Depending on how many you're feeding. Spaghetti is fairly cheap if you don't get fancy. Just a can of sauce and some noodles at $2. *rolls eyes* I have one kid who would have to be dying to actually eat the stuff though. LOL.
Bread. Pasta. Macaroni and cheese. Hamburger Helper (pasta with a packet of dry sauce mix and all you do is add the ground beef). Tuna. Hot dogs. Anything processed and in cans - Spaghettios, Beefaroni.
Oh - crappy cold cuts and processed cheese (ham, balogna, turkey, roast beef); the cheaper it is, the higher the sodium. Mmmm, it's tasty being poor. ;)
Canned food usually comes to about 3-10 times the price of the same food cooked at home from scratch. I can never understand why poor people ever buy canned stuff. But they sure do. It may be due to the fact that poverty correlates with poor math skills >_>
I can't give you too many specifics as I don't buy most of this, lol, but I can certainly tell you things that I grew up with(I was fairly poor). I live in Massachusetts, if it helps
( ... )
Ramen noodles are the quintessential food of the poor. That, and Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. There are actually stores that sell day old bread product at low prices. And canned foods of all kinds are discounted at certain times.
Don't forget eggs are about $.14 ea right now. I remember when they were $.05ea.
Fish sticks may be $2 a box but I can get chicken leg quarters for $.49/lb. I don't buy meat for any more than $1.99/lb.
SpaghettiO's maybe $1 a 15oz can, but as you pointed out, a lb of pasta and a quart jar of sauce are $1ea and make a lot more food. Pre-processed foods like Hamburger Helper are actually expensive, and you still need to buy the meat.
Does the government give out 5lb blocks of processed cheese anymore?
Here in NY I have a friend on the WIC program (WIC provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk.) So she gets vouchers for those things. But back in the late '80s I remember getting those huge blocks of cheese, and cans of indeterminate "meat". That was interesting to cook with.
Two words: Ramen noodles. The savior of college kids (and post-college kids) everywhere.
Mac 'n cheese (also known as kraft dinner), spaghetti, peanut butter sandwiches, rice, american cheese, hot dogs (probably cut into the kraft dinner), tuna. Oh yeah.
dried beans cheap cuts of meat (chicken thighs, pork butt, different kinds of beef roast, depending) Celery (sometimes not so cheap, but great to eat peanut butter with, and it's very filling)
You can get carrots for a decent price too, which are also good w/ peanut butter, or even just to snack on. I can get a bag of baby carrots for $2 that lasts me all week. (they're convenient, no peeling or anything). Or I can get 2lbs of whole carrots for around the same price, and they're great to add to things like lentils to round out a meal.
Comments 45
Reply
Reply
Reply
Reply
Reply
Reply
That, and Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
There are actually stores that sell day old bread product at low prices. And canned foods of all kinds are discounted at certain times.
Don't forget eggs are about $.14 ea right now. I remember when they were $.05ea.
Fish sticks may be $2 a box but I can get chicken leg quarters for $.49/lb. I don't buy meat for any more than $1.99/lb.
SpaghettiO's maybe $1 a 15oz can, but as you pointed out, a lb of pasta and a quart jar of sauce are $1ea and make a lot more food.
Pre-processed foods like Hamburger Helper are actually expensive, and you still need to buy the meat.
Does the government give out 5lb blocks of processed cheese anymore?
Reply
I know that the government still gives vouchers for cheese, milk, bread, eggs, etc. Not sure about the 5lb blocks, though.
Reply
Reply
Mac 'n cheese (also known as kraft dinner), spaghetti, peanut butter sandwiches, rice, american cheese, hot dogs (probably cut into the kraft dinner), tuna. Oh yeah.
Reply
Reply
dried beans
cheap cuts of meat (chicken thighs, pork butt, different kinds of beef roast, depending)
Celery (sometimes not so cheap, but great to eat peanut butter with, and it's very filling)
Reply
Reply
Reply
Leave a comment