Feeding a family can get expensive quickly, especially when you want to make sure the food is healthy and filling. The good news: delicious, home-cooked meals don’t have to cost a fortune. If you plan ahead, use healthy ingredients, and stick to simple recipes, your family can enjoy delicious meals that everyone loves without worrying about the cost. The goal of these ten inexpensive recipes is to get the most out of your food, save time in the kitchen, and keep your family happy.
Hearty Lentil Soup
Lentils are cheap, energy-packed, and easy to prepare, making them perfect for busy weeknights. Slow-cook green or brown lentils by adding diced onions, carrots, garlic, diced tomatoes, and vegetable stock. For extra flavor, add some simple herbs and spices like cumin and thyme. This soup is healthy and filling, and tastes even better the next day. Serve it with bread or rice for a rich flavor.
One-Pot Vegetable Pasta
Make pasta more delicious and affordable by adding fresh or frozen vegetables. Sauté onions, zucchini, bell peppers, and spinach, add to cooked pasta, and toss well. Add garlic, olive oil, and a pinch of Parmesan or nutritional yeast for extra flavor. This one-pot dish requires no cleanup, so even picky eaters will love it.
Baked Potato Strips
Potatoes are cheap and versatile. Roast a few large russet potatoes and shape them into strips with grated cheese, sour cream, scallions, black beans, diced tomatoes, and whatever other vegetables you have on hand. Let everyone serve a generous portion of potatoes the way they like them. This is a fun, inexpensive dish that you can quickly scale up for multiple people.
Fried Rice with Vegetables
This quick stir-fry uses your leftover rice. Add cooked rice and soy sauce or tamari to stewed onions, carrots, and diced peas. For extra protein, scramble a few eggs or add cubed tofu or chicken if you have them on hand. This dish comes together quickly with ingredients you already have in the fridge and reduces food waste.
Homemade Sloppy Joes
Mix ground beef or turkey with ketchup, mustard, and a little brown sugar for a delicious, inexpensive, and flavorful sauce. Serve on warm bread, with rice, or even on a baked potato. You can also add grated carrots or chopped mushrooms to the meat filling to make it more filling and hide some healthy ingredients.
Bean and Cheese Quesadilla
Canned beans are a kitchen staple and taste great in quesadillas. Mash black or pinto beans and top with grated cheese. Roast them in a pan until golden brown and crispy. Serve with sour cream, salsa, or salad. You can make many of these dishes quickly and easily for the whole family.
Baked Chicken and Veggies from the Griddle
Place a few chicken thighs or drumsticks on a baking sheet and top with chopped root vegetables, such as potatoes, carrots, and onions. Rub with olive oil, add spices, and roast until golden brown. This easy dinner is delicious and saves you time because it has both protein and veggies in one pan.
Tuna Pasta Salad
Tuna is an affordable way to get energy and tastes great with pasta. Combine cooked pasta with chopped celery, peas, and a light dressing of mayonnaise or yogurt. Store in the refrigerator and serve as a cold salad for lunch or dinner. It’s light, kid-friendly, and keeps well.
Breakfast for dinner, like pancakes for dinner, is a family favorite and surprisingly inexpensive. Make a pan of pancakes with common kitchen staples like flour, baking powder, and eggs. You can add fruit, yogurt, or peanut butter to make the pancakes healthier. Mash or slice bananas or apples and add to the batter for a more flavorful taste.
Cheese-stuffed bell pepper
Cook rice, beans, tomatoes, and cheese in a large bell pepper and form into a bowl for easy serving. You can also add tofu or ground beef. The filling should be warm and the bell pepper soft. To save time on weekdays, this dish can be made ahead of time and stored in the freezer or refrigerator.
Healthy, nutritious, and budget-friendly
You can eat healthy with your family without spending a fortune. These 10 budget-friendly recipes are not only easy to make, but also delicious, healthy, and fun for the kids. You can save on your daily expenses and still eat well every day by choosing versatile foods like beans, rice, pasta, and vegetables. Even if you don’t have a lot of money, you can feed your family with planning ahead and creativity.
