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How I spend $50 per MONTH on GROCERIES

JustAskBenWhy

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So a couple of days ago I was made aware by a few members on this forum that I spend considerably less that the average person on groceries (by a lot), which I had no idea. I was very surprised people spent hundreds of dollars per WEEK ... :wtf:

So to those who have been asking what do i eat, how do I do it...etc etc ... I decided to go to the grocery store today to give you an exact idea of what my shopping cart looks like ...(This is out of my regime since I usually do grocery shopping the first week of every month smh).

So here is what I got today which is somewhat typical of what I usually get on a regular basis::tiphat:

Here's my grocery list:
1 Dozen eggs: $1.99
Whole Milk (1 Gallon): $2.99
Deer Park Water (28 Pack): $3.99
Split Chicken Breasts (3.25/lb): $5.02
Chicken Drumsticks (12 legs): $5.99
Sirloin Tip Steak (3.49/lb): $4.72
85% Lean Ground Beef: (2 lbs): $6.99
Turkey Bacon (12oz): $2.49
Potato Hotdog Rolls: $1.79
Hotdog (8 pack): $0.99
Wheat Bread: 2 for $3.99
Apple Juice (64 fl oz): 2 for $4
Cereal: 2 for $5
Pancake Mix (32 oz): $1.79
Brownie Cake Mix (18 oz): $1.29
Rice (10 lb): $5.79
Lasagna Pasta (16 oz): $1.79
Tomato Sauce (24oz): $1.49
Spaghetti (16oz Box): 2 for $1.98
Baked Beans (28oz can): $1.29
Ripe Bananas ($0.49/lb): $1.22

Grand total . . . $66.59 :fireworks:excluding taxes ... :fineprint:
(my real bill actually totaled $93 but thats from buying bunch other stuff that arent related to groceries)

YES I KNOW I DID NOT MAKE THE $50 mark but I felt like being greedy today lol. But ill be sure to let this extra $16.59 last me an extra week since I technically bought grocery a week earlier than usual.

Please note that this list doesn't include stuff like seasoning, ketchup, and other condiments since they aren't necessarily needed on every grocery shopping visit. (In my case I already had these in the kitchen).

But back to the point at hand.
I live ALONE :great:so that decreases the amount of food that gets devoured in my apartment.

Everything I buy already fits into a meal plan I have. So spaghetti goes with meat sauce, rice goes with chicken, ground beef goes with lasagna etc.

Cooking Time!!! :smx7:

Pasta make excellent meals because you can make a huge variety of meals that are all fast and easy. In my house growing up, we had this thing called "one-pot" meal. It was filling, delicious, and requires little to no effort.
Simply one pot that includes your meat choice (for me it could be either sliced chicken breasts or ground beef based on my shopping list), angel hair spaghetti, and veggies if you so choose... and they all cook together in one pot, and the best thing about it is that since pasta is boiled into the sauce, the flavor soaks right into everything. Simple but I love it and it makes a huge serving.

And a part from that you know the traditional stuff like pasta and meatball (my ground beef rolled into meat balls is perfect for this) and other popular pasta meals, etc. But here is another favorite of mine that requires no meat and is just as filling. I dont know what its called but I think its popular among kids but I love it - Pasta with tomato sauce and cheese. The melting sensation is Delicious lol ... Comes in handy when you have no meat or you just running low on meat ...

Rice ... I make it like any other ... you know, with my meat choice on the side. No explanation needed. I sometimes like to do friend rice, seasoned rice, sometime including diced chicken breasts etc or even baked beans. Endless possibilities.

Baked Beans ... Theres alot you can do with a big a$$ can of baked beans... I wont say anymore!

Chicken, I like to do a variety of different things to chicken since thats what i mostly eat of all meat groups. So, to not get tired of it, ill sometime make curry chicken, fried chicken, brow stew chicken, barbecue, etc ... typical stuff, but I do get creative with it though some times inventing different recipes.

Lasagna, i love it!!! make it once per month. Generally about 15 huge slices are made which does me good!!!

BREAKFAST generally include the regular stuff. eggs, bacon, bread, cereal, left overs sometimes... doesnt matter ... Im not a big breakfast person.

I think my short grocery list lasts a long time because of the way my meals are prepared. Eating one chicken breast alone is generally one serving of food. Dice it up into the meal itself and it makes about 3 plates.

Using 2 pound of ground beef makes about 15 slices of lasagna, or a million different meals with pasta (its easy to get creative with ground beef).

12 chicken drumsticks (legs) is sold as a pack in every grocery store for cheap (under $6 bucks) and depending on how much you eat, makes up to 12 meals (considering you have one leg per serving)...

Steak is on the grocery list but I dont ever buy it so i have no idea what Ill be doing with it... (I just bought it to impress my fastlane family so they think Im ballin ...shhh :smx1:)

p.s. my grocery lists does not include any veggies/greens because to be honest...i hate it. :puke:

------------------------------
Basically, I just want to say that for many of you who are on a strict budget (and Im sure many of you are/should be) if you want to fund your start-ups etc ... This is an easy way to save. Cut back on the grocery!

Simply buy and prepare meals in ways that they will last. This is also very important to college kid who are spending the same, if not more, on noodles and pre-packaged microwavable food, easy mac etc... which all only last one serving! ... which makes you buy atleast 10 of them so you have enough for the week.

Doesnt make much sense when there is much more fulfilling options that can last a lot longer and cheaper.. Not to mention the fact that its healthier (forget the preservatives and the fake pre-cooked crap).

And to the guys, a girl love a man that can cook :groove: ... it works for me everytime... Just a hint/motivation ...

p.s. Please keep in mind that this is not me sacrificing anything to save..
its actually not even a method of savings for me. This is just how I am naturally. I just dont spend alot on food.
Dude - there's food and there's poison. Why would you put this shit inside your body?! I spend a lot of time cooking. I drive into the country for milk, eggs, chickens. I spend tons of money on food for my family. Healthy gut leads to healthy nervous and immune systems. Don't be an idiot - feed yourself real food...
 
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EvanOkanagan

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Great food is one of the best investments.

It can give you more time (live longer) and save you tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars later on medical bills.

I spend a lot on quality food. I have way more energy to get shit done, my brain is sharper, and I'm in great shape. IMO--though I like the idea of the OP, I feel food is not something that should go cheap on.

(Alternatively you could spend less by growing your own, hunting, etc)
 

wade1mil

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I wish healthy food tasted good. I can't count how many times I've eaten frozen burritos or pizza rolls over steak or chicken.
 

Mattie

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I can tell you chicken may have been cheaper back home in America, but when I eat it here in the Netherlands the Chicken doesn't taste the same. And neither does any of the other food. I think when you eat fresher, you end up noticing how Americans pump the food with so much preservatives and other crap. Maybe you're paying for the way the animals are raised, and whether they're manufactured in ways that make the body unhealthy.
 
D

DeletedUser394

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Keep in mind this thread is 3 years old, and OP is actually winning at life in the present day. I wouldn't be surprised if he spent $50 on a fancy water at some michelin star restaurant tonight.

Or you can spend $23 a month eating 3 of these a day at 25 cents a piece if you are hardcore. :D

View attachment 4076

I still eat one of these a day. Though it costs .89c here. They recently raised the price from .88c to .89c ... I was furious. :)
 

ToniLene

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https://kukimi.de/gourmet-programme/

I was looking for sth like this for months too. Saw an article on gründerszene by accident in my feedly because apparently they just raised a couple million in VC from HTGF etc.

They ship to all of Germany :).

Website looks a bit like its mainly catered to women and they market it as a diet (only about 450kcal per meal, so you have to add some calories with breakfast and snacks, in my case protein shakes and fruits). But I dont care if I'm not the target audience, since the food looks good and since there is no better option out there right now I'll take it :). First shipment on thursday.

Be sure to come back and give a review. You have me curious. It does look tastefully photoshopped!
 
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Iwokeup

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Better check with @Iwokeup. Pretty sure eating like 3.7g of sodium per day isn't going to work out very well.
I know that it's an old post, but no, it won't work out well. It's going to markedly increase your blood pressure and could potentially lead to a host of problems with hypernatremia. Then there are the long term problems associated with vitamin deficiency.
 

Dinho7

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Damn! Would LOVE to get this. Looking for this for months now. :( Mind sharing their name? Or do they only cater to a specific region?

We have a similar service here in S-Florida. A women delivers 3 healthy, well-portioned meals daily Monday to Friday for $115/week. Like theag says, it is a great investment since it frees up time to make money. I also appreciate that I now feel less stressed (I suck as a chef!), spend less time in nasty drive thrus, and also have more time to spend with my family.

Only problem is that the food is so good that I often eat all three meals early in the day, leaving me drowsy in the afternoon and hungry in the night :)

Check out Groupon in your area to see if they have any meal delivery services and try them out. I tried a few mediocre ones before I found the perfect service.
 

theag

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@Gsuz there is also "meals on wheels" ("essen auf rädern") which is catered to seniors but I guess that would be a possibility. they seem to only have standard diets though and I was happy I found sth thats low carb.
 
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Imgal

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Food delivery services definitely seem to be big business at the moment. I can't speak for any other country, but the UK is full of different variations that seem to be doing really well ranging from ones for diet loss, for bodybuilders, hell there are even luxury pet meals (yes really). Also know a guy who worked for one of the biggest meals on wheels services for the elderly - the amount they were making had me wanting to get in the kitchen and cooking for old people pronto!
 

Delmania

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When Amazon announced the "AmazonFresh" delivery service, I saw this as an attempt to start taking their delivery expertise and applying it to groceries. The use case I worked out was that by using an app, a busy person would put in a grocery list, set a schedule for delivery, and then Amazon would take care of the rest.
 

ToniLene

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Food delivery services definitely seem to be big business at the moment. I can't speak for any other country, but the UK is full of different variations that seem to be doing really well ranging from ones for diet loss, for bodybuilders, hell there are even luxury pet meals (yes really). Also know a guy who worked for one of the biggest meals on wheels services for the elderly - the amount they were making had me wanting to get in the kitchen and cooking for old people pronto!

I know, right! Either cooking or grocery delivery to seniors which is catching on out here(metro Washington DC), too.
 
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daivey

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lol, OP spends $66 on groceries to cheap out.. but is going to end up paying out the a$$ for heart medication in 10 years from now.
good luck.
 

daivey

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I hear ya. Most of those items listed I couldn't find at that price even on sale. Some of the items are double that price as well. A dozen eggs here is normally $5, for example.

umm no it's not. I routinely buy dozen eggs for $2.50 or less in Toronto.
 

Ajtothec

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lol, OP spends $66 on groceries to cheap out.. but is going to end up paying out the a$$ for heart medication in 10 years from now.
good luck.

I can 2nd that.
I really want to make money and I know there will be sacrifices. But I'd never ever put making (more) money over health. When I read that some are eating only eggs, pizza and maybe some pasta - it's nice that you want it really really bad but that doesn't make your diet any better.
Just my 2 cents.
 
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AntEmpire

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You guys are still on this? This guy has probably moved up to organic grass fed unicorn meat and magical fruits and vegetables by now. Seriously, move on. Now it's just sounding like a 'he's wrong and I'm right' jerk circle.
 

Akimberland

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I spend about $80 a month on carefully planned out meals. I am a single mother with two children so I guess it's comparable to eating for two adults. I dont cook dinner on 3 nights a week because i work 13 hour shifts. So the kids are at their dad's on the weekends while I work. But here is a breakdown for my 2 week grocery budget:

•Avocado and black bean quesadillas
•Veggie soup
•Veggie soup leftover (work lunch)
•Frozen Lasagna
•Spaghetti (work lunch)
•Slow cooker beef and au gratin
•Au gratin leftovers (work lunch)

- sandwiches & snack x3lunch

Black beans
Tortillas
Avocado
Milk
Hamburger
Mixed veggies X2
Lasagna
Crackers
Bread x 2
Ensures
Chicken broth 1/2 cup
Pop corn x2
Kool-aid packets
Spinach dip
Tortilla chips
Cheese it'
Peanut butter
Bologna

All of my grocery list costs right around $40, maybe a dollar over. In Kentucky food is priced decently.
 

minivanman

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I have laughed at the calorie counters for 52+ years. lmao I eat chocolate, I drink chocolate.... I eat candy, cakes, hotdogs, bologna, steaks, hamburger, eggs, BACON (mmmmm bacon) bread and bread and more bread.... I drink Dr. Pepper after Dr. Pepper if I'm not drinking a Coke or Pepsi... did I mention I eat lots of bread? :) I eat it all. I'm probably the healthiest person in the whole DFW metroplex. I rarely exercise but 10 days ago I did run about 1 mile because I was in a hurry. I wasn't even short of breath (I was a gold medal runner back in the day). I do have health nut friends... funny thing, one of them is always sick while I never get sick. Did I mention BACON???? Lots of bacon!!!! All this food talk has made me hungry, I'm headed to make me a chocolate covered cherry milk shake.

Oh wait, I almost forgot, we spend about $700 a month on food for 3 of us. We do eat out.
 

Xeon

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I have laughed at the calorie counters for 52+ years. lmao I eat chocolate, I drink chocolate.... I eat candy, cakes, hotdogs, bologna, steaks, hamburger, eggs, BACON (mmmmm bacon) bread and bread and more bread.... I drink Dr. Pepper after Dr. Pepper if I'm not drinking a Coke or Pepsi... did I mention I eat lots of bread? :) I eat it all. I'm probably the healthiest person in the whole DFW metroplex. I rarely exercise but 10 days ago I did run about 1 mile because I was in a hurry. I wasn't even short of breath (I was a gold medal runner back in the day). I do have health nut friends... funny thing, one of them is always sick while I never get sick. Did I mention BACON???? Lots of bacon!!!! All this food talk has made me hungry, I'm headed to make me a chocolate covered cherry milk shake.

Oh wait, I almost forgot, we spend about $700 a month on food for 3 of us. We do eat out.

maxresdefault.jpg
 

ruzara5

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Simply buy and prepare meals in ways that they will last.
Location here for groceries on one person in north Seattle. Using a list that works for me. Make two meals. One pasta related. One rice related. It tends to last for one week. For 7 days it feeds one person for about 10$ per serving. Groceries for a week average $80. Utilize clean food storage bins and fresh meal prep planning. Veggies, meats and the mix.
 
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