Cooking on a budget can be so fun and delicious

My mom loved Lidl. She'd show up with the most random stuff from them, and I'd be like "what the heck is this" and we'd cook it and it would be great. I remember the first time we had sauerkraut was like that. I was doing laundry and she was like "ok, I have sauerkraut. I have sausage. I remember how to make this German dish" and she makes this amazing product. We just had leftovers and she threw in some eggs and it was amazing. <br><br>After that, I started eating things I never would've before. For example, I would never have eaten this when I was a kid, but now I love stir frying some frozen veggies with a little bit of oil and egg white and it's a great meal that I can eat with a loaf of bread and a glass of wine and I'm set. I also love my crock pot and I use it to make a big "chili-ish" dish with beans and rice and veggies I have around. Sometimes I'll throw in chicken or sausage, and sometimes I'll have a little bit of leftover beans, rice, and chicken and I'll make this amazing fried rice with it. It's a great and easy way to eat, and it's so fun to see what I can make out of things I have around the house.<br><br>I can eat very frugally, cheaply, and deliciously, but it takes a little bit of effort and a little bit of money to put together the staples in my pantry that I need to make this happen. I have another friend who is very frugal and eats very cheaply, but she does a lot of frozen pizzas and ramen noodles. She does better than most people, but she often comments on how she wishes she could eat better and be healthier. <br><br>Personally, I would not want to live off of things like frozen pizzas and ramen noodles because it isn't very healthy. It's also exhausting to live in such a frugal way that is difficult to maintain long term. I would rather make a few adjustments to how I live and eat so I'm able to be a little more frugal and make healthier choices. Eating healthy is better for my body and mind, and it's also a lot more fun for me to make my own meals and try new things now and again.