>>139630
I recommending using this cookbook. That's what worked very well for me as a starting point, and I still make some recipes. Brussels sprouts hash and poached eggs is the one I use a lot to this day.
Your food staples will be:
>oats
>rice (ideally brown, golden, black, or wild varieties)
>chicken
>eggs
>dry beans and lentils
>regular and sweet potatoes
>root vegetables
>squash, zucchini
>seasonal food products
>pasta, preferably whole grain
>peanut butter
>apples, oranges, bananas
>frozen fruits and vegetables
>frozen meats
>organ meat
>corn
>whatever is on sale
Avoid takeout meals as much as possible, ideally cutting them out of your diet altogether. Once, they are not very cost effective, two, most of them are not very nutritious. Even McDonald's is a ripoff - at the price of their bowl of oatmeal or a baked potato you can make at least twice as many by yourself and they will likely taste much better.
As far as stores go, a lot will vary by the area you live in. You are in midwest? Good luck finding decent quality seafood at a reasonable price. Too far north? Avocados will be a luxury item. Living in New York City area? Good luck finding a decent grocery store with sane prices and that is not crowded all the time.
Generally, if you go to a grocery store and see a lot of Slavs, Asians, and Indians there, that store is sells decent food at low prices. In my area (Southern Wisconsin, basically Chicago metro area), ethnic markets, especially Korean, are the most cost efficient.
Aldi is pretty good too for most food items. Trader Joe's might be someplace to consider, although in my region it is mainly good for ground turkey, certain cheeses, and certain dried foods. Bulk section at Whole Foods has good prices, especially if you buy spices or want to just buy a little bit of something to try it out. Some of their store brand products might be worth attention too depending on where you live.
Farmer markets are another place to try, but some of them are just overpriced gathering spots designated to peddle shit to hipsters, bored housewifes, and richfags who want to pretend to be 'common people.'
If you can save up $55.00 for membership fee, Costco might be worth it. I recommend going between 10:00 and 6:00 pm, since you can get a small meal out of samples alone if you need to. Otherwise, you can use their online store without membership, and still order many of their products, but there is an extra 5% surcharge. Nuts, oats, frozen meats, Greek yogurt, feta, and cooking oils are usually sold at very good prices. Not everything is worth buying there. Most fresh veggies and fruit can probably be found at better prices elsewhere.
>>139631
>Beef as your meat source has better nutrition than chicken or pork
It really depends on what you need and on the rest of your diet. Chicken will be a better option if you get enough micro nutrients from organ meats, vegetables, nuts, and whatever else you eat. You also need to keep in mind beef consumption and heart disease/cancer correlation studies.
>Kale
Not sure where you live, but in my area kale is highly overpriced. It is not as bad as few years ago, but it still costs way too much for what it actually provides.