JohnMitchell 16 #26 March 27, 2012 John's easy roast chickens: Buy a couple of the cheapest fryers, maybe $.79/lb on sale. Place in a roasting pan, light coat of veg. oil on the legs and breasts. Salt and pepper lightly. Roast in the oven at 325 for about 1.5 hours, until the breast meat reaches 165-170 degrees or the thigh joint moves loosely. Eat, maybe with a microwaved potato and a few steamed or raw veggies on the side. I save the juice from the roaster. Put in a glass overnight in the fridge. In the morning, remove the big grease hockey puck on the top and save the juice. Then, when making soup with the chicken bones later, put this broth back into the finished soup to add tons of flavor and nutrition. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TriGirl 333 #27 March 27, 2012 Something I learned decades ago when I started living on my own: raw veggies are CHEAP!! Also, I'll echo what some of the others have said. Get a book on casseroles (I recommend The Big Book of Casseroles), and get a slow cooker. I do this on Sundays -- make 2-3 dishes. Divide into servings and put into Ziploc containers and freeze. Now you have most of your lunches and dinners for the next week to 10 days. Supplement these meals with fresh salads or steamed veggies through the week, and substitute here and there a can of soup, or the ramen or mac & cheese you already mentioned, to mix things up a bit. During undergrad, I also used to buy egg noodles. I would boil the noodles while steaming carrots & broccoli in the steamer insert (or whatever other veggies you like). I had the veggies over the noodles, topped with parmesan and lemon pepper. Cheap, tasty and nutritious. Also, when you buy eggs, watch for the expiration date. When they get close to expiring, hard boil whatever is left in the carton. Now you have an easy snack to add to the lunch box. See the upside, and always wear your parachute! -- Christopher Titus Shut Up & Jump! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
popsjumper 2 #28 March 27, 2012 Eating cheap is all in the shopping. J-S already mentions sales and coupons. I go to a salvage store to get most of what I eat. Prices are cheap but they have a limited selection...it's a trade-off. I get - bread @ 50 cents per 20oz loaf - bottled water @ 10 cents each - canned stuff @ 40-70 cents each - snacks @ 3-5 per dollar - 12oz soft drinks @ $1.25 per 12-pack and more. They have recently pissed me off though. They raised prices on some items to the point of being very near the major grocery stores so for just a couple of cents more per item I go to the stores to get a wider selection on certain items. My primary staples: - Ramen - Rice - Spaghetti noodles and sauce - Cheese - Bread - Milk - Eggs - Butter - Peanut butter - Jelly My reality and yours are quite different. I think we're all Bozos on this bus. Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shah269 0 #29 March 27, 2012 Find a handsome man who knows how to cook...you know kind of like me. I'm amazed that for the price of one McDonland value meal I can have a lunch and a dinner. And I'm not talking pasta, I'm talking chicken breast and veggies. A simple dish of white bazmati rice, grilled chicken breast or beef with veggies on average is about $4 in cost if not less. But you know perhaps we should do a thread where pepole post up various affordable eats? Sorry boys and girls, I tried, but well let's keep it here I guess? Thougth it would be a nice idea. Since I love cooking and trying new foods! Life through good thoughts, good words, and good deeds is necessary to ensure happiness and to keep chaos at bay. The only thing that falls from the sky is birdshit and fools! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
adagen 0 #30 March 27, 2012 If you decide to do a chilli in a slow cooker, cook the beans fully BEFORE you put them in the cooker. Apparently there are toxins in kidney beans which are destroyed by normal cooking but a slow cooker doesn't provide a high enough temperature to do this. Apart from that, a chilli is cheap and nutritious and you caan bulk it out with rice or a baked potato. Freezes well too if you want to make a load in one go.Anne Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 2 #31 March 29, 2012 I survived on frozen pot pies when I was in grad school.Cheap and almost nutritious. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
5.samadhi 0 #32 March 29, 2012 homemade sprouts (lentil and mung) bananas potatoes eggs carrots in the summer wild berries (free and you can get buckets!) whey (natural no additives/artificial sugars) black beans sunflower seeds (really important these are organic) those are some foods I count as staples that I buy on a regular basis and save us a lot of money by eating. We eat a lot more expensive foods (if looking at strictly on a caloric level) like greens and lettuces, etc. But you gotta have some pleasure in your life :) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 2 #33 March 29, 2012 Oh, BTW - Eggs are a cheap, filling and yummy source of protein (which say I as a big egg-lover myself), but don't overdue it. Cholesterol is real, and it's cumulative. Lots of people in their 50's, male and female, find themselves sitting, somewhat surprised, in cardiologists' offices wishing they'd been more attentive to cholesterol in their younger years. Let me find that t-shirt... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
5.samadhi 0 #34 March 29, 2012 QuoteOh, BTW - Eggs are a cheap, filling and yummy source of protein (which say I as a big egg-lover myself), but don't overdue it. Cholesterol is real, and it's cumulative. Lots of people in their 50's, male and female, find themselves sitting, somewhat surprised, in cardiologists' offices wishing they'd been more attentive to cholesterol in their younger years. Let me find that t-shirt... where's the link between eating cholesterol and buildup of cholesterol in arteries? I am not convinced. I'd put my money on sedentary lifestyle causing cholesterol buildup. /offtopic Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnMitchell 16 #35 March 29, 2012 Quote I'm amazed that for the price of one McDonland value meal I can have a lunch and a dinner. And I'm not talking pasta, I'm talking chicken breast and veggies. For the price of two of us going out to dinner at an inexpensive restaurant, I can serve a prime rib dinner to 4-5 couples. And the the extra bottle or two of wine won't break the bank. We love to entertain at home. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jumpwally 0 #36 March 30, 2012 You are correct, but the work around is egg whites only,,,whole eggs for Sunday brunch only,,,Soups once in awhile , the sodium is killer smile, be nice, enjoy life FB # - 1083 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jumpwally 0 #37 March 30, 2012 You might be right,,,the typical American farmer( and family ) are not high on the Heart Disease list. Hard work, fresh air, not sitting around...etcsmile, be nice, enjoy life FB # - 1083 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 2 #38 March 30, 2012 Quote You are correct, but the work around is egg whites only,,,whole eggs for Sunday brunch only,,, That's exactly what we do (now) - EggBeater omelets with mushrooms, onions and no-fat shredded cheddar cheese on the inside. (However, it's not exactly cheap, compared to the real deal.) Real eggs maybe once every 10 days or so. Quote Soups once in awhile , the sodium is killer Which is why I home-make all my own soups now. The canned stuff has enough salt to pickle a side of beef. Make that a whole chicken; beef's out now. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
