What are your most/least cost-efficient vegan snacks/meals?

[mlbrandow]

As a graduate student, I am on a tight budget (who isn't?) and as a fresh vegan lifter, I am also on the lookout for staple bargains in consumption.

 

What are foods you buy en masse because of their high efficiency in nutrients and cost? What are foods you consider a bit more expensive and perhaps not worth consuming as often?

 

I am looking hopefully to compile a list of low-cost, filling snacks/meals.... so have at it and thanks for sharing any of your wisdom!

[lobsteriffic]

I'm a graduate student too. Something that is quite cheap yet very filling and nutritious are legumes (chickpeas, beans, lentils, etc), especially if you buy dried over canned. I can get a big bag of dried chickpeas for a few dollars and that will last me quite some time. They do take longer to prepare, but if you cook a big batch you can then freeze them for later use. The things you can make with legumes are endless, check out http://www.vegweb.com for some ideas.

 

Bags of frozen vegetables can be relatively inexpensive, especially if you hit a sale.

 

I can get tofu at a reasonable rate depending where I shop. It also freezes so I will buy extra when I see a good price.

 

Where I live, many vegan specialty foods are quite expensive so I don't consume them that often - mock meats, frozen dinners/pizzas, things like that. Which is fine by me since they are generally processed and not that great for me anyway.

 

My other tip is look at flyers and see what is on sale. When something you like is on sale, stock up on it. Also look for coupons.

[xjohanx]

Legumes that you boil/soak yourself. Cheap, decent amount of protein and filled with minerals and vitamins.

Typical starches. Potatoes, yams, sweet potatoes, brown rice, quinoa, oats, buckwheat, millet etc etc. Really cheap and filled with minerals and vitamins.

Nuts/seeds. I know in some countries these are really expensive but if you can find cheap buy it.

Textured vegetable protein. Made out of soy, it's often dirt cheap and if you find a good brand it's like 95e% protein.

Base your calories on these foods and you won't have to spend much money at all. Then buy veggies (fresh or frozen depending on what you want/can afford etc), canned tomatoes and fruits.

Eating a mostly whole food diet (not fake meats etc) is often very cheap.

[Octopussoir]

Try going to the Asian-markets too. Usually you can get greens, noodles, rice, beans for almost nothing. Especially noodles. Pounds for pennies as they eat this and rice a lot.

 

Supermarkets end up throwing stuff out or donating when "expired". Go to the Produce Manager and ask if you can have what they getting rid of. Thats cheap and smart.

[Vegan Joe]

Trader Joe's blueberries $1.69 a 12 oz.frozen bag. $2.99 most other stores. Good for you and good food snack or meal.

[Rob PMFF]

Try going to the Asian-markets too. Usually you can get greens, noodles, rice, beans for almost nothing. Especially noodles. Pounds for pennies as they eat this and rice a lot.

 

 

+1

 

Asian markets are where its at. In addition to being generally cheaper than other stores, they also have really cool stuff that you can't find anywhere else. My wife and I frequent one, and we are like kids in a candy store.

[Vegan Joe]

I hesitate to but food things from other countries, with reguards to water purity and chemical contamination. I'm not a bacterial soap kind of guy, it just not knowing, and yes I do realize there is alot I don't see or know about, the products and produce of this country.

[mlbrandow]

I hesitate to but food things from other countries, with reguards to water purity and chemical contamination. I'm not a bacterial soap kind of guy, it just not knowing, and yes I do realize there is alot I don't see or know about, the products and produce of this country.

 

 

I pretty much agree with this, although there is a korean market I've been meaning to check out, so perhaps I will some time.

 

On the whole, how much more expensive do you find fresh veggies over frozen? And once you saute them, can you really taste that much of a difference? I almost always eat fresh veggies so my sample size of frozen veggies is pretty low.

 

is it best to get certain types of nuts? or mixed nuts? Or are they pretty even and the best bet is just get whatever's on sale (taste notwithstanding)?

 

Also, with regard to juice, what do you guys normally get? do you mix it up? Do you go for juicy juice 100% bottles ever (my favorite) or do you tend to stick with the refrigerated market juices?

 

 

Thanks for all the heads up info.

[VeganEssentials]

I hesitate to but food things from other countries, with reguards to water purity and chemical contamination. I'm not a bacterial soap kind of guy, it just not knowing, and yes I do realize there is alot I don't see or know about, the products and produce of this country.

 

Just as well, it seems that a lot of people have already forgotten about the Asian "vegan" meat alternative scare we were all talking about a few months back. Sometimes, labeling on things that look vegan is not what is actually in the product as was evidenced by independent testing. They'll push through Asian import foods that are poorly labeled and loosely regulated (many which do not meet legal labeling requirements, but somehow, they still get in), yet, the FDA will hold up a shipment of chocolate from Canada for 3 months to put it through rigorous testing to ensure it meets the label claims. Something ain't right here

 

Sometimes, going the cheapest route means you may not be getting what you think you're paying for, be it lower quality, different ingredients, or otherwise. While I've had some import things that were really good, I steer clear of the bulk of them UNLESS it's from a trusted company.

 

Back to the topic at hand....

 

I'm not good at watching for being cost-effective, but I will say, the LEAST cost-effective snack I've had (and thoroughly enjoyed) are the Just Grapes dehydrated fruit snacks. I forgot how expensive they are at about $7.50 per container, and one night I tore through two of them in 20 minutes when I was feeling particularly ravenous. They taste AWESOME, but are about as much of a delicacy as you can get for a healthy snack due to their outrageous price.

[medman]

One super cost-effective snack (or lunch) is homemade hummus. If you buy dry beans and cook them yourself, it can be an absurdly cheap, and it's very healthy and filling.

 

My dad's authentic Moroccan recipe:

Two 19oz cans of chick peas (I cook from dry beans and measure it out to 38oz once it's cooked)

1/4-1/3 cup Tahini (I prefer 1/3 as it adds more body)

1/4 tsp cumin

1/2 a fresh lemon (or equivalent amount of lemon juice, around 4 Tbsp I think?)

4 good-sized cloves of garlic.

1/2-1 1/2 cup water (depends on what consistency you prefer)

 

Toss half the chick peas, the first 1/2 cup of water, and the full amount of everything else into a food processor, and blend until smooth. Then add the rest of the chick peas, and blend, adding water until you get your desired consistency.

 

Eat it with whole-wheat pita and you have yourself one damn cheap, amazing lunch or snack.

[chrisjs]

I hesitate to but food things from other countries, with reguards to water purity and chemical contamination. I'm not a bacterial soap kind of guy, it just not knowing, and yes I do realize there is alot I don't see or know about, the products and produce of this country.

Just because it's an asian supermarket doesn't mean all the food is coming asia. Most of the produce is probably from similar suppliers as a typical supermarket, but their overhead is lower since the asians actually buy and eat produce instead of hamburger helper and doritos. I know all the tofu from ones around here are made from non-GMO US soy.

[sosso]

Chickpea curry - not exactly authentic, but tasty anyway

 

1 can chickpeas (or about 2 cups if you bought dried chickpeas)

Vegetable or olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 tbsp curry powder

1 tbsp tomato paste, sauce or ketchup

2 tsp lemon juice

Little pinch of salt & pepper

2 tbsp vegan margarine

 

- Cook the onion and garlic in the oil until it's soft

- Add the curry powder and tomato paste & cook for a couple of minutes

- Add the chickpeas, salt, pepper, lemon juice & a little water

- Simmer for 15 minutes

- Add the margarine & let it thicken up

 

Have this with some rice & veggies. This is a good one to make in bulk & keep in the fridge/freezer.

Edited January 17, 2010 by sosso

[mikkah1987]

I buy bulk bags of fruit like oranges, apples & bags of unsalted whole almonds & walnuts at Sam’s Club… they last a while & are a great snack pleaser throughout the day….I like to also buy specialty vegan dry items at the grocery stores, which are usually pricy…such as “Fantastic World Foods”..…. The best time to buy them is when they are on sale, I will grab 4 or 5 of each item… now that’s a bargain!

[Guest]

I hesitate to but food things from other countries, with reguards to water purity and chemical contamination. I'm not a bacterial soap kind of guy, it just not knowing, and yes I do realize there is alot I don't see or know about, the products and produce of this country.

 

Just as well, it seems that a lot of people have already forgotten about the Asian "vegan" meat alternative scare we were all talking about a few months back.

 

Asian vegan meat scare?Post the thread please i'm yet to hear.

[chrisjs]

Asian vegan meat scare?Post the thread please i'm yet to hear.

I'm sure it's on the board here somewhere, but here's the source:

http://www.quarrygirl.com/2009/06/28/undercover-investigation-of-la-area-vegan-restaurants/

[sosso]

I also eat a lot of bean burritos. Just ate two a minute ago actually..

 

Fairly simple ones with beans, brown rice, salsa & baby spinach. They're cheap and will fill you up.