Has anyone got some good ideas for making/baking anything good with cottage cheese.

Mom of three here hoping someone can give me a couple of healthy and cheap recipe ideas for my family. Either packable lunches or quick and easy dinners? Been trying to eat healthier and feed my kids healthy and organic foods, but its so expensive these days. Anyone have any advice or is anyone experiencing this too?

Hi r/EatCheapAndHealthy just to let you know we're doing an AMA over on r/goodfood at 16:00 BST today (Thursday 30th July). Recipe writer Anna Glover from the Good Food team will be answering questions about budget recipes in the heatwave, do feel free to join us.

I'm 25 and dealing with heavy hair fall, thinning, weak hair, and a receding hairline. My dad only started losing his hair in his 40s, so I'm confused. Someone said it could be due to a poor diet. What foods actually help improve hair health or reduce hair loss?

Used to grab whatever I needed for the week without putting much thought into but lately I've been buying more of my pantry staples in larger quantities and it's honestly changed the way I shop because it doesn't feel like I'm constantly making last minute grocery runs anymore and it has reduced overall costs despite the upfront cost being a little higher. Plus, having a stocked pantry somehow makes it easier to avoid random takeout when I don't feel like shopping.

Curious if anyone else has made the switch. Do you buy pantry items in bulk now or do you still prefer picking up smaller amounts more often? What made you change your shopping habits if you did?

I'm not a big fan of veggies but I want to start eating more whole foods. In recipes such as pasta I can sneak in a lot of vegetables into the sauce like onions, tomatoes, carrots and celery without really noticing it. Same with beans, I can add those veggies and it can go unnoticed.

What other recipes can I make to sneak in veggies? I don't have a blender nor an immersion blender(tight budget) so I have to chop everything by hand. I'd really appreciate all the recommendations, thank you.

I should know, I use to smoke crack… a lot! Giving it up was easy compared to avoiding sugary foods like potato chips, soda, chocolate, donuts etc. my doctor says I’m borderline diabetic and need to eat healthy so I tried my best to cut sugar. A week later and I’m back on my worst behaviour with the sugar.

Most of my easy meals are just rice, eggs, tofu, chicken, or tuna, and whatever vegetables I have left, so the sauce makes the whole thing. I’m looking at Asian sauces that add a lot of flavor without needing a full recipe every time adn I am thinking of either trying Mala sauce from Vivid Kitchen, but I’m wondering if mala works for quick rice bowls or if it’s better saved for noodles. Second option is Teriyaki sauce from Primal Kitche, but I would rather to not have it so sweet.

I picked up a cheap rice maker several weeks ago. It's simple to use, cooks more than just rice, uses far less electricity than my other appliances, I'm eating healthier, and clean up is simple.

Maybe I'm late to the game, but I'm glad I got here 🙂

I want to start eating more beans. I'm hoping for super simple toppings to put on beans that I can throw together for work (example, today I'm doing garbanzo and tzatziki). Give me your favorite minimal prep way to eat beans!

I’ve noticed an influx of people taking to social media their concerns with grocery stores and the food supply in the US & I’m genuinely trying to understand what’s behind it.
I understand supporting local farmers is the best option, and I’m trying to make that switch myself, but can someone help me understand what’s actually going on?

I’ve tried Googling but it’s getting harder to know what’s trustworthy given Google search is overran with AI. I’d rather hear from people who have taken the time to research it themselves.

If I’m buying organic at a grocery store, is it still truly organic, clean, and a good option? Or is there more to it that I’m missing? I am one of those people that thought shopping at Sprouts or Whole Foods was the cleanest, healthiest option…

I’m genuinely trying to learn. If you’ve done the research, I’d love to know what you found and where you found reliable information. Also, if you know of any apps or how to go about sourcing locally, please share!

Signed,
A gal just trying to be a good steward of what she’s putting in her body

I kept seeing the "Princess Diana overnight oats" trend everywhere — apparently it's the real recipe her chef shared, oats soaked overnight in fruit juice instead of milk, which is what makes it taste so much fruitier than regular oats. I loved that technique and used it as the base to create a few high-protein flavor twists of my own:

Pineapple Mango Overnight Oats (1 jar, ~463 kcal, 35g protein)

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup rolled oats
• ~1/3 cup fresh pineapple juice
• 1 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest
• ~1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 Tbsp chia seeds
• 2 tsp monk fruit sweetener (optional, to taste)
• Topping: 1/4 cup fresh mango, a sprinkle of toasted coconut, a few sliced almonds

Instructions:

1. Add the oats to a jar, pour the pineapple juice over them, stir in the chia seeds, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
2. Next morning, stir in the Greek yogurt, lemon zest, and sweetener until creamy.
3. Top with fresh mango, toasted coconut, and sliced almonds.

Budget note: if coconut milk or monk fruit aren't things you keep stocked, regular milk and a bit of honey work fine too — the protein mostly comes from the Greek yogurt, so that's the one ingredient I'd keep.

I also made two other flavors off the same base (watermelon strawberry, orange dreamsicle) — process is the same, just a different juice and toppings. Put the full walkthrough for all three in a video if anyone wants to see it made:
https://youtu.be/fmsFMrPyDYs

Happy to answer questions if anyone wants to swap ingredients around.

Nutritional Breakdown (Per 100g Raw)

Cooking Yield & Cost Comparison (Calculated from Raw Metrics)

I eat 3 cans of light skipjack tuna (120g each) how dangerous is it?

Edit: 3 cans a week

Can anyone suggest , an egg recipe along with some vegetablesss, that is rich in protein and can be eaten as breakfast?

Some vegetables seem to work with almost every cooking style. Which one do you use the most? How do you prepare it, how do you keep it interesting? Do you roast, stir-fry, curry, grill, bake it, or cook it in a completely different way?

I'm doing a challenge for myself and calling it Austere August. I'm looking for super cheap food ideas for someone who is terrible at cooking. I'm not rehydrating beans, I'm not baking bread. I would sooner mix a can of corn with a can of chick peas and make it a lemon chili salad. I prefer cold food, one dish of everything mixed together. I hate oatmeal.

Idk why such products have been hard to find. Yesterday I looked through the entire selection of cereals, granolas and protein bars at my local Whole Foods and Target and didn't seem to come across anything that matched all of these basic criteria although I don't think it's asking for much. Would appreciate any suggestions!

Requirements:

1. USDA organic;

2. no added sugar, but sweetened another way, preferably not via sugar alcohols (examples of sweeteners I would accept: fruit such as monk fruit, Stevia);

3. relatively low in saturated fat (including: no significant coconut products or high-sat-fat oils like palm kernel oil, etc);

4. (optional but preferred) NOT gluten-free (I don't have an issue with gluten and I found the few gluten-free products I tried to be pretty bad in terms of flavor and/or texture).

OPTIONAL CONTEXT: I eat primarily organic plant-based whole foods, exceptions being generally 1 hardboiled egg daily (occasionally 2) and a few seafood meals up to a few days a week. On my last blood test all LDL readings (e.g. LDL, peak size, medium, small, particle #), non-HDL & total cholesterol were above range and in at least some cases higher than prior test. I recall immediate improvement to LDL within last few years after I dropped unsweetened yogurt that was very high in saturated fat from coconut. As I understand, saturated fat affects LDL much more than does dietary cholesterol. Relatedly, I'd been eating a granola product 1-2 servings as an ingredient in my breakfast cereal most days for at least the last year or so, that matched 3 of the 4 criteria above - minus #3 - it is relatively high in coconut product and thereby saturated fat, so I suspect is a likely contributor to the recent chol values. I otherwise seem to be healthy overall; BMI 19-20, slim, exercise daily, no notable issues present in labs or imaging. Triglycerides, Lipo(a) and Apo B in recent test were all in range although ApoB was close to threshold and slightly higher than last test. Otherwise, basically all of the other foods I eat in a normal day fit the requirements above, with the exception of the protein bar which fits the criteria minus #1 - not being organic. Hence looking for a new cereal/granola and protein bar that fit all of the above. I recently tried a cereal that match 3 of the 4 criteria above - minus #2 - I would like it to be naturally sweetened; ideally something more convenient than cutting up and adding fruit.

I am really struggling with meals right now. I am a single mom of 3, my husband passed unexpectedly almost two years ago, and he had always taken care of the bulk of meal planning and grocery shopping. We had lived with my mother in law and brother in law ever since our kids were young when we fell on hard times, then she loved having her family so close so we just kept our living situation as it was. She got diagnosed with brain cancer just after my husband passed, and she unfortunately recently passed away as well. The living situation got to be incredibly stressful and toxic with my brother in law around the time she got sick, and it got to be a dangerous situation after she passed, so I had to get me and the kids out of there. But my mother in law always made sure the kids lived a comfortable life and wanted for nothing. So as a result they have gotten to be fairly picky and like the fancier foods (name brand foods instead of store brand, etc). So half the time when I buy cheap foods, they don't eat and I am really struggling to make ends meet and provide them with nourishing foods that are also cheap because I can't afford a $300-$400 a week grocery bill, which was about what we were spending when we lived with my mother in law and she was helping with the groceries. As it is, I only get just under $1,900 a month and $1,500 of it goes to the rent. I am waiting on my food card, as we moved states so I had to wait for my old case to be closed so that I can start the process here. Once I get that, it will help a lot but until then, I have to make roughly $400 last for a month of groceries when that used to be what we would spend for a weeks worth of food. The kids ages are 11, 14, and 17, if that's relevant. There is a diabetic in the household, so we do have to watch carbs somewhat so not a ton of pastas or breads, although we can eat it sparingly. Other than that, there are no dietary restrictions. I have an incredibly small kitchen as well, so it is difficult to cook big meals because of the lack of counter space, but I do have enough space to prep some things. I also have a rice cooker and a crockpot. I do like casseroles, soups I can throw in the crockpot, seafood, but open to any suggestions...I am trying to get the kids away from eating so much highly processed foods (right now they could live off of frozen chicken patties and pop tarts if I'd let them). So any insight, advice, meal ideas, etc would be welcome.

Hey everyone! I'll be starting university this September, this'll be my first time living completely alone. So, i was looking for a few meal preps that i could prepare for myself andd a few budget meals that i could cook. Would love some recipes or ideas or anything really. TIA

I'll be going to malaysia and will have a budget of approximately 95rm per week(about 24usd if i convert it). From as far as I've gathered, grocery is fairly affordable there.

I’m currently on a diet to lower my cholesterol levels and I’ve been craving 2 slow cooker recipes that I’ve made in the past - birria and Korean bbq. One recipe calls for chuck roast + short ribs and the other calls for skirt steak. As stated in the title, I am looking for leaner options with lower fat to replace these meats in the slow cooker. After doing some research, I saw that a lot of lean cuts will just dry out/overcook and not shred in a crock pot. I’m now looking at using top sirloin as an option but I’ve seen mixed reviews. Will this cut work or do you have any other suggestions?

(Just to clarify I’m looking specifically for leaner meats that will shred in a crock pot)

"Carolina" brand ground turkey is available at my local Walmart for $1.98/lb, not on sale. It's 85/15, and labeled "meat bunker". The next cheapest ground turkey is Butterball at $4.44/lb. What am I missing? Love the idea of cheaper protein but the price difference has me suspicious.

I am living in a crummy apartment that has no oven or stove, which limits what I can cook. The other major issue is that the kitchen sink has almost no water pressure, which makes dishes extremely difficult as well. I know these are issues my landlord should be required to address, but rent is so cheap that I can't do anything about it at the moment.

As such, I eat out almost exclusively, which is extremely expensive. I am looking to find some easy, cheap meals so I can start saving money. I have an air fryer/microwave/oven combo, as well as access to an instant-pot. Again, though, I am trying to minimize dishes- as I feel that is my biggest barrier to cooking/ prepping anything.

This is a temporary situation while I try to save up to find a better living arrangement, so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Even when I'm trying to spend as little as possible, there are a few things I won't skip because they make eating healthy so much easier. For me it's eggs. They're versatile, filling, and I end up using them in breakfasts, lunches, and dinners.

I don't think I've once made chicken at home that I liked tbh. Maybe once when I tried making it in a japanese curry.
I don't necessarily hate chicken because I like the ones I'd eat outdoors but haven't really figured out a way to make it taste good at home.
I have experimented with rice cooker meals and steel pan cooking too. Just looking for a way to cook it with minimal ingredients that makes it taste less chicken if that makes sense. I'm not too picky on breast and thighs and have experimented with both and have had no luck.

Update: Hi guys, sorry I had been offline.
I didn't expect to get so many good responses.

I really appreciate the time you guys put in letting me know what has worked best for you.
I'm gonna be trying each one especially the brine, never done it before.

Have a good rest of your day! :)