4 ways to make healthy eating more affordable

It’s possible to make better food choices without spending a fortune; you just have to know where to look.

Start with home-cooked meals, which are both more nutritious and more affordable than getting takeout or eating in restaurants. And according to Julie Ramhold, a consumer analyst from DealNews, here are four simple steps you can take to buy — and eat — healthier meals when you’re on a budget.

In addition to injecting some variety into your diet, cheaper protein sources offer you a chance to be creative with your meals. Yes, boneless, skinless chicken breasts are a healthy option — but if you opt for a whole chicken instead, it’s both cheaper and gives you more cuts to work with. You can use the breasts for a salad, put the thigh meat in soup, and grill the drumsticks.

If you want more than meat, dried beans and lentils are affordable, easy ways to add protein to your meals.

Make eggs part of your regular grocery list. They’re versatile, and not just in choosing between scrambled and fried; they make a great addition to salads, healthy snacks and easy dinners, like omelets, frittatas, huevos rancheros or quiche.

Warehouse clubs are a great way to stock up on canned goods, dry goods and frozen produce. Having plenty of shelf-stable items at home means you’ll always have healthy options on hand.

“If you need to buy healthy grains in bulk, health-food stores like Whole Foods and Earth Fare are great options,” Ramhold says. “Though other items there might be pricey, their bulk bins tend to be comparably priced.”

Ethnic markets and specialty-food aisles often stock ingredients that other stores might not carry, but it goes beyond that.

“Spices can be ridiculously expensive for a small amount, but by buying packages and bottles at specialty food stores, you’ll get way more bang for your buck,” Ramhold says. “They’re also an excellent place to shop for pantry staples in bigger sizes, and often stock delicious produce at affordable prices.”

Meal prep makes healthy eating significantly easier. Start by formulating a menu to turn to during the week. A clear plan of action — shopping list included — sets you up for grocery-shopping and home-cooking success, so you’ll rely on fast food and takeout less.

Once you’ve gotten into the swing of organizing your meal schedules in advance, you can jump into prepping batches of grains, veggies and protein ahead.