If you’ve ever been on a tight budget, then you’ll know the struggle of budgeting for groceries. I usually end up spending way more than I think I will when I go to the grocery store! But, when I’m pinching pennies, I tend to price check everything, get the store brands instead of the name brands, and look for those sale prices and coupons. I don’t think I’ve ever done a $10 weekly budget, but one brave YouTuber tried it out – and came in at $9.95! Let’s see what she got and what meals she was able to make.
The Groceries
First up: Meal stretchers. Yup, those of us who are short on cash can all agree that things like rice and potatoes are staples on the weekly shopping list. Rice is filling and cheap, and potatoes are inexpensive and packed with vitamins C and B6, as well as manganese and a few other good things.
The next important thing is protein. Eggs are an excellent source of protein, and you can often find them on sale. This carton of eggs was only $0.88, and they were made even cheaper with a coupon for half off. Tuna is also a great source of protein. Make sure to get the kind with tuna in oil vs. tuna in water. Other kinds of meat can be hard to fit into a budget, but most stores have rotating sales or cheaper cuts with more fat. If you need to save money, the cut of meat doesn’t really matter. You can trim off the fat later!
Other items purchased: Kale, cheese (on sale), mushrooms, an onion, a mango, and a banana.
The Meals
This is a hearty breakfast, is it not? These homemade hashbrowns and scrambled eggs will keep you full all morning. This meal is pretty straight forward to prepare. Using a cheese grater, shred the potatoes for hashbrowns and fry up on the stove. While the hashbrowns are cooking, scramble up some eggs and toss a little bit of kale in there, cheese too if that’s your thing. This will be breakfast all week.
There are two options for lunches throughout the week. The first one is a rice bowl of sorts. Cook tuna and kale on the stove, along with some chopped red onions (or you can put the onions on top like in the picture). Put your meat and veggies over the cooked rice, and cut up half of the mango for a side.
The second option is another rice bowl, but with chopped up scrambled eggs, kale, and cheese.
Dinner is a colorful skillet pork and veggie dish! Cut up the pork and toss into a skillet over medium high heat. Add in kale, mushrooms, and chopped onions. Once everything is cooked, you can serve over rice, or chop up some potatoes and either bake them or cook them in a skillet as well. If you have leftover eggs, you can throw a few in to stretch the meal out and get that added protein!