buy meat or fish on special offer, or reduced to clear as it's on its last date, then freeze it - cheapest way to buy meat. Tinned fish, surimi fish etc are also good options.

2) I have a cupboard filled with rice, pasta, millet, quinoa, tinned pulses, dried pulses etc.

3) Every week, I buy cheap produce: veggies, fruit and stuff that goes off: fruit juice, milk, bread.

Then you mix and match as you like. E.g. today I found some canned tuna and some frozen lean beef. This is what I'm making and it's dirt cheap:

Lunch - Sweet Tuna Salad: canned tuna, chopped celery, chopped apple, tbsp raisins, 1/2 lemon juice

Dinner - Beef Ramen: instant miso soup sachet + boiling water, 1/2 chopped onion, 1 tsp oil, beef, rice noodles

You could make something completely different. For example I could have done a tuna melt sandwich, a tuna and sweetcorn salad, served the beef grilled with homemade tomato salsa and a side salad etc. The key is to be creative. Whatever you have left in the fridge or in the kitchen, make something with it!

Other cheap dishes are:
- egg fried rice (doesn't have to be calorific just use little fat and lots of veggies)
- scrambled eggs/omelette
- Stir-fries: 1 onion + meat + oyster/soy sauce mix + add veggies and cook
- Hummus: chickpeas, lemon, olive oil + if available tahini + if required 1tsp yogurt
- Lentil and pulses: e.g. borlotti bean pasta sauce: brown 1 onion in pan, add tomato paste, add tin borlotti beans washed + tin green beans, add 1 cup stock, reduce, serve over rice or pasta
- Low fat cottage cheese: add anything you like in it and great source of protein
- Lentil soup: can lentils or 1 cup soaked lentils, 1 onion, 1 carrot
- Curry: onion + meat + curry powder, then add tinned tomatoes and veggies + freeze remains

Does that help?
 
A bag of frozen chicken breasts is like $10. I think it comes with 12 - 15 breasts. So you got like almost 2 weeks there for $10.
 
Carthonn said:
A bag of frozen chicken breasts is like $10. I think it comes with 12 - 15 breasts. So you got like almost 2 weeks there for $10.
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holy crap thats cheap... here you can get a case 15-20 on sale for $26, not sale like $35.
 
A big box of oatmeal is cheap. It's $3.50 USD and lasts a few weeks. Between a box of oatmeal (with fruits & cinnamon) and two dozen eggs, I can eat breakfasts for a month.
 
amber_rebma said:
holy crap thats cheap... here you can get a case 15-20 on sale for $26, not sale like $35.
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Yeah I was shocked as well. If you have a Super Target by your house they have a lot of bagged frozen chicken for real cheap. Their brand name is Market Pantry and it's just like the bags of Tyson chicken in regular stores but wayyy cheaper.
 
we have no target.. I live in Canada.
Thats alright though. My husband works for a food distribution company so we get our meat for an alright price. I was just amazed at the price.
 
I make this once a week and eat it a lot. It is so good, filling has protein and fiber. Costs about 10 bucks and you can make several servings!

1 lb lean ground turkey or lean pork
taco seasoning
1 can black beans
1 can corn
onion
peppers if desired.

lettuce.

Small Corn tortillas or the whole grain/high fiber/ low cal burrito tortillas.

Cook meat with onion, add taco seasoning according to directions, heat corn and beans. Mix it all. Use a quarter cup of filling for each taco or 1/2 cup for each burrito.

Its so so good!
 
This may not be helpful for those of you who are students and have limited space, but I save hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars by using the old-fashioned method of buying fruits and vegis in bulk when they are in season and either freezing, canning, or dehydrating for future use. I happen to be lucky in that I have several family and friends with gardens, so it saves me there. Learning to preserve foods (providing you have the space) really saves you a TON of money, not to mention you can then have your own healthy (read: not loaded with sodium or other nasties that are found in commerical foods) meals at your fingertips.
Some ideas that I use all the time:
Dehydrated strawberries are yummy in oatmeal, crushed over frozen yogurt...
Dehydrated mushrooms can be added to soups, meatloaf, pasta...
Dehydrated garlic or onion make great seasonings
Dehydrating your own bananas, cherries or whatever suits your fancy can be tossed with nuts for your own snack mix (much much cheaper and less salt then the store bought kind)
Canned home-made soups are healthier and just as fast to open up and heat
Canned or frozen fruits and berries are great to throw into smoothies, top pancakes, or just to eat whenever without having to worry about wasting.
Crockpots are also a great way to save money. Make them your best friend. I like to make a pot roast (bought on sale and frozen) add dehydrated potatoes, carrots, onion and garlic with some frozen home-made broth. Let it cook all day while I'm at work. Then I have a yummy meal waiting for me when I get home. I then package the remaining into portions and freeze them for quick meals or lunches (heat and eat).
Basically by taking your time to make everything from scratch and preparing ahead, you can control what you eat, and how much you spend.
Ok enough for now.. hope this was helpful to someone ;)
 
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