<prompt> Human: Ive seen multiple budget breakdowns quoting this number. The math does not compute:10030 days per month 3 meals per day 1.11mealIve seen COUPLES say it too, not just bachelors. So...how? Ramen?Same people say they eat out 1-2x week for 40-60 month. Again, how? Taco Bell?  <response>: So I budget 150 for one person. 30 a week 30 of bulk foodspices each month.Bulk food: lentils, nuts, oatmeal, honey, and any spices Im low on. Its taken a while to get a knack for a months worth and I had to keep a list of how long each thing lasted for a while. Then, for the week, I have certain items I know I always purchase - milk, eggs, canned chickpeas not patient enough for the dried kind. I know I need 7 breakfasts and 14 lunchdinners I dont differentiate plus 4 or so snacks. So I go through all the ads and pick out which fruits, veggies, and extras are on sale. I use things like recipage and food gawker to help match up sale items with bulk items - though by now Ive got a menu of recipes I like that I can fall back on if planning gets tedious.I usually do 1 breakfast recipe for 4 servings and then oatmealscrambled eggs for the days I have time to cookFor lunchdinner I do 3 recipes of 4 servings and then a more experimental recipe for 2, so if I dont like it, I only have to eat it twice. Snacks typically are like chopped up vegetables with baked chickpeas. Or fruit if its in season. I go shopping and then spend around 4 hours every Sunday cooking for the week. I put one of each thing in the freezer because sometimes I only have time to eat two meals a day and I dont want them to go bad. I also can put them in a bag and not worry about it getting to warm if Im on a long commute or stuck without a fridge. I bring 5 lunches to work on Monday because when Im running late, I tend to forget to pack lunch. So, Id say I spend about 2-3 hours of planning 4 hours of cooking and usually spend less than 150 140 since a lot of times Ill still have food left at the end of the week. If it was a busy month or food was cheap, Ill use the extra money to buy a fancy glaze or spice or something I use spices like theyre going out of style. Pretty sure cinnamon and curry powder make everything taste better. I also eat a lot of cheap vegetables a 2lb bag of carrots is 1 where I live and I am not at all picky so even if I fuck a recipe up, Ill still eat it. I like cooking and forcing myself to plan everything has given me a greater appreciation for food. I really really love eating. In terms of eating out, since I dont do it to feed me, it becomes a special thing that I usually do once a week with friends. In the past, I spent less than 60 on restaurants, but now that college is done, Im doing about 120 for fun. 