Inflation!

The food is getting expensive!

How are we to survive?! (Without damaging our health)

These are the usual whines from fellow Malaysians when GST (Goods and Service Tax) first applied in April (fools day) in 2015; 2 years has passed and we are seeing the effects of it and how the rakyat still whines and suffers that they can’t eat properly without overspending.

And they still spend their money at Tea live … go figure…

However, for me, as you have read my other posts and the reason behind it is that you have realized that I have challenged myself (and sharing with you) how I try to figure out spending thrifty and yet still staying healthy.

Here are my old articles if you would like to read through:

My Health Chronicles: Eating Healthy within Budget – Mini Overnight Oats #1

Colour Challenge: Wednesday Yellow - Healthy Budget Egg Wrap (My Health Chronicles)

My Health Chronicles: Eating Healthy within Budget – Mini Overnight Oats #2

My Health Chronicles: Eating (Almost) Healthy within Budget – Within MYR 1

 
Today, I would like to share with you, my USD 1 budget in Malaysia (less than MYR 5) choice of healthy food that can last you at least 2/3 of the day if you eat them sparingly throughout the day.

As a lot of typical Malaysians think, we must fill our tummies to the brim in order to have the energy; but we fail to realize the choice of food we consume effects how our body absorbs for energy.

We can easily go for a MYR 1.50 for a piece of roti canai and a MYR 2.10 teh tarik which can fill our stomach; or even a MYR2.50 rawa tosai if we feel like eating healthier, but they are all nothing but carbs (and a little fibre if you choose daal as your sauce). It doesn’t really help you much in your body’s real daily energy needs.

They’d probably just tax your liver a little more and you could get some fat stored in you instead of all used up thoroughly (especially for office workers like me).

Don't get me wrong. I still love them. I just stopped having them as my staple food.

So I have figured out with the same amount (or almost there, if you are talking about rawa tosai and teh tarik consumption) I have spent for my yummy Malaysian typical breakfast, I have exchanged it for more fiber of fruits!

Here you can see that these are my selections of fruits I could obtain, especially during Ramadan month, from places inside the “expensive Petaling Jaya”, yet I could still have it for a 1 USD budget.
At a glance, these will look expensive, but here is the secret

Choose local foods as much as you can

I obtained the apples from the weekend night markets where I specifically choose apples that are either MYR 1 (or lower if I am lucky), and I chose local bananas instead of the imported Dole bananas. Usually local bananas can still be obtained at small sundry shops, and you can also help support local businesses in that manner.

As for the cherry tomatoes, visit Village Grocer. They don’t come cheap at times but sometimes there will be a good batch of cherry tomatoes from Cameron highlands. I am always picky with both price and quality and so far Lucious is a great brand to look into.

If I can’t have dates, I will choose sunflower seeds by local producers. They are equally affordable when you have about 2 table spoons of them as part of your fiber intake.

And with that picture above, they really only cost 1 USD in total.

Not too bad living in a development country like Malaysia for foreigners when you know where to scout for good stuffs.

So in 1 USD I have my fiber, fructose, potassium, iron, vitamin C, protein, biotin, copper, calcium, vitamin B6 and magnesium.

Not too bad, indeed.

Thank You for Your Time

Please click on the logo to read why I have this project of 1000 SBD at the first place.