When I was living on a very healthy, everything home cooked, big batches at once student diet in the USA for a year and a half, I couldn't afford to buy fruit. Ever. rosy1 is absolutely right that if you know where to shop, you can get good fresh produce cheaply. Except it means going 'round to a half-dozen stores which is expensive in either time or gas. Also, I worry about how many 'food miles' the cheap veg has.

I make casserole-style bulk lunches that come out to 1.50-2.00 per portion. Cheaper than, or at least the same price as, just about anything you could buy ready-made or in a can/box. BUT they don't have much veg in them. Taras can't eat it... They have a lot of beans, and rice, and potatoes, and pasta, and tomato sauce, and tofu. But no peppers or celery or carrots...