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Pizza Per Dollar- You Will Be Surprised To See Good Pizza Near The Top Of The List


June 21, 2017 by SaraO

Efficiency- Sara:

Pizza is a go-to when it comes to almost any social event.

Birthday parties, Superbowl parties, even weddings (yes, I have actually been to a wedding where they served pizza as their main dish)! The question is: What is your most Efficient Pizza?

Best Pizza Per Dollar

New functionality! Click on a unit to sort

Menu Item Before Tax Price Calories Per Dollar Protein Per Dollar Cost If Eaten All Year Calories Protein
Little Caesars Large Pepperoni $5.00 448 21 $1,629 2240 104
Little Caesars Large Cheese $5.00 400 19 $1,825 2000 96
Little Caesars Large Meat Lovers $8.00 340 15 $2,147 2720 120
Jets Pizza Large Cheese $12.49 248 11 $2,941 3100 140
Little Caesars Large Veggie $8.99 240 12 $3,038 2160 104
Jets Pizza Large Pepperoni $14.28 238 11 $3,066 3400 150
Jets Pizza Large Meat Lovers $17.00 224 11 $3,266 3800 180
Hungry Howies Large Cheese $9.00 222 11 $3,285 2000 100
Jets Pizza Small Cheese $8.49 198 15 $3,689 1680 130
Hungry Howies Large Pepperoni $10.79 195 9 $3,751 2100 100
Hungry Howies Large Meat Lovers $15.00 193 9 $3,776 2900 140
Dominos Large Cheese $12.00 193 10 $3,776 2320 120
Hungry Howies Small Cheese $5.00 192 9 $3,802 960 46
Dominos Large Meat Lovers $16.00 185 7 $3,946 2960 111
Jets Pizza Small Pepperoni $9.88 182 13 $4,007 1800 130
Dominos Large Pepperoni $13.50 178 7 $4,106 2400 96
Jets Pizza Large Veggie $17.00 176 7 $4,137 3000 120
Dominos Small Cheese $7.00 171 8 $4,258 1200 54
Papa John’s Large Pepperoni $15.74 163 5 $4,488 2560 80
Hungry Howies Small Pepperoni $6.29 162 8 $4,502 1020 48
Papa John’s Large Meat Lovers $18.99 160 6 $4,560 3040 120
Buddy’s Large Pepperoni $16.99 159 6 $4,600 2696 104
Buddy’s Large Cheese $15.49 158 5 $4,634 2440 80
Dominos Small Pepperoni $8.00 158 6 $4,635 1260 48
Dominos Large Veggie $16.00 155 8 $4,710 2480 128
Papa John’s Large Cheese $13.99 154 6 $4,728 2160 80
Hungry Howies Large Veggie $16.00 144 13 $5,078 2300 210
Buddy’s Large Meat Lovers $21.49 135 6 $5,402 2904 120
Buddy’s Small Cheese $9.49 129 4 $5,678 1220 40
Buddy’s Small Pepperoni $10.49 129 6 $5,681 1348 64
Papa John’s Small Pepperoni $9.99 126 6 $5,788 1260 60
Papa John’s Small Cheese $8.99 120 3 $6,077 1080 30
Papa John’s Large Veggie $18.99 118 4 $6,189 2240 80
Buddy’s Large Veggie $21.49 113 4 $6,472 2424 88

Raw Excel Data Download Here

As we’ve known from our original Calorie Per Dollar List The Little Caesar’s 5 Dollar Pizza is your highest Calorie Per Dollar and Protein Per Dollar on the list. It should be noted, this food is 2 times more cost effective than any other pizza place. That’s impressive. However, this still costs about 2x more than we spend on food.

Efficiency- Michael: Tastiest Takeaways

I personally cannot handle Little Caesar’s anymore, I had it on Tuesday Nights too many times during my childhood. Apparently my sister having dance class was an excuse to buy those calories 😛

I was shocked to see Jet’s Large Cheese so high on the list, while we don’t eat much pizza, Jets actually tastes okay (IMO) and scored really well.

Honorable mention to Hungry Howies which averages around third place.

The difference in prices get drastic quickly too. Papa Johns and Domino’s costs almost 50% more. At that point I would go to a local favorite, Buddy’s Pizza for nearly the same price point.

Eat Cheaper and Healthy Instead!

Check out Nutrition Per Dollar, a gigantic study that will teach you quickly how to avoid the expensive foods and continue eating what you like.

Or…

Taco Bell Per Dollar
McDonalds Per Dollar
Protein Powder Per Dollar

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Ultimate Low Cost Healthy Food Guide – 44 Micro Nutrients Per Dollar – Data’s Best Foods


June 7, 2017 by Michael Kirk - Efficiency Is Everything

Update: How to eat for $1.50 per day

Quick Tips To Save Money On Food

Despite Marketing Companies ability to control your perception- Fresh Food is lower cost than Fast Food, Canned, Prepared/boxed, and frozen.

This math will change your life.

Consume More-
  • Milk
  • Eggs
  • Romaine Lettuce
  • Kale
  • Potatoes
  • Carrots
  • Beans
  • Peanuts
  • Spinach
  • (Flour?)
  • Butternut Squash
  • Jalapeno Peppers
  • Lentils
  • Canned Tomatoes
Consume Less-
  • Out of Season/Location Fresh Foods
  • Energy Drinks
  • Alcoholic Drinks(sorry not a ton of nutrition in beer + wine)
  • Brand Name Apples
  • fast food/processed food
General Results

Best Values- The Math

There are two types of data presented. Nutrition Per Dollar and Nutrition Ratio Total(Sum).

A straight addition of nutrients would yield an unimportant number due to a wildly high amount of Vitamin A in carrots.

The solution was to remove the dimensions of each to find a Nutrient Ratio:

(Ingredient’s Nutrient mg/dollar) / Max Nutrient mg/dollar

This creates a scale from 0 to 1, where 1 is the best value for that Nutrient/$. By removing the dimensions, we can now add these up. If we decided we wanted to weight one nutrient over others, we could use multiplication.

The numbers below are an addition of 37 micronutrients I considered beneficial.

On Data Collection- I nearly always picked the lowest cost option, and obtained nutrition data from here.

Lowest Cost Nutrition

Understanding and implementing top 50 ranked foods is valuable.

Nutrition Ratio Total = Sum of 37 (Nutrient/$ / Highest Nutrient/$). The original Nutrient/$ can be found below.

The Nutrition Ratio Total is good for understanding scale of value. IE: Oranges(1.57) are 3x more Nutritious Per Dollar than Lemons(0.51).

If you havent eaten a specific vegetable before, I’d toss the veggie into something you already enjoy. We started adding Spinach or Kale to our friend rice. After 10 minutes of cooking, it still tastes like my favorite fried rice in the world, but it has Kale.

Frozen food doesnt show up until #19, where Frozen Carrots are 2x more expensive than Fresh Carrots. The lesson here is to reduce/eliminate canned and frozen food. Fresh/Raw foods are typically cheaper.

One more cost saving tip- Replace a $1.69 Red Pepper with Carrots. Just as sweet.

Flour + Cereal- Apparently low fiber and enriched with vitamins help you score pretty well. Monster took a note from them. We sometimes use flour to thicken our soups/stews, but that’s about it.

Here is the Excel Data:

Download the raw data here

Complete Nutrition Per Dollar- 44 More Charts

*IU= International Units(Used to distinguish biological activity rather than raw weight)

Download the raw data here.

How To Eat For 1,000$/year

A half decade of studying this topic and having to cook for my ‘used to be picky’ wife, here is my ultimate guide to eating the most nutritious, healthy, low cost food ever. We aim to eat around 700 Calories Per Dollar and my ‘used to be picky’ wife now prefers our menu over restaurants.

Foods to remember

Protein– Beans, Lentils, Chicken, Eggs, Milk, and potentially discounted meats(turkey,pork/ground beef).
Veggies– Leafy greens, Carrots, and in-season veggies
Carbs– Pick Bread, Rice, Noodles- Don’t buy premade boxed rice/noodles.
Spices– Reward yourself. By eating at home you can borderline go wild on spices, sauces, etc… I’ll stay within ~1$ on things like, cream of chicken, a variety of spices, dressing, BBQ sauces, etc…

Make The Food Taste Good

80% of the taste is Easy

Salt, Lemon/Lime/Vinegar, Sugar, Butter/Oil/Fats, and umami taste good.

Add each slowly and taste like you would testing saltiness. If you are unaware of these cheat codes to cooking, they are worth googling.

The challenging 20%

Play around with texture, how you cook each type of food. Mess around with timing when you add spices/sauces.

My preferred texture, usually uses this method to cooking anything- Cook chicken on medium-high ~4 minutes, flip, 4 minutes, (optional deglaze), throw in veggies, cook everything for ~8 minutes. Serve on top of the carb. Change around timing when you add spices and sauces, the order will slightly change the finished product.

Everything tastes good. There are almost 0 foul flavors. Just make sure you Salt, Add an Acid, Add sweetness, Fats, and Umami (the 5 things up top).

Grocery Shop

I go to the lowest cost store in my area with a printed out grocery list of what we are eating for the week(we cycle through 28 recipes).

Writing the list was a solid 1 hour job to type everything out and plan it. We even sorted by isle. However after 5 years of using it, grocery shopping takes less than 15 minutes including checkout.

Pick fresh veggies, chicken, eggs, milk. Our list is more specific but we often will grab low cost, in-season foods. When in doubt- You are still saving money not eating out, and all food will taste good.

Buy fresh instead of canned, frozen. Avoid processed rice/noodles.

Need Ideas?

  1. Go on Google
  2. type in a protein a veggie and a carb, IE:Chicken Rice Peas

There will be a recipe for it. And since all food tastes good, it probably will too.

AVOID

Avoid Fast Food, Restaurants, Boxed Food, Canned Food, Frozen Food, Processed Food. (sorry, I just really want to save you money.)

Even Clif Bars on sale for 1$ off were less than 20g Protein Per Dollar.

Marketing is Crooked

You were told, McDonalds was the cheapest, most nutritious food. How did that 440 Calorie Per Dollar propaganda spread? Today its 2-3x more expensive than anything we eat.

How much did McDonald’s pay The Telegraph to write the article “McDouble is ‘cheapest and most nutritious food in human history'” ?

You were told Prepared Foods are cheaper than fresh food.

Nice move Marketing Companies. You got away with it for, ~20 years?

After years of studying cost effective eating- Healthy, fresh foods are almost always cheaper than anything a company prepares and re-sells.

We understand the convenience factor of having food prepared for us. That has value.

However, Marketing Companies pushed the idea their foods are low cost. I thought I was saving money by eating canned veggies.

Data shuts the myth down.

If you want to support Efficiency, Share with your friends. If you do, send me an email and I’ll send you my cookbook free!

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“Eat Mas!” Taco Bell Menu – Calories and Protein Per Dollar


May 24, 2017 by Michael Kirk - Efficiency Is Everything

Taco Bell is my guilty pleasure. Mrs. Efficiency was dead set on hating Taco Bell, suffering on hard tacos with Ground Beef and lettuce. No cheese, nothing-

The magic of a Loaded Potato Griller has changed her life forever.

Save Money At Taco Bell

Takeaways

  • Beefy 5 Layer Burrito – Is no longer the highest Calorie Per Dollar item at Taco Bell
  • The highest protein per dollar item is the Sausage Flatbread Quesadilla
  • the highest calorie per dollar item is the Beefy Fritos Burrito at 440 calories per dollar.
  • Shredded Chicken Mini Quesadilla– High protein per dollar but low in calories.
New functionality! Click on a unit to sort

Menu Item Before Tax Price Calories Per Dollar Protein Per Dollar Cost If Eaten All Year Calories Protein
Beefy Fritos Burrito $1.00 430 13.0 1698 430 13
Cheesy Bean and Rice Burrito $1.00 420 11.0 1738 420 11
Grilled Breakfast Burrito $1.00 340 11.0 2147 340 11
Grilled Breakfast Burrito Fiesta Potato $1.00 340 10.0 2147 340 10
Sausage Flatbread Quesadilla $1.00 330 14.0 2212 330 14
Triple Layer Nachos $1.00 320 7.0 2281 320 7
Bean Burrito $1.19 311 11.8 2348 370 14
Beefy 5 Layer Burrito $1.69 296 11.2 2467 500 19
Caramel Apple Empanada $1.00 280 3.0 2607 280 3
Cheesy Burrito $1.79 274 12.8 2667 490 23
Breakfast Crunchwrap $2.49 269 8.4 2713 670 21
Loaded Potato Griller $1.59 258 7.5 2831 410 12
Quesarito $2.49 257 8.4 2840 640 21
Breakfast Soft Taco $1.00 240 11.0 3042 240 11
Beefy Nacho Griller $1.59 233 7.5 3137 370 12
Breakfast Quesadilla $1.99 231 9.5 3158 460 19
Spicy Potato Soft Taco $1.00 230 5.0 3174 230 5
Nachos Bellgrande $3.29 228 5.8 3202 750 19
Breakfast Crunchwrap California $2.79 226 7.5 3233 630 21
Chipotle Chicken Loaded Griller $1.59 214 8.8 3414 340 14
Shredded Chicken Burrito $1.89 212 8.5 3449 400 16
Beef Mini Quesadilla $1.00 210 9.0 3476 210 9
Spicy Tostada $1.00 210 6.0 3476 210 6
XXL Grilled Stuft Burrito-Beef $4.19 205 7.6 3557 860 32
Grande Scambler $3.29 191 7.3 3812 630 24
Cinnabon Delights 12 pack $4.89 190 1.8 3838 930 9
Cheese Quesadilla $2.49 185 7.6 3952 460 19
Combo Burrito $2.49 181 8.4 4039 450 21
Cheesy Roll Up $1.00 180 9.0 4056 180 9
Mini Skillet Bowl $1.00 180 5.0 4056 180 5
Shredded Chicken Mini Quesadilla $1.00 180 12.0 4056 180 12
Cheesy Potato Burrito $2.69 178 6.7 4091 480 18
Nacho Supreme $2.49 177 5.2 4131 440 13
Black Bean Burrito $2.19 174 6.4 4207 380 14
Cinnabon Delights 4 pack $1.79 173 1.7 4215 310 3
Cheesy Gordita Crunch $2.89 173 6.9 4219 500 20
Cheesy Gordita Crunch $2.89 173 6.9 4219 500 20
Doubledilla- Steak w/ chips and salsa $4.99 170 8.0 4286 850 40
Cinnamon Twists $1.00 170 1.0 4294 170 1
Double Decker Taco $1.89 169 7.4 4312 320 14
Doubledilla- Chicken w/ chips and salsa $4.99 168 8.2 4337 840 41
Chips & Salsa $1.49 168 2.0 4351 250 3
Crunchwrap Supreme $3.19 166 5.0 4394 530 16
Cheesy Fiesta Potatoes $1.39 165 2.2 4412 230 3
Smothered Burrito-Beef $4.19 165 6.7 4433 690 28
Mexican Pizza $3.39 162 6.2 4499 550 21
Hash Brown $1.00 160 1.0 4563 160 1
Cinnabon Delights 2 Pack $1.00 160 2.0 4563 160 2
Quesadilla-Chicken $3.19 160 8.5 4566 510 27
Double Decker Taco Supreme $2.19 155 6.4 4702 340 14
Chips & Guacamole $1.49 154 2.0 4729 230 3
7-Layer Burrito $2.79 154 5.0 4737 430 14
Soft Taco $1.19 151 7.6 4826 180 9
Chips & Cheese $1.49 148 2.0 4944 220 3
Pintos N Cheese $1.29 147 7.8 4956 190 10
Naked Chicken Chalupa $2.99 147 6.7 4961 440 20
Fiesta Taco Salad-Beef $5.19 146 5.2 4985 760 27
Crunchy Taco $1.19 143 6.7 5110 170 8
Burrito Supreme $2.99 134 5.7 5457 400 17
Soft Taco Supreme $1.59 132 6.3 5527 210 10
Chalupa Supreme $2.79 129 4.7 5658 360 13
Gordita Supreme $2.19 128 5.9 5710 280 13
Power Menu Burrito-Steak $3.79 121 6.6 6015 460 25
Black beans and rice $1.49 121 4.0 6043 180 6
Crunchy Taco Surpreme $1.59 119 5.0 6109 190 8
Nacho Cheese Doritos Locos Tacos $1.49 114 5.4 6398 170 8
Fiery Doritos Locos Tacos $1.49 114 5.4 6398 170 8
Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos $1.49 114 5.4 6398 170 8
Chips & Pico De Gallo $1.49 114 1.3 6398 170 2
Power Menu Burrito- Veggie $3.79 113 3.7 6434 430 14
Nacho Cheese Doritos Locos Tacos Surpreme $1.89 101 4.8 7262 190 9
Fiery Doritos Locos Tacos Supreme $1.89 101 4.8 7262 190 9
Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos Supreme $1.89 101 4.2 7262 190 8
Meximelt $2.49 100 5.6 7271 250 14
Power Menu Bowl $4.99 96 5.6 7589 480 28
Power Menu Bowl- Veggie $4.99 92 3.2 7919 460 16
Chicken Soft Taco $1.79 89 6.7 8167 160 12
Grilled Steak Soft Taco $2.49 80 4.8 9089 200 12
Airheads Blue Rasberry freeze $2.19 78 0.0 9404 170 0
Premium Latin Rice $1.49 67 1.3 10877 100 2
Black Beans $1.49 54 2.7 13596 80 4

Excel Data Download

Taco Bell Is Expensive

Despite having a 400 Calorie Per Dollar item, thats still almost 2x more than we spend on homecooked food. Most menu items were around 150-250 calories per dollar, 4x more expensive than eating at home.

A year eating at home eating Efficiently costs around $1,000/person- Eating at Taco Bell, $4,000 a year.

If you have an efficiency request, I engineer solutions to life’s problems. Comment a task, restaurant, or process you want made efficient, I’ll make sure it gets efficient!

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McDonalds Per Dollar – Calorie and Protein Per Dollar At The Largest Fast Food Chain


February 22, 2017 by Michael Kirk - Efficiency Is Everything

WARNING: This article is in quarantine for potentially bad/outdated data. (Our data standards)

Cheapest McDonalds Food

mcdonalds-sign

With over 35,000 locations, this one will probably end up coming in handy.

How To Use

Select higher items that are similar – You get 50% more buying a Jr. Mac instead of a Big Mac. Not sure how picky you are, but some items are simply better deals.

Remove things you wouldn’t have ordered anyway – If you are a repeat customer, eliminate the over-the-top expensive items you weren’t a fan of. I never really liked their Fillet-o-Fish much anyway.

Fill up when desperate on Cheese Burgers – The protein + calories is going to be the best you are going to get. Consider purchasing a preferable item and one cheese burger for calories.

Should you get a drink? Drinks are technically Infinity Calories Per Dollar. Is it ethical to buy a soda pop and use McDonalds as a wifi hub all day? I can imagine drinking a lot of Calories, Caffeine and getting some work done.

McDonald’s Calories Per Dollar

If you frequent a specific location and want your customized data, download the list and enter your prices. The orders, calories, and protein servings are there for you. Also included in the excel file is Protein/Calorie and a dimensionless weighing system. Prices were similar enough between restaurants to make Efficient decisions.

New functionality! Click on a unit to sort

Menu Item Before Tax Price Calories Per Dollar Protein Per Dollar Cost If Eaten All Year Calories Protein
Sausage Buscuit $1.00 490.0 12.0 $1,489.80 490 12
Chocolate Cookie $0.39 435.9 5.1 $1,674.71 170 2
2 Apple Pies $1.29 356.6 3.1 $2,047.17 460 4
McChicken $1.00 350.0 15.0 $2,085.71 350 15
Fresh Baked muffin $1.49 302.0 4.7 $2,417.11 450 7
Sausage Burrito $1.00 300.0 12.0 $2,433.33 300 12
Cheeseburger $1.00 300.0 15.0 $2,433.33 300 15
Chocolate Shake $2.89 290.7 6.6 $2,511.55 840 19
Vanilla Shake $2.89 276.8 6.2 $2,637.13 800 18
Strawberry Shake $2.89 276.8 6.6 $2,637.13 800 19
Apple Pie $0.89 258.4 2.2 $2,824.78 230 2
McDouble $1.49 255.0 15.4 $2,862.37 380 23
Fudge Sundae $1.49 255.0 6.7 $2,862.37 380 10
Caramel sundae $1.49 255.0 6.0 $2,862.37 380 9
Big breakfast with hotcakes $5.49 245.9 6.4 $2,968.67 1350 35
Double Cheeseburger $1.79 240.2 14.0 $3,038.84 430 25
Oreo Mcflurry w/ candies $2.69 234.2 4.8 $3,116.98 630 13
Bacon McDouble $2.00 225.0 14.0 $3,244.44 450 28
Sausage McGriddles $2.00 215.0 5.5 $3,395.35 430 11
Strawberry Sundae $1.49 214.8 5.4 $3,399.06 320 8
Large Fries $2.39 213.4 2.9 $3,420.98 510 7
Sausage McMuffin $1.99 201.0 7.0 $3,631.75 400 14
Tripple Cheeseburger $3.00 173.3 10.7 $4,211.54 520 32
20 Pc. McNugget $5.19 171.5 9.4 $4,256.97 890 49
Classic Chicken Sandwich $3.00 170.0 8.3 $4,294.12 510 25
Sausage Buscuit with Egg $3.49 151.9 4.9 $4,806.98 530 17
Sweet BBQ Bacon crispy chicken $5.49 151.2 7.7 $4,828.55 830 42
Hot Caramel Macchiato $2.79 143.4 4.7 $5,091.75 400 13
Sausage,Egg & Cheese McGriddles $3.89 141.4 5.1 $5,163.09 550 20
Sweet BBQ Bacon burger $5.49 140.3 7.7 $5,204.81 770 42
Sausage biscuit with egg $3.79 139.8 4.5 $5,220.19 530 17
Pico Guacamole crispy chicken $5.19 138.7 6.4 $5,262.08 720 33
Snack Wrap $2.19 137.0 9.6 $5,329.00 300 21
2 Snack Wraps $4.38 137.0 9.6 $5,329.00 600 42
Garlic White Chedder crispy chicken $5.19 134.9 6.4 $5,412.43 700 33
Sausage, Egg & Cheese McGriddles $4.09 134.5 4.4 $5,428.55 550 18
Vanilla cone $1.49 134.2 3.4 $5,438.50 200 5
Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit $3.59 133.7 5.3 $5,459.79 480 19
Sausage McMuffin with Egg $3.59 130.9 5.8 $5,575.96 470 21
Fruit & Mapple oatmeal $2.40 129.2 2.5 $5,651.61 310 6
10 Pc. Buttermilk Crispy Tenders $9.69 129.0 10.1 $5,658.96 1250 98
Double Quarter Pounder $5.99 128.5 8.5 $5,678.83 770 51
Pico Guacamole burger $5.19 127.2 6.6 $5,740.45 660 34
2 Pc. Buttermilk Crispy Tenders $2.00 125.0 10.0 $5,840.00 250 20
Garlic White Chedder burger $5.19 123.3 6.4 $5,919.84 640 33
Sweet BBQ Bacon grilled chicken $5.49 122.0 9.1 $5,981.64 670 50
Mocha $2.79 121.9 3.2 $5,990.29 340 9
Bacon, Egg & Cheese Bagel $4.55 120.9 5.7 $6,039.09 550 26
Hash Browns $1.29 116.3 0.8 $6,278.00 150 1
Bacon, Egg & Cheese biscuit $3.89 115.7 4.6 $6,310.44 450 18
Quarter Pounder $4.59 115.5 6.8 $6,322.08 530 31
Big mac $4.69 115.1 5.3 $6,340.19 540 25
Steak, Egg & Cheese Bagel $4.85 113.4 5.2 $6,437.27 550 25
Southwest buttermilk chicken salad $4.79 108.6 5.8 $6,724.42 520 28
Bacon, Egg & Cheese McGriddles $3.89 108.0 4.6 $6,761.19 420 18
Buttermilk Crispy Chicken $5.29 107.8 5.3 $6,774.91 570 28
Bacon Ranch salad w/ buttermilk chicken $4.59 106.8 7.2 $6,838.16 490 33
Mango Pineapple smoothie $3.19 106.6 1.3 $6,849.12 340 4
Pico Guacamole grilled chicken $5.19 106.0 8.1 $6,888.55 550 42
Iced Mocha $2.79 103.9 2.5 $7,023.10 290 7
Strawberry Banana smoothie $3.19 103.4 1.3 $7,056.67 330 4
10 Pc. Chicken Nuggets $4.29 102.6 5.6 $7,117.50 440 24
Garlic White Chedder grilled chicken $5.19 102.1 8.1 $7,148.49 530 42
Fruit & yogurt parfait $1.49 100.7 2.7 $7,251.33 150 4
Hot Latte $2.79 100.4 5.4 $7,273.93 280 15
Filet-O-Fish $4.39 88.8 3.9 $8,217.18 390 17
Hamburger $3.00 83.3 4.3 $8,760.00 250 13
Egg McMuffin $3.79 79.2 4.7 $9,222.33 300 18
Iced Caramel Macchiato $2.79 75.3 2.2 $9,698.57 210 6
Iced Coffe $1.89 74.1 1.1 $9,855.00 140 2
Southwest Grilled chicken salad $4.79 73.1 7.7 $9,990.57 350 37
Artisan Grilled Chicken $5.29 71.8 7.0 $10,162.37 380 37
Bacon Ranch salad w/ Grilled chicken $4.59 69.7 9.2 $10,470.94 320 42
Egg White delight McMuffin $3.89 66.8 4.6 $10,921.92 260 18
Iced Latte $2.79 43.0 2.2 $16,972.50 120 6
Cappuccino $2.79 43.0 3.9 $16,972.50 120 11

Raw Data Download

Key Takeaways

  1. Despite The Telegraph claiming the McDouble is the cheapest and most nutritious food in human history. It doesnt stack up to similar home cooked foods.
  2. The McDouble and the Cheese Burger are the highest protein per dollar items at 15g/$. This is 33% more expensive than canned tuna and over 300% more expensive than chicken breasts. Honorable mention to the 20% more expensive McChicken.
  3. You could fill up on empty carbs with their 430 Calories Per Dollar Chocolate Chip Cookies. Not exactly healthy, but I’ve done similar if I made a protein shake and wanted some solid food.
  4. It seems McDonalds runs sales, see their $1 cheese burger. In this case it was a top deal.

See how we apply engineering to life.

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Caffeine Per Dollar List – Cheapest Forms Of Caffeine, Coffee, Tea, and Energy Drinks


December 7, 2016 by Michael Kirk - Efficiency Is Everything

coffee

Lead Engineer- Michael Kirk:

Bolded are some insightful comparisons.

Take note of how similar products have similar amounts of Caffeine Per Dollar. McDonalds and Starbucks were comparable to each other, but much more expensive than their home brew counterparts.

CaffeinePerDollar2
Download Excel File Here

7 Take Aways

  1. Drip Coffee is often the most cost efficient around $0.02/cup
  2. Diet Coke has more caffeine than regular Coke.
  3. Making Coffee in the Keurig is 32x more expensive than Drip Coffee
  4. Making your own Starbucks at home saves 3x.
  5. 25 Cent Office coffee costs ~9x more than if you made it your own
  6. Energy Drinks are expensive,and often on par with Starbucks and McDonalds
  7. Caffeine pills can be comparable to drip coffee, or sometimes 5x more expensive.

Caffeine Study Routine

Got me through many Chem Engineering exams-

>Eat Dinner
>Take Caffeine Pill with a bunch of water
>Set timer for 40 minutes, enjoy life to the fullest- aka game.
>Timer rings, caffeine kicks in, get to work
>Set timer for 5 hours (you study until the half life hits)
>Dream about the subject matter

Bonus points if you ran or napped recently. Worked best for Organic Chem, I used to dream in compounds.

I hope I dont kill anyone

There are two items I didnt list above, but collected data for.

1,500 g Caffeine Powder Pure (Synthetic) From PureBulk – 22,000 mg Caffeine Per Dollar

25 kg 100% Pure Caffeine Anhydrous USP From Nutra Vita Shop – 38,400 mg Caffeine Per Dollar

The problem with pure caffeine is that a scoop of it will kill you. That teaspoon you use to scoop sugar with could kill a few people. Not easy to use.

Ever since BOFAD(Bag of Flour A Day) became a meme on fitness message boards, I’m a bit more conservative on what I put in an infographic.

I’ll take my delicious house coffee. Black or lots of cream lots of sugar – I love coffee.

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Applying Protein Per Dollar – Easy And Affordable Ways To Lose Weight And Build Muscle


June 9, 2016 by Michael Kirk - Efficiency Is Everything

Protein Per Dollar has been one of the best indicators of food value and valuable to use alongside Calorie Per Dollar on a daily basis.

Check out our Food page for every variation on this- Calories Per Dollar, Nutrient Per Dollar, and more.

Protein Per Dollar

Here is the extensive list of items per popular demand, sorted by Protein Per Dollar:

New functionality! Click on a unit to sort

Item Before Tax Price Calories Per Dollar Protein Per Dollar Cost If Eaten All Year Calories Protein
Flour $1.68 4,464 134 $163.52 7500 3
Lentils $1.12 929 116 $786.15 1040 10
White Bread $0.78 3,333 103 $219.00 2600 4
Pinto Beans (10lbs) $9.12 1,026 80 $711.28 9360 7
Turkey Thanksgiving Sale $1.08 407 78 $1,791.82 440 21
Plain Oats $7.89 2,148 72 $339.81 16950 5
Eggs (Costco) $3.59 802 70 $909.97 2880 7
Angel Hair $1.00 1,600 56 $456.25 1600 7
White Pasta $1.00 1,600 56 $456.25 1600 7
0.5% Milk $2.29 699 56 $1,044.81 1600 8
Peanut Butter $10.99 1,487 55 $490.99 16340 7
Bread Crumbs $1.08 1,556 52 $469.29 1680 4
Chicken $2.09 239 50 $3,057.52 499 104.7
Whole Milk $2.59 902 49 $809.38 2336 8
Whole Wheat Pasta $1.00 1,470 49 $496.60 1470 7
Dry 15 Bean Soup $2.64 727 48 $1,003.75 1920 8
Mackerel (canned) $1.38 348 48 $2,098.75 480 11
Rice $6.53 2,320 46 $314.65 15150 3
Pork Sirloin Tip Roast $1.99 203 45 $3,591.66 404.4642857 22
Cytosport $45.99 228 44 $3,197.40 10500 27
Eggs (Walmart) $2.48 566 44 $1,289.46 1404 6
Ramen $2.34 1,949 41 $374.61 4560 4
Pearled Barley $0.98 1,429 41 $511.00 1400 4
Whole Wheat Bread $1.48 946 41 $771.71 1400 3
Kidney Beans Canned $0.68 515 36 $1,418.29 350 7
Tilapia $6.98 167 34 $4,368.69 1166.344828 23
Bagels $1.48 851 32 $857.46 1260 8
Muscle Milk $26.99 289 31 $2,525.99 7800 16
Kraft Mac And Cheese $1.00 780 30 $935.90 780 10
Pollock $5.98 140 30 $5,224.36 835.5854922 38
Instant Rice $2.44 1,148 29 $636.14 2800 5
88/12 Ground Beef $3.19 264 28 $2,766.14 841.8584071 22
Goldfish Crackers $7.99 964 28 $757.49 7700 4
Frozen Pizza $2.50 576 27 $1,267.36 1440 17
Velveeta Slices $2.78 302 26 $2,415.95 840 3
Albacore Canned Tuna $14.89 113 26 $6,470.06 1680 16
Frozen Peas $1.98 354 25 $2,064.86 700 5
Quinoa $9.99 673 25 $1,085.22 6720 6
Cottage Cheese(4% fat) $2.64 250 25 $2,920.00 660 11
Cheez-its $5.49 1,230 25 $593.73 6750 3
Great Value Italian Sausage $2.58 407 23 $1,793.71 1050 12
Canned Chicken $0.98 115 23 $6,359.11 112.5 9
Frozen Breakfast Sausages $3.98 588 23 $1,241.62 2340 7
72/27 Ground Beef $12.70 439 21 $1,661.08 5581.324219 17
Egg Whites (carton) $2.36 106 21 $6,891.20 250 5
Little Caesar’s 5 Dollar Pizza $5.30 423 21 $1,727.23 2240 112
Flour Large Taco Shells $2.38 882 21 $827.33 2100 5
Hamburger Buns $1.18 610 20 $1,196.39 720 3
Velveeta Mac and Cheese $1.98 545 20 $1,338.33 1080 13
Instant Oatmeal $1.68 762 19 $958.13 1280 4
Great Value Ravioli $0.75 587 19 $1,244.32 440 7
Frozen Burrito $0.44 614 18 $1,189.63 270 8
McDouble $1.30 300 18 $2,433.33 390 23
Chipotle $3.30 248 17 $2,937.80 820 56.5
Greek Yogurt $3.48 161 16 $4,536.43 560 14
Evaporated Milk $0.64 313 16 $2,336.00 200 2
Beef Jerky $14.99 96 16 $7,599.10 1440 13
Applebee’s Boneless BBQ Wings $5.18 170 15 $4,292.90 880 79
Raisin Bread $2.59 452 15 $1,615.98 1170 3
Sausage McMuffin $1.00 370 15 $1,972.97 370 15
Taco Bell Beefy 5 $1.30 400 15 $1,825.00 520 19
Salmon $1.42 85 14 $8,638.33 120 10
Pasta Sides $1.30 508 14 $1,437.88 660 9
Sliced Turkey Breast(Jeanie O) $5.98 78 14 $9,353.21 466.7272727 6
Cliff Bar $18.45 319 14 $2,290.56 5880 10.5
Bagel Bites $9.99 360 13 $2,025.75 3600 7
Great Value Waffles $3.97 544 12 $1,341.71 2160 4
Hamburger Helper $1.25 600 12 $1,216.67 750 3
Quinoa $9.48 287 12 $2,544.26 2720 7
Lunchable $1.06 236 11 $3,095.20 250 12
Sour Cream $2.08 387 11 $1,886.21 805 1
Crisp Rice $2.74 712 11 $1,025.74 1950 2
Large Tomato Sauce Canned $1.24 210 10 $3,481.54 260 1
Ego Waffles $4.58 498 10 $1,466.40 2280 4
Organic Tomato Paste $5.99 311 10 $2,350.91 1860 1
Bacon $5.48 179 10 $4,082.04 980 8
Costco Broccoli Cheddar Soup $7.49 256 10 $2,847.76 1920 9
Speedway Maple Sausage Biscuit $1.05 276 10 $2,641.59 290 10
Hershey’s Kisses $8.98 624 9 $1,170.61 5600 3
Great Value Southern Hash $2.00 315 9 $2,317.46 630 2
Cream Cheese $1.98 404 8 $1,806.75 800 2
Nutrigrain $12.99 443 7 $1,646.30 5760 2
Poptarts(Chocolate) $3.68 652 7 $1,119.33 2400 2
White Onion $0.88 206 6 $3,545.25 181.2 2
Subway Footlong $5.00 138 6 $5,289.86 690 31
Cream of Chicken Soup $1.25 140 6 $5,214.29 175 3
Bagel Bites $7.97 251 5 $2,909.05 2000 4
Crescent Roll $1.68 476 5 $1,533.00 800 1
Hershey’s Chocolate $3.94 320 5 $2,282.70 1260 3
Organic Diced Tomatoes $5.99 65 4 $11,212.05 390 1
Costco Sushi $11.99 158 4 $4,631.06 1890 5
Banana $1.34 299 3 $2,445.50 400 1
Frozen Mixed Fruit $8.47 107 2 $6,794.62 910 1
Frozen Raspberries $6.98 57 1 $12,738.50 400 2
Frozen Blueberries $11.48 70 1 $10,475.50 800 1
Raspberries $4.98 13 0 $55,929.23 65 1.5
Sugar $2.98 2,854 0 $255.78 8505 0
Extra Virgin Olive Oil 101fl oz. $19.28 1,245 0 $586.43 24000 0
Chocolate Frosting $1.48 1,230 0 $593.63 1820 0
Dr. Thunder $0.84 952 0 $766.50 800 0
Olive Oil (Costco) $25.99 923 0 $790.53 24000 0
Large Heavy Whipping Cream $3.78 847 0 $862.31 3200 0
Butter $4.28 748 0 $976.38 3200 0
Miracle Whip $6.59 728 0 $1,002.23 4800 0
Sweet Baby Rays BBQ $3.48 624 0 $1,170.69 2170 0
Frozen Chopped Onions $1.00 120 0 $6,083.33 120 0

Download As Excel File

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Cool numbers, now apply it to your life!

 

Delicious Data-Driven Breakfast or Lunch:

  • 140 Calories of Lentils, Beans, or (Brown) Rice (7-14g protein)
  • 1 tbsp Olive Oil, 14g of cheese, or 2 tbsp Sour Cream (70 Calories)
  • 150-200 grams of Chicken, approx 1 full chicken breast. (200 Calories, ~50g Protein)
  • Now here is the greatest diet tip I have: Add an absurd amount of seasoning shaker.

You want your chicken to taste like Fresh Garlic Herb? Change your mind, right next to that shaker is Savory Montreal Chicken. Sick of those two? Sweet Smoky Spice Rub is a fine alternative. Check out your grocery store’s spice isle and have fun.

Read ingredients and the goal is variety, if the first 3 ingredients are Garlic, Onion, and Salt its going to taste similar to the shaker with the first ingredients Onion, Garlic, Salt.

Dieting is different when you are excited to feast on an Exotic Garlic Chicken and Lentils with sour cream. Its a perfect blend of Carbohydrates, Protein, Fats, and Fiber to keep you full and satisfied.

Mass Production Application

My Sunday Routine:BeansNCheese

  1. Make 7 Servings of:
    • Beans – Throw in Slow Cooker on low with lots of water for 8 hours
    • Lentils – Throw in boiling water for 15 minutes
    • Note: Beans and Lentils really are this easy, strain the water and enjoy
  2. Divide(I usually weigh or scoop with a measuring cup)
  3. Add cheese, sour cream, or olive oil to each container.
  4. Refrigerate

Recommendation: Put a Fast Food amount of salt or seasoning shaker on. Make your first experience with Beans and Lentils a good one.

 

For Chicken Breasts:Chicken2

  1. Turn on oven to 375F (190C)
  2. Spray non-stick on a oven safe pan
  3. Get Chicken – Cut off any fat or gross things you dont want to eat
  4. (optional) Butterfly the chicken breasts to cook faster and evenly
  5. Throw on the pan, put in oven for 8 minutes, flip, wait another 8 minutes
  6. Take out and divide in containers. Refrigerate.

25 minutes to make 14 meals.

Challenge for you – buy a small bag of beans or lentils your next grocery trip, and try it. Its not like they are expensive or difficult this is about easy, cost efficient food.

The Ultra LazyDesperate

Don’t have time to eat a meal? Need to eat on the go? Forgot to prep food?

  • A double scoop of Protein Powder (40g Protein, 200 calories)
  • 8 Oz Milk (8g Protein, 120 Calories)
  • 1 Bag Frozen Veggies (~200 Calories)

This isnt a bad meal, this is merely a boring meal. Looking forward to a Rich Stew or Cheesy Casserole for dinner, this lunch will do the trick. Veggies can be eaten Frozen, Room Temperature, or Hot.

Lead Engineer- Michael Kirk:

Taking a step back from Engineering- I give you the 2 biggest cheats that got me under ~6% body fat:

Coffee

As a caffeine addict, I have a special place in my heart for copious amounts of coffee, even if we almost set our office on fire due to our outrageous consumption. Protip: use filter paper, not paper towel…

I know everyone says you need to have a breakfast to boost metabol- yeah yeah… I found that a cup of coffee in the morning could buy me a few hours, meaning a later breakfast, a later lunch, a later dinner, and no need for a late night snack.

That worked well for the first few weeks, then I started drinking about 4 cups of coffee a day. I could have went an entire morning and afternoon without eating. The blend of water to hydrate and the stimulant that our population enjoys seem to be a great combination to fight hunger. Before splurging on a snack, if you drink coffee, have another cup.

What about cream and sugar?

Don’t be weak, black coffee makes you tough. You want to be tough right?

If you must have sugar/cream, count your calories. I’d rather eat more mexican food for dinner.

Gum

Fool your body into thinking its eating. If I was hungry after a meal, I’d drink a huge glass of water and chew on some sugar free gum. After 20 minutes, my body would be full from the actual meal I ate. Mint or Cinnamon were choice as they have that weird taste that makes me not want to eat anything.

When I was going for an absurdly low body fat, I’d alternate coffee and gum for hours.

A stimulant, a trick that fooled me into thinking I was eating, lots of water, and a healthy diet. Its a recipe for success.

BONUS: Delicious Healthy Late Night Snack

Get frozen veggies(mixed or a specific), put in a covered bowl, microwave for 99 seconds, stir, another 99 seconds.  Once it is hot, add a Fast Food amount of salt to it and enjoy. Still less salt and calories than a candy bar. When you use the same tricks as Food Companies, you can make fresh food taste even better than their processed food.

What does a $0.90 meal look like? Get Your First Efficient Recipe- Delicious, Nutritious, And Takes 2 Minutes To Prepare:


Alcohol Per Dollar + The 4 Things That Make Drinks Taste Good


March 26, 2016 by Michael Kirk - Efficiency Is Everything

Hey… Sometimes you just gotta get “There”.

 

Today We Have The Data For MilliLiters Of Ethanol(The Drug In Alcoholic Drinks) Per Dollar Spent To Find Out The Most Cost Effective Drinks.

 

MilliLiters don’t mean much, so we calculated the number of drinks per dollar using a 45ml shot of 0.40% vodka = 18ml of pure ethanol, per 1 drink.

Drinks Per Dollar

The math:

  • MilliLiters (1.75L=1750ml) of Booze * percentage of alcohol as a fraction(40%=0.40) = 700 ml ethanol in the container.
  • 700ml of ethanol / 24$ bottle = 29ml ethanol per dollar
  • 29ml ethanol / 18ml pure ethanol in 1 drink = 1.62 drinks per dollar.

 

New functionality! Click on a unit to sort

Drink Price Percent Alcohol Drinks Per Dollar Cost Per Drink
Tequila in Mexico $10.00 0.35 3.4 0.29
Heaven Hill $11.99 0.4 3.24 0.31
5 O’clock Vodka $12.99 0.4 2.99 0.33
5 O’clock Gin $12.99 0.4 2.99 0.33
Burnetts $17.48 0.4 2.22 0.45
Franzia $11.97 0.09 2.09 0.48
Sobieski $19.97 0.4 1.95 0.51
Golrdans Gin $19.99 0.4 1.95 0.51
Four Loco $2.50 0.12 1.85 0.54
PBR $15.64 0.0474 1.79 0.56
Svedka Vodka $21.96 0.4 1.77 0.56
Smirnoff(1750ml) $21.96 0.4 1.77 0.56
Budwiser $13.77 0.05 1.71 0.58
Barcadi $23.99 0.4 1.62 0.62
Bush Lite $15.64 0.042 1.58 0.63
Oakleaf White Zin Box $10.97 0.1 1.52 0.66
Absolute $15.00 0.4 1.48 0.68
Hinekan $17.99 0.054 1.42 0.70
Oakleaf 3 Dollar $2.97 0.1 1.4 0.71
Budlight 24 pack $14.47 0.042 1.37 0.73
Miller Light $14.47 0.042 1.37 0.73
Coors Light $14.47 0.042 1.37 0.73
Kirkland Chardonnay $7.99 0.13 1.36 0.74
Skyy Vodka $28.96 0.4 1.34 0.75
Cores Light $14.99 0.042 1.32 0.76
Bud Light $14.99 0.042 1.32 0.76
Cptn Morgan $24.99 0.35 1.36 0.74
Cptn Morgan $26.99 0.35 1.26 0.79
Smirnoff(750ml) $13.49 0.4 1.24 0.81
Corona $17.99 0.045 1.18 0.85
Captain Morgam $24.99 0.3 1.17 0.85
Rolling Rock(bottles) $10.47 0.046 1.04 0.96
Absolute $37.99 0.4 1.02 0.98
Silver Tequila $39.99 0.4 0.97 1.03
Dos Equis $7.47 0.048 0.76 1.32
Soft Parade $13.00 0.08 0.73 1.37
Mikes Hard $8.47 0.05 0.7 1.43
Jaeger $28.96 0.35 0.67 1.49
Balies $24.99 0.17 0.66 1.52
Jaeger $22.99 0.35 0.63 1.59
Hennessey $13.95 0.4 0.6 1.67
Lemon Chello $21.61 0.26 0.5 2.00
Baileys $24.99 0.17 0.28 3.57
UV Blue Cocktail $12.99 0.0125 0.09 11.11

Download As Excel File

 

I learned something very important here: Yep, I can handle Smirnoff.

Doing this has brought to light how special “Specials” really are at bars. That $2.50, 12 oz beer gives you 0.44 Drinks Per Dollar (not including tip). Anyone want to pregame? 😛

Using Thermodynamics

  1. Make it Cold – Lower temperatures lower the vaporization pressure of ethanol. This means less evaporates into your nose, meaning you taste it less. Add some ice.
  2. Lime/Lemon – As talked about in the 5 cooking cheat codes, Vitamin C is something your body needs to survive. A squeeze of lemon will make your body like the drink better.
  3. Salt – Similar to Lime/Lemon, your body needs Sodium to regulate blood pressure, you need salt or you die. Salt around the rim, a sprinkle in  a drink, or add pop to it.
  4. Sugar – Your body tastes sugar as quick energy. Like Limes and Sugar, your body craves it.

 

Next time I’ll factor in the lemon needed.

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