Best Vegetable Bang for your Buck? page 3

[ogella]

One other thing that might help is knowing which fresh veggies stay fresh the longest so you don't have to throw them out after 2 days, thus saving money. I've found that cabbage, squash (spaghetti squash, zucchini, yellow squash), radishes and onions last the longest. Next is peppers, mushrooms, cucumbers and spinach.

[ChocoTaco369]

Romaine lettuce, baby. It's my staple. Currently I've been getting 3 huge heads for $2. We're talking 6 pounds of romaine, here. For those that are unaware, romaine lettuce has an impressive nutrient profile. It's chock full of vitamin A, vitamin K, vitamin C, folate, two thirds of the carbs are fiber and is quite anti-inflammatory. It even sports an n3:n6 ratio of 2.5:1. That's pretty stellar. Sure, you're not getting very much in the grand scheme of things, but if you're packing away 3 heads as a dietary staple, that works out to 2.1g of omega 3 with only 0.9g of omega 6. That's like taking 2 flaxseed oil pills. Sure, it's ALA-based, but you're still getting the anti-inflammatory benefits.

Best of all, a whole head (averging 626g of lettuce) is only 106 calories with 21g of carbs (13g being fiber). Yes, you could easily eat an entire head of romaine a day even on a ketogenic diet.

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/...roducts/2475/2

Cool stuff.

For cheapness, pre or post-workout nutrition and satiety though, if you do carbs, it's hard to beat the potato. Especially the sweet potato. I pick up 5 pound bags of beautiful sweets or russets for $1.50.

[ChocoTaco369]

On the flip side of this, I'm curious what the cheapest, most calorie dense paleo/primal-friendly foods are out there as well. Healthy fats and meat tend to really add up, and I'm not even going the organic route.

Oh, this is easy. It's hard to beat the caloric density of coconut and avocado. Eat an avocado and drink a can of coconut milk. For a grand total of $2.40, you're taking in almost 1,000 calories, with nearly all of it being saturated fat MCT's from the coconut and monounsaturated fat from the avocado. The 15-20g or so of carbs that you're taking in are almost entirely fiber and the fat content is so mindblowingly high, you don't have to worry about any kind of significant insulin spike or blood sugar rise.

[lucyh]

I tried brussel sprouts earlier this year and they didn't sit well with me. Could it be because I boiled them? Would steaming them give a better consistency?

Roasting them or sauteeing (in bacon fat!) them makes them delicious. I've sauteed them in my cast iron skillet until they start to brown a tiny bit. Then I added just a little heavy cream and let that simmer for a few minutes. Best brussels sprouts ever!

Speaking of bargain vegetables, I got some beets yesterday. They still had their tops, so it was like two for one! Beet greens are now my favorite greens. I parboiled the beets, and then peeled them and cut them into wedges and tossed them with olive oil, sea salt and pepper and roasted them, then made a salad with baby spinach, a little sheeps-milk feta and a simple olive oil/balsamic dressing. I also coarsely chopped the greens and tossed them with olive oil and roasted them along with some yellowtail tuna. So, so good! My husband hates beets, so I never buy them, but too bad for him, I'm going to start getting them regularly.

I also recommend looking for an ethnic grocery store, I've noticed they often carry field-grade produce-not as pretty as the big grocery chains, but just as good (and often better!) and a fraction of the price.

[Paleobird]

Oh, this is easy. It's hard to beat the caloric density of coconut and avocado. Eat an avocado and drink a can of coconut milk. For a grand total of $2.40, you're taking in almost 1,000 calories, with nearly all of it being saturated fat MCT's from the coconut and monounsaturated fat from the avocado. The 15-20g or so of carbs that you're taking in are almost entirely fiber and the fat content is so mindblowingly high, you don't have to worry about any kind of significant insulin spike or blood sugar rise.

Not only that, they taste good too

[ChocoTaco369]

Not only that, they taste good too

Ingredients:

Take a beef roast, braise it, shred it, marinate it in lime juice, garlic, cilantro, salt, pepper, paprika and cumin overnight, then fry it in olive oil until crispy. Put about a pound of that onto a plate. Top the steak with cheddar cheese, cream cheese and fresh pico de gallo loaded with lime juice and cilantro. Top that with chopped romaine lettuce, sliced avocado, more lime juice and more cilantro.

Seriously, the BEST meal in the world. I'd eat that over anything. Filet mignon, all you can eat sushi, cheeseburger and fries, pizza, whatever. Nothing beats that. NOTHING. Except MAYBE if you replace the beef with smoked pork shoulder. MAYBE.

The only way it's better is to serve that over white rice and black beans, but alas, that's off limits unless following a big workout.

[petriquor]

Oh, this is easy. It's hard to beat the caloric density of coconut and avocado. Eat an avocado and drink a can of coconut milk. For a grand total of $2.40, you're taking in almost 1,000 calories, with nearly all of it being saturated fat MCT's from the coconut and monounsaturated fat from the avocado. The 15-20g or so of carbs that you're taking in are almost entirely fiber and the fat content is so mindblowingly high, you don't have to worry about any kind of significant insulin spike or blood sugar rise.

Ah, I actually already get both of those too. I've noticed avocados have been going up in price more though, I'm guessing because it's not in season now? Also the cheap Goya coconut milk is pretty mediocre next to the Taste of Thai brand I've been getting lately. So it's closer to $4 total but I guess that's still not too bad.

And there are always eggs of course. Sometimes I feel like I could live off eggs exclusively.

[ChocoTaco369]

Ah, I actually already get both of those too. I've noticed avocados have been going up in price more though, I'm guessing because it's not in season now? Also the cheap Goya coconut milk is pretty mediocre next to the Taste of Thai brand I've been getting lately. So it's closer to $4 total but I guess that's still not too bad.

And there are always eggs of course. Sometimes I feel like I could live off eggs exclusively.

Yea, they've been getting expensive. In the summer, I was getting nice big ones 3 for $2. Now, they're $1-1.50 each and they're very tiny. It's the worst time of the year for avocados unfortunately. Party's over!

Goya brand is superior to Taste of Thai in terms of ingredients. Read the labels. Taste of Thai has thickeners in it, which is why it seems so much thicker and creamier. The Goya is just the meat with water and a preservative like sodium metabisulfite or something. I found another brand - Iberia - where it's ONLY coconut milk and water. However, since there's no thickeners/gums, you can't whip it into cream. At least I failed doing it last night. It's the same consistency as Goya...more "chunky" than creamy.

If you don't care about thickeners but want the same texture as Taste of Thai, Jamaican Choice brand is the way to go IMO. Taste of Thai is like $2.29 a can and Jamacian Choice is only $1.49.

[livinlite]

Whole Foods 365 brand coconut milk is fine and $1.69/can. Avocados there are $2.50 though...usually a decent size.

Still, $4.00/1,000cal is hard to beat.

Even beats my lunch...went to their breakfast bar and got 1/2lb of pork sausage and bacon for $4.00...even that isn't close to the caloric punch of avo-coco smoothie...

[petriquor]

Yea, they've been getting expensive. In the summer, I was getting nice big ones 3 for $2. Now, they're $1-1.50 each and they're very tiny. It's the worst time of the year for avocados unfortunately. Party's over!

Goya brand is superior to Taste of Thai in terms of ingredients. Read the labels. Taste of Thai has thickeners in it, which is why it seems so much thicker and creamier. The Goya is just the meat with water and a preservative like sodium metabisulfite or something. I found another brand - Iberia - where it's ONLY coconut milk and water. However, since there's no thickeners/gums, you can't whip it into cream. At least I failed doing it last night. It's the same consistency as Goya...more "chunky" than creamy.

If you don't care about thickeners but want the same texture as Taste of Thai, Jamaican Choice brand is the way to go IMO. Taste of Thai is like $2.29 a can and Jamacian Choice is only $1.49.

Interesting...I could have sworn the ingredients list for the Goya brand was somewhat extensive but I'll have to double-check. I might be thinking of another one of the cheap brands. Taste of Thai just has guar gum added though, is that really worse (health-wise) than preservatives I'd find in other brands?

I may just go back to Goya again, or Iberia/Jamaican Choice if I happen to see it. The consistency isn't a necessarily a deal-breaker and I'd prefer to go with the healthier choice when possible.