However, I have noticed that we are eating less nutrient dense food than we ate junk food in quantity. For example, if I make Hamburger Helper, I know to buy two boxes and two pounds of beef to feed us. (There are seven of us: two adults, three teens and two under 12.) If I make a similar skillet meal with pastured meat, fresh herbs instead of dried, raw milk and sprouted grains or beans instead of noodles, I would only cook one pound of meat and make a smaller batch. The food would “hold us over” longer and we wouldn’t be tempted to snack in the evenings. The meal itself would be almost the exact same cost.

I’d like to reduce my food expenses, but all things considered, my priority is nutrient-dense foods first.

Local Nourishment

My dad’s grocery bill is always high for one person because it is almost all PROCESSED food.

Once I started eating real food, it ended up being cheaper in the long run. Cooking roasts and other cuts means that you get leftovers for lunch so there’s no need to run out an pick something up. Even when you use more expensive cuts like ribeye, it’s still a lot cheaper to cook potatoes and veggies with it than boxed stuff.

You don’t even have to go to the dietician’s favorite budget cutter “beans and rice.” Sure you can feed a lot of people with a pot of beans, but you can also get decent prices on fresh produce if you shop right (trying ethnic groceries too, like Mexican tiendas who always have the BEST prices on produce) and don’t buy everything pre-cut or pre-cleaned. Using whole chickens or legs or thighs is also a money saver. And as you said, you get a lot of bang for buck if you use the whole animal and make broths and soups with bones.

The downside is that you do have to fix fresh foods. They won’t sit in the cupboard for a few years and still be good to eat.

TrailGrrl