Weekly food budget of $25, what do you eat? (restaurants, barbeque, peanut butter)

[Natsku]

Originally Posted by Eazine

Funny you should mention that, our typical weekly grocery bill for a family of three is $60-100. That includes $30 worth of prepackaged salads.

We do grocery challenge every year, sometimes even a few times a year. Typically it's around $30-45 for a family of 3. This not only helps when things are tight, but is also a wake up call on how much we overspend on weekly groceries and conscience foods - like prepackaged salads. It also makes us scrutinize how much we waste.

I think I spend about 200 euros a week on my family of 3, that's 235 dollars.

[prospectheightsresident]

I shop at a cheap Chinese supermarket, so I have things a little easier as far as costs go (most fresh food items are very cheap and are all very fresh where I shop).

Here's my list:

1) 10 pounds of chicken legs at $0.69 per pound for total of $6.69;

2) 5 pound bag of potatoes for $2;

3) 1 dozen eggs for $1.60;

4) 10 packs box of instant oatmeal for $3 (this I'd actually get from Pathmark);

5) 5 pounds of fresh fish at $0.79 per pound for total of $3.95;

6) 5 pounds of fresh assorted vegetables for $3-$4;

7) $5 worth of junk food/snacks ($0.99 bags of chips, cookies or cakes that are on sale, etc.);

8) the last $3 or so I'd spend on whatever catches my eye that's affordable and tasty!

Breakfast would be oatmeal.

Lunch would be some kind of fish or chicken dish, which I may or may not repeat (otherwise I'd mix it up with new recipes every couple of days).

Dinner would be whatever I cooked for lunch, with a few possible variations.

[Sundaydrive00]

Originally Posted by WildColonialGirl

This is why people suck at budgeting and sticking to a budget. You don't want to think of the costs of things, and you're bad at estimating how far something can stretch.

I'm able to stick to my budget. I go through the ads to figure out costs of items and know which stores have which items the cheapest. If something isn't a good price, then I'm not going to buy it that week.

I make my dinner menu for the next week before going to the store (after looking at ads and what I have in the pantry) so I know exactly what I need. I cook often enough that I 'll now how much of each ingredient I will need.

Yeah I already have a decent amount of food in my pantry, but it's not like I bought it all at once. Its more like "Oh, pasta is on sale for 50 cents a box, so I'll buy a few boxes." Then another week chicken breasts are on sale for $1.49, so I'll buy a few pounds to freeze... Or grapfruit is 10 cents each so I'll buy 20 and it'll last a few weeks... Almond milk is 2 for $4 and comes with a free box of granola... So there's breakfast for the next two weeks along with that grapefruit I already have....

[jayway]

Originally Posted by charolastra00

Shopping list:
- brown rice
- consomee powder (the kind I use is $4 but lasts months and months)
- whatever veggies are on sale - cabbage, zucchini, other squashes are good bets for nutrient-dense, filling veggies
- potatoes
- onions
- eggs
- beans
- canned tomatoes
- anything left over in budget would go toward building spice arsenal, other staples (i.e. oil), or on-sale canned/frozen veggies.
<snip>
There are ways to stretch that $25 and stay healthy-ish as a single person, as long as you have a little cooking know-how. Spices are the best way to stretch that dollar - I like using spice blends so I don't have to buy a ton of spices I don't use that often.

Ditto for the potatoes, onions and veggies and I presume dried beans.

I'd add on sale chicken (99 cent is no longer the norm) and no way I'd buy beef if I had a $25/wk budget.

There don't seem to be bargain potato deals as often and as great any more...aka 25# sack for ~$3

Carrots 5lb for ~$2 !

Sprout your own lentils!

Best pasta deal I've seen recently 7oz pack for 25 cents - better than 5 for a buck ramen

Decent looking/uniform appearance 4.4 oz canned sardines for 60 cents (the $1 cans of fish are not confidence-inspiring aka too scraps looking)

Knowing how to cook/bake and some basic nutrition knowledge (beans + rice) and math (cost per lb/oz/kg)

So are 60 cents/lb bananas a good buy? (nutritionally worth it?)

[Zara Ray]

My average food budget fr the week is about $30 a week. I am a college student on a budget, so I make due and get creative with my weekly menus.

[momtothree]

When I did my earlier budget, I had forgotten all about the Asian supermarket. I was there today and those prices I originally listed, you could get cheaper there. Plus up the meat. I got enough meat, vegetables, condiments for the 4 of us to last for at least 5 meals for about $50. Plus with plenty of produce left over. (such as onions, garlic and ginger) Not to mention all the cooking wines, soy sauces and spices that will use very small amounts of. If I was on an extreme budget, I would hunt for those Asian or Mexican supermarkets for meat, produce etc.

[lkmax]

Originally Posted by momtothree

When I did my earlier budget, I had forgotten all about the Asian supermarket. I was there today and those prices I originally listed, you could get cheaper there. Plus up the meat. I got enough meat, vegetables, condiments for the 4 of us to last for at least 5 meals for about $50. Plus with plenty of produce left over. (such as onions, garlic and ginger) Not to mention all the cooking wines, soy sauces and spices that will use very small amounts of. If I was on an extreme budget, I would hunt for those Asian or Mexican supermarkets for meat, produce etc.

Good point. I'm glad you mentioned this, actually. There is a Mexican grocery store near us that has really cheap, really high-quality produce. They have some good prices on pantry staples, too, if you aren't picky about brands -- and you really shouldn't be if you are on that tight of a budget.

[jgn2013]

$25 per week:

1.) Container of Oatmeal = $1.50

2.) 2 lbs of apples = $2.00

3.) 2 lbs of bananas = $1.00

4.) Jar of Peanut Butter = $2.50

5.) Loaf of (cheap) bread = $2.00

6.) 2 packages of spaghetti noodles = $2.00

7.) 2 jars of pasta sauce = $3.00

8.) 2 (large) bags of frozen veggies = $5.00

9.) 2 lbs of chicken = $6.00


Prices can vary depending on where you live and the brands you buy. If you're sedentary, $25 is much easier than for someone that's active.

[gentlearts]

Originally Posted by jacktravern

Buy boxes of Soda from the Supermarket (like 36 cans for Ten Bucks)

Other than that, live on Fast Food Dollar menus, Coffee and the 7-11 items behind the glass that cost a buck

Expect to Gain Weight over this stretch of time

You are kidding, right?

[Gerania]

Originally Posted by jayway

Ditto for the potatoes, onions and veggies and I presume dried beans.

I'd add on sale chicken (99 cent is no longer the norm) and no way I'd buy beef if I had a $25/wk budget.

There don't seem to be bargain potato deals as often and as great any more...aka 25# sack for ~$3

Carrots 5lb for ~$2 !

Sprout your own lentils!

Best pasta deal I've seen recently 7oz pack for 25 cents - better than 5 for a buck ramen

Decent looking/uniform appearance 4.4 oz canned sardines for 60 cents (the $1 cans of fish are not confidence-inspiring aka too scraps looking)

Knowing how to cook/bake and some basic nutrition knowledge (beans + rice) and math (cost per lb/oz/kg)

So are 60 cents/lb bananas a good buy? (nutritionally worth it?)

Sixty cents a pound certainly isn't cheap for bananas, but you need to eat some fruit.