Comments on: How to Save Money and Still Eat Well

By: sireesh

sireesh — Tue, 12 May 2009 10:57:18 +0000

this site really takes much time to load, but cool you have put urself dedicated photos of self .Kudos

By: Jenna Leng

Jenna Leng — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 18:35:15 +0000

I’ve been doing a lot of this for the past couple years, and I’ve found that I prefer what I make to what I can order. Almost everything I eat is low in salt—which you get used to really fast—making almost everything from restaurants or pre-made meals taste way too salty.

By: Paul Carlisle Kletchka

Paul Carlisle Kletchka — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 14:02:11 +0000

Excellent suggestions, Rogue!

If you have a little bit of money to spare, one of the best investments you can make is a deep freeze. We bought one right before our daughter was born, and now we use it in concert with some of that “buying in bulk” wisdom to freeze single serving or meal-sized portions of soups, chili, and anything else that freezes well and can be re-heated in the microwave. That way, we can cook massive amounts, but not wind up eating the same thing for days in a row.

By: Angela Allen Parker

Angela Allen Parker — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 13:08:57 +0000

Great tips for lean times. Thanks for sharing, Rogue!

I like to keep the crockpot going (esp in this season) and minimizing the meat in our diet (while increasing alternative protein sources) also trims the budget.

By: Geenome

Geenome — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 03:31:34 +0000

Awesome write-up Rogue.
In this day and age of the Hustle and Bustle of city life,people are just too tired after work to cook a meal. Often having to work long hours and/or lengthy travel home, can have a detrimental effect on your psyche to bother cooking at home.
Very few city-dwellers have a vege garden in the backyard. And if you happen to be a tennant of an apartment building, then there’s less of a chance of even having any garden at all.
I think parents have lost the knowledge of gardening and how to produce enough food to live on.
The schools should provide better Horticutural training to provide children with gardening skills for their future.

By: John Roberts

John Roberts — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 21:51:50 +0000

I do a lot of my own (scratch) cooking but do still grab fast food, esp. when on the run with kids in the car. Oddly, it seems like everyone is raising prices in response to slowing volume these days. (aren’t prices supposed to *drop* in response to lowered demand? So this posting has been a great reminder… I’m going to cut back even more on fast food and deliveries.. and cook even more! -JR

By: Robbo

Robbo — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 21:48:12 +0000

Well done. Food should always be *real* – avoid processed crap at all costs. I break down and have the occasional bucket of KFC when I neeeed an injection of Vitamin G – but for the most part I strive to (and enjoy) preparing my meals (and meals for others) from scratch. It’s healthier. It’s fun! It tastes good. Every morning I get up and make a school lunch for my son. Home made soups, home baked bread, the works. The other kids, peeling apart their plastic meal packages, are actually envious because his food smells and tastes better. Keep posting stuff like this and spreading the word. You are what you eat – so don’t eat garbage. Thanks for that.

cheers

By: librarianwench

librarianwench — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 04:56:20 +0000

Great article, things have been tough for awhile, and rediscovering our kitchen was one of the best things we could’ve done.

We’ve been eating healthier, and more cheaply than stopping at any of the myriad fast food joints on the strip-o-commerce near our apartment.

Good point too, using the internet as a recipe resource. My favorite is allrecipes.com. They have ideas for anything you can think to cook, a very supportive community for tweaks and substitutions, and a serving calculator so that Chili Con Carne for 100 can be scaled back to 10.

Pot Lucks are a good idea, especially since we’re not traveling much, and it’s something that keeps us face-to-face with friends and family too.

By: Susan

Susan — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 03:47:14 +0000

Way to go Nan. You said it all!! We love to eat out like everyone else, but we feel so much better when we spend time in the kitchen together and make something that we all can enjoy. Also what a great way to try different recipes without the expense of someone else making it.

By: Gil Yehuda

Gil Yehuda — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 03:23:49 +0000

I agree ’bout the brown-bagging. I like to know what I eat by making it myself. Moreover, it’s cheaper. I also bring a stash of tea bags to work, rather than going out to get coffee. Even the fancy teas are cheaper than an overpriced coffee.

By: Doug

Doug — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 03:23:12 +0000

I think recommendation (4), cook from scratch, is an important one. Not only does it taste better and cost less, but unprocessed foods are less likely to cause you to gain weight. Processed foods are much easier to digest. So, they hit the bloodstream too quickly and just make you hungrier

By: Jason Rehmus

Jason Rehmus — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 03:15:42 +0000

Nice! My wife and I have just become more intentional about spending less on our monthly food budget. We’ll definitely be implementing some of your suggestions.

By: Doug

Doug — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 02:40:14 +0000

Good reminders. I’d add that I save a lot of money by checking the weekly ads, then making a weekly menu around the sale items. By buying from the ads I obviously save money, but if I actually plan out, even briefly, my meals for the next week then I won’t forget something I just bought and put in the fridge or freezer. That use to happen a lot, especially produce that would be wasted. Now I buy it, and especially with produce make sure I have a plan to use it.

By: Sam

Sam — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 02:31:54 +0000

Hmm, I wonder if you have any websites with good vegetarian recipes that are made from scratch ? :)
I noticed that a lot of your tips involve meat. And also, I’m kind of tired of Vegetarian food that’s like frozen and pre-prepared, because i know that it’s bad for me. Most of the time, if you make something from scratch, it’s healthier because you don’t add in all that extra crap that he food companies add in when they process it.

This article has a lot of truth though, because in today’s society, most people just go out to eat and even though fast food is cheap, it would be cheaper to cook your own food, or if nothing else, it’s better for you ! :D

By: Lynda

Lynda — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 02:05:17 +0000

It’s amazing what a difference in budget and waistline these tips can make. I’m a big believer in roasting a chicken one night, and then the next day or so making a scrumptious soup with the leftovers and whatever veggies I have handy. And like others have echoed, you can make sure all those preservatives and additives are NOT there.