Eating Well on a Budget

Today we are finally trying to start some actual school....sighhhhhh! I got a B6 shot in the hip yesterday that is supposed to cure my nausea and vomitting, hmmm not so much yet anyway, but I must admit I feel a little better. Anywho no time again to write anything much but I did come across this neat little piece linked to one of my favorite websites ( http://www.westonaprice.org )  with some helpful suggestions for eating well without having to go into debt! I personally find it very difficult sometimes to stay within a reasonable budget for groceries while making sure my children are eating healthy. It can be particularly challenging in the winter months when finding produce that is not genetically altered, full of chemicals, and imported from far and beyond so you know that the nutrients are not what they could be, quite a challenge. Hope you find this worth your read. 

God Bless,

Dominique  

In a segment of the documentary movie Food, Inc. they followed around a very poor family.  The entire family was in bad health and the mother, who was interviewed on camera, blamed it on their economic situation saying that it was too expensive to eat healthfully.  It was obvious she had given up even trying. Instead she tried to figure out who all she could blame for her poor health. The parents were both overweight, and in spite of their fairly young age they were already dealing with diabetes and high blood pressure. The children both needed braces and were headed toward early diabetes as well.  The movie followed the family as they went to the supermarket and pointed out to the camera how very cheap the sodas, chips and processed foods were. Then they stood morosely in front of a display of pears in the produce department lamenting how they could not afford to buy a pear for each person in the family. They decided that since they could not afford four pears they would not buy any pears. Instead they left the grocery store and drove through a fast food drive-thru where everyone got burgers, fries and sodas from the “Value” menu. 

     At the end of that segment I was so angry I could hardly sit still in my theater chair. I wanted to jump up and run to find that family and buy them all pears and then, while they ate their pears, I would tell them what a huge mistake they were making by simply not bothering to cook. 

    You see that is the answer to most of the problems that family was experiencing.  Their limited income was forcing them to choose cheap food but because they did not know how to cook they were forcing themselves to purchase already prepared cheap food.  For the $12 they spent on the drive-thru they could have purchased groceries for dinner with enough leftovers for lunch the next day if only they knew how to cook them.  Eating home cooked food made from real ingredients would, over time, take care of many of their health issues and maybe even allow them to start a savings account or plant a garden.

How do you eat well on a limited income? You learn how to cook. You spend your money on the best quality protein and fat sources you can afford. You choose carbohydrate sources that are unrefined and unprocessed such as whole vegetables and fruits, brown rice, dried beans. Ideally your animal protein sources should be from animals that live outside eating the correct kind of food for their species. Yes, this is more expensive but you are getting a much higher quality of nutrition. You will make up for the high cost of the meat in other areas. 

    When I teach my Healthy Eating 101 class we end class with a meal. I purposefully designed the meal to showcase how nutritiously you can eat for very little money. We eat grass fed ground beef that is browned with homemade taco seasoning and then stretch that one pound of meat to feed up to 10 people by also having soaked brown rice and soaked black beans. We top the meat, beans and rice with homemade lacto-fermented salsa, homemade guacamole, and shredded raw cheese. The meat and cheese probably cost $11 but the beans and rice are only $2 and change. The salsa is a few pennies per serving since you only use a spoonful or two per person. The avocados are the only variable but if you watch the sales you can sometimes get them for less than $1 each.  So this very nutritious, very filling meal shows how you can feed 10 for about $15. It isn’t fancy but it works!

Canned salmon is a great high-quality cheap protein source.  Look for wild caught salmon with no additives other than maybe salt.  Mix the salmon with some chopped hard boiled eggs and a little mayonnaise for an easy salmon salad. With the money you saved buying canned salmon you can afford to buy eggs from pasture raised hens. Use one of the eggs to make your own mayonnaise with some olive oil and you will not only save more money but also create a very nutrient dense meal. Serve the salmon salad on red leaf lettuce and drizzle it with homemade vinaigrette. The Well Fed Family cookbook has another recipe using canned salmon to make salmon patties – you can eat them like burgers or serve them plain. One can of salmon will stretch to feed three or four people this way.

Find a source for pasture raised chicken and purchase a few whole chickens. The price per pound for a whole chicken is much cheaper than buying boneless pieces. Even though you are still paying $4 per pound for this high quality meat you can get three meals from one bird which greatly reduces the total cost.  The first night you roast the chicken and serve it with roasted potatoes and carrots, both are inexpensive vegetables. The next night you use the leftover meat to make a casserole or chicken salad or the Chimichanga recipe from Eating with the Seasons. You then take the bones from the chicken and use them to make rich, nourishing homemade chicken broth and so on the third night you make vegetable soup with your broth. Cabbage, zucchini, carrots, potatoes, onions and any other vegetable you like will be delicious slowly simmered in your homemade broth.

Lamb shanks are some of the most economically priced meat you can find.  Lamb raised in the U.S. is also usually still raised outside so chances are good you will be getting grass fed meat even from grocery store lamb. The key to taking these tough cuts of meat and making them delicious is slow braising.  Brown the meat in an oven proof Dutch oven and then add some broth, wine or water, a can of tomatoes, thyme, salt and pepper and cook them covered in the oven at about 325 for a couple of hours. The meat will be falling off the bones and you will have created a rich, delicious sauce in the pan. A loaf of homemade sourdough bread and a green salad can round out your satisfying meal. You could even serve this to company and they will never know you didn’t spend a lot of money!

Please don’t let budgetary concerns stop you from eating well.  Spending a little time in the kitchen is much better than spending a lot of time in the doctor’s office.  Spend your time in the kitchen with your family teaching your children to cook. Spend time eating dinner together every night. You will be investing your money wisely and the rewards will last far beyond the evening meal.
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Posted by Lee E. Burdett at 10/13/2010 5:02 PM
Categories: budget,cooking,dinner,nutrient dense