Eat healthy foods on very tight budget

Hey beautiful,

Do you want to stay beautiful and healthy for the rest of your life on tight budget ? Don’t worry, it is super easy. You just need to be mindful of what are you eating and when. It is easy to keep lives simple and healthy. Happiness and health is important for living a fulfilled life. There is no magic wand for this. The only mantra is to keep things as simple as possible.

Happiness lies in small things of life. Same way, eating healthy means eating simple food and within your means. Eating healthy don’t need you to spend a fortune. Be cautious about what you buy while shopping and this can let you have all the nutrients from simplest of the foods.

How to enjoy life when you don’t have enough money

1. Buy fresh veges and fruits

Always buy fresh seasonal fruits and veges. Seasonal produce is always less expensive. Nonseasonal food is always stored from the previous season which requires storage and transportation. And in doing so, it increases the cost. Also nutrient loss is always there even if it is in small amount.

Buying fresh is the key to eat on budget.

2. Plan your meals according to seasonal produce

Keep an eye on the seasonal produce. Always try to figure out the fresh produce available in your particular place. Shop according to season.

3. Cook from scratch

Pre-packaged food is always more expensive than home cooked food. Try to cook from scratch. If you are not culinary expert, don’t worry. make something daily, you will become home chef in few days.

Cooking your food at home give you freedom of experimenting with different kinds of food in different ways.

4. Look out for specials

Yes my dear, never forget this one. Always look for specials at food stores and fresh food markets. It doesn’t mean that food on specials is always of low quality. When shopping at supermarkets, look for mark downs.

Bakery products, and fresh produce or the products near to their expiry are always on markdown. Purchase them if you know that you can finish then soon.

5. Buy nuts in bulk

Buying nuts in bulk will reduce the price. Always go for non-salted varieties. Nuts contain oils which gets rancid with time. When you buy them in bulk, you need to store them properly. Shelled nuts can be kept at room temperature for about a month.

Nuts can be refrigerated for about 6 months in an air tight container. And can be kept in freezer for about a year. Also keep them away from any  food products that have strong pungent smell, like onions. Nuts tend to take that smell easily.

6. Go for ugly deformed food

Deformed food is not shelved in front of customers. Ask for it. You can get it on reduced price. This kind of produce don’t give a very good look to stores so they are not kept on aisles. But deformed produce can be bought at cheap price but with same nutritional quality.

7. For proteins, eat beans and lentils

Beans are an inexpensive way to add plan protein to your food. Go for it and reduce too much spending on meat for the sake of protein. Beans provide not only proteins but  minerals like iron also. They are delicious as well as nutritious.

Chickpeas, red kidney beans, green mung bean, red lentils, black lentils are all good source of protein and minerals.

8. Look for sale

I have seen at fresh food market that produce is very expensive on Saturday mornings and fresh too. But price drop on other days. And the place is always  very busy on Saturday mornings. I find it better to shop on other days. It really saves money and I can lot more with same money.

9. Don’t go for organic always

Clean foods are those which don’t need to be always organic. Because they are organic in farms by itself. They need less pesticides and don’t carry pesticides residues with them.

10. Buy from local farmers market

Local farmers sell fresh produce and it is always cheaper than the one in stores and markets. Get to know your local farmers market and buy from those markets. You will find it lot cheaper and the produce is of good quality.

11. Keep fridge and pantry organised

Sometimes it really becomes difficult to keep your fridge and pantry organised but it is worth spending some time in organising your pantry and fridge.

12. Try different cuisines

Try different cuisines because it will let you prepare different kind of dishes with the same produce. With the little changes in cooking style and herbs and spices, you will have totally different dish. Learn different cooking styles to expand the horizon of your taste buds.

13. Buy in bulk and freeze

There is nothing new in this but it is really possible to save lot of money by purchasing the seasonal produce in bulk and freezing it for later use when either it will not be available or will be too expensive.

14. Start loving smoothies and smoothie bowls

What a tasty way to make your food healthy and nutritious. You don’t need to add fancy foods to make smoothie bowls or smoothies. Just make them with the food you have in your fridge. And garnish them with nuts and dry fruits.

15. Eat season specific foods

Seasonal food is always inexpensive. Look for it. Here is a guide to look for what could be in season. Have a look on it and find out the fruits and vegetables you can find in particular season. Seasonal produce is better in taste and nutritious. Go for it and enjoy your health on tight budget.

Inexpensive food but nutritious

1. Whole grains :     Brown rice, wheat, quinoa, Millet, corn, oatmeal
2. Legumes         :    Chickpeas, kidney beans, Green Mung , red lentils, edamame
3. Vegetables      :    Broccoli, Green cabbage, Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Lettuce, Carrots, Radish,                                     Cauliflower, spinach, sweet potatoes , butternut squash
4. Fruits              :     Apples, Oranges, grapes, Avocado, bananas, berries, Cantaloupe, Kiwi,

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• 10 things you are wasting your money on
• Earn cashback with Ebates while shopping

A tiny Request

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Love

Gursimrat