Recipe Ideas…On a Budget?

Question

My bf and I are on a tight budget. So far I’ve been cooking meals like meatloaf, hamburgers, hotdogs, etc. I need some more ideas because I’m so sick of cooking the same things. I have plenty of cookbooks but they all require too many ingredients.

I have no problem cooking things from scratch. I do it all the time.

Answer 1

I hope these recipes come in handy...

www.kraftfoods.com is a really great site to visit...


Crispy Chicken & Parmesan Vegetables

1 lb. new red potatoes, halved
4 chicken leg quarters (1-1/2 lb.), skin removed
1 pkt. SHAKE 'N BAKE Extra Crispy Seasoned Coating Mix
2 cups 1-1/2-inch red pepper pieces (about 2 small peppers)
1/4 cup KRAFT Ranch Dressing
1/4 cup KRAFT 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese

PREHEAT oven to 375°F. Place potatoes in large microwaveable bowl or casserole dish; cover with vented plastic wrap or lid. Microwave on HIGH 7 min. Meanwhile, coat chicken with coating mix as directed on package. Place chicken in half of greased foil-lined 15x10x1-inch baking pan.
ADD peppers, dressing and Parmesan cheese to potatoes; toss to coat. Place in pan next to chicken.
BAKE 40 min. or until chicken is cooked through (180°F) and potatoes are tender.


STOVE TOP Classic One-Dish Chicken Bake with Vegetables

1-2/3 cups hot water
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1-1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of chicken soup
1/3 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
1-1/2 cups KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese
1 bag (16 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed, drained

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Add hot water to stuffing mix; stir just until moistened. Set aside.
PLACE chicken in 13x9-inch baking dish. Mix soup, sour cream, cheese and vegetables; spoon over chicken. Top with prepared stuffing.
BAKE 30 min. or until chicken is cooked through (170°F).


Cheesy Chicken Simmer

2 tsp. vegetable oil
4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)
2 cups frozen broccoli florets
1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of chicken soup
1/4 lb. (4 oz.) VELVEETA Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut up
3 cups hot cooked MINUTE White Rice

HEAT oil in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 7 min., turning after 3-1/2 min.
ADD broccoli; stir. Stir in soup and Velveeta until well blended. Reduce heat to medium; simmer 7 min. or until chicken is cooked through.
SERVE over the hot cooked rice.


Zippy Turkey Pot Pie

3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup MIRACLE WHIP Dressing
1 Tbsp. flour
3 cups chopped cooked turkey (about 1 lb.)
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, green beans, corn, lime beans), thawed
1 cup KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/4 cup chopped onions
1 ready-to-bake pie crust (1/2 of 15-oz. pkg.)

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Mix milk, dressing and flour in large microwaveable bowl. Microwave on HIGH 2 to 3 min. or until sauce is thickened, stirring after each min. Add turkey, mixed vegetables, cheese and onions; toss to coat. Spoon into 9-inch pie plate; smooth surface.
PLACE crust over filling; flute edge of crust, sealing edge of crust to rim of pie plate. Cut several slits in crust to allow steam to escape. Transfer to baking sheet.
BAKE 30 min. or until golden brown.


Fiesta Mac

1 pkg. (14 oz.) KRAFT Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen corn, thawed
1 cup TACO BELL HOME ORIGINALS Salsa

PREPARE Dinner in large saucepan as directed on package, cooking Macaroni for just 8 min.
MEANWHILE, brown meat with green pepper in skillet; drain.
ADD meat mixture, corn and salsa to prepared Dinner; mix well. Cook until heated through, stirring occasionally.


Parmesan Spaghetti

3/4 lb. (12 oz.) spaghetti, uncooked
1 jar (1 lb. 10 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1/3 cup KRAFT 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese

COOK spaghetti as directed on package.
MEANWHILE, bring spaghetti sauce just to boil in medium saucepan on medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 5 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally.
DRAIN spaghetti; place in large bowl. Top with spaghetti sauce; toss to coat. Sprinkle with cheese.


Chicken Tacos

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 pkg. (1-1/4 oz.) TACO BELL HOME ORIGINALS Taco Seasoning Mix
3/4 cup water
8 TACO BELL HOME ORIGINALS Taco Shells
1 cup KRAFT Mexican Style Shredded Taco Cheese
1/2 cup shredded lettuce
1 medium tomato, chopped

SPRAY large skillet with cooking spray. Add chicken; cook and stir on medium heat until cooked through.
STIR in seasoning mix and water. Cook 10 min. or until sauce is slightly thickened, stirring occasionally.
SPOON 2 Tbsp. chicken mixture into each taco shell; sprinkle with cheese. Top evenly with lettuce and tomato.


Turkey & Ranch Bagel Club

1 whole wheat bagel, split, toasted
1 Tbsp. KRAFT LIGHT DONE RIGHT! Ranch Reduced Fat Dressing
1 lettuce leaf
5 slices OSCAR MAYER Thin Sliced Smoked Turkey Breast
1 slice LOUIS RICH Turkey Bacon, cooked, cut in half
1 slice tomato

SPREAD cut sides of bagel with dressing.
PLACE lettuce on bottom half of bagel; top with the turkey, bacon and tomato.
COVER with top of bagel.


Hearty Cabbage Soup

4 cups chopped green cabbage (1/2 of a small head)
2 medium carrots, sliced
2 medium celery stalks, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen green beans, thawed slightly
1 can (15-1/2 oz.) cannellini beans, drained, rinsed
6 cups water
2 cans (14-1/2 oz. each) chicken broth
2 cups canned crushed tomatoes, undrained
1 env. GOOD SEASONS Italian Salad Dressing & Recipe Mix

PLACE all ingredients in 6- or 8-qt. stockpot.
BRING to boil on high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low.
SIMMER 30 min. or until vegetables are tender.


Cheesy Chili Soup

1 can (28 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (15 oz.) kidney beans, rinsed, drained
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) chicken broth
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 tsp. chili powder
1 cup KRAFT Mexican Style Shredded Cheese, divided

BRING all ingredients except cheese to boil in medium saucepan.
REDUCE heat to low; simmer 25 min. or until vegetables are tender. Stir in 1/3 of the cheese.
LADLE into bowls. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.


Creamy Corn and Turkey Soup

1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped red pepper, divided
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, cubed
1 can (14.75 oz.) cream-style corn
2 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup milk
2 cups shredded leftover cooked turkey

COOK onion and half of the red pepper in butter in large saucepan on medium heat until tender, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to low.
ADD cream cheese; cook until melted, stirring constantly. Add corn, broth, milk and turkey; mix well.
COOK until soup is heated through, stirring occasionally. Serve topped with remaining chopped red pepper.
You can substitute chicken for the turkey.

Answer 2

tspbrady has the right idea about the chicken. But take it one step further- make chicken broth out of the carcass too. Why pay for canned stuff that tastes bad?

I've been there, sort of still am. The thing that really helped me out wasn't so much recipes and menus, it was learning how to cook well. The more you learn, the more you can come up with different ways of using an ingredient, therefore it's more cost effective. The other thing is to start shopping sales and if that means going to 2 stores instead of one, so be it. I'm financially okay now, but I will always shop at Aldi's.

My other recommendation is to use your library. There are tons of cookbooks out there on cooking on a budget and, unless your books are overdue, checking them out is free.

Answer 3

There is a cookbook out with three and five ingredient recipes.. you should pick up one of those. Rachel Ray is pretty good about easy and inexpensive meals too. I love her cookbook "Rachel Ray 365" -- it gives you good variations on the same meal and good ideas for leftovers too. As for inexpensive meals, I usually go with spaghetti with a meat sauce or meatballs, chili, mac & cheese with hotdogs, etc.

Keep an eye out for sales and be sure to purchase meat in bulk and freeze it. This way, you not only get it all on sale but you have some meat in the freezer for the weeks you can't afford groceries!

Also, fish can be purchased for low prices if you catch it on sale. This would be a nice change of pace periodically, if you like fish of course.

If you have a grill, you could easily grill up some bbq chicken legs. Hot wings are an easy and cheap meal.

Make sure you purchase veggies "whole" and cut them and wash them yourself, they are always much cheaper this way.

Whenever I make a lasagna or stuffed shells or something, I always make an extra pan to put in the freezer. Saves money and time (two meals for the price and time of one!).

You can also go through your cookbooks and find the recipe ideas you like and just "tweak" them to fit your budget. For example, you don't have to have shallots -- you can just use onion or garlic instead. This will take some experimenting to learn what you can simply omit and what you can substitute with something cheaper, but I find this allows me to expand my cooking repertoire without having to make huge 20 ingredient meals. Plus, hubby hate tomatoes, so I automatically take those out of a recipe.

If you can stick to the outer edges of the grocery store, you can shop the healthiest and cheapest. Don't splurge on the pre-made and pre-cut stuff and watch the sales and you've got it!

Answer 4

Make Over 200 Juicy, Mouth-Watering Paleo Recipes You've NEVER Seen or Tasted Before?

Answer 5

Get some chicken, it's easy to be creative with chicken... good chef's salads are cheap... there is an endless variety of noodles and preparations (pasta is cheap) potatoes are always a nice switch. my mother makes this tuna casserole i love. Ask mom for some easy recipes she made when you were younger, or ask grandma... there are a couple books out there that have meals made from five or so ingredients. Better Homes and Gardens is a favorite book of mine because it has all the basics in it. Other books require specialty items, while that one has things you don't normally see... like pancakes, or basic yellow cake... it is normal home food.

Answer 6

The trick is to plan your meals so that the leftovers from one meal become a new meal another next day. For example, roast a chicken on day 1. Have it with roast potatoes, and maybe carrots and peas. Take some of the leftover chiken, dice it up and mix it with mayo and you have chicken salad, which you can have on a sandwich and then again on lettuce maybe with some cottage cheese.

Take the chicken carcasse and boil it in water to make a nice broth. thicken it a little, add the rest of the leftover chicken and the leftover carrots, peas, and potatos, and now you have chicken soup!

You don't need millions of ingredients, and the best spices are ALWAYS salt and pepper.

Good luck!

Answer 7

Try Campbell's soup....
It's amazing what cream of broccoli, cream of chicken, or cream of mushroom soup will add to a recipe. The soups are pretty inexpensive and the website offers a ton of recipes, many that don't require a ton of ingredients.

Pillsbury is another great option to search. They offer easy meals, bake-off contest recipes, as well as an option to search/browse recipes.

Remember that you can always adapt a recipe to fit your taste and budget.

Answer 8

Spaghetti and meatballs is a good cheap meal. I am also on a low budget it's tuff. Here are some others I use. Beef BBQ, Tacos, chicken is pretty cheap, Beef macaroni soup, chili, chicken corn soup, mac and cheese, meatball subs, cheesesteaks, grilled chicken salad and chicken and rice. Good Luck and happy cooking.

Answer 9

Purchase whatever meat is on sale. Chicken thighs, drumsticks, pork chops...whatever and grill them. You can make a marinade out if just about anything or even purchase one in the market. Also, putting things in the crock pot and adding veggies, cream soups and putting it over rice, potatoes or noodles. You can also purchase in the frozen food section, many premade in a bag meals like stir fry, chinese noodles, quesedillas etc. for about $6.00 and everything comes with it.

Answer 10

Here is a simple one :

1 bag of hash browns
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 cup of grated chedder cheese
1 container of sour cream

Mix all 4 ingredients together.
Bake in a 375 oven until top is golden brown (or darker to your preference).

Have with meatballs, or ham, or basically any meat you enjoy.

Enjoy!!

Answer 11

By agreeing to cook things from scratch, you are halfway there.

Have a look at at this recipe site where things are divided up into neat sections on the type of food you wish to prepare.

http://www.franksredhot.ca/recipesandtips.php

Happy Cooking