c/budget-friendly-meals

Finally stopped buying pre-shredded cheese after a calculator moment at Aldi last month

I used to grab the bags for $3.50 a pop, then realized I'm paying extra for sawdust coating. Now I buy a 2-pound block for $5 and shred it myself in 3 minutes, plus it melts way better. Anyone else notice how much more you get for the same price?

Bought a $20 bag of frozen broccoli that was just solid ice after the store's freezer broke down

Thawed it out and got maybe 3 servings of soggy mush before I threw the rest away, has anyone else gotten burned by a store's broken freezer before?

Is it worth buying bulk spices or sticking with small jars? I'm torn after a recent disaster.

I was at the local grocery store in Akron last week, trying to save on chili seasonings. I grabbed this huge bag of cumin from the bulk bin for like 4 bucks, thought I was being smart. Got home and dumped a ton into my pot, only to realize it was old and musty smelling... ruined the whole batch of chili. About 6 servings of beans and meat went straight in the trash. Now I'm wondering if those little jars at the dollar store are actually better for freshness, even if they cost more per ounce. The bulk stuff seemed like a solid deal until that happened. What do you all think, is it smarter to buy small and fresh or risk it with bulk to save money? Has anyone else had a spice go bad on them and mess up a meal?

That $30 bulk spice haul from the discount store was a total dud

I grabbed a big variety pack of spices from a closeout place near Cleveland for about $30. Figured it'd last me a year and save a ton. Turns out half of them tasted like dust or had zero smell at all. The paprika was basically brown sawdust and the cumin had no kick. I ended up throwing most of it out after three months and buying fresh from a regular grocery anyway. Has anyone ever gotten a decent deal on bulk spices, or is it always a gamble?

My rice cooker broke mid-meal prep last Sunday

I was in the middle of cooking a big batch of black beans and rice for the week when my $20 rice cooker just stopped. It was 2pm and I had already soaked the beans for 12 hours. I had to dump everything into a pot on the stove and finish it that way. Took almost twice as long and I ended up burning the bottom of the pot. The rice cooker was 3 years old so I guess I got my money's worth. I'm thinking about getting a bigger stovetop pot instead of replacing the cooker. Has anyone else had a cheap appliance fail on them during a big cook?

Used to buy bagged salad every week, now I chop everything myself

About three months ago I added up what I was spending on those pre-made salad bags and it was like $8 a week just for lettuce. That's over $400 a year for basically a bag of chopped leaves. Now I buy a head of romaine for like $1.50 and spend 5 minutes washing and cutting it myself. For the shredded carrots I just buy a whole bag of carrots for $2 and shred them once a week. Has anyone else cut out a pre-packaged item and noticed a big difference in their grocery bill?

Appreciation post for my local Aldi's clearance section - found a bag of lentils for 39 cents

That day at the farmer's market in Des Moines made me rethink how I use leftover vegetable scraps

I saw a vendor selling broth made from nothing but onion skins and carrot peels for $4 a quart and I've been saving every scrap in the freezer ever since, what do you guys do with the ends and trimmings you'd normally toss?

Pro tip: The $2 bulk rice bag changed my meal prep completely

Hot take: Whole chicken is cheaper than just buying thighs, but the work scared me off for ages

I spent $1.89 a pound on thighs for six months till I finally bought a $0.99 per pound whole bird and got 3 meals out of one roast plus made broth with the bones, so has anyone else been avoiding whole chickens because they seem like too much hassle for one person?

Frozen vegetables used to be my last resort for cheap meals, but I changed my mind after a bad garden year

I was always that person who turned their nose up at frozen veggies. I figured fresh was always better, even if it cost more and went bad in three days. Then last August my garden got wiped out by a surprise hailstorm here in Omaha, and I had to rethink dinner fast. I grabbed a big bag of frozen broccoli florets at the store for $2.50, and I was shocked at how good they were after roasting them with salt and oil. They stayed crispy and didn't turn mushy like I expected. Now I keep a few bags in the freezer for nights when fresh stuff is too pricey or just looks sad at the market. Has anyone else found a frozen vegetable that actually surprised you with its quality?

Hit $200 in savings from meal prepping just lunches for 3 months

I started meal prepping lunches back in January because I was spending like $12 a day on takeout near my office in Austin. After 3 months I added up what I saved from not buying lunch and it came to exactly $198. That blew my mind because I wasn't even trying that hard, just making big batches of rice and beans or soups on Sundays. Now I'm curious what dinner could save if I planned better too. Has anyone else actually tracked their savings from meal prepping and been shocked by the number?

Took me 10 years to realize I was ruining my rice every single time

I always washed my rice until the water ran clear. Thought that was the right way. Then my neighbor saw me doing it and asked why I was stripping all the starch out. Said I was basically making it dry and crumbly on purpose. Tried it her way last week. Just a quick rinse. Rice came out fluffy and actually stuck together. 34 years old and I just figured this out. Anybody else have a cooking habit they swore by that turned out to be totally wrong?

Why does my "budget" chili always cost more than I expect

I tried making chili from scratch last week thinking it would be cheap, but after buying ground beef, beans, tomatoes, and spices I was out $18 for one pot. Next time I am just buying the $3 canned stuff and calling it a day. Has anyone else had their cheap meal plans backfire like this?

Pro tip: I started freezing my overripe bananas instead of letting them rot and it saved me $15 a week on smoothies

My rice cooker died mid-meal prep on Monday and I nearly lost a week of lunches

I was making a bulk batch of black beans and rice for the week when the cooker just shut off and refused to turn back on, leaving me with a half-cooked mess at 11pm. Had to dump the whole thing and scramble to finish everything in a pot on the stove, which took way longer and used more gas. Anybody got a cheap brand of rice cooker that actually holds up to weekly use without breaking after a year?

That trip to the discount grocery changed my mind about frozen veggies

I always thought fresh was cheaper and better until I walked into an Aldi last week and saw bags of frozen broccoli for 89 cents each. My neighbor grabbed three and said she feeds her family of four on $50 a week using mostly frozen produce. Has anyone else switched over and seen a real difference in their grocery bill?

My coworker laughed when I brought lentil soup for lunch 5 days in a row, then asked for my recipe after he saw my grocery bill was $23 for the whole week

He stood there smirking with his $12 sandwich from the deli until I showed him the receipt for 2 bags of lentils, a bag of carrots, and some onions from Aldi that made 8 servings total, and now I'm wondering how many other people are blowing their budget on lunch because they think cheap food has to taste bad, has anyone else converted a lunch snob?

Showerthought: Is it better to batch cook 10 meals on Sunday or just make 2 big servings per night?

I tried both last month, batch cooking 15 portions of chili in one go versus making double portions of pasta 3 nights a week, and I'm leaning toward the nightly method because I got sick of eating the same chili for 5 days straight - what do you guys think saves more money without making you dread dinner?

My grandma's bean soup trick saves me $15 a week now

Last week I was digging through my old recipe box and found my grandma's recipe for ham and bean soup. Three years ago I would have tossed the ham bone without a second thought. Now I soak a bag of dried navy beans for 8 hours and simmer them with the bone and some leftover veggie scraps I froze. One batch gives me 6 servings for about 4 bucks total. My coworkers spend 10 dollars on lunch every day and I'm over here eating soup I paid pennies for. It took me until last month to realize my grandmother was cooking this way because money was tight, not because it tasted better. Anyone else rediscover a cheap family recipe that changed how you eat on the regular?

PSA: Just hit $2,800 on my grocery bill this month and didn't even notice till now

I was adding up receipts for our monthly budget and realized we spent $2,800 on food just for two people. That's double what we used to spend two years ago on the same meals. Has anyone else seen their grocery costs creep up that much without realizing it?

My slow cooker lid shattered while making chili yesterday

I was prepping a batch of black bean chili with ground turkey and the lid just cracked in half when I set it on the counter. Must have been a hairline fracture from the heat. Has anyone else had a ceramic lid fail on them like this? I'm trying to figure out if I should just buy a replacement lid or get a whole new cooker.

Shelled out $30 for a fancy spiralizer and it broke on the first carrot.

The plastic gear stripped halfway through making zucchini noodles, so now I'm back to just chopping veggies with a knife like a normal person. Anyone else have a kitchen gadget that gave up after one use?

PSA: Bought a $40 bag of frozen chicken breasts that were mostly brine

I grabbed a big family pack of frozen chicken breasts at Costco last week, thinking I was saving money. Got it home, thawed it out, and there was so much extra liquid in the bag I lost like a third of the weight. Ended up paying way more per pound of actual meat than just buying fresh from the regular grocery store. Total waste of about $15 for water that went down the drain. Has anyone else noticed this with certain frozen meat brands? What stores have actual solid frozen chicken without all that added water?

Tried freezing leftover chili in ice cube trays for portion control and it backfired hard

I thawed a cube last night and ended up with chili flavored ice water since the bag wasn't sealed tight. How do you guys freeze single servings without turning everything into a frosty mess?