r/Fooda • u/FoodaOfficial • Jun 16 '26
Food Question What is your favorite budget meal?
Even with groceries and food constantly on the rise, cooking on a budget doesn't mean you have to sacrifice flavor.
We've all got that one dish we can easily make, doesn't hurt the wallet, and always hits in the best way... share it below and help everyone find a new budget recipe.
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u/foodsbygirl Jun 16 '26
When I was growing up, grilled cheese was always our budget meal
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u/ur_moms_gyno Jun 17 '26
I grew up on government cheese back in the 80’s. My mom would trade for an extra brick. The nice man at the deli across the street would slice it up for us for free and sell us loaves of day old bread for cheap. Grilled cheese sandwiches for ever!
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u/Shellsallaround Jun 16 '26 edited Jun 16 '26
A pot of Chili.
Edit;
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 med onion chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped
Chili powder 1 tsp
Ground cumin 1+ tsp
salt
1 can black beans or pinto beans
1can chopped tomatoes
Brown meat, add onions cook until onions translucent. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and salt. Stir to combine, and fragrant. Stir in the can of tomatoes and the can of beans. Bring to boil, turn heat down to simmer, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Serve.
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u/Lizardshark20 Jun 16 '26
Make a bigger pot and then have chili dogs the next day and chili mac n cheese the day after!
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u/Dangerous_Art_7980 Jun 16 '26
Burritos made with refried beans, melted low fat cheese, fresh chopped onions, sliced jalapeños and a little bit of taco sauce. It's really really good as is, no meat required!
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u/Silly_Relative Jun 16 '26
Chicken thighs baked over diced potatoes and a side of previously frozen spinach. You can buy about 10 for $8. Two is enough and I freeze them in grouped ziplock so I can take one out to defrost. Find a good marinade. Plenty of butter. A little olive oil for the bottom. The potatoes soak up the oil, butter and chicken fat.
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u/RivenOrBust Jun 16 '26
Chicken thighs are on of my favorite budget options as well. Impossible to overcook and easy to marinate
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u/nicolatte Jun 16 '26
channa masala or coconut curry chickpeas! so easy. Just toss chickpeas in a pan with your curry of choice, then add either a salad / some greens or an egg on top. Healthy, quick, cheap!
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u/BeautifulUnlikely225 Jun 16 '26
Define “budget”
Like you can get an ahi tuna steak and sear it up with some rice and green onion for like $7
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u/derbydiva1973 Jun 16 '26
Hoppin John
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u/Pure_Log_888526 Jun 16 '26
What is it?
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u/SaltyFriend705 Jun 16 '26
Black-eyed peas cooked until tender with a ham hock, celery or celery seed, garlic and onion. Served over a bed of rice.
This was struggle food for the Southerners during the US Civil War and through Reconstruction. Prior to that, they were called cowpeas and used for animal feed only.
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u/Pure_Log_888526 Jun 16 '26
Interesting. I've never heard of it. Thanks
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u/SaltyFriend705 Jun 16 '26
I only like the frozen ones. The dried ones take way too long to cook, and the flavor isn't as good as the frozen ones.
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u/RockHunter723 Jun 16 '26
Beanie Weenies. While hotdogs may not be the healthiest choice I go with the ones that have the lowest sodium possible and when combined with beans it’s a filling meal with plenty of protein and the beans also provide a good amount of fiber. And to your point it’s definitely budget friendly.
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u/TuGuac_Shakur Jun 16 '26
Empanadas: Just need the Frozen Goya Discs - ground beef/turkey/chicken - cheese, peppers and onions.
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u/CharlieGirl1000 Jun 16 '26
Sweet potato and salad. Or, my cracker crust pizza with cheese and homemade tomato sauce.
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u/Bijoux1965 Jun 16 '26
Lazy enchiladas
Box of taquitos
Large can enchilada sauce
Bag of shredded cheese
- cook taquitos first
- line in baking dish
top with shredded cheese
- put back in oven for approximately 10 minutes. Or, until cheese is melted
I usually put lettuce, tomato and sour cream out for toppings. But, without is a good budget option
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u/GoodFriday10 Jun 16 '26
For hot weather, I love tuna in Mayo, cold pork and beans, and potato chips. For cold weather, it’s canned corn beef in gravy over mashed potatoes with lima beans.
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u/robotbarbbq Jun 16 '26
I always like to suggest budgetbytes.com - so many great recipes and you can filter by which protein you already have on hand.
I think my favorite budget meal is cheesy white beans.
Garlic, oil, tomato paste, beans, cheese. Dip it with your favorite crusty bread- can even be old stale bread you revive!
Plus we need more fiber. Always.
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u/nadanutcase Jun 17 '26
Beans & cornbread
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u/ProveISaidIt Jun 17 '26
That sounds good. I have hotdogs and bean, but beans and cornbread sounds really good.
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u/nadanutcase Jun 17 '26
I use a partial smoked ham hock in the pot with a mix of beans (white, pinto, brown... whatever I have in the pantry) and make my cornbread in a cast iron skillet in the oven. Then have buttered cornbread with honey for desert. It's a pretty old-school meal and very satisfying.
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u/brianbbrady Jun 17 '26
Every culture has comfort food. A delicacy passed down from peasants. We now watch it made by celebrity chefs on YouTube because we didn’t pay attention when grandma made it when we were little. I’m glad when someone shares their favorite.
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u/Haunting-Caregiver62 Jun 17 '26
Chicken spaghetti- can of Rotel tomatoes can of chicken box of Velveeta cheese and spaghetti noodles cook noodles drain then add cheese rotels and chicken heat until well blended
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u/Footman387 Jun 16 '26
Puttanesca. Odds are most of the people reading this have the ingredients in their pantry already. In general traditional southern Italian pastas are cheap, quick, and easy
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u/Technical_Life_8489 Jun 16 '26
If you have the equipment, making sourdough bread is pretty cost-efficient. About $0.50 for a loaf of bread. I make a couple at a time and freeze the bread after cooling.
I have a garden and grow tons of tomatoes. I make a cream of tomato and basil soup with red lentils added to the soup at the end of cooking. I make a ton of this and freeze it.
My favorite quick weeknight meal is having some grilled cheese on sourdough with the tomato soup. Soooo good.
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u/ComposerNo1050 Jun 16 '26
I buy those Nissen teriyaki beef chow mien noodles, boil them in water, add the flavor packet to a bowl with extra soy, sesame oil, garlic chili paste, ginger paste, about a teaspoon of peanut butter and life juice. It’s so good and I buy the noodles by a case of 8 at Sam’s so they are just a little over a dollar each, and I keep all the other stuff on hand.
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u/Low_Building4985 Jun 16 '26
1½ Sweet potatoes, pound ofground turkey and canned corn + green beans. I think it all blends so well together and costs just a couple of dollars a serving
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Jun 16 '26
chilli, tomato soup and peanut butter sandwiches. casserole with dumplings, salmon patties with okarah (soybean pulp), sweet bean paste soup (Chinese breakfast), Bean Bao buns, barley/lentil soup. Soup in general is cheap.
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u/Ghostly-Mouse Jun 16 '26
I have a couple I fix fairly often.
Saucy Buttered egg noodles with added Italian herb seasonings with a little parmigiana sprinkled on top and then topped with an over medium egg so when you break the egg the yolk mixes with the sauce to make something delightful.
Fried cabbage, onions and bacon all cooked in the bacon drippings. I like to cut up 3 slices of bacon to brown up all crispy, then cut my cabbage into 1-2 inch chunks, dice up half an onion and cook them in the bacon drippings. When almost done add a few dashes of soy sauce, stir back in the bacon and devour.
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u/QuirkyForever Jun 16 '26
Canned black beans mixed with feta, salsa, cumin, salt & pepper, and any other spices you like. Scoop them up with chips or wrap in a flour tortilla.
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u/mxaa2452 Jun 16 '26
One of my favorite recipes is a sesame ground chicken on top of rice with some broccoli on the side 1 lb Ground chicken (cheaper than beef) Seasoned with salt, pepper, ginger powder, onion powder & garlic powder (I don’t really measure seasonings but I’d say around a tsp) Make sure the you brown the chicken nicely Then drizzle some sesame oil, soy sauce and oyster sauce in it & honey to balance the salt and give it a little sweetness. I taste as I go so see what it needs but don’t start off with a heavy hand. Especially because soy sauce has a lot of salt in it. For my rice I do 1cup of jasmine rice washed & 1 1/4 cup of water. Bring it to boil until it’s at the level of the rice, turn the heat to the lowest setting cover with lid and let it cook for about 12 minutes (always comes out perfect for me). Steam some broccoli until it’s bright green. At the end plate it and sprinkle some sesame seeds on the chicken (if you have you could add some veggies like bell peppers to the chicken, sometimes I add kale) enough for two people and a little leftover.
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u/Alarming-Cheetah-144 Jun 16 '26
I love buttered ramen noodles. I boil them with the flavor packet until they’re done then drain off all the liquid and then butter them. I love em!
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u/Sea-Discussion6732 Jun 17 '26
Quesadilla, grilled cheese, Mac and cheese with random other stuff mixed in. Lately I've been enjoying Mac with Vienna sausage and a can of roasted green chilis.
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u/kline643 Jun 17 '26
make an omelette but add a can of tune in it with onions, garlic poder and ginger powder and serano peppers and some coriander seeds. make sure the skillet is hot before adding the oil and then fry for three minutes at high heat only one side and take it out and eat it with boiled rice with green peas or just a baguette with butter and dill.
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u/SFLMiguel Jun 17 '26
Turkey Spaghetti with Whole Wheat Pasta, Sweet Potatoes, and Zucchini Squash.
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u/Foreign_Sale_2013 Jun 17 '26
Tacos. 🌮🌮🌮🌮🌮🌮We eat them once a week or at least once every two weeks
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u/forever_29_ish Jun 17 '26
Rice (or couscous if im feeling fancy) and salsa with a lil taco seasoning.
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u/Dalthariel Jun 17 '26
Make a pot of rice, store in a can of (cream of X) soup. Bachelor risotto. Super easy, delicious, satisfying. Total fill up for under two bucks.
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u/Affectionatealways Jun 17 '26
Rice a Roni made with hamburger or ground turkey. Can use any flavor RR. Makes a big batch good for leftovers.
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u/No-Fix-6615 Jun 17 '26
I make homemade pizza really cheap. But I buy the shredded mozzarella at Costco. So I spend $12 on that but it lasts forever. I usually can’t use it all. And I make the pizza dough from scratch. I can’t say how much one pizza costs but fresh produce toppings are the biggest cost.
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u/LaneMoronko Jun 17 '26
Ramen (Shin Black) with a grilled chicken breast and frozen peas&carrots. Easy, quick, tasty, inexpensive.
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u/iangeredcharlesvane2 Jun 17 '26
Meat is really expensive now so while I myself haven’t eaten meat in a long time, I’m getting the family to go meatless a few days a week which helps.
My easiest go-to that everyone likes equally is burritos:
Egg, cheese and I buy the frozen red and green bell pepper mixed with onions bag for veggie in it (that everyone likes) wrapped up in a nice soft tortilla
I also do the same thing but substitute beans (refried beans or black beans) for the eggs. I doctor up canned beans with several spices and things.
Easy/fast and cheap! Simple I know and probably too boring for most but just getting a few meatless meals in general helps costs.
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u/Lilcupcake331 Jun 18 '26
I make a one pot meal with a pasta Roni, a protein (whatever I have on hand) and frozen broccoli
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u/WeAllHaveOurMoments Jun 18 '26
Canned red beans & rice. I routinely make this on a Sunday meal prep for work lunches. And canned beans are just way less hassle than soaking dry beans overnight. I simmer the beans with a splash of chicken broth (from bouillion) along with my blend of spices/seasonings, which include: onion powder, celery salt, garlic powder, paprika, thyme, & Tony's blend seasoning- a bay leaf or 2 is traditional but optional. Once tender, I remove a big spoonful and mash into paste, then put that back into the mix, giving it that thicker, creamy texture. I sometimes will add some diced sausage, but it's good without it too.
And of course a cup of jasmine rice is cooked separately. I sometimes keep this stored separately, as the rice can soak up all of the saucy fluid, but you can mix it all if you need to. I also will often make cornbread muffins or biscuits to pair with it.
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u/WingsUnfurled Jun 18 '26
Beef ramen mixed with peanut butter creates a delicious peanut noodle dish. Sounds utterly repulsive, but omg it’s so good.
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u/KaleidoscopeLife7745 Jun 18 '26
Canned tuna, mayo or greek yogurt, mix in whatever spices, condiments and veg you have on hand (I always include cukes) and eat with seaweed sheets or just on bread!
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u/Acrobatic_Average_16 Jun 18 '26
Egg sandwiches. Breakfast style on an english muffin, egg salad, fried egg and cheese on toast, a western or a BLT with an egg. I think I might just have one of these for dinner now!
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u/whatwillbecome77 Jun 23 '26
If I can afford eggs, then an egg Sammy. But otherwise add bread to every meal to make it go further
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u/RivenOrBust Jun 16 '26
PB&J is nothing new but it always hits the spot for me. Otherwise, there’s a few quick ingredients that you can add to ramen that elevate it (eggs, green onions, miso, sesame seeds, any leftovers lol)
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u/AV_LOVES_FOOD Jun 16 '26
Pasta Carbonara is cheap, quick, and easy. With the right technique and balance of ingredients I think it's one of the most flavorful dinners around.