I have a theory that there is a impossible trinity (like in economics), where a food cannot be delicious, cheap and healthy at the same time. At maximum 2 of the 3 can be achieved.

Is there any food that breaks this theory?

Edit: I was thinking more about dishes (or something you put in your mouth) than the raw substances

Some popular suggestions include

  • fruits (in season) and vegetables
  • lentils, beans, rice
  • mushrooms
  • chicken
  • just eat in moderation

Edit 2: Thanks for the various answers. Now there are a lot of (mostly bean-based) recipes for everyone to try out!

Also someone made a community for cheap healthy food after seeing this topic!

  • Puzzle_Sluts_4Ever@lemmy.worldEnglish
    0·
    1 year ago

    A few people already keyed in on this but just to make it abundantly clear:

    “Peasant food”.

    So that means:

    1. Whatever meat/protein and veg is on sale. Don’t neglect the frozen food aisle. Most (all?) of that is flash frozen and, honestly, fresher than if you were to buy it in the produce section. Some veg handles this better than other (frozen spinach makes me vomit, Frozen peas are amazing) but it is cheap and nutritious
    2. Something cheap as filler (I grew up with rice so I eat a lot of rice)
    3. Whatever spice is cheap. You can never go wrong with buying the big bag of mexican seasoning at the supermarket. Usually cheap because “mexican” and usually has a good blend that comes in a range of spice levels. Just taste it to get a feel for how much salt is in there so you can add salt accordingly while cooking.

    Cook the filler as you would. Oven or pan the protein. Season generously.

    Cooking shows/youtube make us think this is a lot more complicated than it really is. But if you learn a few basic cooking techniques (“stir fry” is love, “stir fry” is life) then you are basically set and can be That Guy who stands in the aisle at the supermarket figuring out what he is making next week based on what is available.

    • cashews_win@lemmy.worldEnglish
      1·
      1 year ago

      For Brits: Swap “Mexican” for “Indian” or “Polish”

      Also buy your spices from Indian supermarkets/shops/sections of Asda rather than getting Schwartz jars.

      E.g. My local Asda sells a jar of Schwartz cinamon for £2.50. The next aisle sells cinammon in a bag of 3x the amount for £1! Same for rice, noodles and many other ‘foreign’ foods. Polish meat section can often be cheaper than the normal sections.

      • Puzzle_Sluts_4Ever@lemmy.worldEnglish
        2·
        1 year ago

        Do some googling of your own but: Effectively no. The vast majority of vitamins and nutrients are unaffected by the freezing process. In some studies, some specific stuff (like riboflavin, I think?) does degrade a bit. But your cooking method is likely to cause more damage than that

        So if you live on a really wild farm with a lot of different biomes: go for it. Otherwise: frozen veggies are awesome.