Random, but I saw a small crock pot that cost 10 bucks. So there, he's right.

Well...just ask the "new" Sandra Lee.

I just bought fantastic top-of-the-line cookware at Gabriel Brothers, Marshalls, and TJ Maxx. Total cost per piece? No more than $10. There was always cheaper stuff available too. I was just trying to get an entire set. Also, dollar stores sell things like whisks, spatulas, and flippers for $1 each. It's totally doable.

It can be done. But there is so much more prep work, so you might take shortcuts with other, somewhat processed foods to save you time but not money.

Oh, and as to his point. I totally agree. Hubby and I spend roughly $30/week on groceries for dinners and we eat in 7 nights a week.

I am an avid sale shopper and I cook everything from scratch (including soups and tomato sauce). Since I stopped using convenience foods (prepared and frozen meals) I have noticed a SIGNIFICANT drop in my grocery bill. I don't find that it takes a whole lot of extra time or much planning at all, just a 10 minute look through the Shoprite sales flyer at the beginning of the week to make a list. I also use predominantly store brands which also saves tons of money. It always kills me when I see someone with a cart full of brand name everything. I wanna say, "Do you know how much more you could buy if you bought store brands. They're the same thing!!"

It is totally possible. You can live effectively on legumes on grains, but may not want to. The costs begin to go up when you add in variety. And so what about the prep? I don't use much prep when I make black beans, but they are in my stove top dutch oven for 2 1/2 hours.

He makes a great point in that article: everyone says only focus on the outer perimeter for health items. But in the middle aisles, there are beans, whole grains, frozen veggies, etc.

You can absolutely cook healthy good food on a budget. It doesnt have to be all mac n cheese, hot dogs, ramen, totinos pizza, hamburger helper....

kia, variety can be healthy too -- try different vegetables, try different herbs and spices. I could eat chicken and rice for a week if its seasoned properly (and not just salt and pepper). flavor to healthy foods is where the creativity comes in.

For myself and my BF, we spend maybe $50 a week on groceries, and we cook pretty much every night (eating out maybe once a month). We're really healthy about it too. And there are cheap ways to find cookware - discount stores like TJ Maxx, the Dollar Store, Salvation Army (just found a $30 Kitchenaid stand mixer there last week). I think it's totally doable and I hope this helps to dispel some of the excuses people use to get out of eating healthy.

Syako, I have a small $10 crock pot! It's small and just has a knob you can turn to low, high, or warm. But then again I also have a big fancy $70 one with a meat thermometer attachment and lots of different settings.

I'm also curious as to how you do meals on $30 a week! I cook at home almost every night but my weekly grocery bill is usually $60-$80 depending on what's on the menu.

Archerkate, that is a good point about cookware. You can't get top of the line stuff for cheap, but my cheap pan fries eggs about as well as my fancy one.

Fiscally speaking, it's cheaper by units to eat at home. You spend less per person per day on food, though the initial cost of buying a week's worth of food might actually be more expensive than buying a fast food meal.

Healthwise, obviously it's healthier to cook at home. You can control what's going in your food, use more vegetables and spices (they're amazing for flavor without calories!), and make really whatever you want, without all the processed byproducts. And you can even cook "unhealthy" foods like mac n' cheese and pizza - but with healthier substitutions and alternatives! It always tastes better than the storebought/fast food kind.

It's totally do-able. I spend about $20 per week on food, and I eat mostly organic (when it matters), free-range, grass-fed, local foods. I normally shop at Whole Foods, and yes, I do eat a lot. You just have to plan correctly, be flexible, use coupons, and buy only what's on sale.

Also, using your freezer is a great trick. If I see certain meats or veggies on sale really cheap, I buy a ton of it, split it into portions, and freeze it for later.

Anonymous, what's your weekly shopping list like? I believe you ladies, I just need ideas for myself!

I think getting nutrients and healthy food is something on which you can not put a price.

Modus - I usually shop once every two weeks, and try to keep the bill under $40 because sometimes buying in bulk can be cheaper. If I find a great sale, I usually buy a ton of it, go over my $40 budget, but make a point to spend less than my $40 budget the next time I go shopping.

Here's an example of my shopping list from last week, which came to just a little over $40 -

6 lbs of Grass fed ground beef - on sale for $2.99/pound - total - $18.

1 whole free range chicken - on sale for $.99/lb - total - $4

Dozen Eggs - $2.99

1 head of Romain Lettuce - $2.49

5 lbs of green beans - on sale $.99/lb for a total of about $5

5 lbs of King Arthur flour for bread - $3.99

1 packet of yeast - $.49

2 packages of organic pasta - $1.99 each - with a buy one get one free coupon, it came to only about $1 each.

1 package of rice noodles - $.79 - with a $.75 cent off coupon - this came to only 4 cents!

2 packages of organic Tofu - $1.99 each - total - $4

2 cans of diced tomatoes - $1.39 each - total - $2.80

This ended up coming to a little over $40, but as you can see, with 6 lbs of ground beef and 1 whole chicken, there's enough meat in there for at least 3 weeks, so I won't have to buy meat next time I go shopping.

I'm unemployed, so I try my best to save every penny, but am stubborn, so I'm totally unwilling to lower my standards of food. I do bake my own bread, but I found this GREAT recipe at the site called Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a day, where it only takes 5 minutes to make awesome crusty bread, so I do that about once a week.

Also, my boyfriend is usually at my house on weekends, so that's 4 days of meals where we have 2 people eating. The rest of the week, I'm alone, and I try to stay under $40 average for 2 weeks of food. I might be nuts, but grocery shopping and getting the best deals is almost like a game for me. It's so much fun!

Wow, thanks! Now I am excited to do my shopping next week and see if I can get that low myself.

Here are a few other tricks that I use to save money -

-Whole chickens are way cheaper than parts of chickens. I quarter them myself when I get home - takes maybe 15 minutes total, and then I freeze parts in separate containers.

-I save the bones from the butchered chickens to make my own chicken broth, and freeze it in containers.

-Diced tomatoes are cheaper than jarred sauces or crushed tomatoes. I make my own sauce with them.

-Bake my own bread.

-Some foods should be purchased organic - like strawberries. Others like broccoli do not because less pesticides are used on them, so you can save money that way.

-Soy milk lasts longer than regular milk, so I always buy organic soy milk because it won't go bad for over a month.

Of course sometimes there's a sale on one thing or another that overrides the rules above. My boyfriend, who's a really huge spender laughs at me (in a nice way) for my craziness at the grocery store, but I think there's no shame in saving money!

mamasitamalita, I sure hope I didn't give the impression that I don't think variety is healthy. The costs do go up once you go beyond your bulk beans and rice. That is just a fact. 2+1 one no longer equals 2. I do agree about creativity because meals can still be delicious and economical if you work with your resources.

21 hot dogs @ $2 a pound is @ $6
21 pieces of bacon @ $3 a pound is @ $6
21 buns in bulk will be @ $5
To make it healthy I'll throw in $3 for some toms and onions
For about $2 I'll have enough mustard to last me a month
For about $5 I'll have plenty of pickles
Thats @ $27
I'll have $13 to buy a case of bargain beer
Whooo Hooo!

i am at awe at the ladies who spend 20-30 dollars a week on groceries kudos!

I love this thread, many good suggestion and advice, keep them coming, ladies (and gents)

I want to budget myself better when it comes to grocery shopping and I'm taking notes.
And I dunno, when I tried to cook 'real' food, I ended up saving more money than when I just bought prepackaged one...b/c ingredients (leftovers) can be used for another meal, while the packaged one usually...well..that's it, that one meal.

kudos to everyone who can keep their grocery bills reasonable. Thanks for the ideas, I should be able to spend less than I do. And I like ChiefDishWashs' grocery list!!

Chief,

As always, you continue to rock!

It's do-able, without a doubt. My monthly grocery expenses never go over $200, though I don't eat lavishly

What needs to be overcome is the culture of instant gratification (which is arguably what put our nation into a credit crisis, why there is a diabetes and obesity epidemic, among other unsavory problems). This impatience carries over to the way we eat. If people have a choice between McDonalds or Pasta Pomodoro--which would require driving thru or being seated--and/or buying potato chips or ice cream--which requires looking to your left or right in an isle and unwrapping--or cooking at home--which would require acquiring dishes in mind, shopping for the ingredients, and then actually cooking--people are liable to choose the option that requires less calories. It's human, animal nature to conserve calories for future use. We're programmed for it. It doesn't mean it's the healthiest option for our bodies or for the nature (mostly, or at least in part) providing the raw ingredients used for the big mac or cheetoes. This is the real problem that needs to be addressed, and is being addressed, though at a frustratingly glacial pace.

Cheers to the Minimalist. Though, surely he's preaching to the choir as most reading the Bitten blog are already well aware that it's cheaper, healthier to eat real food. Like anything it just takes commitment and optimism.

Another issue aside from initial investment is education. I worked on a documentary about a CSA in Chelsea, and I met this mother of seven who was on welfare and food stamps. She made healthy meals for her family every day, but brought up the point that a lot of poor young mothers did not actually know how to shop on a budget, or to cook good food for their families. I hadn't actually thought of it before that, since I had always taken my budgeting and cooking skills for granted. Some people aren't just lazy, they just don't know how.

I'm skeptical, particularly of $30/week. Does that include lunches? Coffee? Alcohol?

I admire those of you who can do it. I'm not lazy, I'm not fat, and I know how to cook. I'm often just tired at the end of the day and have about 3 h of spare time each day. I can put a price on getting nutrients/healthy food; it's time to read a book, take a walk or make out with my husband. Sometimes I enjoy cooking, but more often, I'd rather just quickly eat soup, hummus or simple tacos, or enjoy a lingered meal out at a reasonably priced local restaurant.

On and off, I have been a vegetarian. That is when I lived the most frugally, but also felt a little like I was suffering and a little angry at people who weren't suffering along with me.

And BTW -- you can get 3 menu items from Taco Bell for $3/day (though not recommended).

Welfare recipients typically do all of their shopping (for their whole family) one or two days a month. Vegetables and fruits don't last well. Crap that you shove into a freezer does.
The idea is supposed to be that if you cook from scratch all the time, the initial cost eventually outweighs the cost per meal of convenience food. Scratch ingredients are meant to be spread out over several meals, ie, use half a tomato, some flour and an egg out of the carton for breakfast, then the other half of the tomato, more flour and an egg for dinner.
However, with a family of four, seven, twelve... that's not really feasible. You have to use two tomatoes, half a bag of flour and half the eggs for one meal. Thus, a prepackaged dinner might be more cost-effective.
Trust me, his claim about $10 cooking equipment is completely valid. Dollar stores and Salvation Armies carry all sorts of decent cooking equipment.

the alarming rise in diabetes and obesity in kids today is directly linked to fast food. most of these kids eat all their meals and snacks at fast food joints. their parents probably don't even know how to cook. cooking is daunting to people who've never tried it or have never seen it done. kids need to learn how to cook in school.

I said $30 a week on food for dinners since that was the topic at hand.

It's just me and my husband. So I buy about 3 dinners (3 meats usually and cheap ones like ground turkey which is only $1.75/pound) and the other ingredients which are usually veggies/rice/pasta/beans/etc. And that all comes to $30. And we eat one meal for two nights (leftovers). It really cuts down when you're not buying dinners for 7 nights, but more like 3 or 4 nights and having leftovers the other nights.

We usually spend around $15-20 on other things like lunches, breakfast, snacks, drinks. So our weekly bill is about $50.

It's absolutely cheaper to eat at home and buy good, nutritious food than it is to buy junk. Junk food's not all that cheap...chips are like $3 a bag and soda is like, $4.50 for a 12 pack. I only spend around $60 a week on our groceries and we don't eat a lot of junky stuff. I buy store-brand/private label foods and I do a lot of my shopping at Aldi. Sure, I don't buy organic most of the time, but I think conventional produce is a lot healthier for you than "organic" canned soups and frozen dinners.

To give some food stamps programs some credit, many of them have restrictions on what can be purchased with the money given....to encourage healthy eating. I know Wisconsin is strict. My friend who was in the public allies program was on food stamps and she tried to buy garlic bread from the frozen food section and they wouldn't let her