NaturalSociety August 11 2013
With our economy declining while food prices continue rising, you might feel compelled to not eat as healthily as you’d prefer. Or if you’re a meat eater, you may be discouraged by the higher prices of humanely treated organic grass fed meat sources. Have no fear, though – a few tips on eating healthy meals on a budget is just under your nose.
Choosing the Right Stuff
One tip for consuming meals that are satisfying while packing in the nutrition is to redefine certain ‘low-life’ food. This is about quality rice and beans’ merits; hopefully deconstructing this combination’s negative reputation as low-life food can lead to countless tasteful, quality meals to your dinner table.
Firstly, avoid all canned beans, even if they are organic. By now you probably know about the dangers of the linings in cans and their toxic BPA content. Besides, canned beans are more expensive than bagged dry beans and have been precooked, heavily compromising their nutritional value.
Don’t bother with any packaged rices either. You’ll spend more for less and probably not get the best quality rice.
Go to the bulk sections of your health food store where there are organic beans and rice. For optimum nutrition, buy mostly organic brown rice of any variety. White rice is okay too, if you select organic basmati white rice, especially if it’s “parbroiled”. (Parbroiling is an Indian technique for removing the bran from rice while ensuring most of the nutrients remain intact. Parbroiled basmati rice is used in virtually all Ayurvedic (ancient medicine of India) recipes because it is easy to digest is boosts basic health.)
But you may have to go to a store that specializes in Eastern or Indian foods to get parbroiled basmati white rice.