Life Kit (NPR): How to Afford Food When Money is Tight

Host: Marielle Segarra
Guest: Kevin Curry, Founder of Fit Men Cook
Release Date: November 10, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of Life Kit focuses on practical strategies and resources for affording food when money is tight. Host Marielle Segarra is joined by Kevin Curry of Fit Men Cook, who draws on his own experience with SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and economic hardship to share tips, resources, and a compassionate mindset for those facing food insecurity. The episode covers finding free meals, navigating food pantries, seeking discounts, using helpful apps, and building low-cost, healthy meal plans.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Personal Side of Food Insecurity

• Kevin Curry’s Experience:
  Kevin opens up about the emotional realities of needing food assistance post-business school during the financial crisis.
  • Quote:
    “I was embarrassed. I was angry because I had done everything, quote unquote, right. But then a caseworker changed my entire perspective.” – Kevin Curry [00:53]
  • Mindset Shift:
    Assistance like SNAP “is a bridge from where you are to where you are going. People need help and it doesn’t look like one type of person.” [00:53]

2. Finding Free Groceries & Meals

• National Hunger Hotline:

  • Call 1-866-3-HUNGRY (English) or 1-877-8-HOMBRE (Spanish) for up-to-date local resources including food pantries, soup kitchens, and Meals on Wheels. [02:44]
  • Online searches are useful (“Dallas food pantries”, etc.), but the hotline ensures the information is current. [03:11]

• Veterans’ Resources:

  • Many veterans don’t realize they qualify for extra support via the VA’s social work office. Kevin advises veterans:
    “So many more people qualify than they think for federal assistance. … Check out the VA office, the social work office—you may be able to get more access there.” – Kevin Curry [03:33]

3. Navigating Food Pantries & Community Assistance

• Multiple Pantries, More Options:

  • You can visit several pantries for variety and choice; many allow you to “shop” for items instead of pre-packed boxes.
  • “I’m not saying you should abuse the system... but you can visit multiple pantries because they have different items. … There is dignity in that.” – Kevin Curry [04:20]

• No Immigration Status Checks:

  • Kevin reassures listeners, especially within undocumented communities, that most pantries do not check immigration status—just “get in line. You need some help, help is here for you.” [05:26]

• Fresh Produce & Mobile Pantries:

  • Many pantries have “fresh produce days,” often through partnerships with farms and big grocers—“it’s great food, name brand food.” [05:32]
  • Mobile pantries are trucks bringing groceries into neighborhoods; check by searching your city or zip code alongside “mobile food pantry.” [05:49, 05:54]

4. Free Meals for Kids & Through Community Centers

• School Programs:

  • Free breakfast, lunch, and afterschool meals or snacks for eligible students; underutilized by many.
    • Tip: Ask school counselors or social workers for help with applications and other resources. [06:12]

• Community & Religious Centers:

  • Sikh temples (Gurdwaras) offer free, vegetarian communal meals (langar) to all community members—“any and every visitor will be served … at all times of the day.” [07:30]
  • “A lot of that stuff is just open for the community.” – Kevin Curry [07:06]

5. Grocery Discounts & SNAP Enhancements

• Double Up Produce Match:

  • Certain markets will match SNAP dollars spent on fresh produce, making healthy food more accessible—“the program will match your purchase dollar for dollar.” [07:59]
    • Ask your grocer if they participate; usually a daily limit of ~$15–$20 applies. [08:26]

• Timing Your Grocery Trips:

  • Look for markdowns close to weekends, especially Fridays, as stores try to clear old stock before restocking.

    • “Friday… when the stock is low and they’re trying to sell these things, that’s when you see a lot of the deals.” [08:56]

  • For bakery items, visit at the end of the day at closing time—best chance for discounts. [09:36]

  • Just Ask!

    • “Can I get a discount?”—It doesn’t hurt to ask, and just being friendly can yield unexpected deals:
    • “There have been so many times just being friendly in the grocery store, I’ve gotten so many hookups, extra meat.” – Kevin Curry [10:04]

6. Food Waste Apps

• Too Good To Go & Flash Food:
  • Apps that partner with grocers and restaurants to sell surplus food at steep discounts (50–70% off).
    • “This is also some of the food that goes to these food pantries. … It’s great quality food, but they’ve just got so much.” [10:51]
    • Note: Must spend some money, but significant savings for good food.

7. Building a Low-Cost, Nourishing Meal Plan

• Low-Cost Staples:

  • Beans, lentils, rice, oats, pasta, frozen and canned goods—often plentiful at both stores and pantries.
    • “Frozen and canned goods, especially canned goods, aren’t bad… they are nourishing.” [11:48]

• Batch Cooking & Meal Prep:

  • Buy a few staple ingredients and create 3–4 different meals for the week.
    • Example: For $16, Kevin bought potatoes, ground turkey, an onion, bell pepper, cheese, enchilada sauce and canned black beans, making variations like burrito potatoes, cheesy waffles, party dip, and mini frittatas. [13:01]
  • Prepping in batches stretches food and reduces total cooking time.

Notable Quotes

• On Accepting Help:
  • “[Public assistance] is a bridge from where you are to where you are going.” — Kevin Curry [00:53]
• On Navigating Stigma:
  • “People need help and it doesn’t look like one type of person.” — Kevin Curry [00:53]
• On Asking for Discounts:
  • “Can I get a discount? … People genuinely want to help people. … The last thing they could do is say no.” — Kevin Curry [10:04]
• On Using Food Pantries:
  • “You can visit multiple pantries because they have different items. … There is dignity in that.” — Kevin Curry [04:20]
• On Using Every Resource:
  • “Frozen veggies and frozen fruits, I always recommend, … so that when you have these moments, you’ll have things to reach into your fridge to help you navigate those times.” — Kevin Curry [11:48]

Key Timestamps

• Kevin’s story and SNAP experience: [00:49 – 01:27]
• Finding free food resources (hotlines, pantries, veterans): [02:44 – 04:14]
• Tips on navigating and maximizing food pantries: [04:20 – 06:12]
• Community and religious food programs (Sikh gurdwaras): [07:06 – 07:40]
• Produce match and grocery discount strategies: [07:51 – 10:04]
• Food waste apps and tech solutions: [10:47 – 11:36]
• Low-cost meal planning and batch cooking: [11:36 – 14:38]

Final Recap

Marielle closes the episode with a summary of all the main strategies:

• Use the national hunger hotline for local resources [14:45]
• Know your options at food pantries: some let you browse, others deliver pre-packed boxes
• Look for mobile and fresh produce pantries
• Apply for free school meals for children (breakfast, lunch, afterschool)
• Check religious communities for communal meals regardless of background (e.g., Sikh Gurdwaras)
• Leverage double up produce matches at participating grocers if on SNAP
• Time your grocery shopping to catch end-of-day or pre-restock discounts
• Use discount apps like Flash Food and Too Good To Go
• Build meal plans around hearty staples; use batch cooking for versatility

For more:

• Follow Kevin Curry on Instagram (@fitmencook) and check out his “Ballin on a Budget” series.
• Look for other Life Kit episodes on budget meals and food planning at npr.org/lifekit.

Tone:
Empathetic, practical, and non-judgmental, reflecting both Kevin and Marielle’s encouragement that food insecurity can happen to anyone, and help is available for all.

For listeners, this episode offers a toolkit of concrete steps and a mindset reset—reminding us all that community resources exist for everyone, and stretching your food dollar is both possible and nothing to be ashamed of.