The most important thing is not to be ashamed if you’re experiencing financial difficulties. Everyone makes mistakes, and for many people their “mistake” may have been taking for granted a job they’ve had for a few years, or counting on rent not going up more than a reasonable cost-of-living adjustment. Even if you’re someone who made an investment in something like cryptocurrency, you likely did that because you believed the hyped-up and unethical marketing around it, and you might have been primed to because you were already dealing with tight finances. Whatever your circumstance, it’s more likely that you’re suffering from the effects of systemic problems in the economy, not that you dumped a bag of money into a river. You are not alone.
Such financial difficulties should not be the tragedy you might be reeling from right now. If we lived in an economic system that provided adequate social safety nets, people who lost money wouldn’t have to worry about going hungry or losing their homes. If you’re terrified of those things right now, for yourself or your loved ones, it’s *not* your fault.
If you’re trying to survive right now, don’t feel guilty that you don’t have the energy—physical or mental—to make big systemic changes. There’s no shame in securing essentials now so you can live to fight another day.
It’s not advisable in most situations to come up with DIY workarounds for utilities, housing, or transportation. (Please see resources listed below for programs that might offer assistance for those necessities. Please be aware, unfortunately, that some programs may vary by state, and some are only available for families with children.) We can, however, come up with some workarounds for food which, due to the inherent variety of sources and needs, does allow for more flexibility. However, please note that your plan should prioritize healthy food. In the long term, healthy food is cheaper because it is insurance against numerous health conditions which can be expensive and debilitating. (Please note: this is *not* to say that people suffering from health problems are to blame for their conditions. We appreciate that a healthy diet can feel like a luxury, and even people with pristine diets have ended up with serious health conditions, due to environment and/or genetics. Again, please don’t beat yourself up.)
A word about children: Children are hyper-aware of their environment and the emotions of the adults around them. If you’re suffering with financial difficulties, they know it. They may be even more upset about changes to routines due to hardship than the adults are. They have almost no control over their circumstances, so they will hold fast to whatever control they do have. In other words, battles about food may be even more intense if they think you’re trying to save money by giving them something unfamiliar. It’s heartbreaking! While it’s impossible to tell you not to show your stress around your children, try to reassure them that you’re going to be together regardless. As your budget allows, let them have the occasional treat or splurge on an old favorite. And if a friend or relative offers to help you with that, take it.
The tips below presume a working heat source, e.g. a stove and/or oven, as well as access to a refrigerator. If you don’t have those, tips on food are not where you need to start! Please look into tenants’ rights or housing assistance in your state to make sure you get the working appliances you need.
Here are some tips I and others have used in the past to get through difficult circumstances:
- Cook your own food as much as possible. There are very few cases in which that will not be the cheapest option. If you’ve never cooked before and are nervous about starting, take a deep breath: you’ve probably picked up more difficult skills in the past.
- Keep your ingredients simple to start. Everything depends on your budget and your stores’ availability, but figure out what ingredients always make you smile when you eat them. (For me, that would be onions/garlic/scallions, mushrooms, greens, dates, chickpeas, frozen berries, and nuts, plus thyme, paprika, pepper, cinnamon, and cumin.) This isn’t the time to start playing with foods you’ve never eaten. As you get more confident, you’ll be able to experiment, but for right now, keep it simple.
- Start small. Just because you’re “cooking”, that doesn’t mean you should be expected to make something complicated. One of the easiest things to start with is a stew: pick out some vegetables you know you like, cut them to the sizes you’ve liked in the past, put them in a pot with some water or broth, add some quick cooking legumes like orange lentils, and maybe some rice, then spices you know you’ve liked. Then let it simmer for an hour, adding more water as needed. Voila—you just made yourself dinner, and probably have some leftovers.
- When you’re getting started, don’t worry about making large portions. One serving of oatmeal is an absolute victory your first week. Throw in some berries and nuts, and you’ll have saved yourself approximately seven dollars compared to what you’d spend in a cafe.
- While there are fun things you can do with a pressure cooker and a high-speed blender, there’s also a lot you can do with a pot, pan, and a knife. You don’t need an Instant Pot to make a delicious pot of beans, and you don’t need a blender to eat fruit. PLEASE practice safe cutting techniques, but if your knife is sharp enough, you’ll be fine.
- Legumes and whole grains are among the most inexpensive foods anyone can buy. On top of that, numerous peer-reviewed studies recommend making those foods the backbone of your diet to ensure the fiber and protein you need. Dried beans tend to be the least expensive option, unless you’re buying “artisanal” beans, but even then, you can get a good number of meals from one bag. Canned beans, while more expensive, are still going to be one of the least expensive “protein” options in any market. I do not recommend buying prepared grains, because those tend to be much more expensive than their dried counterpart. If you can set aside an hour, you can have your grains ready, possibly before your beans.
- Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables. Fresh and local is best, but if that’s not an option, frozen is perfectly fine. Canned vegetables will do as well, but the majority will need to be rinsed. I cannot stress enough that everybody is different, but the majority of people will benefit from eating dark leafy greens—that can be fresh kale, but it can also be frozen spinach—and berries. In general, the darker the produce, the more nutrients it has, so blueberries are preferable to white strawberries, and broccoli is preferable to white asparagus.
- The most important thing is to eat a *variety*. If oranges are the cheapest fruit in your grocery store, go ahead and pick those up, but try to pick up a few apples as well. In general, people need more vegetables than fruit, but again, everybody is different.
- It is also possible to “regrow” vegetables from scraps, such as basil, cilantro, green onions, and lettuce. Please see this article for more information.
- It is *much* better to consume nuts than to consume meat, dairy, or oil. And while nuts may seem like a luxury item, you don’t need more than a handful of most nuts five days per week to get the health benefits, including better arteries and brain health. Raw nuts are best, and while there are many people with tree nut allergies, peanuts can give the same benefits. It’s best to eat them whole, but in a pinch, nut butters will do. And if you can’t eat tree nuts or peanuts, seeds offer similar benefits, and are cheaper to boot.
- Fats are one of the most expensive foods—and they are also one of the least healthy! If your budget is very tight, try a week without oil. You can saute food in water instead of using oil, and you can use broth for savory foods. (The cheapest way to make broth is with vegetable skins and scraps.)
- While you’re tightening your belt, ditch beverages other than water. You don’t need them.
- While coffee and tea provide some benefits, they’re not essential and most people will be fine without them. Sodas offer no health benefits and can be surprisingly expensive. Are you reluctant to give them up because of caffeine-withdrawal symptoms? Try stepping down gradually, whether it’s by reducing the size of your beverage or by diluting it—your preferences will vary.
- Alcohol is also extremely expensive compared to their purported health benefits, all of which have been called into question. While you’re trying to save money on food, cut back or cut out alcohol.
- Many of us have a sweet tooth. Substitute a serving of fruit for baked goods or candy. This may feel difficult at first—fruit has fewer calories than baked goods—so if possible give yourself one and a half or two servings at first.
- Depending on your budget and available appliances, you might want to batch cook. (Think of it as old school meal prep.) Don’t go crazy with this; ease into it by making a pot of beans or chili, a pot of whole grains, or maybe a baked dish like a casserole, lasagna, or baked ziti. Divide this up into meal-sized portions, then freeze. (Please do not buy special containers or a freezer if you don’t already have them—the idea is to save you money, not make you spend more.) Take out a portion the night before and move to the refrigerator so it can thaw overnight. This is something that takes a little planning, and if you’re already frazzled from everything else going on, skip it.
- To the extent that you can be flexible about your meals, consider different foods at different times. (Children aren’t the only people with emotional attachments to foods.) While many people have played with breakfast for dinner or eaten cold pizza for breakfast, consider eating whole grains that aren’t oatmeal for breakfast, or even soup (that’s what many Japanese and Koreans do every day as it is). You can dress up brown rice or quinoa with fruit—fresh, frozen, or dried—milk, and/or nuts. You can also eat a breakfast bowl of grains and chickpeas, plus whatever else you’d like to add in. Just pretend that you’re managing one of those trendy, expensive bowl places, and go to town.
- If you’re on a special diet, you came to the right place! My whole family has some kind of food allergy or sensitivity. It can be very challenging to accommodate everyone safely, but for the most part, it can be done.
- The most important thing is to focus on what you can have, not what you can’t. I can’t eat wheat or oats, but I can eat rice, corn, quinoa, millet, sorghum, teff, plus a bunch of other things. While I can find those in flour form, I can more easily eat them as whole grains, and that’s the form that provides more benefits (and, incidentally, is usually cheaper).
- Especially if you’re trying to save money on food, don’t obsess over substitutes. While some pastas and breads do a credible job of mimicking the original wheat versions, they are not good enough to spend money on, whether you’re budgeting or not. I’m a good cook and I’ve come up with very good substitutions, but when I factor in time and enjoyment, it’s not worth the effort.
- Other cuisines have a surprising variety of foods that deliver the same textural feel (that’s a lot of what we tend to miss, I’ve found). I’d rather have a corn tortilla or arepa than a piece of gluten-free bread, and if I want something like a frittata, I’m happier using a chickpea or besan flour batter than an expensive egg-substitute.
- Finally, there’s no shame in applying for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. It may not be a quick or seamless process, as is the case with the majority of benefit programs, but it can provide much-needed relief.
- Resources
- Assistance Programs
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
- Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
- Discounted Telephone or Internet Service
- Emergency Housing Assistance
- Job-related Transportation expenses through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families grants (federally funded program distributed by the states)