Hey- So I am researching the raw diet because I am trying to eat healthier and lose 30-50 lbs. I don't plan on going 100% raw, but would like to incorporate more raw food into my diet. Anyway, I have been looking at recipes and machines and everything seems rather expensive (like specialty food items, dehydrator). I live in NYC in an apartment, so a garden is not possible and fruit and veggies are expensive (like 10$ for 6 tomatos, even at the local food Co-op). How do y'all make this diet affordable. Thanks!~Kate

Opinion:

-Eating this way CAN be as simple as simply increasing the overall percentage of fresh fruits and vegetables that you LOVE and are prepared to eat a more consistent level of...for a lifetime. You don't HAVE to eat organic foods either. I believe you will experience great benefits by hitting YOUR raw goals on conventional produce. You also don't HAVE to buy expensive machinery. If you have to have those items, pick up some good stuff at your local thrift store to see how often you will actually use it before springing for something more expensive! LOL.

-To eat more cheaply, focus on the less expensive staple items: Greens, Cabbage, Apples, Bananas, etc. For nuts, bulk raw sunflower seeds can often be had for around $1.00 /lb. Sales, discount produce, and growing your sprouts and plants can all be a great way to save a few dollars. If done correctly, there is absolutely no reason why you should not be able to spend the same approximate amount as you did before going raw - or perhaps even a bit less!

-In any event, don't sweat it. You can only do what you can afford, and are willing to do - yes?

-What do you think?

-David Z. Mason

In my experience,

I thought back when I was bringing tuberware containers of pastas, rice and beans, etc... to work that I was really thrifting it, the truth is, I probably wasn’t being honest about how the rest of my ‘budget’ (fictional) was balanced. Heck this type of diet necessitated spending mucho on LIQUIDS not FOOD. a fair amount of booze coffee and many $1+ bottles of water seemed necessary.

I also live in NYC

There seems to be a major boom in manhatten right now of ‘raw’ products. These are expensive, generally devoid of at least a few important elements (such as water), and their main function it appears is generally for people to ‘stay raw’. Since you have no intention of being all raw, that works out for your budgeting!

Sometimes I can spend $20 a day or more, other days it is much much less, and I hardly buy water which also helps because theres no dam recycling where I live. For many people I know this is their daily tab alone for cigs, booze, coffee, coke, and ‘balanced breakfast’ which necessitates such things.

So yeah I’ll drop $10 for 6 tomatoes if they are some beauties because they are my favorite food, just as someone might spend the same on a glass of wine with their meal.

Lifethyme ( a grocery store) and Bonobos are two cafeteria style places to eat. I smuggle food in their all the time or at Lifethyme you can buy salad fixins of cource form the aisle which is much cheaper of course then a restaurant.

fruit and $$$ can be tricky in the boroughs if you don't know where to look. more on this later if in need.

If you are already vegan, load up on salad and stick to the asian restaurants instead of the organic grills, all that soy transition food is poison IMO

grow your own sprouts

shop at farmers markets

buy things like carrots, celery, and banana.

buy foods that are in season.

you don't need a dehydrater (probably even be better off without it).

save money on products like soap and face wash by making your own out of things like coconut oil/bakingsoda/honey/lemonjuice ect. there are a few threads on this subject on this board u can search.

just a few suggestions on how to save.

good luck.

Hey- Thanks for some info. Anaken, where do you but things cheaply? I belong to the Park Slope coop, and even their organic stuff is a little too pricey for me. I am willing to travel for cheaper, oranic, food.
I already dtopped drinking when I go out to save cash, I didn't like the taste of alcohol that much so it wasn't much of a loss. Anyway, any tips would be great. Thanks!~Kate

The best thing to start out with is just a good blender. I don't own a juicer or a dehydrator yet.

If you want to juice something, my cheap-o but effective way right now is to blend everything together in a blender and then get an old pair of clean pantyhose and cut the legs into 6" sections. Tie one end of a section and pour the blended juice into the other end. Squeeze the pantyhose over a bowl and just the juice will come out. Everything else will stay in the bag. I do this alot with nutmilks.



KelBel

Sorry Kategreen, is #$&^%(%) expensive to me and the only way you can make it cheaper if you aren't growing your own or bartering is to stick with the really basic staples already mentioned: bananas, oranges, apples, cabbage, carrots, sunflower seeds.

I hate how much I spend. But I hate not eating well even more.

You might have luck with some of the Asian stores, they tend to have really cheap prices for produce compared to conventional grocers. But a lot of them don't have refrigeration, either.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/21/2007 12:11AM by arugula.

I think starting out with a blender is a great idea.

You can grow your own wheatgrass on those little styraphome trays that the spinach comes in or like what they sell everything in at Trader Joes (or some other cheap tray like container.. the stiraphome trays work well). blend it in a blender with some water, and then run it through a strainer.

I often wonder how much money farmers make as opposed to how much money grocery stores make? anyone have any idea? I don't.

raw foods was a LOT cheaper for me before I started eating all organic. I still buy papaya (non organic) at the mexican market for 50 or 60 cents/ lb lately tho when I eat their papaya I can't help but think about chemicals I am putting into my body....

sure you can, DONT

if i'm riding my bike and I happen to be behind a bus, I don't think about all the chemicals i'm putting into my body, not enough that I wouldn't ride my bike everywhere anyway. you might notice it more but its still the same stuff floating around the air that would be inside you sooner or later. same thing with commercial fruit, its still an ideal food comparatively.

especially fruit with thick skins. there are those 'dirty lists' but most of the time you can tell you wouldn't want to eat them, like plastic apples. I personally won't eat any commercial berries or squishy fruits but I don't really care for them anyway. I guess most of the stuff on the list I do shy away from except dark grapes. I think they are some kind of chimera in NY, I've only seen organic green grapes. So sometimes I'll buy black grapes from little fruit stands for like 1$ a lb and eat a few pounds on the subway, I think the expression "life is too short" carries over into rawfoods sometimes...

Some stores sell "overripe" bananas (or other produce) at a discounted price because they are too ripe for most people's taste, but they are actually just starting to become edible to my taste. You might see if any stores in your area do this. I also belong to a food buying coop of friends that collectively buys bulk produce at wholesale prices.

Love,
Uma

well-where i live there is alot of old orchards.last yr. me and the family went and picked alot of apples. i was not raw then but made lots of apple sauce.then down the road...this family had a big crop of plums.they picked them and put them out in a wheel barrow and wrote a free sign on them.i canned so many jars of plums.and dried alot.they were so good.also Oregon-at least in the Willamette valley,there is millions of blackberries,free for the picking.there seems to be two kinds.big huge blackberries and a smaller kind.there is the oregon grape which i guess u can only use if u cook.i always want to know all the wild greens that grow everywhere.i do pick chamomille for free where ever i find it.i dry that for tea.there is a free walk that people can go on to find out what the edible greens are.a nature walk that i would love to go on.i also go to this place where apples are 39 cents a lb.they have flaws on them cause they have not been sprayed.when this place gets rid of banana's-they are 10 cents a lb. i also buy bulk in the bulk bins for my dates and such.thi yr. i am really getting into the gardening. i have lots of lettuce planted right now for wraps and salads.i got the seeds for 10 cents a pkg.i think a few pots of things growing could maybe help cut cost.i know there is patio tomaotes that a person can grow on a window sill.i think instead of a spiral slicer for the veggie pasta-u could just use a veggie peeler-or a knife. i use to yrs ago...dry fruit leather outside on a screen and put cheese cloth over the stuff-to keep flies off the food.i try not to buy exoctic foods.good luck.taylor

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You don't need any fancy equipment. A blender is nice and helpful for times when you want smoothies or a salad dressing. I used my cheap $30 Oster one until it died after 5 years and then I bought another cheap $30 Oster one. Sure, a high powered Vitamix would be fun sometime, but it's not a necessity.

Whole fruits and veggies are best.

Juicing and dehydrating is fragmenting and processing your foods and removing essential nutrients from it.

So if you're worried about cost, just don't buy the fancy equipment or ingredients, just buy your favorite fruit and veggies and eat them in abundance, as whole, fresh and ripe as you can. That's better for you anyway.

Sarah
[goingbananasblog.com]





Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/24/2007 03:17PM by Sparkler.

Hi, i find groceries our biggest expense. We are a family of four, with all of us eating some percentage of raw. I prefer the hand held blender- it may not be as powerful but sure is easier/faster to clean. It is also cheaper than the conventional blender.
There are a lot of advantages to buying directly from farmers. In Victoria and Vancouver, BC, we have community supported agriculture(CSA) which essentially means local farmers get together and deliver boxes of their produce to customers(residential and restaurants) every week. At the end of the week some outfits sell their surplus for half price.
Our family is blessed with a sizeable backyard where we are slowly learning to grow our own produce, saving the seeds and composting. A number of years ago when my sister was living in an apartment, she experimented with growing veggies in containers on her balcony. She was succesful, yeilding parsley, tomatoes and baby carrots.
The other thing i have noticed is, the more i eat raw, the less i need to eat. I used to pack away almost twice the amount of food as my 6'1" husband. Since i've started eating mostly raw, i have experienced fewer cravings and more satisfaction from my food. You may discover after a while you just don't need to eat as much.

Anna
ps can anyone tell me what LOL means?

LOL = Laugh Out Loud!

Thanks for the advice--I found a cheap dhydrator on ebay last week

Taylor.. I'm in the Willamette Valley as well.. hello to ya! I'm not sure if you're in Salem BUT if you are.. have you found a good source for organic produce other than Lifesource?

-zapple



"As if you could kill time without injuring eternity.." - Thoreau