Cooking: You can eat healthy on a few dollars a day. The Latin populations know well about that. They have survived on rice and beans forever. Rice and beans can cost as little as $1.00 per serving and is a complete protein. Having a small stove will be indispensable and will pay for itself hundreds of times over. Cooking may be simpler than you think. It can be as simple as buying a can of beans, 2 zucchinis, 1 large carrots, and an onion. Throw it all in one pot, cook for 15 minutes and you have a healthy and good tasting meal for about $2.50. Another easy dish is “Hobo’s stew: 1/3 pound beef, 1 packaged of onion soup mix, 1 large onion, 2 carrots, 1 large potato, salt & pepper to taste. Always keep a bottle of Tabasco sauce on hand, it gives everything a little zip. Be sure to balance your diet out with vegetables and fruit. This will keep you healthy and prevent constipation.

Do not be shy about asking for food handouts. Many restaurants, bakeries, and grocery stores will give you something.

Food Sources:
Shelters and churches: Many hand out bag lunches at noon and a hot meal in the evening.
Food supplemental programs such as food stamps.
Food banks are good if you can get to them and have a place to store and prepare the food.
Bakeries: You can ask for day old bread.
Grocery stores may have food near its expiration date that they need to discard.
Restaurants typically have food that needs to be discarded because it won’t last another day. Arrive near to closing time.
Dumpster diving in back of restaurants and grocery stores.
Farmers markets: You can ask for food (best as the vendors are getting ready to pack up). They typically have some that is getting a bit old, or blemished.