How to Feed a Family of 3 on $50 Per Week

This article is written from personal experience and includes a detailed grocery list to feed a family of 3 on $50 per week. After our grocery bill started to look like our housing payment, we needed to change things fast. The tips listed here are for two adults and an infant. You can modify it to suit your family's needs and personal taste.

Some General Points:

You can make your own baby food at home by pureeing the baby's meals in a blender. It tastes good and it's a small fraction of the price of jar food. It's also advisable to look for sales in the paper and match the sales with coupons. You would be surprised at how many items you can get for 50% off, 75% off, or free if you stack coupons with sales.

However, if you don't want to take the time to clip coupons or look at the sale ads, simply print off the following list for your next grocery trip. It will feed your family of 3 for $50 or less. At the very least, if you don't want to clip coupons, shop at a store like Aldi to get the best prices. The following prices are rounded off to the nearest half dollar and they may be a little higher or lower, depending on where you live.

The $50 Grocery List:

$2- 1 pint of strawberries

$1.50 fresh broccoli

$0.50- 1 pound of bananas

$2- 1 pound of tomatoes

$1.50 1 head of lettuce

$1- 1 onion

$2- 1 celery stalk

$1.50- 1 bag of baby carrots

$3- 1 bag of potatoes

$1.50 -42 ounce container of quick oats

$3 -1 gallon milk

$1- 5 pound bag of white flour (makes 4-6 different baked goods in a week)

$1 - one dozen eggs

$1.50- 1 bag of black eyed peas

$0.50- Jiffy corn bread mix

$3- 1 package of bacon

$3- 2 containers of frozen fruit juice concentrate

$5- 5 pounds of chicken leg quarters

$1.50- chicken bouillon

$1.50- egg noodles

$1 - 3 yeast packets

$1.50- box of raisins

$2- mozzarella cheese (block)

$1.50- pepperoni

$1.50- pizza/spaghetti sauce

$2- 1 pound of ground beef

$1.50 - 2 cans of green beans

$2- shaved ham

Total Spent= $50

Assuming that you already have a few items on hand such as cooking oil, butter, seasonings, etc, the above list will allow you to serve the following menu:

Breakfasts:

-toast

-banana bread

-oatmeal with raisins

-bacon

-eggs

Lunches:

-BLT sandwich

-Ham sandwiches

-Chicken salad

-Tossed Salad

-French fries

Dinners:

-chicken and noodles

-pizza

-hamburgers

-black eyed peas

-cornbread

-homemade bread

-mashed potatoes

-tossed salad

-green beans

Snacks:

-fresh strawberries

-carrot sticks

-cheese slices

-homemade bread and butter

-raisins

If you want to continue to save lots of money on your grocery bill, you'll need to wean yourself off of convenience foods. Don't waste any food. Get creative about how to not throw food away. You'll find that even on $50 a week, you'll have lots of food leftover at the end of the week because.

You may have noticed that the $50 total doesn't include toiletries and household items like cleaning supplies. That's because you can get those for free if you know how. Learn more about how to get toothpaste, toilet paper, deodorant, and more for free or almost free.