I Ate for $3 a Day in Australia | $35 Budget Challenge (IGA)

I spent just $35 at IGA (June 2026), one of the pricier supermarkets, and turned it into 24 nutritious meals. That's $1.46 a meal, or under $3 a day for both lunch and dinner. Here's exactly how I did it, meal by meal. In this extreme budget challenge I take one $35 grocery shop here in Australia and cook a full week of lunches and dinners for one person, with portions left over for the freezer. No living on plain rice, real food the whole way through. I also share some options for budget friendly breakfasts (not included in this challenge). Everything I made from the $35 shop: Chicken & vegetable soup Pumpkin & split pea soup Creamy potato & corn soup Tuna pasta bake Vegetable pasta Frittata Baked potato Oven roasted pumpkin Toasted pumpkin seeds Crunchy split peas Most of these meals are naturally gluten-free. The only thing to swap is the pasta, so for a few extra dollars the whole plan can be gluten-free. GET THE FULL PLAN ($2), including shopping list and all recipes: https://payhip.com/b/fGZ15 Easy bread recipe for beginners: https://simple-essentials.com.au/crus... Timestaps: 0:00 Intro to the $35 challenge 3:53 The grocery shop at IGA 8:13 Chicken & vegetable soup 12:51 Roasted pumpkin 14:57: Toasted pumpkin seed 16:37 Optional easy bread ideas for beginners 18:48 Crunchy split peas 20:58 Easy vegetable pasta 24:55 Finishing the Chicken and vegetable soup 26:38 Pumpkin & split pea soup 29:30 Frittata 31:24 Creamy potato & corn soup 34:40 Tuna pasta bake 38:08 Baked potato 39:01 The final summary & cost breakdown INSTANT ACCESS to The Smart Kitchen System (Simplify Meal Planning, Save Money & Stop Wasting Food): https://simple-essentials.com.au/the-... Recreate my previous $5/day budget meal challenge: https://simple-essentials.com.au/extr... Download my free meal planning & grocery budgeting templates here: https://simple-essentials.com.au/meal... If you like budget meal planning, cheap healthy meals, grocery hauls and meal prep for one in Australia, including Aldi, Coles, Woolworths and IGA budget tips and gluten-free budget meals, you'll feel right at home here. New videos every week. What would you cook first from this list? Tell me in the comments, I read every one. Instagram: @simpleessentials.life Website: simple-essentials.com.au My favourite tools and products: https://simple-essentials.com.au/shop/ Note: Amazon & SkillShare links are affiliate links, which support my channel at no additional cost to you. I use and love all of these things personally. Want more minimalist organisation tips? Check out my minimalist organisation and cleaning channel over here:    / @simpleessentials