Best Food Buys For $1 Or Less

[Onederchic]

Per Thighs Be Gone's request

List all the healthy, cheap food buys you find here to share with everyone


Hugs
Michelle

[Thighs Be Gone]

Thank you!

Okay, me first.

1. Canned Tuna
2. Beans

[Thighs Be Gone]

3. Quinoa from bulk bin
4. Flaxseed from bulk bin

[Onederchic]

Mine would be

Apples
Bananas

[MugCanDoIt]

Kroger Carb Master Yogurt--40 cents each

[MugCanDoIt]

Originally Posted by Thighs Be Gone

3. Quinoa from bulk bin
4. Flaxseed from bulk bin

How doyou cook your quinoa? What do you do with it?

[Onederchic]

Dannon Light and Fit Yogurt

[nelie]

Organic millet - .99 cents/lb

non organic beans - .99 cents/lb or less. I bought a lb of split mung beans for 50 cents the other day.

Organic beans - usually around half a pound, it depends.

Other organic grains - price ranges but you can generally get half a lb or more for $1.

non organic grains - again depends but things like the huge bags of rice at the asian market are cheap. 20 lbs for $5 or something like that, even basmati, brown basmati, etc aren't very expensive.

Veggies/Fruits - asian market has them cheapest. My new favorite asian market has tons of fruits/veggies for under $1/lb.

[nelie]

Originally Posted by MugCanDoIt

How doyou cook your quinoa? What do you do with it?

Quinoa can be a rice substitute basically. I use it a lot. Quinoa cold salads are also a favorite of mine. Here is a website on how to cook it and some recipes:
http://www.savvyvegetarian.com/recipes/basic-quinoa.php

[merose]

tinned chickpeas
frozen soya beans
tuna

[Thighs Be Gone]

Originally Posted by MugCanDoIt

How doyou cook your quinoa? What do you do with it?

Hey there--I cook it like rice--

1/2 part quinoa
1 part broth or water


I use it as a side dish. In the winter we have even had it for breakfast. For this option I add milk and nuts to it. Then top it with fruit.

I love it because it is versatile--higher in protein and healthy fat--I also make a pilaf sometimes but throwing in some finely diced veggies at the end of cooking.

ETA: Also wanted to mention that quinoa is great as a stuffing too--inside of fish or bell peppers or whatever. You can add things to it or just use it plain. Either way--just so YUM.

Truly, the sky is the limit with this stuff!

[nelie]

Thighsbegone - I made a cranberry/quinoa stuffing for Thanksgiving. It was really good. One of my favorite things to do these days is mix quinoa/amaranth and eat. Amaranth is kind of like cream of wheat in texture but mixing it with quinoa gives a nice texture and makes a good breakfast.

[JulieJ08]

Originally Posted by nelie

Thighsbegone - I made a cranberry/quinoa stuffing for Thanksgiving. It was really good. One of my favorite things to do these days is mix quinoa/amaranth and eat. Amaranth is kind of like cream of wheat in texture but mixing it with quinoa gives a nice texture and makes a good breakfast.

Thanks for the idea. I've never tried amaranth, and I'm still trying for success with quinoa.

[mandalinn82]

I finally found a farmer's market that was really farm-cheap prices, and bought all of the following for $1 a pound or less (the fruits were all organic...the veggies were mostly not):

The most amazing grapes I've ever eaten
Assorted stone fruits (peaches, plums, pluots, nectarines)
Green beans
Assorted summer squashes
Apples (didn't actually buy them, but they were ridiculously cheap)
Cabbage (I find cabbage is always a cheap veggie compared to others)
Purple bell peppers
Onions
Heirloom tomatoes (didn't buy these either, I grow mine, but they looked awesome)
Carrots

I point this out because sometimes, saving money is as simple as investigating alternate sources for your food. Farmers markets, fruit stands, CSAs, and non-traditional grocery sources (Asian markets, to name a popular one) can save you a ton of money, and the produce seems to be fresher than what you get at the local mega-mart.

I also go to another produce stand that sells dried fruits, grains, beans, and nuts...the beans and grains are all around the $1 a pound mark, in 2-3 lb bags. I buy quinoa, amaranth, pinto beans, white beans, black beans, brown rice, wild rice, and whole grain polenta there, and they're all in that price range. Their veggie and fruit prices are low too, I just like the farmer's market quality better.

Eggs are a really good, cheap source of protein, and very versatile for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

[nelie]

I also think 1 block of tofu at the asian market is $1. Although if you really like tofu, a huge tub of it is something like $4. I rarely eat tofu so that'd definitely be overkill.

I also cook all my grains (except couscous) in the rice cooker. Put in grain, add water, add a dash of salt, push button and wait for beep.