The best way to go back veg...Cheap....?

Question

What is the best way to get back to eating vegetarian and still eat cheaply. (I was a vegetarian for 2 years but it has been about 4 years)I am having a tough financial time for the next few months. It is jsut me..Could I do it on like $30 a week? Without eating out or anything? Maybe dry TVP and rice and frozen veggies? Ideas please..:) Thank you.

Answer 1

Simple my friend. I've been doing it for quite sometime. Sometimes my weekly bill is a little over 30, through sometimes under, but if you're paying attention you could easily do it.
You can buy a 1lb bag of goya (just about any variety you can think of) beans for about a dollar, 4lbs of brown rice for about 3 or 4 dollars, a package of tofu for about 2.25, some reasonably priced pasta (whole grain or regular) for a couple of bucks, some fortified soy milk maybe, and keeping an eye on what's left in your budget you can spend the rest on fresh fruits and vegetables. Easy.

Answer 2

Rice is sold in most Chinese stores and is a good source of energy. Tofu and some green veggies would complete the meal. If you have read "Diet for a Small Planet" by Frances Moore Lappe, you will probably remember that a vegetarian diet is the most inexpensive way to eat, in terms of direct monetary costs, and in terms of environmental costs.

Answer 3

Eating fresh, healthy food ultimately ends up being cheaper than eating processed junk food- trust me! Here's a simple recipe that makes four big servings of veggies:

This is a super-easy roasted veggie dish. Take two potatoes, peel them, cut them into 1" pieces and toss in boiling water. Boil for five minutes and then remove from the heat (but keep in the water). Cut a head of broccoli into florets, cut half a head of cauliflower into florets, chop a red pepper into 1" pieces and peel and chop three carrots into 3/4" pieces. Drain the potatoes and let them cool. When the potatoes are done, throw all the veggies into a big bowl, pour on some olive oil and add half a package of dried cream soup mix (choose your flavour- I like Cream of Fine Herbs). Mix everything up until the oil and soup mix cover the veggies. Spread them on a baking sheet lined with greased tinfoil and roast at 375 until the potatoes become crisp. For more greens, cut some zucchini into 1" pieces, toss in the leftover oil and soup mix that's still in the bowl, and pour them on top of the other veggies after half an hour (if you put them in at the beginning they'll turn to mush). This makes about four big servings. I keep the leftovers in the fridge and re-heat in the oven (NOT the microwave!)

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I serve that with grains that I buy in bulk at the health-food store. Bulk food is really cheap because you're not paying for packaging or marketing. I get quinoa for about fifty cents per hundred grams (or $2.25/pound if you're in the USA). I also get bulk brown basmati and wild rice. All of those are high-protein grains. When I make the quinoa I toast it first in a dry frying pan and cook it in 1/2 water 1/2 vegetable stock to give it more flavour and cut the bitterness.

The other great thing you can do is make HUGE batches of soup and freeze them in individual servings. I just make whatever soup strikes my fancy and never measure ingredients. Some healthy vegetarian ideas:

Lebanese Lentil Soup - Fry up garlic and onion. Add herbs and spices (cumin, tumeric, chili flakes, etc) then vegetable stock. Pour in a can of lentils and lots of lemon juice. Add rosemary. After simmering for a while, stir in some frozen spinach. To serve, put some crumbled feta cheese in a bowl and pour the soup over it.

Summer Corn Chowder - Save this recipe for later in the year. Fry up garlic and onion, then add fresh basil, chopped/peeled potatoes, chopped red peppers, diced/seeded jalepenos and frozen corn. Simmer until potatoes are soft. Then, pour in some cream and chopped tomatoes. Serve topped with asiago cheese. (This is a make-ahead soup that tastes a lot better after a day or two in the fridge, or some time in the freezer).

Serve soup with a simple green salad and fresh bread.

Answer 4

I suggest you drink miso soup.
Very nutrious.
Should be cheap, but we've only found it at an international market.

Answer 5

become a farmer