beforewisdom
January 8th, 2005, 01:00 AM
The Frugal Vegetarian by Lisa Rivero
From
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj97jul/977frug.htm
"I'd like to eat better, but good food is just too expensive. And those fancy ingredients cost a fortune."
"Since we've stopped eating meat, our grocery bills have skyrocketed. Veggie burgers, tofu dogs, and organic potato chips are breaking our budget."
"I don't have time to plan for shopping. More often than not I stop by a deli or store on my way home from work to pick up ready-made items. I wish I could plan better and spend less."
If any or all of these thoughts are familiar, you're not alone. Although many people find that a meatless diet is naturally inexpensive, others struggle to satisfy themselves and their families on a reasonable food budget. If you're spending more money than you'd like on food, you may have fallen into one of these traps:
1. The Gourmet Palate
Many cookbooks offer delicious gourmet-style vegetarian recipes that rival foods served at the best restaurants. The problem is that you may pay restaurant prices to purchase the necessary ingredients. If you love to prepare gourmet foods, you don't have to give up these special meals. Just save them for special occasions. For everyday meals, look for ways to cut costs without greatly affecting the recipe. For example, instead of 8 ounces of fresh shiitake mushrooms, use regular brown or white mushrooms, perhaps with a couple shiitakes thrown in for flavor. Instead of kalamata olives, buy regular black olives. Substitute some shredded red cabbage for radicchio in your salad. No one but you will know that the recipe has been altered. Cut otherwise ordinary vegetables in exciting ways, such as celery and carrots sliced on the diagonal, or potatoes sliced with a curvy-edged blade.
2. Paying for Convenience
Veggie burgers, tofu dogs, tofu-stuffed ravioli, soy-based "cold cuts" ... as tempting as vegetarian convenience foods are, if you're trying to cut food bills, they are best purchased on an occasional basis. Make the mainstays of your diet fresh vegetables, fruits, grains, and legumes, and save the convenience foods for occasional treats. Make your own veggie burgers with texturized soy protein (often sold under the brand name TVP(r)), grains, or legumes. And keep on hand the ingredients for a few "pantry meals" that can be prepared easily with non-perishable ingredients, such as chili made with canned tomatoes, canned or frozen beans, and frozen vegetables.
3. Too Busy to Save
You're on your way home from work and realize that once again, nothing is planned for dinner. So you stop at the deli of a local grocery store and pick up enough oil-based pasta salad, bread, and cookies to feed your family of five. While you're there, you spot a new breakfast cereal, some yummy-looking granola bars, and crackers to munch on in the car. By the time you leave the store you're twenty dollars poorer and mentally chiding yourself for going over the week's food budget.
The secrets to cutting your food bills are relatively simple and revolve around three main ideas: plan ahead, buy seasonal, and think thrift.
4. Plan Ahead
As simple as it sounds, this is probably the most important piece of advice for cooks trying to cut their food budgets. If you decide on a whim to make your aunt's famous casserole for supper, you'll probably need to make a trip to the store for last-minute ingredients. Because you're pressed for time, you'll be less likely to shop wisely or frugally, and you'll be more tempted to pick up "just a few extras" while you're there.
Instead, set aside about 20 or 30 minutes once a week to draw up a list of meals for the week ahead and the ingredients you'll need. Plan to serve plenty of fresh lettuce salads and other easily perishable foods early in the week. When those vegetables run low later in the week, rely on hardier produce items (broccoli, potatoes, cabbage) or frozen vegetables. Think about how you'll use large quantities. For example, a small family may need to plan how to use up a bag of potatoes before they spoil (some suggestions, hash browns for weekend breakfasts, baked potatoes to be reheated for fast weekday lunches, and mashed potatoes or oven fries for dinner). When you go shopping, bring both the ingredient list and the menu, and don't hesitate to substitute fresher, cheaper produce when possible.
Enjoy Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables
Savor apples, parsnips, pumpkins, and winter squash in the fall; fortify yourself with citrus fruits and plenty of leafy greens in the winter; treat yourself to asparagus, new potatoes, and bibb lettuce in the spring; and enjoy the bounty of berries, tomatoes, eggplant, green and red bell peppers, and zucchini during those hot days of summer. The next time you go shopping, talk to your store's produce manager about what produce is in season and on what day of the week the shipments usually arrive. Vegetables and fruits purchased at their freshest will keep longer in your refrigerator and be less likely to spoil before you get a chance to use them.
Think Thrift
Thrift means more than just saving money. It also means using resources wisely, without waste. Broccoli stems can be shredded to use in slaws, sliced for stir fries, or cut into sticks for munching raw. Leftover cooked rice and other grains are easily turned into non-dairy "milks" for cooking and baking-just blend with water. Extra pasta can be tossed in soup or reheated with a little olive oil and some leftover steamed veggies for a quick lunch. To ensure that leftovers don't end up in the garbage or compost pile, store them prominently in the front of your refrigerator in clear containers, rather than in the back where they'll likely be missed.
Each of the following family-style recipes can be made for about five dollars, or, in some cases, much less. Feel free to substitute seasonal or available vegetables and seasonings when appropriate.
Recipes: see http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj97jul/977frug.htm
( sorry, VB wouldn't allow me to post at that number of lines ):
From
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj97jul/977frug.htm
"I'd like to eat better, but good food is just too expensive. And those fancy ingredients cost a fortune."
"Since we've stopped eating meat, our grocery bills have skyrocketed. Veggie burgers, tofu dogs, and organic potato chips are breaking our budget."
"I don't have time to plan for shopping. More often than not I stop by a deli or store on my way home from work to pick up ready-made items. I wish I could plan better and spend less."
If any or all of these thoughts are familiar, you're not alone. Although many people find that a meatless diet is naturally inexpensive, others struggle to satisfy themselves and their families on a reasonable food budget. If you're spending more money than you'd like on food, you may have fallen into one of these traps:
1. The Gourmet Palate
Many cookbooks offer delicious gourmet-style vegetarian recipes that rival foods served at the best restaurants. The problem is that you may pay restaurant prices to purchase the necessary ingredients. If you love to prepare gourmet foods, you don't have to give up these special meals. Just save them for special occasions. For everyday meals, look for ways to cut costs without greatly affecting the recipe. For example, instead of 8 ounces of fresh shiitake mushrooms, use regular brown or white mushrooms, perhaps with a couple shiitakes thrown in for flavor. Instead of kalamata olives, buy regular black olives. Substitute some shredded red cabbage for radicchio in your salad. No one but you will know that the recipe has been altered. Cut otherwise ordinary vegetables in exciting ways, such as celery and carrots sliced on the diagonal, or potatoes sliced with a curvy-edged blade.
2. Paying for Convenience
Veggie burgers, tofu dogs, tofu-stuffed ravioli, soy-based "cold cuts" ... as tempting as vegetarian convenience foods are, if you're trying to cut food bills, they are best purchased on an occasional basis. Make the mainstays of your diet fresh vegetables, fruits, grains, and legumes, and save the convenience foods for occasional treats. Make your own veggie burgers with texturized soy protein (often sold under the brand name TVP(r)), grains, or legumes. And keep on hand the ingredients for a few "pantry meals" that can be prepared easily with non-perishable ingredients, such as chili made with canned tomatoes, canned or frozen beans, and frozen vegetables.
3. Too Busy to Save
You're on your way home from work and realize that once again, nothing is planned for dinner. So you stop at the deli of a local grocery store and pick up enough oil-based pasta salad, bread, and cookies to feed your family of five. While you're there, you spot a new breakfast cereal, some yummy-looking granola bars, and crackers to munch on in the car. By the time you leave the store you're twenty dollars poorer and mentally chiding yourself for going over the week's food budget.
The secrets to cutting your food bills are relatively simple and revolve around three main ideas: plan ahead, buy seasonal, and think thrift.
4. Plan Ahead
As simple as it sounds, this is probably the most important piece of advice for cooks trying to cut their food budgets. If you decide on a whim to make your aunt's famous casserole for supper, you'll probably need to make a trip to the store for last-minute ingredients. Because you're pressed for time, you'll be less likely to shop wisely or frugally, and you'll be more tempted to pick up "just a few extras" while you're there.
Instead, set aside about 20 or 30 minutes once a week to draw up a list of meals for the week ahead and the ingredients you'll need. Plan to serve plenty of fresh lettuce salads and other easily perishable foods early in the week. When those vegetables run low later in the week, rely on hardier produce items (broccoli, potatoes, cabbage) or frozen vegetables. Think about how you'll use large quantities. For example, a small family may need to plan how to use up a bag of potatoes before they spoil (some suggestions, hash browns for weekend breakfasts, baked potatoes to be reheated for fast weekday lunches, and mashed potatoes or oven fries for dinner). When you go shopping, bring both the ingredient list and the menu, and don't hesitate to substitute fresher, cheaper produce when possible.
Enjoy Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables
Savor apples, parsnips, pumpkins, and winter squash in the fall; fortify yourself with citrus fruits and plenty of leafy greens in the winter; treat yourself to asparagus, new potatoes, and bibb lettuce in the spring; and enjoy the bounty of berries, tomatoes, eggplant, green and red bell peppers, and zucchini during those hot days of summer. The next time you go shopping, talk to your store's produce manager about what produce is in season and on what day of the week the shipments usually arrive. Vegetables and fruits purchased at their freshest will keep longer in your refrigerator and be less likely to spoil before you get a chance to use them.
Think Thrift
Thrift means more than just saving money. It also means using resources wisely, without waste. Broccoli stems can be shredded to use in slaws, sliced for stir fries, or cut into sticks for munching raw. Leftover cooked rice and other grains are easily turned into non-dairy "milks" for cooking and baking-just blend with water. Extra pasta can be tossed in soup or reheated with a little olive oil and some leftover steamed veggies for a quick lunch. To ensure that leftovers don't end up in the garbage or compost pile, store them prominently in the front of your refrigerator in clear containers, rather than in the back where they'll likely be missed.
Each of the following family-style recipes can be made for about five dollars, or, in some cases, much less. Feel free to substitute seasonal or available vegetables and seasonings when appropriate.
Recipes: see http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj97jul/977frug.htm
( sorry, VB wouldn't allow me to post at that number of lines ):