I live in California with my family, and they give me a budget for my groceries. For reasons I don’t want to disclose, I can’t currently work and I do not want to ask them for more money. I have some health issues that require I eat healthy, low carbs and low fats, generally high protein and veggies. My issue is that they recently swapped to a different grocery store (Grocery Outlet) that isn’t Walmart; everything is much healthier but I’m having trouble making it work. Eggs before would be $4 and now they’re $8. Any recommendations for cheap ingredients and meals that don’t just consist of rice and beans that also will fit into $100? I’m told I should eat 3 meals a day and I don’t mind having the same meal for lunch and dinner. I would settle for ramen if it wasn’t legitimately unhealthy for me. Also, if anyone has any recommendations on how to stay under budget when you’re physically shopping at a store and not online? I’ve tried making carts online to plan ahead except they usually aren’t even the same prices.
How many people are you feeding on this $100?
Can you order your own groceries from Walmart? They have free delivery with Walmart +
Frozen fruits and vegetables tend to be cheaper than fresh ones. Potatoes are super versatile too. If you eat meat, buy in bulk and make small portions to freeze. Also, try to buy seasonal products, they are cheaper then. Frozen fish can be a good option as well. Look up easy cheap recipes and be creative with what you have.
Have the money in cash and just bring, for example, $60 in the first week and then $40 the second week. It might help you stick to your budget better.
Good luck! It can be tough, but you’ll figure it out.