So, before I begin, some context: I’m unemployed and relatively poor and spend a lot of time trying to optimize my grocery bill and finances. I also have some obsessive tendencies, so I’m sorry if that gets in the way - feel free to ignore details you don’t value.

That said, I prefer to be frugal more than “cheap”, meaning I don’t like to buy the cheapest option in all cases, only when it makes sense - and then I try to pay extra for what matters. For example, I buy the cheapest peanut butter and bananas I can find because the higher-cost options don’t make enough of a quality difference to justify the price. But I buy whole oats because freshly rolled oatmeal is so much tastier.

I have struggled to find whole oats in a store locally, and I found some online for $0.93 / 100 g. (Would love to hear what better oat prices I should look for, and where I could find them. I might re-engage my search for whole oats in store.)

I like to make a batch of what I call “fiber oatmeal” at the start of the week. Ingredients:

• 1 cup (250 mL) of freshly rolled oats
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) flax seeds
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) chia seeds
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) hemp seeds

I weigh out around 115 grams of whole oats and use a hand-cranked oat flaker / roller. If you haven’t had fresh oatmeal, it’s very creamy and in my experience is much tastier than oats I buy at the store. It’s a luxury for me. You can always substitute old-fashioned oats from the store, though - it just won’t be as fresh and creamy, but it’s totally fine.

I bring 2 cups (500 mL) of water, once it’s boiling, I add a pinch of salt and the rolled oats, and I cook on medium-low until it goes from a liquid-y substance to more of a thick paste - I turn the heat off while it’s still a little liquid-y because it thickens significantly as it cools (so don’t overcook the moisture out of it!).

Then I grind the flax, chia, and hemp seeds together (I used to just use a mortar and pestle, but I have become lazy and started to use an electric coffee & spice grinder), and I mix those ground seeds into the oatmeal once it’s at that slightly liquid / almost solid stage, and take it off the heat. The chia seeds will gel the oatmeal up even more, so remember it can handle more liquid than you think, as long as the oats are fully cooked.

why the flax and chia seeds?

The reason for the flax and chia seeds is mostly to add soluble fiber, which helps as a prebiotic, as a way to increase satiety and reduce hunger (to make the meal last longer), and to help with regular and healthy bowel movements (which is relevant for me because of a surgery that impacted my bowel movements). Note that insoluble fiber (like you get from a typical brand of high-fiber breakfast cereal like FiberOne) will increase bulk of bowel movements and make them harder to pass, whereas soluble fiber will soften bowel movements and make them easier to pass. Not all fiber is equal.

Then I put the cooked oatmeal into two glass pyrex containers, and once cooled, into the fridge.

Here are my estimated macronutrients for this “fiber oatmeal”, per 100 g:

• 130 kcal
• 4.37 g fat
• 17.8 g carbs
• 5.59 g protein
• 4.21 g fiber

Then in the morning for breakfast, I take a quarter of the whole oatmeal (i.e. half of a container). I put the portion in a bowl and microwave it to warm it up.

Here are the ingredients:

• 115 g of cooked oatmeal (~$0.30)
• 16 - 25 g (a spoon-ful) of creamy peanutbutter (~$0.10)
• 100 - 130 g (1 x, peeled) banana (~$0.17)
• 50 - 80 g plant milk (my preferred: pea milk or soy milk) (~$0.25)
• 20 - 30 g high-protein granola (~$0.07)

For context, the “high protein granola” is the cheapest off-brand granola, and it is basically a normal granola with soy protein isolate added. You could easily make this yourself at home; I haven’t run the numbers on how much money you would save by doing that, but I fully intend to start making my own granola again, once my life settles down and I have time to spend that way.

Usually the cost for this breakfast is around $1 for a single bowl. I like to sprinkle the top with some cinnamon to cut the blandness, and I’ve been using the same batch of “true” ceylon cinnamon that I bought over a decade ago, so I haven’t included that in my cost estimate.

I don’t always add a banana - I only add it when there are bananas that need to be used up (my partner eats bananas, I would never buy them myself for ethical reasons; but when there are bananas to use-up, this is how I avoid waste and use them up).

I eat this oatmeal basically every morning during the week, and then during the weekend I change it up for variety and happiness reasons. I haven’t gotten sick of this despite eating it for months now.

Here are the macronutrients for a typical bowl of this oatmeal:

• ~500 kcal
• 20 g fat
• 68 g carbs
• 18 g protein
• 10 g fiber

I would like to see more like 20 g protein, but otherwise I think the nutrients are around perfect for being only $1 and for being one of my three meals per day.

For a future post: sometime I’ll share my default lunch (when I’m not eating leftovers), as it is also typically around $1 and also aims to be around 500 kcal and aims for 20 g protein. It focuses mostly on eating beans as the main carb and protein, and uses tahini as a way to add fats and protein.

I prefer to keep my daily food vegan for ethical, health, and financial reasons.

Otherwise, I’m open to suggestions and would love to hear about your frugal food habits!