What's for dinner? Was it "budget"?

[babytrees]

Bumping to hear about some more yummy budget dinners

 

[momx2]

Tonight was pork and rice/tomatoes in skillet and broccoli.

1 1/2 pork loin (cut into chops) $3
1 c. rice .25 cents
1 large can diced tomatoes $1
Italian seasoning, very little .5 cents
1 bag green giant steamer broccoli $1.10

$5.40 cents. Kids ate it all and very tasty and cheap!

 

[Sorsha]

Last night was NOT very budget, but was extremely tasty!

I dropped $15 at Costco on a package of their stuffed salmon fillets... nice fresh chunks of salmon, wrapped around a breadcrumb/herb/seafood mixture... crab and shrimp and other yummies. Cooked those in the oven with a little S & P and a lot of lime juice... SOOOOO good! In the summer we cook these on the BBQ, but I was SO craving them and DH refused to go out in the below-zero temperatures and start the grill (unreasonable man LOL).. so I used the oven. It was still awesome.

With them I cooked some broccoli-cheddar rice-a-roni ($1 a box, cooked two boxes), and a big bunch of nice fresh broccoli (98 cents a lb). Heated up a little cheese sauce to make the broccoli palatable to the picky people, and we were good to go!

It was sooo yummy, and I have lots of leftovers for lunch today!

 

[babytrees]

Last night was NOT very budget, but was extremely tasty!

I dropped $15 at Costco on a package of their stuffed salmon fillets... nice fresh chunks of salmon, wrapped around a breadcrumb/herb/seafood mixture... crab and shrimp and other yummies. Cooked those in the oven with a little S & P and a lot of lime juice... SOOOOO good! In the summer we cook these on the BBQ, but I was SO craving them and DH refused to go out in the below-zero temperatures and start the grill (unreasonable man LOL).. so I used the oven. It was still awesome.

With them I cooked some broccoli-cheddar rice-a-roni ($1 a box, cooked two boxes), and a big bunch of nice fresh broccoli (98 cents a lb). Heated up a little cheese sauce to make the broccoli palatable to the picky people, and we were good to go!

It was sooo yummy, and I have lots of leftovers for lunch today!

so for about $20 you got at least 2 meals out of it....sounds fairly budget and yummy. I do believe I am going to have to look for that salmon.

 

[kellia]

Pork loin in crock pot, red potatoes, and green beans here. About $4.50 total, I'm guessing.

 

[babytrees]

so what do you guys do for meals when you have forgotten to take meat out of the freezer and just have no clue what to fix??

I have a gc from Christmas I am thinking of using instead of cooking tonight...I will do curbside to go so it doesn't take up the whole thing butI need ideas for other nights.

Please!!

 

[bellebuzzandpooh]

Help me? I have leftover cooked ham......and no idea what to do with it. They wont eat it just the way it is thats for sure (dont ask). Trying to stretch what we have in the house another week.....

I know I'm late but for next time that happens, I'd do breakfast burritos. We do those a lot around here and they're a huge hit. Scrambled eggs with the ham chopped and mixed in, sometimes I 'fry' (non stick skillet, no oil) a chopped potato to go in the mixture. Wrap it up in tortillas with salsa, cheese, sour cream or avacado if you have it. Yum-O!! My kids like their's with ranch.

Tonight we're having 'fried' (again no oil, just in a non stick skillet) potatoes with beef gravy on top, fruit of some sort and a side veggie of some sort. Comfort food!

 

[OceanAnnie]

so what do you guys do for meals when you have forgotten to take meat out of the freezer and just have no clue what to fix??

I have a gc from Christmas I am thinking of using instead of cooking tonight...I will do curbside to go so it doesn't take up the whole thing butI need ideas for other nights.

Please!!

On those nights we have breakfast for dinner, sub sandwiches, sloppy joes or something like that.

Tonight we're having pizza. (that's another good thing to fix when you have no meat defrosted). I got the pizza for $2.50 (Red Barron- now it's $4.00! That's another thread). We like the thin crust 4 cheese and I add my own pepperoni (I add about $1.50 worth of it). We'll have some fruit or a fruit smoothie for dessert.

 

[OceanAnnie]

Help me? I have leftover cooked ham......and no idea what to do with it. They wont eat it just the way it is thats for sure (dont ask). Trying to stretch what we have in the house another week.....

I just saw your post. I like to make a ham and cheese quiche with leftover ham. I usually throw in some veggies too. The kids like it, because it looks like a pie.

 

[babytrees]

I know I'm late but for next time that happens, I'd do breakfast burritos. We do those a lot around here and they're a huge hit. Scrambled eggs with the ham chopped and mixed in, sometimes I 'fry' (non stick skillet, no oil) a chopped potato to go in the mixture. Wrap it up in tortillas with salsa, cheese, sour cream or avacado if you have it. Yum-O!! My kids like their's with ranch.

Tonight we're having 'fried' (again no oil, just in a non stick skillet) potatoes with beef gravy on top, fruit of some sort and a side veggie of some sort. Comfort food!

I'll have to remember the breakfast burritos for next Thursday....that's become upside down night....and that sounds yummy!!

 

[babytrees]

On those nights we have breakfast for dinner, sub sandwiches, sloppy joes or something like that.

Tonight we're having pizza. (that's another good thing to fix when you have no meat defrosted). I got the pizza for $2.50 (Red Barron- now it's $4.00! That's another thread). We like the thin crust 4 cheese and I add my own pepperoni (I add about $1.50 worth of it). We'll have some fruit or a fruit smoothie for dessert.

we do the totino's party pizza (2 of them at less than $1 a piece) but I am all out of them in my freezer....darn it....need to get more.

great suggestions...thanks!!

 

[douglisa]

I know you want recipes but I could not help but to tell you all how I save $$.
Tonight we are having some BBQ ribs they were giving away @ Sam's!
But usually I save money by shopping only once a month and making everything from scratch. I make a menue and check my pantry to make sure I do not already have the ingredients I need on my shopping list. I make 3 different lists...one for Aldis, Walmart, and our butcher. Alot of cities do not have wholesale butchers and if they do they are higher priced than small towns. So go to a smaller town if you can. Meat is so much cheaper and much higher quality. I have to purchase chicken elswhere as my butcher does not carry it. Aldis has very good chicken breasts in bags.
I try to purchase as much as I can @ Aldis first. In the earlier yrs of Aldis the food was known as being lower quality and fewer selections. This is not so anymore. Then I go to walmart for things that Aldis does not have or the quality of the item may be better. Some things at Aldis are not very good. If you would like to email me a grocery list I will go over it for you and tell you what things to avoid.
I bought a small deep freeze and some items I put in freezer bags that I know will burn. I put the menue on the fridge and let family members let me know what the would like next the night before in case I have to thaw something.
I make a few stops @ the grocery throughout the month for fresh veggies, fruit, and milk. I have a family of 4 and we spend about $300 a month sometimes less on groceries. I try not to buy premade stuff cause even though it can be nice you really have to pay for the convienence. No pop, only cool aid.LOL
I shop at Sam's for laundry soap, and hygene products. Sure they are expensive but in the long run they help you save $$ and they last forever.
Buying ahead of time may take longer for that day and more thought but it saves time and gas in the long run. Lisa

 

[Sorsha]

so for about $20 you got at least 2 meals out of it....sounds fairly budget and yummy. I do believe I am going to have to look for that salmon.

In my Costco, its usually with the fresh meats/fish in the butcher area. Good luck finding it... its SO delish!

 

[marcyinPA]

Help me? I have leftover cooked ham......and no idea what to do with it. They wont eat it just the way it is thats for sure (dont ask). Trying to stretch what we have in the house another week.....

I'm late in answering, but I make this PA "Dutchie" recipe...ham and string beans. I add potatoes too. It's kind of my Nana's recipe...I've adapted it. You just cube up the ham, put it in a large soup pot. Add enough peeled, cubed potatoes and frozen or canned green beans that the mix is balanced with the ham. Add enough chicken broth to cover all. Simmer these until the potatoes are cooked soft. Season to taste with salt and pepper. This is one of my favorite ways to use up ham, but it's not a hit with my kids. It's ok, because I'll eat it for a few days myself....mmmmm!

 

[marcyinPA]

Tonight is Pineapple Chicken. I got the recipe from the latest Better Homes and Gardens magazine. The recipe says it's $2.44 per serving...which would be 9.76 total. I don't think I spent that much on the ingredients, but I had to buy a few things I didn't have on hand...curry powder being one of them. I now have enough curry powder to last my lifetime. It'll go buggy before I can use it all!

It is made with boneless skinless chicken thighs, fresh pineapple, red pepper, coconut milk, and curry powder. Sounded really good to me!

 

[Sorsha]

Tonight is Pineapple Chicken. I got the recipe from the latest Better Homes and Gardens magazine. The recipe says it's $2.44 per serving...which would be 9.76 total. I don't think I spent that much on the ingredients, but I had to buy a few things I didn't have on hand...curry powder being one of them. I now have enough curry powder to last my lifetime. It'll go buggy before I can use it all!

It is made with boneless skinless chicken thighs, fresh pineapple, red pepper, coconut milk, and curry powder. Sounded really good to me!

YUM! That sounds really good!
One of those recipes that I know the Picky People in my house (read: everyone but me LOL) wouldn't eat though. SIGH.
Maybe one of these days I will make it for me and just have LOTS of leftovers.

 

[Sorsha]

Tonight we have friends coming over to play games and have dinner and watch TV, and we have having hamburgers and/or hotdogs.

I have about 1/2 a big bag of hamburger patties in my freezer which I will use up. We have plenty of toppings and condiments and vegetation to put on them, and buns, of course. Friends are bringing the hot dogs and buns, I have a bag of tater tots I will throw in the oven too.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

Yesterday it was leftover pancakes. I had a long shift at work, got off at dinner time, and was too lazy to cook, so I had Wed's breakfast. But I had made the pancakes from scratch, and they had peanut butter and bananas in them, so I did have protien and fruit.

I'm still not sure what I'm going to have tonight, but I better eat soon, since I have work in two hours. I think it may be a South Beach wrap, they had a bunch reduced at the store for 99 cents yesterday. I had $1 off coupons at home, and it's a shame I didn't have them with me, since then I could have gotten them for free.

 

[neatokimmo]

Tonight is fried rice. I am working through a pork roast that I cooked in the crock pot and shredded that I paid $3.50 for.

I used 2 eggs (17 cents), a couple of baby cut carrots (10 cents), 1/3 bag of peas (33 cents), a little bit of that pork (50 cents maybe, prob less), rice of course (12 cents), 5 spice (?)and stir fry sauce sauce (?). Two huge servings for $1.12.

 

[chocovrdmicears]

Today I made 'clean out the fridge' veggie soup...
sauted some onion, 1/2 of red pepper, celery, leftovers from the bag of baby carrots chopped up that didn't get finished..added 1 can of V8, box of chicken broth, 1 small can of tomato sauce, a couple cups of water and can of white beans...once that comes to a boil i add whatever open bags of frozen veggies are left in the freezer...tonight it was green beans & butternut squash...simmered for a few hours. I grate a little cheese on the bowls before serving..perfect for a cold night.
This will feed us tonight and we will have plenty of leftovers for the weekend.