🐿️Pinecone Attack

c/budget-friendly-meals

28

evan_morgan81•2d ago

Question about buying cheap bulk rice vs the good stuff

I grabbed a 20 pound bag of store brand rice for 8 bucks last month and it came out sticky and bland, while my coworker swears by paying $15 for jasmine rice that she says lasts way longer in taste and texture, so is the extra money actually worth it or are we both just fooling ourselves?

10

tessa_kim3•3d ago

Debate: Is it worth spending extra on pre-cut veggies or not?

I wanted to save money by chopping my own veggies for meal prep. But it took me 45 minutes to dice a bag of onions and peppers for a stir fry, and my eyes were burning the whole time. Pre-cut bags cost like $3 more but save all that hassle. So is the time saved worth the extra cash or am I just being lazy?

14

eric540•4d ago

Saw a guy at Costco filling his trunk with 50 bags of frozen broccoli

Dude in front of me had a cart stacked with nothing but family size bags of frozen broccoli, must have been $200 worth. When I asked if he owned a restaurant he just said 'nope, that's my dinner for the month' and laughed. Anyone else seen weird bulk food shopping habits?

16

the_nathan•4d ago

Overheard a cashier tell someone that 'family size' boxes are actually smaller now than they were five years ago

I was at Aldi last Tuesday and the cashier told a customer that the family size pasta box used to be 16 ounces but now it's 12 ounces for the same price, and that basically means we're all getting tricked into buying more boxes to make the same meal, so has anyone else noticed this with other brands?

7

derek_burns•4d ago

My neighbor swore she could feed 6 people on $15 a week.

She told me this at a block party last summer. Said she just bought rice, beans, and whatever vegetables were on sale. I tried it for a week and my kids were hungry by Wednesday. No way that works for a family with growing teenagers. Anyone else tried the super extreme budget meal plans and had them fall flat?

3

susan350•4d ago

My neighbor showed me how to stretch a pound of ground beef into 4 meals

Last Tuesday my neighbor Carol came over while I was browning a pound of beef for tacos and she laughed at how much I was using. She showed me how to mix in a full can of rinsed black beans and a cup of cooked rice right into the pan so the beef goes way further. Has anyone else tried bulking up ground meat with beans or grains and noticed a big difference in their grocery bill?

13

nancy154•5d ago

Got schooled by a cashier at Aldi about bulk buying beans...

I was at Aldi last Tuesday grabbing a bag of dried black beans for $1.29, and the cashier said I was wasting my money on the small bags. She told me she buys the 10-pound sack from a restaurant supply store for $8 and it lasts her family three months. I always thought buying bulk was more expensive upfront, but she showed me the math on her phone and I had to admit she was right. Now I split a giant bag with my neighbor and we both save about $4 a month. Has anyone else switched to bulk grains after a random stranger convinced you?

25

lily574•7d ago

The day I quit trying to make fancy risotto on a Tuesday night

I used to spend an hour stirring arborio rice for dinner, then realized a $2 box of instant rice plus some frozen peas and an egg was just as filling. Now I save that 45 minutes for things I actually enjoy, like not standing at the stove. Anyone else ditch a complicated recipe for something that takes 10 minutes?

18

nora_barnes•8d ago

Had to pick between cheap frozen pizza or making dough from scratch tonight

I went with the $3.50 frozen pizza cause I was tired and lazy, but it came out soggy in the middle and now I'm mad at myself. Should have just mixed flour and yeast for 20 minutes and had something decent. Anyone else regret the easy route on a budget meal?

4

lily574•8d ago

My rice cooker broke mid-cook last Tuesday - salvage the half-done rice or toss it?

I was making a big batch of rice for the week when the cooker just died, leaving me with mushy on top and crunchy on bottom. I tried finishing it in a pot on the stove, but it came out weird - has anyone else dealt with a gadget failure messing up their meal plan like this?

10

faith_perez•9d ago

Took me over an hour to find a cheap way to cook dried beans without a pressure cooker

I spent 45 minutes just soaking pinto beans and then another 2 hours simmering them on the stove because I didn't realize the old 'add baking soda' trick actually speeds things up - has anyone else tried that shortcut and had it work?

3

terryj45•11d ago

Am I the only one who thinks buying a whole chicken is overrated for budget meals?

I used to swear by buying a whole chicken because everyone says it's the cheapest way to go, like you get the meat and bones for broth. But man, after trying it 4 or 5 times, I started wondering if it's really worth the hassle. The prep time to break it down, the waste from skin and fat, plus cooking the carcass for hours just felt like a lot. Then my buddy showed me how he buys just chicken thighs on sale for $1.49 a pound, no bones or extra work. He says you get more meat for your money when you don't pay for the frame, and I'm starting to think he's right. Idk, maybe it's just me being lazy, but has anyone else switched away from whole chickens and felt like they actually save more in the long run?

31

blake_martinez•13d ago

I keep seeing people use way too much oil for stir fry on a budget

I watched my neighbor dump half a bottle of sesame oil into a pan the other day and it made me cringe. A single tablespoon spreads just fine if you heat the pan first and use a little water splash. Anyone else notice this waste in budget cooking groups?

19

ryan_stone•15d ago

I finally stopped buying pre-cut veggies after one bad week

Last month I spent $13 on a bag of pre-chopped onions that went slimy in 3 days, and that same week I got a whole 5-pound bag of onions for $3 that lasted two weeks. Now I just spend 10 minutes chopping on Sunday and freeze the extra, has anyone else ditched the convenience stuff after getting burned like that?

5

gray_gibson•16d ago

Found an old USDA study that says canned vegetables beat frozen for budget meals

I was looking up ways to save money on groceries and stumbled across a USDA report from 2021. Turns out canned green beans and corn can be up to 40% cheaper per serving than frozen, plus they last way longer in the pantry. But then I read another blogger arguing that frozen veggies retain more nutrients than canned, especially for things like spinach or broccoli. So which one do you all lean toward when you're trying to stretch a dollar and still eat kinda healthy?

32

craig.brian•17d ago

Tried that 99 cent ramen upgrade recipe from last week

Saw someone post about adding an egg and frozen veggies to cheap ramen. Thought it was overhyped. Tried it Tuesday night with a 79 cent pack of noodles. Egg was 10 cents, veggies were maybe 15 cents worth. Actually made a real meal out of it. Felt full for once not just bloated on salt water. Anyone else got a cheap hack that actually surprised them?

17

abby836•17d ago

Just realized my cheap rice cooker paid for itself in 3 months

I bought a $15 rice cooker from a thrift store about 6 months ago. At first I thought it was a waste of counter space. But I started making rice bowls with whatever veggies were on sale, plus eggs and beans. That little machine has saved me from ordering takeout at least twice a week. I'd guess I've saved around $80 on meals since then. Has anyone else had a random cheap gadget actually cut their food spending?

11

nathan_thompson62•17d ago

PSA: that $15 bulk bag of lentils from Costco almost destroyed my kitchen

I bought a 25lb bag of red lentils for like $15 at Costco thinking I was being a genius. Then last week I tried to cook a big batch and the pot boiled over. Lentils went everywhere, all over the stove and floor. Has anyone else had a cheap bulk ingredient backfire on them like this?

7

lily511•18d ago

The frozen veggie shortcut that's not actually cheaper

I see people buying those pre-chopped frozen stir fry bags all the time. But a 2 pound bag is $5 while a whole head of cabbage plus carrots is $1.50. Anyone else notice the math doesn't work out?

26

juliam40•18d ago

Tried freezing leftover rice for fried rice

Thawed it out and it turned into a mushy paste. Did I mess up the freezing method or is this just how cheap rice works? Anyone got a trick for making it clump right?

0

tyler368•21d ago

My grandma's cheap chili recipe got a whole lot cheaper after I lost my job last fall

I used to make her chili with canned diced tomatoes, kidney beans, and ground beef from the butcher counter, you know, the decent stuff. But after I got laid off from my property management gig in October, I had to rethink everything. Now I buy the store brand tomato sauce (which is basically the same thing, just thinner) and swap half the ground beef with a can of black beans I get for 88 cents. The biggest change was ditching the fancy chili powder blend I bought at that spice shop downtown and just using cumin and paprika from the big bag at the grocery store. It's not exactly the same, but honestly my wallet thanks me every time I stir that pot. Does anyone else have a recipe they've had to strip down to the bare bones because of money?

10

kevin_roberts41•21d ago

My roommate swore by those dollar store spice blends for months and I finally caved and tried her taco seasoning last night and honestly it beat my expensive stuff by a mile.

She told me the key is to toast it in a dry pan for 30 seconds before adding meat and I cant argue with results when our whole dinner cost like $4 for two people has anyone else given up on fancy seasoning blends?

12

hernandez.jordan•22d ago

My neighbor thought she could save money by cooking beans on the radiator

Last winter I walked into my building's hallway and smelled something burnt. My neighbor had a slow cooker on top of the radiator in her apartment, trying to cook pinto beans with just hot water from the tap. She said her electric bill was too high and she saw a life hack online about using radiator heat. It took me 10 minutes to explain why that doesn't work and that she'd probably get salmonella. Has anyone else run into people trying to save a buck in the weirdest ways?

23

wren307•22d ago

Frozen veg vs fresh for stews - made me rethink everything

Used to always grab fresh carrots and celery for my Sunday stews. $4 a bag at the store near me. Switched to frozen last month after a tight week. Honestly, the texture is almost the same after two hours simmering. Saves me like $3 each time - anyone else ditch fresh for frozen in their cooking?

13

the_spencer•25d ago

Still think dried beans are cheaper than canned after my cost check

I used to buy dried beans every month thinking they saved me big money but last week I actually did the math in my Denver kitchen and canned came out cheaper per serving when I factored in my gas and time. A coworker swore I was wrong but the numbers showed canned for 89 cents versus dried at 72 cents after 3 hours of soaking and boiling. Anyone else find canned beans actually beat dried when you calculate the full cost?