I love to see how other people shop for their groceries. I also love to see what people shop for and how much they paid. I will never get bored with grocery hauls on the internet. I think it’s inspirational and I love when people share the great deals they found. One of my favorite things to do with our group text is when we try to guess each other’s grocery bill for the week. Especially the Costco bill. Obviously, in this economy, I say this with jest. “Favorite” things to do, might be a stretch. But my grandma always said, you can laugh or cry. I’m going to choose to laugh…and pray. And be scrappy and smart with my money. So more than laughing, but trying not to cry. So below you will find our clean eating grocery list on a budget.
I love Costco, I think it has the best prices on a lot of thing we buy. HOWEVER, as I mentioned in this article, it’s not necessarily a great option if you’re in financial crisis and shopping week-to-week. Dave Ramsey says something to the effect of: a deal is only a deal if you can afford it. So even though Costco has great deals, if it strains your budget to shop there, certainly don’t.
**I feel like this goes without saying, but I’m not a doctor, this isn’t medical advice. It’s a grocery list and the food framework we use to form said grocery list. This post contains affiliate links-if you purchase through them I might make a small commission at not cost to you.**
Know Your Priority
I’ve said it before and I will say it again, I think the best way to save money on groceries is to know your priorities. This is so important because priorities change and every family’s are different. What might be healthy foods for you, might be something someone else is avoiding. Are you in a season of intense healing? Then maybe the priority is completely non-processed food. Allergies? Clean ingredients? Macros? Training for a specific goal? Ingredients might vary depending on the household, allergies and so on. If getting the most bang for your grocery budget buck is the priority then you have decisions to make. If you have a tight budget, then it’s not time to spend a lot of your budget on luxury items, buying in bulk or impulse purchases. I’m going to share my clean-eating grocery list must-haves using our family’s grocery priorities.
Protein Forward Framework
We prioritize blood-sugar regulation and whole foods.
Have you ever seen those prompts on Instagram that are like, “What could you talk about for 5 hours straight?”
For me, that’s blood sugar regulation. I have embraced a healthy lifestyle for my entire adult life. You can read more about how we were sort of thrown into healthy eating here. We’ve strived for a healthy diet for years, however I did not realize how severely I was undereating until a few years ago.
I was completely depleted, had night sweats, sky high anxiety accompanied by debilitating fatigue. I would be wired at night, but by 10 am be so exhausted I would sometimes faint. Honestly, the most concerning symptom was the deep sense of despair that would wash over me once every couple days. You can read more about this here, but the cliff notes version is this: I was severely undereating and my blood sugar was tanking.
I had always paid a lot of attention to my family’s overall health, but somehow largely ignored my own. The bill always comes, and my body decided we just were not going to proceed like this anymore. The good news is, like 85% of my health concerns were turned around by eating enough nutritious food.
Protein + Fat + Fiber2 is an equation that works for us for most meals and that is reflected in our grocery list. My son and I have hypoglycemia, so we pay a bit more attention to blood sugar than some people. I think everyone should pay attention to blood sugar. Hangry ain’t cute, sis.
Right now, my family is striving for at least a 1 to 1 ration of protein to carbs, but I really try to go for 2 to 1. Two grams of protein for every 1 gram of carbohydrate. I’m not certain that this ratio will always be necessary, but it works for us as my son is growing, my husband is training and I am increasing my training.
The reason the protein+fat+fiber works is because you don’t have to have any specific meal plan. I have done and loved some meal plans in the past. And when I am in a rut, they can be a great way to spice up my menu. But for the most part, I buy protein and veggies and build our meals around them. I have a loose plan going into the week.
If you’re looking for a specific meal plan, I recommend Lillie Beesinger’s Lillie Eats and Tells. She bulk preps protein and builds meals around that. Also, I love her meal plans. She preps and organizes very similarly to me.
I will break this down by category and try to figure out a printable list to add. This is less of a weekly shopping list, and more of a master food list to help you plan your meal planning easier.
Grocery: We spend most of our budget on protein. I rarely work off an elaborate meal plan, and often just use the above equation to make healthy meals.
Protein
About a year ago I found Dr. Gabrielle Lyon’s podcast and her book Forever Strong. It totally helped simplify all the things I had learned over the years of being in the fitness space as well as navigating our the blood sugar dysregulation I was experiencing. I highly recommend the book and her podcast.
From her website, Dr Lyon she answers the question “Why Protein?“: “Protein is essential for virtually every one of your cellular functions. Every cell in your body is full of enzymes, which are proteins that control your metabolism. Protein is also important for neurotransmitters which are responsible for mood and even sleep. Your bones, your ligaments, your tendons, your liver, your brain, skin, and fingernails are all built from proteins. To truly understand protein, we must first understand that proteins are built from amino acids, which are the foundation of how we will build our diet.”
If you have not been prioritizing protein, I would highly suggest that you start. I can not properly communicate through a blog post how much better I feel. We incorporate a variety of lean proteins such as chicken and salmon, but we also use a lot of red meat. We don’t use many plant-based proteins as a primary protein source for a meal but we certainly eat them.
We don’t buy everything on these lists every single week, but our grocery shopping is very predictable. A few items from each category. I often don’t use a recipe. Lists and meal plans are wonderful, but basic kitchen skills is the number one way to save money in my opinion.
Protein Forward Groceries
Chicken Thighs
Chicken Breasts
Frozen Salmon
Ground Beef
Roast
Ground Chuck
Canned chicken
Canned Salmon
Dairy:
Cottage Cheese
Greek Yogurt
Eggs
Cheese Sticks
Money-Saving Tip: Canned chicken or fish is a great way to save money. We make chicken and salmon fritters often. That’s also a great way to use up any veggies about to spoil.
Healthy Fats
Butter
Olive Oil
Avocado Oil
Avocado
Half and Half
Fiber and Produce
We go for seasonal fruits and vegetables most of the time. What produce is in season is obviously dependent on where you live.
Leafy Greens: Spring mix, arugula
Potatoes
Sweet Potatoes
Frozen hasbrowns or southern potatoes (we do not buy the kind that contain oil)
Carrots
Cabbage
Celery
Onions
Green beans
Broccoli
Bananas
Oranges
Apples
Strawberries
Blueberries (usually frozen)
Watermelons
Cantaloupe
Pumpkin
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Money-saving tips:
Buy frozen produce. Fresh fruit is wonderful, but its expensive and not always in season. Frozen fruits and vegetables are a great way to add more fiber to your diet and save some money. I like to buy the bags of organic frozen brocolii, mixed vegetables and strawberries from Costco. I think they are by far the best value, and we use them a lot. The other great thing about frozen produce, is that if you dent quite make everything on your list, there is less food waste. You don’t have the drawer of soggy produce staring back at you disappointingly.
Grow your own herbs. I LOVE basil. I love different varieties, and I use it all summer long. However, buying basil in the quantities I like to use it, is not very budget friendly. But you know what is? Buying 1 pack of seeds for $2 and planting in a bucket outside your back door. You can get as fancy or as not fancy as you want. I like to grow basil, mint, and cilantro.
Pantry Staples
Peanut butter
White Rice
Brown Rice
Black Beans
Garbanzo Beans
Pinto Beans
Gluten Free, Sprouted Oats
Maple Syrup
Balsamic Vinegar
Herbs and Spices:
Money-Saving Tip: Buy dry beans and cook them yourself.
Healthy(ish) Staples
We make a lot of our own snacks. I say we, because my son is really taking an interest in the kitchen and is quite helpful.
-Energy Balls
-Granola bars
-Siete Chips
-Siete Tortillas
-Feta Cheese
-Avocado Oil Mayo
-Balsamic Glaze
Peanut Butter Energy Bites
Everyone has different preferences and goals. This is not meant to be a dogmatic list of things you do and don’t eat. Rather, some inspiration. I said it above, and in this post, but it is worth repeating, the number one way to save money on food is to cook it yourself. So if you do not yet have the kitchen skills to just whip things up with no recipes, that’s ok! I’m planning to add some of that content but you can for sure look up on Google or Youtube “how to roast vegetables” and “how to prepare steak”.
I am going to add some photos of meals we eat on repeat. Again, the formula I try to stick with is protein+fat+2fiber. Emphasis on TRY. Sometimes that second veggie is a starch, and that’s ok.
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