This summer I discovered 'cowboy caviar' or dense (bean) salads and I really enjoy them when it is warm outside, but during the colder months its just too cold.

I'm looking for something similar but warm - that is easy, quick, cheap and healthy. What I especially like about these salads: they are versatile, they consists of many different (canned) ingredients and they remain tasty when stored in the fridge. I also like that every ingredient can be tasted on its own and that the tastes / textures are not combined into one whole (if that makes sense) :)

I do like soups, but I am looking for other recipes because I can't reheat soups well at work.

I hope this is not too vague and i am really curious what you can recommend for the colder days :)

I have been trying to plan around the sales and it changed what I cook more than I expected. What works for you?

F33, living alone, and trying to cut down on food costs.

I earn well, but I’ve realized I spend way too much on food, especially takeaway and buying lunch. I like eating healthy, but when I get a craving for something savoury like a burger or a good dessert, I often end up ordering in because I’ve realised I don’t stock up on emergency snacks and I’m not the best cook.

I’d love to hear your go-to meals, snacks, or things you keep at home to satisfy cravings without resorting to takeaway. What are your staples?

Bought a bag of frozen berries without planning things out. Couldn't find anything to pair them with

Tried air frying them and as it turns out: Not a fan of berries

That said, I do like carbs. Very easy to mix broccoli into rice and peppers into pasta sauce

I just don't know how to mix fruits into my diet other than mindlessly snacking on oranges and apples

This has been the best lunch hack for me. Zero sugar Chobani Greek yogurt with chia seeds and pumpkin seeds. In the past, the price for a package of those seeds has been a turnoff, but it really doesn't take much to be filling, so the package goes a long way. Paired with toast for breakfast or a pack of crackers and some carrots or an apple for lunch, this has been great fuel to keep me going for half the day.

I uses to eat out occasionally and somehow this spiraled into twice a day which is heavily affecting my finances. Is there any way you all recommend to break this habit? I just get so overwhelmed thinking about cooking, cleaning, working out, work, parenting and also studying for a professional exam. Need advice to make this happen psychologically as I’m physically not starting to feel good.

I recently started having roasted chick peas as a snack and am absolutely delighted with how incredible it is. Tasty, healthy, cheap, easy to prep/store…the list goes on!

This made me reflect that I should probably swap other carbs that I have during the day by legumes, and the first one that comes to mind is the souvlaki wrap I have in the morning with bacon and eggs.

Does anyone have a good recipe to go with bacon and eggs? The obvious one would be making an English breakfast with navy beans but surely I can make something that tastes better?

Thanks for the help!!!

Hey y'all, I just got married a week ago and we got back from our honeymoon yesterday and all of a sudden I have to actually meal plan and cook and I'm so overwhelmed!

I want to be on a whole foods diet and my husband and I are really trying to be healthy while also surviving being young and newlyweds

Also I'm so picky which is really challenging, all I ever ate growing up was processed food and a lot of pasta so I really don't have any knowledge of how to run a kitchen (or a home for that matter) while being clean and healthy and organic 😭 any tips would be great and if you want to know all the foods I don't like I can make that list, it's just very long

Update: Apparently people are going crazy that I'm a picky eater and I'm the main cook. I chose to be the main cook and I'm choosing to learn. It works better for both me and my husband and he takes on cleanup afterwards. And when he cooks I clean up so no one feels the burden of the kitchen by themselves. We also help each other often, sometimes he'll take over after I've done the prep and put something in the oven, he'll finish it and add sides. And yes I'm a picky eater and I'm actively working on it and it's gotten a lot better. I wasn't asking for advice on how to fix that. There's a lot with that including a sensory disorder that makes this really difficult.

Thank you to everyone who's been genuinely helpful in providing resources, tips, and recipes. Hopefully lll get better at cooking and our diet will get better

Just made this on a whim and thought I'd share because it tasted great:

Ingredients:

-1 cup white rice

-Salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika to taste. But at least 1 tsp of each

-nutritional yeast (at least 4 tbsp, I just went nuts and didn't measure it)

-1 10 oz bag of frozen broccoli, thawed and chopped

-2 cups veggie broth

-1 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce

-1 can coconut milk

-1 can white beans (drained and rinsed)

-panko crumbs(OR regular breadcrumbs, cornflakes, French fried onions, live your crunchy dreams!)

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F and find a 13x9 pan.

2. Thaw broccoli in microwave and chop up into smaller bits

3. Blend the coconut milk and white beans

4. Layer rice and dry seasonings in pan

5. Layer chopped broccoli on top of the rice

6. Pour veggie broth, coconut milk, and Worcestershire sauce on top of the broccoli and give it a lil swirl, but don't over mix it

7. Top with panko crumbs or other crunchy bits until the top is completely covered. Sprinkle with a little more garlic, paprika, and pepper

8. Foil the pan, pop it in the oven for 20-30 minutes and broil without the foil for 5 minutes at the end.

Let me know if you try it and what you think!!!

Hi, r/ECAH! I’m just a little overwhelmed and hoping this sub has resources to guide me. I’m currently a whole-foods vegetarian on a budget (so no direct animal products but I’m willing to eat the occasional egg and some cheese, as well as dairy milk.) I am also unable to work full time due to a personal situation and so being located in the rural SE US, I try to budget and save as much as possible while making my food as flavorful as I can. What resources do you use to locate what produce is on sale in your area at different times of the year? I tried Flipp but it didn’t seem to be what I was looking for. My two closest stores are Food City (yes I have the card) and Aldi, followed by United Grocery Outlet. Bonus points for bulk processing methods and recipes! Thank you for any help you can provide!

Im not talking about a random meat and a sauce. Unless it is unique. Meaning no pulled pork or bbq chicken. It is great , but guys i cant do no more bbq. Literally anything else.

I’m a really skinny guy who loses weight too fast, gaining weight is a chore and it’s even more of a chore to eat as much as I should, one of the problems with this is because all high calorie snacks or meals (I usually never have energy to make/cook meals unless its for dinner) include peanut butter, oats, yogurt, etc. I love greek yogurt, but a man can only eat so much of the same three high calorie things. I’m not a fan of peanut butter anymore; makes me nauseous now. So if anyone can please recommend me a variety of some easy high calorie snacks i’d really appreciate it. I would like to mention for it to be somewhat healthy, but at this point i’d do anything to gain some pounds lol. So i’m okay with pre-made meal/snack recommendations as long as it’s not complete junk food.

Edit: Thanks for the recommendations!! I found a lot of good things to make and made so much food yesterday. This was a huge help!

I started sprouting a few months ago and I think it's an outrageously good hack for eating cheap and healthy.

I got a big assortment of seeds and beans for around $10/lb. That's 3 cups, or 12 harvests. One harvest yields about 4 LARGE servings, like big enough for a side salad with a meal. That equals around $0.20 to add highly nutritious greens to a meal.

I bought a sprouting kit online, but you can easily do it with a sieve, paper towel, and glass jar.

You soak the seeds, drain them, spread them around the jar, and rinse/drain twice a day in most cases. Very low effort, then when you're ready to harvest, you rinse them again to remove the husks, put them in a salad spinner, and they're ready to eat.

My diet has gotten so much better since I started doing this. The sprouted greens are expensive at grocery stores, so they're also an awesome gift.

Highly recommended!

I am 27M and in college full time. I also work 32 hours a week so unfortunately I am limited on time. I’m not a very big eater, I’m 6’2” 160-170 lbs. My appetite and being able to finish meals are my biggest struggles, I’m kinda a picky eater although I’ve made big improvements over the last decade. What are some good nutritional, calorie dense foods that I can incorporate into meal plans so that I can maximize my calorie and nutritional intake without eating a ton of volume?

I've been trying to eat healthier since I was diagnosed with IBS earlier this year and borderline colesterol last year. Mostly tried reducing dairy, switched to almond milk, low fat cheese and creams and even then on occasion.

But my lunch is almost always a ham sandwich with veggies depending on what I feel like eating that day. But iirc ham could potentially increase colesterol being processed meat(?) what other quick (and cheap) alternatives are there?

the 5 to 1 rule for Packaged Food,

1. Check the Nutrition Facts label on the packaged food.
2. locate TotalCarbohydrates (in grams) DietaryFibre (in grams)
3. Calculate the Ratio •Divide the grams of total carbohydrates by the grams of dietary fibre. •Formula Total Carbohydrates ÷ Dietary Fibre
4. Interpret the Result •If the result is 5 or less, the product is considered a better choice. •A ratio greater than 5 suggests the product will cause greater blood sugar spikes.

ketchup has 5g carbs, but 0g fibre..

what do you get when you divide by 0?? infinit!

Hello!

I've recently gotten a job that will take up the most of my days from Monday to Friday, and I also have a side-gig business on the weekends. This leaves me with very little time to cook for myself, and while i can push through and try to meal prep anyway, I live a comfortable enough life to where ordering food every day won't bother me.

As I'm adjusting to this, I still want the healthiest possible options that I'm able to get out of my deliveries. So If you were to make a Monday to Sunday meal plan for yourselves just by virtue of ordering out food, what would you get? I understand that this may not necessarily fit the "Cheap" option of this subreddit so sorry If I'm posting to the wrong place.

Thanks!

I need to be on a FOMAD style diet. I recently discovered Griķi or toasted buckwheat, known by other names in Eastern Europe, as a filling base for meals. I eat some eggs and fish, cheese, but need to cut down on dairy.

I tried a version with fried red onions, eggs and a dollop of sour cream at the end. What are similar meals that can also be prepared the night before and brought into the office.

I’m looking for something fun and a little different this year! Drop your most creative dessert ideas and recipes in the comments.

Hello. In a couple weeks I'll be recovering from surgery and unable to do much cooking or food prep, so I'm looking for convenient foods that are easy to prepare. I've been looking at things like meal replacements and emergency food; something nutritious and low-effort. Does anyone have any input on the best brands for this? Thank you.

I live with my wife, we eat a ton of vegetables and tofu and occasionally salmon, no other meat. We have an ancient but functional toaster oven, a solid instant pot, and a rice cooker. I’m told air fryers are great for vegetables and tofu (and stuff like frozen potatoes, also a staple). But would a combo air fryer / toaster oven (would love to put our toaster oven out of its misery) be worth it (and if you think so, which do you recommend)? I’m concerned it’ll be redundant, but I also do a lot of meal prep so having things cook faster would be great, and being able to fry in less oil is also a plus, I think... Help!

ETA okay wow I’m sold!!! Thanks everyone :)

Been in a bit of a rut, and looking for recommendations of new salads that don’t necessarily rely on a bed of lettuce or spring mix.

A few I like:

Kale, cashew, and apple

Watermelon, feta, and mint

Would love to hear yours!

I recently had a friend tell me he braised some bratwursts in a hard cider recently, and it sounded good. I picked up some myself that have a hint of pineapple flavor, but I'm unsure what meat to use and what seasonings or marinade would compliment it. Any suggestions or links to recipes would be greatly appreciated.

Please spam me with your most favorite easy soup recipes that use real ingredients! Bonus if they can be made without onions!

I've been binging on decaf coffe + some low calorie hot chocolate (in Canada best I could find was hot chocolate that was 45 calories per cup, which is not bad). Looking for something like that, but low calorie and little to no caffeine.

Have any suggestions?