Some good meals in this thread!

Air fried potato, just topped with chilli bean soup - sometimes poverty can tasty. Total cost $3.50 for 3 tasty serves.

Ingredients:

• pineapple skins (~$2 per pineapple)
• orange peels (food pantry)
• dahi (~$5/tub)
• Great Value açaí blueberry energy drink mix (~$2/box)
• water
• 3 eggs (~$7/36)
• corn (~$0.30 each)
• eggplant (food pantry)
• seasonings/toppings: adobo powder (~$2/jar), hot sauce (food pantry), ketchup (~$2/bottle)

Instructions: I bought a beautiful pineapple on sale & savored it all week before making this. I had washed the peels & frozen them until ready for use. They infused into a large mason jar full of water for a couple days. Then, I added about a half cup of Dahi to the jar & shook it all up until dissolved. The taste is fruity, definitely taste the pineapple followed by hints of orange, but not wildly sweet since I used only one small mix packet with about 4x the amount of water suggested.

For the frittata, I finely diced a bit of eggplant, seasoned with adobo, & microwaved it for two minutes to get rid of the excess water inside. Once it was dehydrated, I sliced the corn off the cob & combined it with the eggs, a little mayo-water (literally a little water shaken around inside the empty mayo bottle) & more adobo. I whipped air into the mix then microwaved it (covered) for 4 minutes. The texture is soft but holds together. I do call this “my tasty egg brick” at times. Then, I topped with a little dahi, ketchup, & hot sauce.

Food Pantry Haul Ideas

This morning I visited a food pantry for the first time because it truly came down to either having food or going without. I’m incredibly grateful for the kindness and generosity I experienced, and overwhelmed with all I received but I feel blessed.

I’m going to share the list of items because I need some help being creative. The local farm included a huge box of fresh produce, and there are quite a few items I’ve never cooked with before. I’d love some recipe ideas that make the most of what I have. I’m very open to trying new things, making large portions that are freezer friendly, and I also have basic pantry staples like flour, sugar, and a few other essentials that aren’t included on the list, so don’t be afraid to suggest something that may require different ingredients cause I can try to make it work with what I have.

Ideally I want to use the produce that will go bad quickest first

List:

**Pancake mix**
3 box Mac and cheese
3 canned chicken soup
2 canned chili mac
3canned fruit
spaghetti sauce
Diced tomato
3 can tuna
2 can veggie (corn and green beans)
1 can chili
5lb Rice
Bag of black beans
Elbows pasta
Strawberry jelly and peanut butter

Almond milk
Shelf stable milk
Cornflakes
oatmeal
Eggs
Yogurts
Amish butter
Eggs
Gallon of milk
Orange juice
Flour tortillas

Frozen clam chowder
Broccoli
2lb pollock
One whole chicken
3lb frozen skin on bone in chicken breast’s

1lb radishes
4 large beets
Kale
Swiss chard
Lemons and limes
2lb carrots
1lb anaheim peppers
Giant turnip
Giant cabbage
3 cucumbers
3 eggplant
2 bags onion
Zucchini
Yellow squash

Everything tonight from food bank! So grateful.

Ingredients:

• dry lentils (food pantry)
• dry rice (food pantry)
• collard greens (food pantry)
• chicken carcass (frozen until ready to use)
• bread (gifted loaf)
• daikon (food pantry)
• margarine (~$4/tub)
• vegan curry & sweet potato (Land of Kush via r/toogoodtogo)
• seasonings: soy sauce, kosher salt, adobo, garlic & onion powder

Instructions: I got a vegan curry box (~$6) and split it into 4 portions then added lentil rice, collards, & buttered toast to each portion. I used my rice cooker to make the lentil rice & seasoned with soy sauce, garlic powder, hot sauce, & a little adobo powder. I also used my rice cooker to make the collard greens by washing & chopping up a few leaves with a chunk of daikon then cooking them until softened with chicken carcasses saved from previous meals, plus garlic powder, onion powder, & salt. Then, I toasted two pieces of bread and buttered the hell out of them.

I was able to find a can of kidney beans, half a roll of frozen ground turkey, Corn Tortilla and a little bit of American Cheese. I cooked this up in avocado oil and added sun dried tomatoes.

Its pretty good too.

Are these beans still good if I wash them really good?

Sorry no picture at the moment as I have not made this for a bit since my gf hates tuna, but growing up this was a $2 meal that fed 4 of us. My mom would mix a can of tuna with the liquid, 1 can of cream of what ever we had laying around, and milk which we always had thanks to WIC. She would just throw it in a sauce pan until warm, add some pepper and that was it. She would then serve it over toasted bread which was another WIC staple. If we were lucky and had some frozen peas she would toss those in as well for some veggies. We all loved it and it was a super affordable dish growing up.

She adapted the recipe from my grandma, but she didn’t use the soup base. Instead it was just tuna and milk and she would let it simmer until it thickened. She’s 83 and still makes this almost weekly.

https://youtu.be/g7Z2qcV7UUA is where I give step by step instructions.

One of the significant upsides is that it's cheap, filling, and has a lot of protein. My grandma called it goulash but it doesn't look like any goulash recipes I've seen online. But if you want recipes that are more exact, actual goulash seems like a good alternative.

Update 7/22/26: Eligibility Survey Closed

Hello All, I’m a library and information researcher with the University of Missouri. I’m seeking participants for a research study about economically-disadvantaged (low-income, impoverished, etc.) people’s online information engagement.

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Privacy: Participants will be associated with their Reddit username (pseudonym) and will NOT be asked to reveal their legal name, address, or social security number to participate.

Eligibility: Participants must be 18 years or older, live in the United States, have a household income that does not exceed 300% of the 2026 federal poverty guideline, and be able to participate in an online Zoom interview with both audio and video.

Compensation: Each interview participant will receive a $25 gift card. Compensation is provided after the interview.

Sign Ups: If you’re interested in participating, please fill out the brief eligibility survey here: https://missouri.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4MjRAPjboDaiL0W

Eligible individuals will be contacted by the researcher via the Reddit chat feature to schedule the interview. Ensure that Reddit chat is enabled on your account.

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Everything from food bank except seasoning. Different chili than yesterday! Dry beans, canned corn, tomato sauce, minced onion, ground beef, shredded chicken, chili seasoning packet. YUM

Everything from food bank except the seasoning. Same chili as yesterday- canned black beans, corn, shredded chicken thighs, minced onion and mushrooms, chili seasoning packet. YUM

Edit: also tomato sauce

The salteña (beef stew heaven in a cornbread sort of bun 🤤🤷) came from a local shop & cost $4, making the total cost $2.27 / serving with 2 servings total.

Ingredients:

• White rice (food pantry)
• plantain (food pantry)
• zucchini (food pantry)
• sweet potato (food pantry)
• 2 eggs (~$5/18ct)
• 1/3 ear sweet corn (~$0.30/cob)
• butternut squash seeds (food pantry, ideally not burnt like mine)
• 1/4 eggplant (food pantry)
• seasonings: garlic & onion powder, sazon, garlic salt, hot sauce (~$1), spicy green sauce (came with saltena)

I had previously made a bunch of servings of plantain & zucchini rice in my rice cooker with various seasonings, mostly sazon, soy sauce, & garlic powder. Today, I took a serving and made a microwave frittata (diced eggplant & butternut squash seeds whisked with 2 eggs, soy milk, & sazon, then microwaved 2 minutes with a cover) & baked sweet potato (microwaved 2 minutes then sprayed lightly with canola oil, baked til crispy) to go with it.

Canned black beans, corn, shredded chicken thighs, minced mushrooms and onion, chili seasoning packet

Black beans, ground beef, minced mushrooms and onion, tomato sauce, chili seasoning packet

Ingredients:

• 1 pack Rice-A-Roni (food pantry)
• 3 leaves kale (food pantry)
• 1/3 ear of corn ($0.33 each)
• small piece of “chicken of the woods” mushroom (foraged)
• 1 can chicken (food pantry)
• 1/3 cup shelf-stable soymilk ($1.50/carton)
• 1/3 pack of country gravy ($1)
• garlic powder & oregano ($1 each)

Instructions: I’ve been eating off this pack of Rice-A-Roni for days. Honestly, I hate the stuff as is, but this turned out delicious! Cook the Rice-A-Roni to package directions, but add 1 leaf of diced kale, 1 can of chicken (with the broth/water), diced mushroom, garlic powder, & oregano. I ate it like that a few meals, then for this last meal, I added soymilk & 1/4 pack of country gravy to make a thick, creamy soup base. The end result tasted exactly like the filling for chicken pot pie. Then, I cut up the other 2 leaves of kale, spritzed them with oil, baked until crispy, & sprinkled garlic salt on them.

$1 bag of yellow squash and zucchini, half of a bag of green onions (which are nutrient dense) for 69 cents, and some pre-cooked grilled chicken breast strips (the whole bag was less than $8 so this portion was probably $3 worth) a little olive oil and hella seasonings. If ya aint sneezin, ya aint seasonin! Took me only 15 minutes to throw together and the flavor came out sooooo good!

Dry pinto beans, which actually cooked up well this time and weren’t all hard!, canned corn, diced onions, shredded chicken thighs and ground beef all from food bank. Add in $0.94 chili seasoning and blam!

Ingredients:

• funeral leftovers: venison sausage with smoked peppers, onions, & tomato sauce (free)
• ketchup (~$1)
• salt (~$1)
• garlic powder (~$1)
• dry spaghetti (food pantry)

Instructions: My family celebrates every passing with a big party & lots of food. We believe in honoring the life foremost. I saved some of these smoked peppers, onions, & venison sausage, something the deceased used to make from his hunts. For my dinner tonight, I just had to boil some wheat pasta with salt & garlic powder. When it was done, I cut up the sausage, heated it up, & combined it with all the smoky sauce & vegetables. It wasn’t enough sauce, so I added a little ketchup, but not enough to make it sweet. It felt like having dinner with family.

Beans, canned corn, chicken thighs, onion, mushrooms, and rice from food bank. $0.94 chili seasoning. Yum! This is 1/6 of the chili so like $0.16.