As the DCers know, I’m poor right now. There is NO ONE – NO ONE, I repeat – who can financially fuck themselves over due to neglect and conscious financial mismanagement like I can. Which, is precisely where I currently stand. Now, not being new to this game, I’ve gotten quite good at feeding myself on little to no money. This week has been a lucky anomaly, with the Lunchmas spirit overtaking the Czar and spotting me for the delicious Lunchmas feast on Wednesday. Work ordered pizza that same day, and I’ve fed off of the (free!) leftovers for the last two days. Yesterday, Wookie also generously donated some of her delicious pasta and homemade sauce to the cause. Earlier in the week, I cooked a huge batch of organic brown rice that I found in the cabinet and was eating that with whatever I could find: my dad’s peppers, canned tomatoes, some feta from the fridge, yoghurt and my personal favorite, beans. You see, my number one, go to poverty food is beans. Black beans, kidney beans, cannelini beans, red beans, edamame – you name it. The thing is, I love beans. LOVE. But, my digestive system does not share my passion.
Now, we’ve talked about poverty food before. My plan is to hit the grocery for more rice, and quite possibly some ramen, to get me through for the next week. Several good things have come out of this though: 1) I have lost weight (despite the carb fest, I’m just not eating enough – plus, have I mentioned how filling beans are?) 2) I’m drinking water 3) I’m detoxing (sort of – I do have a lot of booze at home, and actually had vodka for dinner one night this week) 4) I’m forced to be creative and not just run out to ABP at lunch 5) I’m getting more sleep. See? Poverty isn’t all bad.
Today I didn’t bring anything for lunch because I’m taking a hiatus from beany goodness and, my second go to food in times of poverty is eggs, and I forgot to hard boil some this morning (I see A LOT of eggs in my future) – I’m thinking I might splurge on Potbelly, as it’s filling and cheap or possibly a hotdog or half smoke from a cart outside. (Jo, which cart do you go to? The one on the corner near here creeps me out b/c the guy inside cat calls at me everytime I walk past. Ugh.)
So, let’s make today’s topic any of the following: Cheap eats, creativity with food due to poverty or weight loss needs, or things that you love to eat, but that don’t love you back.
So, What’s For Lunch, kids?
49 comments:
HT, canned goods and the meat on special. That's the way to go. Go to Gigante or Safeway and get the cheap canned veggies, corn, green beans, stewed tomatoes, peas, succotash etc. Buy an assortment, usually you can mix and match and get the cheap price with your store membership card. Then head over to the meat section and buy whatever is on special. Ground beef, sausage, chicken... Pick up a bag of rice or a few boxes of Zatarains. Then go home and create meals. for the next two weeks. You can buy at least 2-3 weeks of food for about $30 by using canned veggies and a few of the boxed rice dishes with a few carefully selected cheap meats.
Re: half smokes I usually go to the guy on the NW corner of Conn and L. 2 half smokes, chips and a can of soda for $4 (he keeps the cans inside the hut. I usually give him a buck tip.
I an VERY hungry today.
I'm thinking soho.
If you want a little stroll w/ your hotdog/half smoke, head to the cart lady in the 2000 block of H (outside GW Law). She's just the loveliest person you'll ever meet, and back in my school days, a hot dog, chips, and soda were $2. If you're truly desperate, hang out on Penn Ave. SE tomorrow night around 7--you can "bump into" my dad and me on our way to dinner at Sonoma and join us--on my dad's credit card, of course!
Lady sunshine was just singing the praises of the burrito cart man in Downtown DC. I have never been to him, but he always has a line out side.
As for poverty food, I am a huge ramen man myself. I can go a week of two times a day ramen meals before I need any additions or modifications to right out of the sack noodles. After I begin to grow tired of them, wham! Hit them with a can of tuna or canned chicken and you've got another week. Then I go upscale. Yellow rice with black beans. With modest portions one $0.99 package, and one $0.89 can of goya, you have three meals. While I respect him greatly, I disagree with Josephus' assesment of getting the cheap meat. Poverty calls for vegetarian options. The poor can not throw their hard earned change at meat specials. Potatoes are cheaper and can go for a longer period of time.
Now I hate vegetarins as a rule, but to go that way for poverty is acceptable.
Jo. How can you flash a trip to soho in front of a starving artist like HaterTot? You know you're going to throw down close to $20 on your meal.
It's okay, Sunshine. I have never eaten at a Soho, so I don't know what I'm missing. I also ate the last piece of cold office pizza this morning, and have been filling up on H2O, so I'm not actually hungry right now.
I also agree w/ Sunshine's no meat assessment. Though, I have sausanges and mahi mahi in the freezer, that will undoubtedly get eaten over the next week.
Yeah if you're poor, you gotta hunt or fish for your own meat.
Hope you like squirrel and goldfish
I do think I'm going to see if Wookie wants to join me at Jo's lunch cart, though. Meat seems extravagant, but not when served from a cart, for some reason.
I can go fishing in the Tidal Basin at lunch...
My favorite poverty meal is baked potatoes. You can jazz it up w/ whatever's left over in the fridge/pantry/freezer. When you tire of baking, you can mash them, again mixing in whatever else is hanging around.
Most of my poverty days also coincided w/ my student days--so I was all about attending random meetings to get the free food. Since attending a South Asian Student Alliance meeting to score some samosas probably isn't an option anymore, may I suggest lunching at Eastern Market tomorrow. All the farmers will have samples of their produce out, and you can also visit the cheese counter for free samples. It'll add a little fresh produce to your rice and beans existence.
The burrito guy on K is fantastic, but pricy for street food.
Yeah Sunshine my soho comment was a subtle stab at her poverty, you made it not-so-subtle.
I suggested the meat options because I am one who feels cheated if there isn't at least a modest meat portion in the dinner. And you can get a good amount of meat on special at the market. And we have to be real here, HT is not "on the street" poor, she just can't afford the luxuries of normal eating. And I can't see HT eatimg ramen for two weeks.
Now I'm off to soho!
By the way, I watched "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" last night and caught a reference to salt peter...miu was spot on!
Did my sister side against me in public?
Didn't she see The Godfather?
True, I'm thinking about student poor, no job poor (which I am preparing for),
HaterTot, you'll get by. When I was gearing up for Bonnaroo, I turned in my change at coinstar. I did not have an extensive coin collection, but I came out of the store with over $115. that can get a lot of meat and Ramen.
I just want to try to minimize my bean intake.
I see pasta and ramen in my future, and I love, love, love Molly's Eastern Market idea. Smart girl, that one.
Oh, and wish Molly a very happy birthday!!!
Oooohhh, Miu - you've reminded me that I have a huge, almost full box of low fat Bisquick at home...
Happy b-day Molly!
Holy crap, Sunshine! Too bad most of my change is foreign.
Meat from a cart is not a luxury - let's get real here, it's freaking hot dogs, not beef wellington. You're lucky if there's any meat in there at all.
In college I ate cup of noodles for lunch at least 3 or 4 times a week. I prefer the cup of noodles, rather than the package ramen (even though, yes, it's closer to a buck a cup instead of 3 for a buck), b/c it had the freeze-dried peas & chicken bits in it. And there are these weird things in there, I'd love to know what they are. They're lumpy & yellow & sort of misshapen. No idea. Everything else is easily identifiable. Anyways, my poverty today is leading me to have truffle risotto again. Plus I made a side salad with arugula, Juliet tomatoes & a couple slices of avocado with an oil & vinegar dressing. Um, ok, that sounds really fancy for poor-eating, but I wasn't actually poor until I bought the truffle cheese for the risotto & the enormous avocado & all the other stuff I got at the store. I spent a ton. Freaking Whole Foods.
I agree with Sunshine that ramen is the best poverty-food. Dress it up, dress it down, eat it hot, cold, whatever. In fact, my college advice to my little brother was "Ramen is cheap & makes a good meal." Ah, ramen!
For cheap entertainment tonight, do any DC WFLers want to join me & uh, Bon-bon (ah, anonymity rules) at the jazz in the sculpture garden? It is free and cultural!
Ha! Bon Bon... it took me awhile to figure out who you meant. I'm passing. I'm hibernating this weekend until the Dan. I'm spending quality time with Mr. Dirty Mitts (even my cat has a blog name!).
Oh yeah - hey Molly is that Sonoma offer open to everyone?!?
My friend Chappy, a Bonnaroo visitor, used to weigh the value of food vs smokes. He almost always spent his $2.05 on a pack of Camels. He said that sure, food fills you up, but for $2.05 hunger can be quenched by smoking for a day or two than it can be by eating 2 double cheeseburgers.
And Happy Birthday Molly!
Oooh, can't you make biscuits out of Bisquick, too? Oh, I guess that's the name. Yeah, you should make biscuits & cook the sausages or fish inside them. God, that sounds really good.
happy bday molly!
i want either a half smoke dealie or the burrito man...are their carts close together downtown?
all the soho's in dc are owned by my people...ALL OF THEM.
i grew up on spam, so i ain't afraid of "cheap meat"
when i'm poor, i do lot's of random cheap eats (and not necessarily all together): pasta, mac and cheese, rice, tuna, every kind of bean imaginable, eggs, toasted salted seaweed (around rice is good).
the fortunate thing about korean food is that it's healthy and cheap and the ultimate poor man's food. the best is what i like to call the poor man's bi bim bap: take a fried egg (keep that yolk runny), rice and add soy sauce and sesame oil. throw in some kimchi and wrap pieces of salted toasted seaweed around every bite, and it's tasty!
I usually resort to making a big pot of soup or veggie chili and I'll use whatever I have on hand. I think ground beef is really a good buy too when you are poor though. If you get the cheap shit it's only a couple dollars for a pound. But it's worth it because it makes everything a little more hearty and stick to your ribs which is important when you're not eating much. I'm thinking a mashed potato pie made with bisquick crust filled with mashed taters and topped with ground beef. If you're still anti-meat then throw some corn, lima beans and hot sauce on top of that thang!
Dang Uni, you're like some sort of wizard chick behind the stove.
I really hate ramen.
A great pverty meal is beer and frozen peas.
And I am beginning to feel that our sympathy (empathy?) for HT is a tad misplaced. She has a great job, an apt, a car that she drives and parks everyday (I wonder if her poverty has sent her to public trasportation?). We need to be chastising her for her silly spending instead of organizing a charity drive around her.
So in that spirit...HT I don't think I'm gonna finish my lunch, you want a doggy bag or something? There's some half eaten sausage, the fat from my bbq porka few corn kernels mixed in with what's left of my fried rice, some glass noodles that frankly tasted a little off so I only ate half of them, and one string bean.
Let me know.
Jo, credit has made you coldhearted.
I'm not asking for anyone's sympathy, just creativity in poverty food (and you'll note there were 2 other topics mentioned). As you mentioned, poverty now is a bit different than poverty when we're kids, and I think LT's second (or is it third?) day of risotto is more exemplary of the kind of poverty we all experience from time to time at this point in our lives, than ramen out of a hot pot in the dorms.
That said, I do really like ramen and haven't eaten it in years, and am sort of looking forward to stocking up on 13 pkgs for a dollar or whatever it costs these days.
You're all On Notice!
That's good LT...of course BOB IS BACK!
And better than ever!
Well done LT
Thank you! To all my adoring fans!
Many thanks for the warm birthday wishes, all!
At lunch today we had a prime example of foods you love that don't love you. I went out w/ some co-workers, and we stopped at Baskin Robbins b/f heading back to the office (b/c it's *gorgeous* out). One CW ordered Gold Medal Ribbon, which is like 3 kinds of chocolate (and one of my faves). Unfortunately, she's allergic to chocolate and develops hay-fever like symptoms w/ in minutes of eating even a tiny nibble of a chocolate chip cookie. If I was allergic to chocolate, though, I'm sure I'd be the same way!
Soooo, busy. Soooo cranky.
When in poverty mode, I like to force myself to just eat whatever I have in the house. It’s surprising how much edible stuff there is around, really. Ever had fried flour with pumpkin pie spice sauce?
There’s this can of hominy that I’ve had for, I’d say, seven years. Seriously, it’s been moved from a couple apartments. It’s the one item that always survives these poverty-driven cupboard purges. As long as I have that can of hominy, I have not hit rock bottom. I’m okay.
Two Chicago style char dog w/ fries and a root beer.
That was great, LT.
Real cocoa-y chocolate makes me sneeze. Nothing else. No lasting effects – just one big sneeze when I eat it. It’s a fun minor allergy.
Geez. I almost forgot to address my lunch. a bag of M&M bite size cookies. Cheese / peanut butter crackers and a coke at my desk. It was free and doesn't count as a lunch break so I can leave an hour earlier than normal
I'd have to agree with Jo. Except frozen vegetables get you more mileage. Potted meats and tuna fish get you pretty far down the road. Don't like that? Sam's club sells ground beef for $1.99\lb up to 10lbs every other Sunday. I don't think it is a coincidence. A little lime juice and some freezing and its nice for weeks.
Sucatash, shepard's pie, red beans and rice.
You know I was raised on what LC refers to as "poor man's food". She introduced me to the same but with a Korean bend. I loved it and still love eating with her.
Mom taught me everything from split pea soup and red beans and rice up to Beef Wellington. My biggest problem is the SO (significant other) is a freakin Pescatarian (eats fish but mostly vegetarian).
So I've ended up with lots of salads with creative chopped fruits and nuts on the top with Raspberry wasabi sauce or something else on the top. Recently we started experimenting with "chicken"(quoron). hehe but "chicken" ain't cheap.
Creative cooking just requires an adventurous soul ... and who here isn't adventurous?
amen jo, preach it preacher!
I hate ... HATE! ramen.
Wow, I needed to share that. I feel better now.
I'd rather eat mashed potatoes (and only that) for 3 solid weeks instead of eating ramen.
They call Alabama the Crimson Tide
Call me Deacon Jo...
Deacon Jo...
In case you haven't heard a contigent of OWFLers are going to see Steely Dan Sunday. HT, LT, SK and I will be joined by two civilians for an evening of The Dan's jazz infused rock tunes and dark sarcastic lyrics with the unmistakable blue eyed soul of Michael McDonald opening for them at Nissan Pavilion. I believe there are still some lawn tickets available.
I'm sure there's enough cuervo gold and fine columbian for everyone.
Miu, that is probably from eating only carbs ... uhh and being skinny at the same time. It probablt helped that I was about 15lbs over-weight at the time. When I did it when I first moved to New England I lost 25lbs. I was skinny for a while afterwards, but I lived ... without any weird heart inflammation.
Regardless, any carb without protein isn't good. As is the flip of that.
The only diet I've ever read that works is South Beach ... and basically that is just a simple mutation of Weight Watchers.
I'm not into dieting. I just work out like a maniac and then live with the 5-10lbs I know I'll never lose without surgery or starvation.
Can I hear an AMEN!!???!!
AMEN, BROTHER!! Except make that more like 15-20 pounds . . . .
Civilian #1 will heretoforth be known as "Bon-bon" unless she cares to ever make a blog apperance & dub herself something else. Uh, Civilian #2 will be known as "the Big O".
Oh my god - someone is leaving the office & someone else is getting married, so there was a joint party for them (different division) & they left the remains of the cake in the kitchen . . . this might be the best sheet cake I've ever had. Moist chocolate cake filled with REAL strawberries and buttercream icing inside and on top . . . .
Yeah, that 15 pounds ain't going nowhere anytime soon.
Just rebooked my Chicago Labor Day Conference ticket.
I get in Tuesday night.
Awwww SNAP!
Holy crap!
I'm just now reading through others' posts when I realized almost everything I said in mine at the bottom was verbatim of someone elses'.
Damnit, how do you like that for originality?
So, Happy Bday Molly where ever you are!
I hope someone gives you a big heart-warming hug. Everyone needs one of those on their birthday... matter o fact I consider it one of the best birthday presents you can give someone. Just a quick, "I'm holding ya hard and close because I'm really happy you're in the world" kinda hug.
Good job Miu!
maybe I can get a job at Hallmark instead?
Wow, that's awesome Miu, congrats!
Yes, Diz, Hallmark. I'm simultaneously nauseated & tearing up.
Song list for today:
Nick Drake - Saturday Sun (thanks LC!)
Regina Spector - Fidelity
Norah Jones - Come away with me
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Love Burns
Ben Folds 5- Kate
Elliot Smith - Morning After
Man ... I'm in a "who-gives-a-shit-anymore" mood.
Just came from the grocery store. I did end up splurging on some meat (tuna - 2 big cans for $3; and those frozen chicken breast - 1 bag for $5.96)but stuck to whole wheat pasta, ramen (10/$1) and brown rice, plus some veggies (potatoes, onions, canned tomatoes), milk, eggs, and cottage cheese (I can not live without cottage cheese, and eat it on everything). All told, it was about $40, and will more than keep me well fed for the next 10 days.
Also, there were deaf people there, so I thought of Rico.
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