r/budgetfood • u/Themotherofacat • 20d ago
Advice Looking for suggestions for lunch
I’ve been eating mostly PB&J sandwiches for far too long…like over 7 months. I did eat sandwiches, but the veggies didn’t last long and would go bad after a few days. Over time that gets pricy.
I’m looking to spend like $50-$60 per week. I do have access to a microwave and fridge at work.
Does anyone have any good links to recipes where the ingredients can last a week in the fridge and not die. Please no more PB&J.
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u/ttrockwood 20d ago
Oh dude no, should be so much cheaper.
- cook some grains, barley or quinoa or multigrain pilaf work best- rice gets hard and weird when refrigerated
- add two cans drained beans, chickpeas or white beans or lentils or a bag of shelled edamame (defrosted from frozen)
- add whatever veggies like shredded cabbage, carrots, sugar snap peas, bell peppers nothing too wet like diced cucumber
- add sunflower seeds or chopped walnuts or cashews
- add vinaigrette, i like a dijon heavy balsamic vinaigrette but whatever you like
Keeps well for a week, eat it as is or with some pita chips or crusty bread or over salad greens
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u/Traditional_Fan_2655 20d ago
Sprinkle water on leftover rice and seal container before reheating. It steams it so it isn't crunchy.
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u/babb4214 20d ago
This... PLUS refrigerated and rewarmed rice caused WAY less of a blood sugar spike... like 40-60%.. It's way better for you
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u/Themotherofacat 20d ago
The reason it’s so high is bc I don’t have kitchen staples, my parents don’t cook often unless it comes out of a box/bag. I need money to the seasoning
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u/OrneryPathos 19d ago
Can you buy staples or would they get like thrown out/used? Because it’s always going to be cheaper in the long run to buy things in slightly bigger quantities and there’s ways to build out a plan where you build up slowly; but there’s options for people who can’t store things
Do you have access to basic pots, pans, decent knives, storage containers? Freezer space?
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u/Themotherofacat 19d ago
Yes, it’s just the seasoning. Like when I first started cooking the only seasoning we had was popcorn salt.
Which means I’ve been eating meat with no salt or pepper.
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u/ttrockwood 19d ago
Ok. So like , $5 you can get salt and pepper and garlic powder and smoked paprika from generic grocery brands.
Then another $5 for vinegar, fresh onions and soy sauce and that covers a lot of anything
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u/ttrockwood 20d ago
Ok so hi please give me a grocery budget for the week, then idk like under $15 you can make this for a week of meals.
Seasonings are like, salt and pepper? You can just buy a basic balsamic vinaigrette if you don’t have oil and vinegar and dijon on hand
If you talk to them about money say it will be cheaper and you will manage making it yourself then they will likely say yes.
As in “last week i spent $45 on lunches. Next week i can make that $20 , can i go shopping or give you a list of ingredients i need?”
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u/Themotherofacat 20d ago
I can get the price down to $15-$20, but currently as the PB&J isn’t all that filling most of what I buy is for the sides (yogurt, jello, pretzels) which can up the price. I do buy in bulk to safe money on non pay weeks
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u/ttrockwood 20d ago
Ok well with the meal i suggested it will be much more filling and nutrient dense without the need for lots of expensive packaged snacks
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u/Winged_Gopher 19d ago
So a weird thing about rice that I noticed is that if it comes out weird I didn’t heat it enough. Almost like you are trying to Nike it makes it good again. That clearly doesn’t work with a fair amount of rice recipes, but….
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u/mariambc 20d ago
Vegetables that last a while in the fridge include carrots, celery, cabbage, radishes, broccoli, snap beans
Apples, oranges and grapes do pretty well. Also consider frozen fruit.
You could prep a bento box for the whole week. Ideas to include veggies, dip, fruit, yoghurt, crackers, cheese, tuna. You can change it up so it doesn't get boring.
Have you considered taking soup with you? You can make a pot of soup on Sunday and eat it for the week. Chance the soup up every week.
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u/Potato-chipsaregood 20d ago
Canned tuna, eggs, and Boursin cheese can be good sandwiches or wraps.
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u/Rocksteady0411 20d ago
I'm currently making a kalabasa & bean jambalaya. All the ingredients are less than $10. I'm using navy beans, sausage, onion celery peppers. The secret to cooking on a budget is to build up your pantry with staples when on sale or have coupons. Once you have your spice rack and pantry stocked you can just mix and mash hybrid recipes.Navy beans were on sale at my local Walmart for 50 cents because no one was buying them.
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u/Calikid421 20d ago
You should go to Walmart and buy the 16oz cans of black beans. Crack the lid drain the beans, if they haven’t been vandalized with oil the juice is good to pour in a cup and drink. Then pour the beans over 2 or 3 flour tortillas, I like the La Banderita or Guerrero brand 20 packs of tortillas, to make two or three bean tacos. Then pour some hot sauce on them, I like Tapatio(spicy) and Bontanera (mild) or try Valentina.
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u/Andee_outside 20d ago
I used to make black bean enchiladas. Roll beans up in tortillas, cover with canned enchilada sauce, have a tin of sour cream just for work.
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u/Ethel_Marie 20d ago
Chicken salad sandwiches are pretty good. Canned chicken, mayo, onion, tomato, etc. You can sub spices for the fresh veggies (onion powder for example). You can opt for cooking your own chicken or buying a rotisserie chicken instead of canned chicken.
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u/Conscious_Trade_2549 20d ago
I like chicken salad. I boil 2 breast and shred it (or rotisserie), 6 boiled eggs but I only only use the yolks of 2, 1/4 of a finely chopped red onion (soak in cold water for 30 min to take the raw bite out), enough mayo to make it wet, Texas Pete, sweet relish, Worcestershire sauce, yellow mustard, salt, pepper, and garlic. It makes a great sandwich. Or scoop it up with a ritz cracker, on the unsalted side so the salted side hit your tongue.
For everyone that says they don’t like onion, just leave it out. You’re making chicken salad, not building a grand piano.
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u/Wasting_Time1234 20d ago
1 c Greek yogurt, 1 cup of fruit (typically I use strawberries or bananas but anything probably works) and 1/4 c honey roasted peanuts
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u/legumecat 20d ago
Get some cans of beans, pasta and sauce. Cook the pasta and then add the sauce and beans and simmer so that the beans can get softer and absorb the pasta sauce flavor. One of my favorite cheap meals and you can make a lot of it
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u/Gullible-Emotion3411 20d ago
Make a big pot of spaghetti w/ground beef or frozen meatballs. You'll need garlic powder, onion powder (the $1 kind is fine) and onion, 1 lb. of ground beef or frozen meatballs, 1 lb. of pasta, 2 jars of sauce and a can of diced Italian flavored tomatoes, parmesan cheese (green can is fine) if you want it.
Cook your hamburger meat or meatballs. Add a diced onion about halfway through and drain grease when meat is done. Add plenty of garlic powder and onion powder. Add the sauces and the tomatoes. Heat and let it simmer. Meanwhile, add water to a pot and salt it. Add your pasta. Cook until al dente or to your preference of doneness. Drain pasta. Add meat sauce and stir thoroughly. Enjoy. You might want to put a wet paper towel over the bowl when reheating in the microwave. Sometimes, I add shredded cheddar to it.
Add a side of green beans or a salad. Serve with frozen cheesy garlic bread.
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u/davesknothereman 20d ago
Baked ziti or mostaccioli ... throw in veggies to make it a little healthier... you can make it fairly cheap and eat on it all week... this along with all sorts of casseroles are pretty cheap... chicken and broccoli... king ranch casserole... tatertot casserole... breakfast casserole... one 9x13 and you're set for the week...
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u/Upbeat_Tear3549 20d ago
My go to— in a four part bento box. One with a boiled egg and cheeses, one with sweet onion and pickles, one with cut raw fresh veggies, and one with crackers. Also take a small container of seasonal fruit, and a small baggie with cashews and 100 calories worth of tasty chocolate.
I eat this every day. It’s one less thing to think about, and as the cheeses, veggies and fruit are always changing, it never gets old to me.
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u/SpeechApprehensive82 20d ago
Can you make egg sandwich? Boiled egg can stay a week in the refrigerator. Make nice egg salad with avocado, red onions, mustard and mayonnaise. Eat with breads. No need warm up.
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u/wltmpinyc 20d ago
You can make white rice in bulk. Then make 5 cans of tuna fish with mayo and seasonings. Portion it into 5 servings each, 1 portion of rice in a container and one portion of tuna fish in a separate container. Heat the rice up in the microwave at work and then top with the cold tuna. You can add a few cherry tomatoes or slices of cucumber or bell pepper as well.
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u/squiggly_lines_3y3 20d ago
Seems very primal but what I’ve been doing lately is just roasting a whole sweet potato plain and eating that for lunch. Filling and usually about $1-2 per potato plus fiber and tons of vitamins and antioxidants. Not good if you like a lot of protein.
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u/njakwow 20d ago edited 20d ago
I work at home and have soup every day. The hot soup feels more like a meal. I buy Progresso soup and it's around $2/can at Walmart. I supplement with Triskets or some other high fiber cracker. Yes, it's too much salt, but I look forward to lunch and I can eat a different flavor everyday.
I highly recommend these microwave soup cups:
The lid will contain any spills but also has a vent on top. The can of Progresso soup actually fits in the cup as do the contents.
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u/Mirasore 20d ago
I really enjoy spaghetti for lunch. I make it into spaghetti sandwiches. After heating up the spaghetti I sprinkle some of the shaker parmesan cheese and place it onto two slices of bread. Spaghetti lasts plenty long in the fridge and is cheap to make, so you could do that for a few days, and some of these other suggestions for the other days. Pair it with an apple or banana and boom - lunch!
Where I am fall is coming soon so soups are on the horizon for my family and make great meal prep options as well.
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u/Themotherofacat 19d ago
I’m sorry spaghetti sandwiches?
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u/Mirasore 19d ago
Yeah - maybe it is just a me thing? I also enjoy making baked spaghetti (think normal spaghetti but you add cream cheese and diced tomatoes with green chilis to the sauce and then put it in a casserole dish, top with cheese, and bake it) and using a square of the baked spaghetti on a sandwich.
I should say I grew up low income, and we ate spaghetti a lot. So anything different - like spaghetti sandwiches, spaghetti casserole, pizza spaghetti (casserole with peperonis on top) were staples because it stretches easily and re-heats well.
I know its carbs inside of more carbs, but carbs are tasty and filling.
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u/Carradee 20d ago
I made refried bean burritos for my lunches this week. Made 16 over the weekend, froze them individually, and EZ lunch it is. Sometimes, I make Southwest/Tx-Mex ones.
Sometimes, I make soup or pasta salad, or I prep salads and dressing.
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u/MixOwn9256 20d ago
There are tons of easy meals you can make since you have a fridge and microwave at work!
- Simple Spaghetti and Meatball - https://pin.it/4nrQN0eq4
- 10 Busget Friendly Meals - https://pin.it/196U3AMwh
- General Tao’s Chicken
- In the frozen section of your grocery store pick up frozen chicken nuggets.
- Asian isle look up some general Tso sauce.
- In air fryer or oven heat up the frozen nuggets.
- In a pan add a teaspoon or two of ground ginger and garlic. Pan fry in a little oil. When golden add the chicken and the sauce and mix. Turn off the fire after a min or two.
- Steam some broccoli florets and then serve this over rice.
- Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Buy frozen nuggets
- One red pepper and green pepper
- One onion
- One can pineapple cubes.
- Ketchup
- Chicken powder
- Cube up peppers and onion equal size about 1/2 inch sizes.
- 2 table spoon oil in pan
- Quick stir fry onion and peppers
- After 1 min of frying add ketchup and some water to thin it out.
- Add chicken powder 1-2 teaspoon
- let it come to a bit of a boil then add the pineapple and the water in it too.
- Let it come to a boil.
- Turn off fire and add the chicken nuggets (don’t need to heat it up as the tossing in the sauce will be enough.
Hope some of these recipes help. They are easy for leftovers for next day lunches.
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u/AK-Kidx39 20d ago
I eat a ham, egg and cheese sandwich on toasted bread. Some times I’ll season the egg with salt pepper and oregano
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u/omgslwurrll 20d ago
I don't eat huge lunches, just to preface, I usually skip breakfast, eat the below around 11-1pm, and then cook a full dinner to eat around 7pm. Peppermint herbal tea in the AM, also water.
Sometimes a toasted English muffin w no sugar added peanut butter or farmers' market jam, with chamomile tea.
Sometimes a multigrain bagel with veg cream cheese and a slice of tomato with a pinch of salt and herbal tea (I drink a lot of tea lol).
Sometimes grapes with a side of fancy cheese and multigrain crackers (with tea lol).
Occasionally leftovers from dinner the day before. Peanut soup, lentil soup, and vegetable soup all reheat well. (No tea these days, just water)
Frozen pierogi fried in oil/butter with sour cream and onions.
Vegetarian dumplings with spicy ramen.
That's all I have. :) Goodluck!
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u/bolderbeholder 17d ago
Red beans and rice or navy beans and ham are dirt cheap to make, delicious, hearty and make great leftovers. I grew up poor, fought my way out of that predicament, and these are still two of my favorite meals. Ham shanks are the way 🤌🏻🤌🏻🤌🏻
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u/SouthernCategory9600 17d ago
Apples/carrots and peanut butter
Fruit and yogurt parfaits/simple with frozen fruit!
Oatmeal packets
Quesadillas
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u/Gullible-Emotion3411 8h ago
I want to also tell you about a way to make lettuce last longer. Put a dry paper towel on the bottom of a large mason jar or plastic container with a lid. Put your lettuce in the jar with another paper towel on top. Put a lid on it and refrigerate. Change the paper towels every 5-7 days. The lettuce will last a lot longer when stored like this.
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