[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]It’s cheaper to eat healthier—said no one ever. Until now. It actually
can be more affordable to consume a cleaner diet. With some guidance, you can stock your kitchen with more of the good stuff for less of the green stuff (money—we’re talking about money).
Beans, legumes, seeds, oats, rice and so many other grains are some of the
cheapest foods on the planet. Think: Lentils, quinoa, barley, pasta, rolled oats, split peas, garbanzo beans, black beans, navy beans, kidney beans and brown, white and wild rice to name a few. These foods can be combined with fresh and packaged items to create nutrient dense and protein-rich meals for you and your family.
Here are 5 steps following a plant based diet on a budget.
5 Ways You Can Follow a Plant-Based Diet on a Budget
1. Be a pro at picking plants
Author Michael Pollan said it best: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
Consuming a
plant-based diet has a reputation of costing a fortune. However, eating this way has proven to be extremely cost-effective for those who make it a lifestyle. In order to save money, a whole-food, plant-rich diet is key. This means avoiding processed and colorfully packaged novelty vegan foods and sticking to the basics:
in-season produce, beans, legumes, nuts, seeds and grains.
At the grocery store, choose seasonal produce items. In developed countries, you can find the same fresh fruits and veggies available year-round. If you pay attention to the prices, you’ll notice the cost rises when the produce item is out of season in your area. For example, in Florida, strawberry season is December through April (yay for BOGO deals on berries!). When shopping for strawberries outside of these months in Florida, you may be spending double per pint, plus you’ll notice the berries aren’t as sweet or juicy, potentially leading you to toss some of the carton (wasting food = wasting money).
To find out what’s in season in your area, keep a
seasonal food guide handy. This one also offers information on how to select the best quality of fruits and veggies to reduce waste. You like apricots? Did you know they only ripen on the tree? That means if you bring home a few hard ones, they won’t become juicy and flavorful. The guide encourages you to look for apricots that are bright without a green tinge. It’s a great way to ensure they wind up in your belly and not in the garbage.
2. Take inventory and make a list
Before your go grocery shopping, take a look inside your refrigerator, freezer and pantry (and wherever else you store your food). Make a list of the items you’re running low on or are missing completely. This way, when you’re in the store or filling your online shopping cart, you’ll be more likely to stick to the list and avoid anything additional you may not need.
Take this a step further by splitting the list into separate groups (fresh produce, cold items, bulk, packaged goods, etc.). Once you do this, conduct research to figure out where to source each category for the most discounted price. At Vitacost, you can guarantee to find our brand packaged goods, such as canned foods, dried beans,
raw nuts, seeds and so on (all non-GMO and/or certified organic) at an extremely affordable rate. Example: A 16-oz. bag (that’s 1 pound!) of
garbanzo beans contains 13 servings is just $1.41, while a
15-oz. can of garbanzos (3.5 servings) is $1.29. You get more bang for your buck with dry beans, but it’s great to have canned in your backstock for convenience.
After a couple trips to your local grocery store, you’ll quickly figure out the best one to shop for fresh items. Some stores have discounts on produce (especially its organic inventory) once a week—keep an eye out and shop on those days.
You can also find heavily discounted produce at
Misfits Market,
Imperfect Foods and
Hungry Harvest. These innovative companies save food from going to waste that grocery stores won’t accept for various reasons, including for excess inventory, size, minor blemishes or discoloration (and they deliver to your door!).
Another great tip to consider is using
Vitacost Autoship. Select the products you repeatedly purchase and a delivery frequency that works best for your household. You can save up to 10% on
Bonus Brands—plus, change or cancel any time!
3. Make your own at home
Spend a lot on sprouts? Whether you’re a fan of alfalfa, radish, fenugreek or sunflower—a container of sprouts can come with a hefty price tag. A tiny, 3-oz. clamshell of organic sprouts can cost around $7-$10. At home, you have the ability to easily
make your own sprouts in a 32-oz. jar for less than a dollar.
The same goes for sauerkraut. A 16-oz. jar of raw organic kraut at the store (one that doesn’t contain any preservatives or funky ingredients) costs around $10 (at least!). But one head of organic cabbage (which makes around a quart of kraut) is just a couple bucks. And the only other ingredient you’ll need is
sea salt. Follow our
Simple Homemade Sauerkraut recipe for an easy step-by-step!
Flour, a very low-cost bulk ingredient, can be great to have on-hand for
easy-to-make cookies and baked goods. This way, you can ditch the pricy packaged options, which are heavily processed and contain lots of unnecessary added sugars and oils. You’ll often wind up with more cookies than the amount that come in the box!
4. Grow, grow, grow!
If you don’t have space for a
garden, or the time it takes to nurture one, you can still grow at least *some* of your own foods to save cash. Start a
container garden or windowsill garden to
grow herbs, such as basil, oregano, thyme, cilantro, mint and parsley, that are virtually free. In addition to using them fresh, you can also hang them to dry to make your own cost-effective spices and seasonings. Click here to learn
how to grow your own veggies, reduce food waste and save money by planting herbs and regrowing lettuce, root veg, onions, garlic and more. Does anything taste better than free food?
5. Plan for one-pot and sheet pan meals
Save time and money by preparing tasty, plant-based meals in one dish. These recipes often call for very few, basic ingredients to create a flavorful meal for the family. Our
Sheet Pan Roasted Tomato Soup serves four and uses just 10 ingredients (five of which you can totally grow in your kitchen).
Looking for more? We love this
Sheet Pan Tofu & Veggies for Two recipe and this
One-Pot Vegan Pasta Alfredo with Mushrooms, which makes up to six servings and uses less than 10 ingredients.
In addition to saving money when consuming a whole-foods, plant-based diet, you’re putting yourself (and your family) in an optimal position to avoid spending dollars down the road when it comes to managing illnesses, such as
diabetes and
heart disease, related to poor eating. Cheers to thriving on plants, making healthier choices and saving massive moola while you’re at it![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_text_separator title="Featured Products" border_width="2"][vc_row_inner equal_height="yes" content_placement="middle" gap="35"][vc_column_inner width="1/3"][vc_single_image image="173427" img_size="full" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link" img_link_target="_blank" css=".vc_custom_1709659033745{padding-right: 7% !important;padding-left: 7% !important;}" link="https://www.vitacost.com/pacific-foods-organic-oat-plant-based-beverage-original"][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width="1/3"][vc_single_image image="173426" img_size="full" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link" img_link_target="_blank" css=".vc_custom_1709659054720{padding-right: 7% !important;padding-left: 7% !important;}" link="https://www.vitacost.com/frontier-co-op-nutritional-yeast-mini-flakes"][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width="1/3"][vc_single_image image="173429" img_size="full" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link" img_link_target="_blank" css=".vc_custom_1709659075043{padding-right: 7% !important;padding-left: 7% !important;}" link="https://www.vitacost.com/vitacost-garbanzo-beans-non-gmo-and-gluten-free-16-oz-1-lb-453g"][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row]
