Need very tight budget meal ideas

[grlpwrd]

Yes, rice, beans, potatoes, pasta, tortillas, and lentils make good inexpensive meals. The only thing is the high carbs, but I just try to move more.

I think ziti is super expensive to make. The ingredients for that around here total about $20. Plain pasta is cheap, mac n cheese, ramen, hot dogs, soup and grilled cheese, buy a whole ham make soup, sandwiches, etc. out of it.

Folks, summerluvv and I go way back from our days at MyCoupons.com. I must say your daughter is beautiful!

 

[joha]

Anything with pasta tends to be much cheaper than other foods and is filling. I make penne pasta with chicken, broccoli and alfredo sauce which is inexpensive. I use a box of penne pasta, a jar of alfredo sauce, 1 pkg of broccoli florets and cooked, chunked chicken. With two people you should be able to get a couple of meals out of it.

Another cheap meal is turkey. I've done it one night as turkey dinner, the next as leftovers, then made turkey pot pie and then turkey soup w/sandwiches.

I second this suggestion. I usually buy turkey instead of ground beef, is a little healthier and less expensive. We like turkey meat loaf, tacos, chilli, baked ziti and turkey burgers.We also stock on potatoes, seasonal fruits and I try to bake my own bread, cookies, pizza and other goodies. We are currently on one budget while I'm in school full time, in the land of no double coupons or loss leaders. I'm always amazed at the sales that some of the members post here. Also as mentioned before check your sales, I got two whole chickens on sale (for .59 cents a pound yesterday).

Hope this helps!

Best of luck.

Johanna

 

[liveforthemagic]

I think pancakes may just be the cheapest thing you can make. We started having them once a week--they really are filling.

You can get a box of Hungry Jack (or whatever brand) that is complete, so all you need to add is water. You don't even have to have eggs or milk! Throw some chocolate chips in, sprinkle with powdered sugar--and you feel like you're at Denny's.

Well, not really. But we all have to use our imagination during these tough times.

If you have a Super WalMart near you, you really should try it after you get out of your two week super tight budget. Its great for pantry staples, pasta, pasta sauce, condensed soups, etc.

Good luck--16 years ago, I was where you are. Believe it or not, one day you'll look back and remember these times when it was just the 2 of you working together for your future fondly. And it makes you appreciate the little things so much more!

 

[MinnieMO]

OMG....someone else has goulash, growing it was a tue. meal...wed lunch...its not to bad if you sprinkly chili powder on it...omlets are cheap, pancakes with a few links will go a long way...we do omlets once a week its cheap, easy and quick...I fry up bacon, put it in the chopper, store in baggie and use when needed....great with cheese and such...good luck you will make it..(I find some of my best meals were when I was broke.

we have goulash though we make it different I'm not sure how mom always makes it but I LOVE it dad doesn't so we don't have it alot he says he had it alot as a kid

 

[dreamin_disney]

I buy a large family size pack of boneless chicken breat (5-6 large per pk)
- chicken tacos
-chicken taquitos
-chicken soup
-lemon peppered chicken, side of rice a roni (cheese brocholi), veggie
-shish kabobs
-chicken enchiladas
-BBQ chicken
-fajitas
-chicken cob sandwich:cheese toast, grilled chicken, slice of cheese, lettuce, bacon and bbq sauce-oh so yummy!


Ground beef
-hamburgers
-taco salads
-ground beef and bean burritos
-meatloaf
-bround beef enchilads

Homemade pot of mexican beans
-bean and cheese burritos
-meat, rice and side of beans
-tostadas
-taco salad, with beans ,lettuce , meat, sour cream and cheese

 

[cirquelovers]

I think ziti is super expensive to make. The ingredients for that around here total about $20. Plain pasta is cheap, mac n cheese, ramen, hot dogs, soup and grilled cheese, buy a whole ham make soup, sandwiches, etc. out of it.

I must get lucky then. Tonight I made ziti, of course I make a huge batch (end uo with 2 big casseroles or 4-5 9inch cake pans)and then freeze a few but here's what it cost me:


I box ziti- 1.25
2 cans hunts spaghetti sauce- 2.08
1 big can tomato sauce .70
cottage cheese 2.75
2 preshredded italian blend cheese 4.00
1 1/2 lb ground beef 3.00
so that makes 13.78 and I made one 9x13 casserole and three 9inch cakes pans for later. I don't think that is too bad for 5 meals and leftovers from the big casserole.

Oh wait tonight I put in 1 lb Italian sausage for 2.50
and if you add the foil pans 1.24

so even with that, 5 meals forthat price is good for me. Especially since my guys are carnivores. They would like steak and potatoes every night but that's not going to happen any time soon

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

Porcupine Balls
1 lb of ground beef or turkey
1 cup of minute rice (you can use regular rice but you need to cook them longer)
1 egg beaten
1 can of tomato soup
1/2 cp onion chopped

Mix beef, egg, rice and 2 table spoons of the soup together.
Roll into golf size balls and brown in a skillet that has been sprayed w/ Pam.
Once balls are brown pour in the remaining soup and one soup can full of water. Heat to a boil the cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook about 30 minuets. My DD LOVES these.

Tuna or Chicken Noodle Casserole
I use the tuna noodle casserole from campbells.

Pork Shoulder- cook a pork shoulder in the crock pot and then shred it. Use it to make BBQ pork sandwiches, Carnitas Tacos,or Macha ( Carnitas, scambled eggs and fried potatos.

And the all time cheapy recipe - Chipped beef on toast !

 

[ty&brenmom]

I make many one-pot meals, easiest way to cut back on meat without my sons knowing about it.

My favs are fake beef stroganoff (spelling) and fake stir-fry
I buy the cheapest beef stew meat or frozen chicken breasts in a bag and use either 1/2 a package or 1 chicken breast.
With the stroganoff (spelling), all I add to the meat is a can of mushrooms, can of cream of mushroom soup, little milk and some garlic. I have poured this mixture on top of rice, pasta, and potatoes. Add some frozen green beans or other veggie as a side.
With the stir-fry I cook, frozen chicken breasts in a little bit of teriyaki sauce, add a bag of frozen veggies, and serve over rice.

We also do fake hamburger helper. Generic mac and cheese 1/2 a pound of hambuger meat and corn.
My sons love it and they have not yet complained. Then again they really aren't picky eaters.

 

[nurse.darcy]

Wow, I am not even on a budget and loved some of these ideas. . .I do remember the budget days though. . .

Faves. . .

Black Beans and Rice. . .I don't buy minute rice. . .it costs too much. . .buy rice in bulk and save. . .One cup of white or brown rice to 2 cups water. . .boil and then reduce heat, simmer 20 minutes or until all water is absorbed. . .heat black beans and sauce they come in over medium heat. . .combine. . .sprinkle with cojita cheese. . .found in mexican markets real cheap. . .very yummy. . .

Canned Spaghetti sauce (usually 99 cents) pack of spaghetti, 1/2 lb of ground meat of any kind. . .brown the meat, add the sauce and heat through. . .cook spaghetti like normal. . .toss all together and enjoy. . .

complete proteins here and good alternative meals. . .

 

[dougsmom98]

If you can find a spiral or whole ham at a decent price, you can do so much with that. The first meal we had with it all we had was ham, baked potatoes and a can of corn or beans. We package up the remaining ham into ziplock bags. We keep a couple out and freeze the rest. We use the leftovers for ham and eggs, pancakes and ham, my DH takes a ham sandwich in his lunch every day (it costs so much less than deli meat and tastes better), we chop it up with onions and peppers, fry it, and add it to rice, chop it up with onions and peppers fry it, and put it on tortillas - add eggs if you want/have them, in the summer we might add it to a basic macaroni salad and have that for dinner, sometimes we just fry a couple of slices and have it with a can of baked beans, you can use it as a topping for english muffin pizzas.

Also, if you do cook a large chicken or pot roast or something like that, BBQ sauce does wonders to the left overs. Pull the meat apart and simmer on the stove with BBQ sauce and put it on some rolls and you have a tasty sandwich.

For baked ziti, we just use a box of cooked ziti mixed with a jar of canned sauce and top it with mozzarella cheese. The price of pasta has increased here by 30 cents though, so pasta is not as cheap as it used to be.
Good luck.

 

[Harvest02]

Today, the 24th, is National Pigs in a Blanket day(according to the Hungry Girl Site). Anyway, Crescent Dogs are popular at our house. Package of hot dogs, roll them up in Crescent roll dough(could add slices of Kraft cheese also), serve with fresh vegetables, applesauce, and you have a complete cheap meal! We are having Crescent dogs tonight! Haven't made them in a while, and is easy!

 

[OceanAnnie]

One of my favorite lunches lately is black bean "soup". It's my quick version. I just take a can of black beans (.48), rinse and drain. Add a couple of tablespoons of salsa and heat in the microwave. Then I add a couple of tablespoons of low fat sour cream and stir well. Add a few Tostido chips (or a knock off brand) to that and it's a very filling meal. Tasty too! At the time I just wanted something quick. But it's really inexpensive!

ETA- I bought chicken thighs the other day. I skinned and de-boned them. The chicken thighs were .99 cents a pound. I got 6 lbs. for $6 and change. Great price!

 

[hopey1kenobi]

The cheapest meal I make for my family of 5 is Chili and it will last us for 2 nights. One pot and its quick and easy!!

1lbs to 1.5 lbs hamburger
1 small can tomato sauce (undrained)
1 can of diced tomatoes(they have chili seasoned)
1 can kidney beans(drained)
1 package Chili seasoning or 2 tbls of chili powder
1/3 cup elbow macaroni uncooked
1 small onion

Chop and saute onions set aside
Brown hamburger, drain (you could cook hamburger and onion together if you want)
Add Tomatoes, sauce, beans, macaroni, and seasoning, plus 1 tomato can full of water(I usually add a packet of beef broth as well) Simmer for 20 minutes.

I usually make cornbread (jiffy mix) or bisquits. This meal cost us less than $5 and last for 2 meals.

I understand about being on a budget, we have 5 mouths to feed!!

 

[momofpirates]

Wow, I just realized we eat budget all the time. There are some great recipes here. I usually have my parents over for dinner and sometimes a sibling so I usually cook for 8 people and the meals are usually under $15.

If we have a little ground beef left over (less than a pound), I spread the meat with a fork onto a hamburger bun (top or bottom), season, and pop these under the broiler until done. My kids just love these. It's a great way to use up left over buns and it doesn't take much meat. I usually make corn fritters with these, but I can't recall the correct amounts for the recipe.

I can remember when were were first married, we'd eat cereal or soup & PBJs for dinner because our budget was so tight. We felt like kings if we had a pound of meat in the frig.

Hang in there OP, you'll catch up financially and have a great wedding!

 

[Magic Mom]

Are you sure... because I think you are on to something. Tonight I am going to put the empty plates infront of my family and insist there is food on the plate. Maybe they will assume I am going crazy and just go along

Fasting!!! I meant MEAT less!

 

[Tazicket]

I think ziti is super expensive to make. The ingredients for that around here total about $20. Plain pasta is cheap, mac n cheese, ramen, hot dogs, soup and grilled cheese, buy a whole ham make soup, sandwiches, etc. out of it.

I must get lucky then. Tonight I made ziti, of course I make a huge batch (end uo with 2 big casseroles or 4-5 9inch cake pans)and then freeze a few but here's what it cost me:


I box ziti- 1.25
2 cans hunts spaghetti sauce- 2.08
1 big can tomato sauce .70
cottage cheese 2.75
2 preshredded italian blend cheese 4.00
1 1/2 lb ground beef 3.00
so that makes 13.78 and I made one 9x13 casserole and three 9inch cakes pans for later. I don't think that is too bad for 5 meals and leftovers from the big casserole.

Oh wait tonight I put in 1 lb Italian sausage for 2.50
and if you add the foil pans 1.24

so even with that, 5 meals forthat price is good for me. Especially since my guys are carnivores. They would like steak and potatoes every night but that's not going to happen any time soon

I must catch it good, too. Our is usually roughly:

1 box of ziti - $1.00
1 jar of ragu - $2.00 (we take advantage of buy one get one deals on this)
1 bag shredded mozzarella - $2.00
1 container ricotta - $3.00
(sometimes) 1/2 to 1 pound of ground beef - $3.00

So, about $11 for us (when we include beef) which is pretty darn good considering it will feed us both for at least 2 lunches and 2 dinners. Usually more than that. (I make one 9 x 13 pan full almost to the brim). We're pretty much sick of ziti by the time it's finally gone. We don't buy the cheese from the deli counter or anything like that - we get the storebrand pre-shredded.

 

[momofpirates]

This might not be an option for the OP, but it could work for others. We purchase bulk beef once a year, usually 1/2 a cow. Our last purchase was at $1.00 per pound including processing. We really lucked out on this as a coworker of my brother just processed three cows within a week and had to get rid of the meat. I try to not think about my kids once petting the cow on this farm! If you have to purchase a freezer to store all this meat, than there really is no savings for several years.

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

Albondigas Soup

1 lb ground beef
2 -3 stalks of celery chopped
2 carrotts chopped
1/2 cp chopped onion
garlic powder
season salt
1 large can V8 juice

Mix beef, onion and seasonings together and roll into meat balls
Pour V8 juice in large pot and refill the can with water. Add the water to the juice. Add veggies and meat balls heat, to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cooker about 45 minutes or until veggies are tender. Serve w/ warm flour tortilias.

 

[jennifermae]

I like to make what my mom always called Spanish Rice( why she called it Spanish rice, I dont know......)

1 lb ground beef, browned
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped,
1 can tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatos (you could use the diced canned tomatos that come with the green peppers and onions in it and omit the above fresh onion and pepper)
1 pot of rice, cooked

Brown the ground beef, onion and peppers until cooked thru. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and salt, pepper to taste. ( I add cayenne pepper to half of it --finish in two casserole pans instead of one--some like it hot, some like it not...)

Mix meat and tomato mixture with the cooked rice.

Cook in a preheated 350 degree oven until heated thru and sort of crunchy on top...

If it is just me and the girls I make this as an entree. If DH is home, I will also broil a chicken breast or pork chop for him since he loves his meat!

 

[LeesyUD]

Thank you so much for all the great suggestions! I have been reading but forgot to post the last few days. I do have great news I found out today that I got the temp to hire position that I interviewed for last week. So we will have more money soon! woo hoo! But we are still looking to stay on this meal budget. There are some really great ideas here! I know someone mentioned that $10 for a dinner for 2 people did not seem like a budget, however the $10 was meant to be the very maxium. I have been able to get us dinner for less than that before. I do not want to spend that much everyday.

I thought I would update what I have been doing with my budget We did pancakes once so far and have plenty left to work with still. I also made chili for for the first time (without the beans though bc we aren't too big on them) and made enough extra to freeze some additional dinners.

DMickey28: I took your suggestion to get the big box of rice, so we can use it for the chili and also as sides or any other recipes. And we also got a big bag of potatoes to work with. We have made potato wedges in the oven in the past and they have turned out great and we can also do the potatoes with chili you suggested. And also looking at the sale on frozen veggies, sometimes I assume the fresh will be cheaper than the frozen precut items, but I was able to get some frozen veggie sales. Oh and how I wish I had a super walmart bc I shopped there when I lived in FL but there are none around me

mybabesuz's: I took your suggestion for chicken nuggets and was able to get a big bag of weaver nuggets for $5. It will get us at least 2 meals and I got kraft mac and cheese on sale to go with it.

momofpirates: Thank you for the encouragement! I actually was so excited because I got a huge 240z box of honeynut cheerioes for $2.50! I was shocked. That will definitely make up some meals for us.

To everyone else: thank you again for the suggestions and I will definitely be making use of them soon.. I was going to get a whole chicken like alot of people mentioned and try to make some soup however I saw cornish hens on sale and got 2 of them for $8. The first one I am going to toss in the oven one night and the other we will make quesadillas or chicken soft tacos. When we got the beef for the chili there was a special meal deal at acme where if you buy a salad bag, shredded cheese and tortillas you get $4 off. And also I got 4 corn on the cob ears which were 10 for $2 so I will be using that somehow. And of course we got plenty of ramen.

We are trying to stick to doing these tight meals for a while so we can get things together financially. So thanks again for all the support!