In my last post, I talked about how it was possible to have a meal for under $1 per person. So today, I thought I'd talk about vegetables. There are certain veggies that are great for extending a budget and can be used in a variety of recipes. I normally buy certain staple vegetables and then I buy other vegetables or fruit according to price/sales. My prices might be different than yours. We live in a pretty low cost of living area.
The Onion... I buy them by the bag BUT I always compare prices. Sometime it is cheaper to buy them individually than by the bag. I have a wooden potato box that has an onion drawer. It has vents in the back. These are normally found in the South in the US. I bought mine at an estate sale in Tennessee for under $5 many years ago. Onions are great because they add flavor. I normally can get a 3lb bag for $2.
The Potato... I think it has gotten a bad wrap from people. It is often considered unhealthy but it's not a fattening food! One medium potato only has 161 calories. It is a great extender and side dish. It can be baked, bbqed, broiled, fried, and put in soups. A potato is gluten free. It stores very well and doesn't require refrigeration. If you are trying to reduce your grocery budget, potatoes are something you should throw in the cart. I can get a 5lb bag for under $3.
The Carrot.... They are yummy raw or cooked. It doesn't matter what you are cooking because you can almost always throw some carrots in to extend it. Chop them into tiny little cubes and put them in your Spanish rice. Slice them into your favorite soup. Cut them into sticks or on the diagonal for an Asian stir-fry. Bake them with a little brown sugar, raisins, and cinnamon for dessert or just a side dish your kids will actually eat. You can even grate them and add it to bread, spaghetti sauce, or casseroles. They are pretty cheap usually less than $1 a lb for regular carrots. Even if you buy the pre-cut waffle carrots or precut "baby" carrots in the bag, they are still a great deal! They are a very healthy "convenience" food.
The Celery ... It is another versatile veggie that is good raw or cooked. It adds flavor and is another great extender. It lasts a long time in the fridge. I use the leaves in gravy or places where I just want a light flavor. Celery gets added to casseroles, Asian stirfrys (depending), and to soups. I can buy bunch of stalks of celery for under $1.25. I'm not really sure if "bunch of stalks" is the right term for celery. But a head of celery doesn't seem right either.
Total cost is under $7! I buy them as needed so I might go through one celery every 2 to 3 weeks, potatoes 2 weeks to a month (Sometimes I buy 10lb bags or larger. I adjust what I cook so they all get used), carrots every 2 weeks (depending on if I buy a 2lb, 1lb, or "splurge" and buy a combo of baby carrots and regular), and 1 bag of onion lasts 3-4 weeks. I might buy them all at once or scattered through out the month.
*Tonight for dinner we will be having turkey, gravy, and mashed potatoes casserole with a broccoli slaw. I'll be using all 4 of the budget veggies.
Approx cost.(I'm just guessing at some of the prices because I'm not going to get my scale out to weigh the onion, celery leaves etc to calculate the real % cost. It's probably over the true cost. For anything negligible I'm making it a penny. )
Casserole
$1.08 for turkey (see yesterdays blog)
$0.50 1/2 box of broth (I got it for $1 at the dollar tree. Free of MSG!)
$.05 some celery leaves
$.25 some onion
$.01 garlic powder (I bought a 1 lb container at the dollar tree.)
$.60 for 1 lb of potatoes (appox 5 med. potatoes)
$.12 for 2 tbs of butter. (I buy it in the box. for $2)
$.01 salt
$.01 pepper
$.01 pepperika
$.05 corn starch
Total $2.44
Broccoli Slaw
$. 30 Fresh Broccoli stems chopped into fine sticks.(I use the tops for other dishes and big stems for slaw or stirfrys. For me, being thrifty is trying not to waste something that is usable.)
$.20 2 carrots chopped into fine sticks.
$.18 Italian Dressing about 1/8 of a bottle. (I think I paid $1.50 for the bottle.)
Total $ 0.68
Dinner total $3.12 for a family of 4. Another meal for under a $1 a person! (I expect to have some leftovers from this meal so a lunch for 1 or 2 of us the following day. But I'm not going to calculate that in.)
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