Meal Prep On A Budget

Last Updated on January 17, 2022 by TheMealPrepNinja

Meal Prep On A Budget: What You Need To Know

Let’s learn how to meal prep on a budget. $3,365… You heard me right. That’s the annual amount spent on food by households, through takeouts or in restaurants according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In some cases, this figure is usually higher. Maybe this is a non-issue to you. But I believe that I speak for the majority out there since this is a whopping figure to spend on food alone. Maybe money is a non-issue, but you’ll have to face the facts that at some point, you’ll need mindful or some sensible eating habits.

There’s still hope for those on a shoestring budget. Meal prepping on a budget is a sure-fire way of cutting back on those expensive restaurant meals, saving you thousands of dollars in annual costs. Whether it’s lunch or dinner, planning at least one daily meal goes a long way in scaling down your costs, something your pocket will thank you later.  

I know…

Maybe the idea of meal prepping on a budget doesn’t tickle your fancy. Maybe you envision having to contend with rice and beans throughout the week. Though it is a filler meal, you don’t have to kill yourself with it. There is a myriad of ways you could spice things up for way less. Let’s sift through to bring you all that you need to know when it comes to meal prepping on a budget. Read on.

Meal Prepping on a Tight Budget

Many people wish they could eat healthy without breaking the bank. Well, I’ll tell you for a fact that meal prepping on a budget is easy and possible. Here are some of the few tips that can help you pull it off.

Planning your meals around grocery sales items

Your local grocery ads can be your best friend if you are trying to meal prep on a budget. Instead of basing your meals according to cravings, check out what’s on offer at your local grocery for the coming days. It will further reduce the stress associated with thinking about what to prepare or eat daily.

Incorporate more grains into your diet

Apart from grains such as quinoa, brown rice and barley being rich in fiber, they can further lower your food costs since they tend to be cheaper compared to meat. Not only is it healthy, but you are further saving money. 

Keep it simple

Well, we don’t deny the fact that preparing your lobster rolls can be mouth-watering. However, it can turn out to be quite an expensive affair. As a rule of thumb, meal prepping on a budget requires that you don’t use unconventional or hard to find ingredients. 

Use the same ingredients.

While it isn’t a bad thing to want to switch up your meal prep ideas within the week, it would be important to realize the fact that using the same base ingredients can save you money. Instead of coming up from scratch with a completely different grocery list, you could use your existing base ingredients to come up with slightly different meals.

Meal repetition

For those that don’t mind eating the same meal every day, this can be an effective approach to cost reduction. To apply such a strategy, you should concentrate on ingredients that can easily be refrigerated and stay longer on the cupboard shelf. 

Now that we know how to meal prep on a budget let’s look into how we can meal prep for the whole week.

How Do You Meal Prep for the Week on a Budget?

The following steps serve as guidelines on how to prep your meals effectively and cheaply for the upcoming week;

Knowing what’s already in store

This is the time you checked into your fridge, freezer and pantry to find the ingredients that you already have. This ensures that you don’t buy a duplicate of ingredients already at your proposal. You may even discover that you have a lot of storage containers that were used to shove your leftovers at the back of your fridge- a reason not to buy more storage containers, thus saving more money.

Eating through the already existing food.

Unless you are stocking up for emergencies such as winter, there’s no need to stock up your pantry since there are modern conveniences such as groceries. As humans, we are wired for self-preservation and having stockpiles of food is one strategy. However, when planning out for the coming week, it’s prudent that we first come up with a plan to consume what is already at our disposal before stocking up. Carefully check the expiry date and come up with different ways of how you can incorporate such ingredients into your weekly plan.

Come up with a mini grocery list.

A low grocery bill will characterize your first or second week since you’ll be consuming what you already have. It all depends on the amount of food stocked up in your pantry and freezer. The key to saving big during the week is in buying additional ingredients that will assist you in consuming what you already have.

Clearing out the existing ingredients in your pantry, rid you of the mental block and sets the stage for a clean slate or a fresh start. Maybe you’ve been opening up your pantry and arriving at the sight of canned beans only. You figure it’s time you ordered takeout since you have nothing better to eat. Sounds familiar?

Well, clearing out those canned beans from the pantry allows you to fill your pantry with budget-friendly foods and rid you of unhealthy eating habits.

Buying in bulk

In cases where your pantry’s stockpile isn’t sufficient, it’s time you bought your ingredients in bulk. However, you should note that not every ingredient qualifies for bulk buying. It will depend on your weekly meal plan. For instance, if you plan on having a sandwich for lunch for the whole week, then it would make sense buying your loaf of bread and lettuce in bulk. Also, be mindful of the expiry to avoid future losses.

Let’s take a look at the money factor.

How Much Does it Cost to Meal Prep For a Week?

The following are just rough estimates of produce at your discounted food/ grocery store. For;

• $8-10, you can get 5-7 pounds of veggies

• $8-12 gets you 5-7 pounds of fruits

• $4-12 gets you 3pounds of meat

• 2.5 pounds of cream, cheese or yoghurt goes for roughly $12.

• $4 gets you dips and finally,

• $30 gets you grains such as beans, snacks and meals for a weekend.

According to such figures, the total bill shouldn’t be more than $80.

Let’s delve more into the mathematical workings, shall we?

Money is a common thing in everyone’s mind. How much I’m I saving? Well, depending on where you hit the shelves for your groceries, Prepping meals for one week will set you back nearly $60-100. I know it does seem like a steep price to pay for a one-time purchase, especially if you are accustomed to paying around $8.

Let’s solve a quick one…

In case you used $75 to cater for your 21 meals throughout the week, the price per meal translates to around, 

$75/21= $3.57

Spending $3.57 per meal compared to $7-8 is quite commendable.

Meal prepping for a whole year brings the figure to $3600 ( $745*4*12) spent on food compared to eating out or ordering a take out multiple times a week, which translates to almost $5000 annually.

Such a daily discipline saves you a cool $1400. 

Suddenly, such an expensive weekly one-time purchase turns into a wise decision, taking into account all you can do with such savings.

What is the Cheapest Meal Prep Service

Many people decide to go with a meal prep service instead of meal prepping themselves. You can also save money if you go with the right service. These meal prep services are great options and are less expensive than eating out at restaurants.

Freshly

This is a meal prep service that delivers healthy meals to you. How it works – choose your meals, cook and deliver, you heat it up, and you eat and repeat.

Here is a Coupon code $40 off your first two orders! Coupon Code- rad40x

Hello Fresh

Hello Fresh is also another healthy meals delivery service. America’s most popular meal kit delivery service.

Fresh Direct

Fresh direct is an online grocer delivering groceries, prepared foods throughout the country.

Budget-Friendly Ingredients

When it comes to saving money, a certain degree of insight should be applied. This means prudently looking into ingredients that are budget-friendly to help you in achieving your weekly goal. Such ingredients include;

Rice- It’s one of the perfect ingredients for meal prep and quite versatile. It’s cheaper when bought in bulk and easily stored. It is a perfect supplemental ingredient and can be matched with other stews and veggies.

Potatoes- Their inexpensive and non-seasonal nature makes them a perfect ingredient for your weekly plan. Moreover, one can exercise creativity and prepare them in various ways to cater for every single day of the week. However, caution should be exercised when storing them since they are easily perishable. Extended freezing usually tends to destroy its flavor. They should be stored in a well-ventilated room and used within a suitable time frame; otherwise, they’ll turn green further messing up its taste.

Frozen vegetables- They are a healthy source and easily prepared. They can be prepared in various forms depending on one’s preference. However, care should be taken since extended storage time may turn them into refrigerator goo.

How Long Does Meal Prep Take?

You guessed it right. One of the most common excuses out there is  I just don’t have the time. This is a broad question, and it depends on your cooking style. Indeed, most people don’t have the time to come up with 21 different meals. 

On average, one waits almost 15 minutes at a sit-down restaurant to get their order. In reality, this is the challenge that meal prepping tries to solve: cooking week by week and not meal by meal.

It’s proven that meal prepping doest take longer than a one-off meal. It further depends on your kitchen aids such as the instant pot and other implements, depending on what you are preparing for the coming week. Typically, meal prepping takes on average 2-3 hours but depends on what you are cooking. It may sound like time wasted on a Sunday, but believe me when I say that it’ll save you time particularly during those hectic weekdays.

When it comes to meal prep on a budget, we have to consider quality and price.

Quality Vs Price

Meal planning is aimed at saving time and money. However, when done the wrong way, you may end up incurring more than you anticipated. Of course, the accessibility and affordability of wholesome foods can be quite challenging due to various factors such as supply chain among others. Therefore, the question of quality versus time seems to linger on people’s minds.

Is it possible to maintain quality at a lower price?

 According to Meal Prepify, you don’t have to break the bank while coming up with different meal ideas. They’ve come up with 50 dirt-cheap ideas aimed at making you eat healthily while on a shoestring budget.

Well, the college days of eating dorm food and ramen are over thanks to such ingenious hacks. You get to eat healthily, and it’s also good for your wallet.

Meal Prep Grocery List

Though it may seem easier said than done, which it is, meticulous planning is key in ensuring that you remain within your budget for the week. And what better tool to guide you than a cheap meal prep grocery list. It is a list of what is required, taking into effect the ingredients in store in your pantry, refrigerator and freezer. In other words, it’s a guideline that ensures that you stick to plan by deterring impulse buying. Other advantages that come with such a list includes;

• Saves time and energy since you know what to look out for

• Reduce wastage. You buy what you need.

• Saves you money

• Helps with meal planning 

• Improves your memory. By the mere fact of writing a list, one gets focussed. If you lose the list, you can still remember a lot of what was written.

Below are just some of the few digital apps that serve as a grocery list

• Google Assistant- You can generate your grocery list through voice commands in your google home device or android phone.

• Ibota: Helps one to monitor their expenses by scanning the receipts. You could link it to your store’s customer loyalty card and earn points by completing different simple tasks.

• Smart shopping list: Comes with a quick list option whereby you could create or easily add your desired items. You can also come up with multiple food groups to your liking and create various shopping lists.

• Any.do– A grocery list that works hand in hand with Alexa.

These are just among the few apps that help shoppers in resisting the urge to buy non-essentials and stick to their goals.

For the newbie meal preppers, it would be essential to have a few tips up their sleeves for meal prepping on a budget to be worthwhile. 

Tips For Meal Prepping on a Budget

• You should invest in seasoning when meal prepping on a budget. Since you are limited to few ingredients, seasoning tends to take out the boredom associated with menus that do double duty.

• Fresh fruits and vegetables can sometimes be hard to come by. Frozen veggies are a great substitute and are laden with the same nutrient levels as their fresh counterparts.

• Canned beans are typically more expensive than dried beans. Therefore, soaking dried beans overnight is a cheaper option. 
• For the meat lovers, target less desirable cuts such as the bone-in, skin-in or other tougher cuts of meat. You could always get rid of the skin and bones and boil or slow cook them in an instant pot to make them more tender. As a bonus, buying such a high quantity of meat allows for bones to make broth.

• You can also check for sales in the weekly fliers to plan your forthcoming week accordingly. For instance, if your local grocery or supermarket sells ground beef, you could buy it in bulk and split it accordingly. You could plan your week’s recipe that’s based on your purchase and freeze the remainder for later use.

• Always keep your refrigerator or freezer well organized. In the case of leftovers, one can always store them appropriately and reuse them without wastage.

• You could also invest in online shopping since there are no temptations there. Such is a perfect way to buy your groceries since you can easily monitor your expenses and chuck out what you need to keep things under budget.

• You could further explore with your taste buds cheaper but healthier versions of meals such as Mexican cuisines. For instance, think about how you could incorporate beans and tomatoes into your diet.

Meal Prep On A Budget Books

The Easy 5 Ingredient Meal Prep Cookbook

Skinnytaste Meal Prep: Healthy Make-Ahead Meals and Freezer Recipes to Simplify Your Life:

Cook Once, Eat All Week: 26 Weeks of Gluten-Free, Affordable Meal Prep to Preserve Your Time & Sanity

Meal Prep Tips and Tricks

Paleo Meal Prep Everything You Need To Know

Meal Prepping Vegetables: What You Need to Know

Meal Prep Benefits For Health: A Healthy Eating Strategy

A 2500 calorie meal plan that works

Final Thoughts

Whoever said that meal prepping on a budget doesn’t go hand in hand with quality needs to revisit. Whether you are a seasoned meal prepper or a beginner, the financials seem to be the common denominator. However, a low budget shouldn’t hinder one from having a blast with their meal prep. A few tips up your sleeve should be enough to spice things up. We hope this article gets you started with meal prep on a budget.

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