How I Lived on $10 of Groceries per Week

It was the summer of 2000 and I was unemployed. I made small change by participating in Mountain Dew surveys, publishing articles in magazines and doing small odd jobs for friends.

I would go to the store when they were having sales and shop according to what was cheapest or on special for that day. When something (non-perishable) was on sale I bought a lot of it. I would probably never live like this again voluntarily but I had a pretty good system for feeding myself.
All of the stuff I made could usually be prepared in less than 15 minutes using only one pan.

Spices. The main thing to make this diet less miserable is to have a well stocked spice rack. It can be a big investment on limited income but it pays off. I purchased spices from the Mexican foods section of the store because the Badia brand was always at least half off the McCormick.

Hamburger. This is another item that makes a regular rotation to the sale prices. I'd buy a 5 lb log of the cheapest ground beef I could find. Once I got it home I'd divide it into individual quarter pound patties and saran wrap them individually. I could put those in the freezer and have about 14 meals whenever I needed them for less than 25 cents a piece.

Beans and rice. Or more particularly mung beans and basmati rice. The ingredients were a bit more expensive but a 5 lb bag will lat you as long as you can stand it. I added curry, cumin, cayenne and cardamom.

Powdered Jello. I realize you can also cook Jell-O but this is something I learned from my college wilderness expedition. When you're really nutrient-deprived it can make you lethargic, depressed etc. After eating a few spoonfuls of these I always felt better.

Hot Dog "Salad" Hot dogs are a frequent sale item. Buns are a big expense so I usually used bread or just chopped them up into little pieces with relish, ketchup and mustard. If I had onions I'd a bit of one chop one up in there as well.

Potatoes. I usually added these to my rice dishes, possibly with onion because both are cheap and can last for months. You can also make mashed potatoes and fried potatoes.

Pasta and tomato sauce. There is always a sale on some kinds of pasta and the little cans of tomato sauce are usually several for a dollar. You can add basil or black pepper if the normal tomato sauce is too bland.

Lunch meat Sandwiches: I'd make sandwiches if I was feeling motivated. Otherwise I'd just eat the meat right out of the package.

Popcorn!!! Another cheap food that lasts a long time, but most importantly it's filling and doesn't take as long as rice.

Kool Aid. The poor man's soda.

Ramen Noodles. An overrated but efficient way to eat cheaply. Mix with frozen vegetables for extra pizzaz.

It's not a gourmet diet by any stretch of the imagination but it kept me alive for several months. I even gained some weight toward the end. Some weeks my expenses were actually more like $5, while others it went all the way up to $20.