National Frozen Food Month on March, 2021: what are some march holidays?

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$200 of food for 30 days?

I usually spend $35-40 a week for food. That does not include eating out. When you are conserving money or on food assistance - eating out is not a good use of your limited resources.

I think the best thing about being on a food budget is to do it well - you end up eating better food, because you can't afford to eat a lot of processes and pre-packaged food.

Typically the first thing I do is figure out how much protein I need for the week. I figure this is the most expensive part of the week, so I figure out how many portions I need - and then I buy what is on sale that week.

Same goes for fruits and vegetables - i buy what is on sale. There is ALWAYS foods in both the meat and produce department that are on sale - never buy at full price if you can avoid it.

I buy white potatoes and sweet potatoes - they are inexpensive and filling. Diced white potatoes are great roasted in the oven with some seasoning and it tastes "gourmet." Make oven fries if you miss fast food French fries.

If root vegetables are on sale that week, (especially in the winter) then I make root vegetable stew. If i have any left over meat - it goes in as well. Some bouillon cubes, root veggies, extra meat and barley makes for a very inexpensive and filling meal and I usually make enough for two days. Since it is mainly left overs and water - it is like getting free meals.

Winter squash are inexpensive and filling.

Do you like rice porridge? (Congee, jook, etc) that is another great way to use up leftover veggies and meat. Congee is good for any meal.

Miss fried foods like chicken nuggets, fish sticks, etc? Then learn how to bread using cheap bread crumbs and egg wash and fry on the stove. It is fast and simple to do.

I don't do a lot of dried beans - as you can get them canned as much the same price. They are good in soups, salads and of course - hummus. All very cheap to put together.

Want something sweet? Buy flour and sugar from the bulk food aisle - and get the recipe for "brownies in a cup" or any of the "cake in a cup" it is just a few ingredients (flour, sugar, oil, water, salt, egg, vanilla extract or cinnamon) and you can whip up an individual serving of cake in the microwave, in a coffee mug in under 2 minutes. The recipes are in on the Internet.

Ramen noodles - buy them when they are on sale and stock up. You don't have to use all the seasoning packet if you don't want to - and add veggies to it. Pasta is very cheap - if not available in the bulk foods aisle, get it from the dollar store. Canned sauce is cheaper than sauce in jars - and spaghetti sauce is only cheap to make when you grow your own tomatoes so just stick to canned sauce. Alternately - make spaghetti with olive oil and garlic (plus a little salt and any dried green herbs you have) for an authentic Italian meal.

Another trick with the Ramen noodles is to save the seasoning packet and put it in the water for white rice. This makes great fried rice the next day, too.

Every town has a bread outlet run by the local bakery - get day old stuff here for less than half of retail - or cheaper! Buy a few loaves at a time and freeze what you aren't going to use right away.

You can do it - it does take some planning, but many people eat on less money that $200 a month.

Another option - unless you have health issues, consider fasting one day out of the week and drink only water that day. It is great for your health and your budget.

What foods should I save for survival?

Bags of rice, pasta, and ramen soup or ramen cup o'noodles will last quite at while, at least 6 months. Peanut butter will be good up to 6 months. I'm not sure about the expiration date on Velveeta cheese but my guess is that it lasts a while till it's opened. Canned baked beans, beenie weenies, canned vegetables, and canned meats like tuna, ham, chicken, and vienna sausages will be good for a long time. Canned soups have a long expiration date. I'm wondering what kind of national disaster you're worried about. I'm a hurricane survivor and I know about foods that last a while.

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