What are some of your go-to cheap meals?

Frozen leftover fried chicken from the summer makes a great winter soup or stew, coming with its own thickener. Just add veggies and a few spices. Also great with any leftover rice you may have stored in the freezer.

Its also one of my "company popped out of nowhere" quick meals.

That sounds great. I didn't even think about the fried part having flour/constrach for a soup thickener. I'll definitely have to keep that in mind. Thanks!

Never plan. Just buy whats on sale and eat.

I do a lot of this as well, but I'm trying to plan better for weeks where there are slim pickings or nights where I don't feel like going to the store.

I save by not buying lunch. I used to spend around eight dollars a day sometimes more on food. Now I cook and take a bowl of food with me to work.

I don't buy a whole lot of lunches out either, it's amazing how expensive they can be. I have a flexible schedule with my job right now, so I take the opportunity to be home for lunch and the savings have been dramatic. Thanks for your response.

I eat lunch out once every 2 weeks. On payday or the day after. I work my butt off...lol..I deserve one lunch out.

Lol I don't blame you.

Exactly. A meal out now and then is definitely worth it, plus there are some days when it's all you can do to get in the door, much less doing something about dinner.

Tonight I'm making a pretty cheap meal -- a layered enchilada type bake.

I took 3 frozen chicken breasts and boiled them with cumin, garlic salt & chili powder, then shredded them.

I had some tortillas in the fridge so I put 6 of them in a casserole dish, then put the shredded chicken on top. Added a can of black beans, shredded cheese & sour cream. Repeated the layers twice and will add a box of Mexican rice & a can of corn as sides.

Let's see - cost for this meal?
3 chicken breasts = $1.50
6 tortillas = 50 cents
can of black beans = 79 cents
shredded cheese & sour cream = $1.50
box of rice = 99 cents

Total to feed a family of 5 = $5.28 not bad
can of corn = 49 cents

That sounds awesome. I'll definitely have to try this one!

It turned out really good, actually. In fact my middle son (who's usually pretty picky) kept talking about how good it was and got 2nd's.

We make something similar. Two tortilla shells one on the bottom of the pie pan, one on top. Black beans, rice, cheese, and refried beans (or corn) in the middle. (I eat vegetarian as much as the boys will let me. And it's cheaper than meat.) Put either enchilada sauce on top before baking, or any combo of sour cream, guac, and salsa, and yuuuumy.

I'm sure it's always a great feeling when someone who is a picky eater enjoys something you've made. Reading these posts is making me so hungry!

I would totally use this purely as a vessel for sour cream and guacamole. I love both!

Me too. Ooh - and a great dip with those two. 6 parts guac, 1 part sour cream, 1 part ranch dressing, 1 part lemon juice. Yum yum. I use it on chicken fingers, chicken eggrolls, chicken anything.

Oh wow that sounds good! I definitely should not be reading this before I go get football food! Yummy!

It could have been cheaper if I just made Mexican rice from scratch but tonight it was all about convenience. :o)

There are some nights where it's all I can do to get in the door(and I have no idea how you do it with kids, I would have no energy by the end of the day). Convenience is there for a reason, because our lives have gotten insane. We may as well take the help where we can get it.

My cheap meal is to go with soup & sandwiches. I buy the soup on sale, and it winds up being under $2 to serve a family of 5. Spaghetti is another cheap one. Without garlic bread, it's around $4 for a family of 5. With Garlic bread, just over $5.

Yummy. I love both of these meal options as it starts to get colder.Thanks for responding.

I've been doing soup and crackers for lunch. It's low in calories, easy to make, and there are so many different types available.

I'm a big fan of soups(both homemade and homemade by Campbells) just for convenience. If you make it, all you have to do is dump leftovers in a pot and make sure you don't set the kitchen on fire, that's fairly simple in the whole scheme of things. I also have a not-so-secret love of oyster crackers. Yummy!

One way to really get the feel for the cheaper meals, is to make a meal plan based on what is on sale, and filling up on the cheaper meals more often. That way, you know going into it what things cost ahead of time, and how much you need to buy.

I don't really love bulk places, because I can buy my groceries much cheaper at the grocery store when they are on sale, and with coupons. It might mean one week we eat Spaghetti twice, and another week, eggs and pancakes twice, depending on the sale prices. But, we get a lot of variety, and spend far less than Sam's Club or Costco.

One of the perks of my job is that I get the Costco and Sam's Club memberships for free, so the membership fee thankfully doesn't apply to me. I know that it's possible to find some stuff cheaper at the grocery store but and I do check the sales before I buy something there(especially if I know I'm going to need a lot of whatever item it is).

I'm still trying to get a feel for making meal plans. Since my schedule is nuts with work, I like to have items that can be made ahead and just defrosted and heated. I'm still working towards it, but posts like these really help me get a few more ideas and a few new ideas on how to save. Thanks!

Heather - I've been trying much harder to stick with a meal plan but I can't seem to nail it down yet. Maybe if I do what you do and plan it according to what's on sale I'll do better.

I'm hoping I can get better at this as well. I feel like it should be easier for me since the only person I have to deal with is myself, I don't have kids like y'all do. I have no idea how I'm going to keep it together once I do have kids...

Back to the topic at hand though, I figure if I practice enough by myself and when I cook for my boyfriend and I, I'll be able to get it down pretty easily.

chicken casserole:
boil a chicken pull the meat from the bone (save the broth seperate cook the broth over egg noodles separate for a second meal)
put meat in a casserole dish
in a bowl mix together a can of cream of chicken soup and a can of sweetened condensed milk then pour over the chicken
then top the casserole with pepperidge farm (or any really) stuffing mix (we like the herb seasoned flavor) or bread crumbs (we dip them in melted butter) and bake at 350 until th soup starts to bubble up through the middle (about half hour to 45 min)

Yummy! That sounds awesome!

Bisquit pizzas - can of bisquits, cheese, sauce, pepperoni - make mini pizzas and cook like pizzas!

We use biscuits with mini hotdogs and cheese in them. My son loves to help make them.

I skip meals, and buy very little. I use coupons, but am always hungry.

Ick! Skipping meals also makes me very hungry and I have no energy when I do it SO I've been trying really hard to eat... I don't know how I'm not super thin. You'd think I'd be when I skip breakfast and lunch but we all know that in order to lose weight you have to actually eat regularly.

I skip some meals, but not many. Not eating really decreases my energy and since I have 2 really physically demanding jobs, I try to keep that in mind.

I used to skip meals a lot too. When I started eating regularly, I lost 10 pounds quickly. Guess my body was storing everything since I was starving it too much. Eating multiple meals a day is much better than skipping them. Carry a lil something with you if you don't have time for a full meal. I usually have almonds, granola bars, or dried fruit in my bag. It stops me from going by McDonalds when I'm out running errands too.

Eating fast food meals as a last resort really adds on the pounds quickly. I've found that eating at home(even if it's stuff that I think is higher in fat) is still far better than fast food.

I have a large pantry, so there are very few things that I will pay full price for, aside from perishables. I watch sales and use coupons and stock up when stuff is cheap. Like for instance, last time Elliott and I went to the commissary we got 10 cans of refried beans because they were cheap. We go through only about 1-2 cans a month, so they will probably last us about 6 months. We won't have to worry about them going bad before we use them, and we saved about $.50 a can. 6 months or so is usually what I try to buy when I find an great deal on something that has a long shelf life. For frozen items, we try to stock up about 3 months or so when stuff is on sale (we have two freezers).

I'm just starting to restock all my canned and non-perishable goods after moving a few months ago. I'm slowly but surely getting stuff on sale that I can combine to make meals at the last minute. I'm still working on getting my pantry up to par, but the recipes and your tips have really helped. Thanks so much!

lettuce

Haha. I actually do eat a lot of salads just because they are quick and easy. Thanks for responding!

I do veggie chili about $3-$4 per batch and that lasts for about 4 days.

I also do chicken breast sandwiches which averages out to about $1 a sandwich (and my husband can vouch for how yummy they are!)

MMM chicken breast sandwiches sound great - how do you make those?

They do sound really good. I eat out enough to do this, but I always get extra honey mustard from Arbys(theirs is the best in my opinion) and I just grill chicken breasts and throw it on a bun with the honey mustard. Marinated in Worchetershire sauce is good too.

I'd love to hear how you make yours Jennifer.

I throw them on the George Foreman grill my sister in law gave us and top them with a bit of pineapple for flavor. That's it. :) Nice and tasty, cheap and healthy.

The breasts are boneless and skinless too.

Yummy! I bet the pineapple is awesome on it! In all honest, I'd probably be more inclined to cut the chicken breast into chunks and put pineapple chunks in a bowl with it and eat it with A-1 or something like that. For some reason sandwiches and I seem to disagree as to how little/how much sauce I should get on myself.

Yeah they can be messy with sauces and such. I save all the trouble and skip all sauces and just go with fruit for flavor.

Less calories that way, too. Haha

Though your idea sounds pretty good, too. Might keep it in mind if I need to change it up or want to cut out breads.

I didn't really look at is as cutting out the bread, but that's a good point. I'd just do it that way because when I cook for myself I get lazy and just go with whatever is fastest/easiest as opposed to presentation.

I also shop at Costco and have the American Express card for them so we get 3% back at the end of the year, I try to use coupons as much as possible, I try and read the cost labels and check which is cheaper per lb or box. I buy as many generic products as I can and I try and use up the leftovers in creative ways.

I have the executive membership through my work, so I get 2% back at the end of the year, much like you do with the AE card. Shopping there can be more expensive if you don't watch what you're doing, but it sounds like you've got it down. Plus you can't beat their cafe for a cheap meal out.

There are some items that are actually more expensive to buy there - like Pepsi. We buy it on sale at the supermarket when it is 4 or 5-12 packs for $10. But the deal on their Kirkland Mac n Cheese is so good - comes to 50 cents a box instead of 65? for Kraft. Also the noodles are larger and they give you more for the money. My son likes it better than Kraft. He was a Kraft fanatic for years.

There are quite a few items that are more expensive there. One of the ones that I noticed is shampoo and conditioner. If you watch sales and use coupons you can save quite a bit more at the grocery store.

I'll have to try the Kirkland's mac and cheese. I'm a big fan of the stuff as well, so I'll trust your son's judgement and get a massive box of the stuff(especially since at Costco, I have no other choice). :)

homemade chef salads

Yum. I love making salads and putting tons of random stuff in there.

Grilled cheese tomato soup

This is an awesome, cheap combo when it's cold outside. Thanks!

i like to make rice with soy sauce mixed in and mix in scrambled egg too - it is pretty good and fills me up too!

Yum. I've made this a couple of times and it is really good. Wow these posts are making me hungry.

When I make my spaghetti sauce I make enough to freeze some so that it is cheaper and easier to make when we are on the run..

I do this as well. I make mine from scratch using canned tomatoes, beef and sausage(the kosher committee would have a cow, quite literally). Anyway, I freeze a ton of it in smaller portions so that I always have a go to meal.

I cheat and use sauce from a can but I doctor it up with different cheeses, diced tomatoe fresh if I have any homegrown. and lots of beef

Sometimes I do this as well, I'm a big fan of Newman's Own spaghetti sauces since that's what I grew up with but I always end up adding stuff to it as well.

I buy two roasting chickens per month and each one = 10 single servings and that = 20 single servings. The Meat market (McKinnon's Meat Market - Davis Square - Somerville, MA) has great fresh and inexpensive meets I can pay $5-7 for a 7lb. Roaster when at Shaws they charge $11-15 for the same size chicken.

All of their meats are high end to low end in cuts and price, and they are small really small so everything sells out every day! So if you can find a dedicated Meat Market, you can eat well and save!

The produce is the most expensive items in the stores these days WTH! So I buy frozen veggies which are flash frozen on the farms (no storage = no loss of nutrients) and fruits which I can thaw and brandy for ice cream or pound cake topping!

A suggestion: I have found that coupons are usually for food products which are processed, you may want to try dry beans and cook them yourself, and making your own snacks is fun--granola is easy to make and quick. I have no one to cook for, just me so I spend about $120 per month (with cleaning and TP) and $65 on dog food. That is just me...prices vary from City to City so shop on-line to find where the best prices are and some places will deliver..(Stop & Shop/Peapod) I only use them in really bad weather.

That's a great tip. I never think to go to the local meat market unless I need something specific. I'll have to check it out tomorrow and see what I can do for meals for the week. Thanks for the tips!

I have cut my grocery bills in half by shopping this way!

Your welcome!

I have to admit that since I'm living alone, I tend to grab processed foods more just so I don't have so much prep work. I've never liked cooking for one but I've found a way to combat this. My cousin can't cook, so he gives me money every month and I shop and cook for us both and put a month's worth of meals in his freezer periodically and we both win. I don't have to cook for 1 person(and I pretty much get paid to cook) and he gets awesome dinners instead of burning down the kitchen.

I also hat to cook for one---so I cook large meals and cook ahead which is then portioned and frozen so I need not cook from scratch every day!

Sounds like you are good at coordinating tasks also!

I try to do the same thing, but up until recently I hadn't restocked my kitchen(I didn't even have salt and pepper here) so I was starting from scratch every night. Now that I've gotten the basics and I've started stocking up again, it makes it a lot easier to just grab a ready-made dinner as opposed to having to go to the store to get everything you need, including butter.

I've had to become good at coordinating. I have 2 full time jobs(by choice if you can believe it) so I spend a good portion of my time when I'm not working just sitting, whether it be in front of Gather or in front of the tv.

Organization is key!

I just posted a joke--not something I do often, so take a look it may brighten your day!

The Smartest Man IN The World!

Great joke! Love it!

Thanks! :)

White rice, soy sauce. Can't go wrong.

You've got that right. We keep rice on hand at all times. Right now there are....12 bags (I had to go count) of rice in our cupboard. We eat it so often, when there is a great sale or I have freebie coupons, we stock up. We also keep on hand black beans (rinse all that salt off though) and chicken. Add some shredded cheese, salsa, guacamole, sourcream and you've got the household favorite meal. (Our home version of a Chipotle burrito bowl.)

Yummy! I'm so hungry after reading all of this. That sounds awesome!

I've got to remember to add rice to my list. I've been slowly restocking my pantry after moving a couple of months ago and rice is super cheap and filling, yet I can't ever remember to pick some up. Definitely putting it on the list now.

Our cheap meal is...Rice and mixed vegtables.

Yummy. I love veggies and tend to get them frozen if I can't find them fresh. What kind of veggies do you like?

I like corn, broccoli, sweet potatoes, and all the other vegetables that are sold in my community. I have not eaten a vegetable I did not like.

There are very few veggies that I won't eat. Beets are the only things that come to mind at the moment. I absoluetly love broccolli and sweet potatoes!

By Beets, do you mean Beetroot?
There are local names for vegetables and fruit.
I say Rock Melon, you say cantaloupes
You say sweet Potato I say Kumera, oops!
That's a Maori word from my native New Zealand

The only Veges I don't like are tomatoes
I'm fully Allergic, they make me sick,
and the whole squash family
Pumpkins to cucumbers, get rid of them quick!

Pasta or noodles of some sort.
Spaghetti, Macaroni, Ramen, different sizes noodle and sauces or broths.

I still love Ramen. I must be one of the few kids who didn't burn out on them in college. A lot of times I will just use the packets of noodles and not even bother with the seasoning packet and use spaghetti sauce or something else. Portion control for 10 cents, can't beat that.

I make a lot of soups. I also make cabbage and noodles, sometimes with kielbasa.

I love soups as well and actually made a brocolli and cheddar soup the other day that was yummy. I didn't feel it was substantial enough with just the broccolli, so I added little bits of chicken and that was awesome! I love kielbasa as well!

I like using dried beans...red beans and rice are a New Orleans staple! And cheap!!!

I'm making red beans and rice tonight for dinner. I love them as well, they're a great way to eat and be full and save some money too.

We cut out a lot of meat recently and are making more vegetarian alternatives.That alone saves money.I didn't realize exactly how much.Most are meals end up giving us enough for left overs for lunches the next day.When I do have a meat meal or a meal that is larger like a rotisserie chicken and roasted veggies I roll it over into a soup the next day, a casserole or even sandwhiches. Frozen spinach is so cheap and you get more then fresh.Usually I still opt for fresh because I think it taste and smells better.We also keep a lot of beans on hand because they're cheap and boost the fiber intake of meals.Mexican stuffed shells are cheap and pair nicely with a side salad for dinner.

One can refried beans,hamburger *taco seasoning or use your own spices* I always add in some diced onion when cooking burger too.A box of large shells, some shredded mexican blended cheese and one can enchilada sauce.

Cook noodles al dente and drain.Let cool down.Cook hamburger and add seasoning as if you were making tacos.Heat refried beans up and let it cool enough to add to shells.Add a little enchilada sauce to the bottom of you baking dish.Layer a little of the bean mixture into the shells then add in some of the hamburger mixture on top of the beans.Layer them in the baking dish intil full.Add some enchilada sauce on top of the shells and then sprinkle with cheese. Heat in the oven for 30 minutes.Broil to brown the cheese the last 2-3 minutes.(I like my cheese browned so I do this anyways.)

Simple, fairly cheap and you can alternate black beans and red onion instead of the taco mixture.

I've been doing a lot of using meats for several different meals as well. I buy a fair amount of frozen spinach just because you get so much more and it's cheap. I'm definitely going to try your recipe, that sounds great!

Since I cook for 8 in our household, 6 of which are adults, sometimes it's really hard to cut back. Leftovers are hopefully eaten. I use alot of coupons, shop at places in the Richmond area such as Farmer's food, that normally have some fantastic buys on chicken, burger, etc. I also shop at BJ's and Sam's. I don't care to shop at Costco, as for my pocket it's way to expensive.
Since you live in Richmond Adelaide, have you tried BJ's?? You can get a 30-60 day membership free. There is a great one in Mechanicsville, if you are interested!!

Wow. Cooking for 8 every night so no small task. I cooked for up to 6 every night at one point and it was a major undertaking. I forgot you are in Richmond as well. I just got a thing in the mail about BJs and there is also one over by Regency Mall in the west end so I'm definitely going to do there 90 day free promo then buy a membership. I was waiting for my Costco membership to finish and it expires at the end of this month.

From what I understand you can get smaller packages of items so I don't need to buy 200 gallons of Mr. Clean at a time. I also need to check out Farmer's Foods. They always have such great sales prices in their ads. Where are they located?

I assume since you mention Mechanicsville, you're on that side of the city. Whenever I'm over there, I always check the dollar store on 360 across from the Walmart. For some reason they seem to have better stuff than others around the city.

Farmer Foods are down by the airport. We always find fantastic deals there, especially for meats.
I love shopping at the Dollar tree on broad street, in the plaza where Circuit City was, I believe Broad and Gaskins. It's a large store, I always get lost in there!

Ahh! I think there is a Farmer's Foods in Short Pump now that I think about it. I'll have to check it out.

That's crazy, that's the dollar store I love too. It's also the closest to me, so that helps. They always seem to have so much better stuff there than the other ones in the city. I was in there today as a matter of fact. :)

Shopping at Kroger instead of Harris Teeter, watching for sales... less steak... store brands.

OH you asked about meals... I think using rice and veggies a lot... frozen veggies last longer... ground beef, chicken, no lobster :-)

I have a dish I make with saffron, but it is an expensive spice ($17 an ounce or so)... haven't made it with saffron in a while. I just leave it out. But I think I will get some soon. I miss it! It lasts a long time, so I guess it is not so expensive...the recipe only calls for a tiny bit.

I'm amazed at how close some store brands are to the original product. I love saffron as well. In the Kroger near me, they have saffron rice that's fairly inexpensive. I can't remember the name brand, but it's in a bright yellow bag. I use that and serve it with steak chunks, bell peppers, and onions, and whatever else you like as a take on souvlaki.

Very cheap and tastes so good.

Round steak (very inexpensive cut of meat) Brown on both sides in a skillet. Cover with sliced green peppers and onions. Pour a can (or two) of tomatoes over the meat and veggies. I squish up my tomatoes as I am pouring them over the meat. Cover. Cook on med heat about an hour. When done, the meat should be fork tender. Serve over rice. Feeds a lot of people very inexpensively.

That sounds great! Definitely going to try this soon!

I make my food by scratch. You'd be surprised at how much money you can save if you don't buy all that processed, packaged and canned stuff. Doing things this way also cuts out all the strange chemicals that no one can pronounce.

Very true. I make a lot of my food from scratch as well. Every once in a while I cave and will get something pre-made or fast food, but rarely. It not only tastes better, but as you say, you can control the crazy preservation chemicals and can control the salt intake.

Another cheap and filling meal is homemade chicken BBQ. I don't really eat pork and I wanted something similiar to the same flavor and texture with it being shredded.Look for a BBQ sauce you like but with a sweeter flavor (like with honey)I can't remember the brand I bought but it was so awesome. Now, this meal takes a little while because it's done in the crockpot but it's really just dice and toss in the crockpot then shred.

Depending on who your cooking for you'll have to alternate how many boneless skinless chicken breast you get.But all that goes in the crockpot is your chicken,bbq sauce, a little diced onion and if you want some diced green pepper. When it's done cooking all you need to do is shred the chicken using two forks.It's so tender and taste just like chicken bbq should.It's cheap too. You can serve it over rice, noodles or in a toasted roll with a side dish.Actually I haven't made this in awhile but I should because now I made myself hungry for it.

Yummy! I've got a ton of frozen chicken breasts on hand already. I'm definitely trying this soon. Maybe tomorrow...

Oh, another thing is to look for old fashioned candy stores in your area.Sometimes they carry baking ingrediants like flour, snack items like orential rice snacks, dried fruit, and spices.The also usually carrying oils for cooking.Especially flavoring oils if you make homemade candy.We have a place called Zimmerman's near by.The hours are sort of crappy since they aren't open long on the weekends and they close early during the week.If you do a stock up trip it's not bad.I buy cloves and other seasonings off and on there. I bought a thing of cloves in a plastic container for 1.90.At the grocery store McCormicks was around 4 or 5.00. The sad part is I had about 7 times more for in the package I got then the stores did.I've seen saffron at times for around 4.00 at Zimmerman's and I often buy dried pineapple there.Items for cake decorating like sour balls and those little silver and gold balls you use on things are cheap there and hard to find at regular stores.So..if you have a place like that near you check it out because it may not be all old fashioned candy or penny candies.Though if your buying rock candy, bulk m&m's, nuts, and miscellanious items like that it's a good alternative too.

We have a couple of stores in the area like that. I stock up on spices in bulk as well. Whole Foods also has spices in bulk and I get everything from peppercorn to saffron there. Great tips!

Wow - you have started something here!
First rule - if money's short don't eat out - restaurants obviously, but KFC and Mackers (McDonalds) too. You can make good wages by cooking your own food, and if made from fresh ingredients it's better for you too.
I buy a fortnight's meat in bulk at the wholesale meat market, it's always cheaper to buy an entire Rump or Sirloin - the butcher slices it for you and you pack it into meal-size packs before you freeze it. Cuts that cost $30/Kg at the supermarket I get for $12/Kg (2.24lb, my American friends) this way.
Vegetables are fresher and cheaper and probably more nutritious from Farmer's markets than from the supermarket - don't buy too much at once unless you can store it chilled (I have an old Refridgerator in the garage for this) or cheaper will be expensive when you throw it all out. Buy enough for the next week to 10 days.
Cooking meals starting from raw meat and fresh vegetables is how our grandparents had to do it - they didn't have TV dinners and pre-prepared packaged meals, and they were better off without them.
Finally if you have a microwave oven at work, serve an extra meal each night into a plastic pottle and heat and eat at work. My meals are the envy of all the cubicle dwellers at my office.
I hope these suggestions save you money,
improve your health, and your enjoyment of life.
I cook for my family whenever I can.
I think it's important to nurture even though I'm a man.

Great tips! I often buy in bulk, especially larger cuts of meat, then cut and freeze into smaller portions at home. I have the luxury of being home for lunch on most days, so I do a fair amount of my cooking in the afternoon and have ready-made meals for dinners so I don't need to go grab fast food.

Thanks for your tips!

I just made some yummy beef stew. I made it the slow way that takes extra planning, because I first made my own beef broth the old fashioned way with soup bones. Definitely worth the extra time. I didn't get sick on this stuff, like I do with the commercial products. My friend told me how to do it. It's easy, but it does take a long time to do. Since the soup bones are raw, first bake them in the oven for half an hour on each side, because that gives the broth a lot more flavor. Then, you can use a large stew pot, the size of a Dutch oven and fill all the way (not to rim of course) and bring it to a boil. Then, turn the temperature down and slow cook 'til the marrow cooks out of the center of the soup bones. You can add your own garlic and onions and other ingredients while you slow cook the broth. Or, you can wait to do that when you go to make the soup itself. When I finished, I put it in the refrigerator overnight, so I could skim off the hardened fat, since that's where the bad form of cholesterol comes from. It turned out great and actually tasted better than the junk with all the preservatives in it.

Now, all I have to do is portion it into freezer containers, and I'll have plenty of easy to heat and eat beef stew for days to come.

That souds great. I love cooking tons of stuff all at one time and then portioning it and freezing it. It makes quick dinners so much easier as opposed to running and grabbing fast food. Thanks for the recipes and tips!

In your last question Can you cook I posted about making chicken and dumplings.

For about 35.00 I made enough food to feed 3 families plus left overs.....(I got the chicken thighs on sale and with a 3.00 coupon so that cut 9.00 off the cost.......Instead of using a canned cream of soup which contains MSG and soy products I bought a broth added cream and fresh mushrooms and made my own 'cream' soup it wasn't perfect but if you use the canned soup it would be cheaper, but when making something soy free, you have to find ways to cut things out that you would normally use.....

Its a very filling dinner and can be eaten by itself or paired with a salad......

Home made soups and stews, especially in the winter are one way to stretch a roast or meat and have a comfort food at the same time.
Mooch

That sounds yummy and inexpensive! Thanks for the great meal ideas.

spaghetti is both my favourite meal, and (can be) a cheap go to meal.

I love spaghetti(and pretty much all other pastas), and you're right, it can be a cheap meal. I love starting with a pre-made sauce(I start with Newman's Own), then add a bunch of my own veggies and meat. While it makes it a little more expensive at the beginning, it's more filling than just sauce and makes it last longer. Thanks for your response.

(2) Quick Cheapies.

Chicken and Rice (Just as it sounds but add some celerly, onion and butter to taste)

Pork N Bean Cassarole. (Pork n Beans, some hamburger and onions and sliced cheese one top)

spaghetti has always been one I fall back on.

I love using rice as fillers, when possible. I'm allergic to beef and pork and others, so i already really watch everything pretty close.
Great Article!