cooking ideas please?

Question

We are trying to cut back on our grocery budget and need some ideas for cheap meals. We don't eat pork, but other than that I'm open to all ideas. What do you make that is cheap? I don't need websites, I would like your ideas please. All I can come up with is meatloaf, and would like to have some healthier dinners. Thanks!!

Answer 1

I made beef stew with dumplings and a side salad for dinner tonight. Chicken stir fries or casseroles don't have to be expensive. Good old tuna noodle casserole is inexpensive. Sometimes, breakfast for dinner can save money, like pancakes or french toast or omelets with homemade hash browns. Swiss steak can be made with a cheap cut of meat since it braises for a while.

Some of the ways to cut down the food budget,even if you don't have big freezer, is to do more of the prep yourself. Such as buy full length carrots then peel and cut them yourself. Same for potatoes - make your own home fries, mashed, etc. Buy cabbage and shred it yourself for coleslaw, rather than bagged shredded or deli coleslaw. On the meats and chicken noted above, buy larger pieces and cut it yourself. We have gotten used to buying precut meats and salads, etc. But they are less expensive and fresher if we do the prep work ourselves.

Obviously, watch for sale items and use coupons if possible. If you have the room to properly store items, larger packages often have a smaller unit price. The biggest saver besides the sales and coupons is the "convenience" product vs. Prep for yourself.

Good Luck.

Answer 2

Béarnaise Sauce, one of John’s favorite sauces This is a classic sauce that goes well over most grilled or oven baked dishes. This is one of the most versatile sauces in the world. INGREDIENTS: · 1 cup butter, melted and hot · 3 egg yolks · 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar · 1 tablespoon onion, finely chopped · 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper · 1/2 teaspoon fresh or dry chervil, finely chopped · 1/2 teaspoon fresh tarragon, finely chopped PREPARATION: Put onions, vinegar, tarragon, chervil and pepper in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to about 1-2 teaspoons of liquid. Stir constantly. Remove from stove and let cool. Put egg yolks and cooled mixture in a blender. At a Glance Prep Time : 10min Cook Time : 20min Course : Sauces for fine beef cuts (Beef Wellington, Prime Rib) Special : Easy Type of Prep : Boil, Simmer Cuisine : French Occasion : Cookout, Family Holiday Dinner Chef Wa

Answer 3

Inexpensive nutritious and delicious meals are easy. There are a huge variety of dried beans that can be prepared in numerous ways with or without any kind of meat. If you want to use meat to flavor beans a great alternative to pork is smoked turkey legs. Also in asian markets you canfind smoked tofu. A really good, healthy, inexpensive and quick dish is lentils and broccoli rabe (also called rapini). Just dice 2 carrots, 3 stalks of celery, 1 large onion, chop 6 cloves of garlic. Cook everything except the garlic in some kind of oil until soft. Add the garlic and cook until it turns slightly brown. This will make it a little sweet and more aromatic without being offensive. Add 1 pound of dried lentils, cover with water or stock of your choice by 3-4 inches. Bring to a boil and cut the heat to a slow simmer and cover. In about 20 minutes add salt to your taste. You can add a turkey leg at this time if you want to or earlier if you want to or not at all. Now add a can of chopped tomatos that you have drained and quickly sauteed in oil. Cover and cook on low simmer for 20 more minutes. Oh yeah, great seaonings for this are thyme, sage, oregano for Italian style and cumin, coriander, curry and lime zest for Indian. Make it as spicy as you like. After you add the tomatos and cook for for 20 minutes add one bunch of Chopped rapini. If rapini isn't available you can sub mustard greens. Serve over basmati rice or with toasted flour tortillas or polenta or grits or pasta or anything you like. It will feed 6 people easy for about 3 dollars.

Answer 4

A cheep easy dinner is to put a roast in a crock pot. Add just enough water to cover the roast. Add 1 pkt. cup of onion soup. Turn crock pot on low and leave all day. When I get home I remove about 3/4 cup of the juice and add water to boil potatoes and carrotts. Easy and cheep. Hope this helps.

Answer 5

Sorry, I don't have time to list all the how to's on these recipes. We have tried many. Here is the list and website. Just click onto the recipe and cook:
http://www.betterbudgeting.com/frugalrecipelist.htm

All-in-One Box Dinners

Baked Chicken and Rice

Baked Macaroni and Cheese (or Creamy Macaroni and Cheese)

Baked Potato Soup
Barbecue Cups
Barbeque Cups, 2
Beef and Rice Casserole
Beefy Mac and Cheese
Bubble Pizza
Cheesy Potatoes
Chicken and Rice, or Egg Noodles
Chili Cheese Cornbread
Chili Fries (or Tots)
Chili Tacos
Classic Baked Penne Casserole
Chicken and Yellow Rice
Chicken Noodle Casserole
Corn Dogs
Crock-Pot Baked Beans, 2 Recipes
Crock-Pot Beef Wraps

Crock-Pot Beef Stroganoff
Crock-Pot Cubed Steak and Beans
Crock-Pot Roast and Leftover Pot Pie

Crock-Pot Tuna Casserole
Easy Chicken Wraps
Easy Stroganoff
Fast and Easy Homemade Chicken
Green Pepper Casserole
Ground Bologna Sandwiches
Good Soup
Hamburger Casserole

Holiday Roasted Turkey
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
Homemade Vegetable Soup
Italian Meatballs
Joyce's Bean Barbeque
Larry's Macaroni Salad
Linguini with White Clam Sauce
Meatball Mania
Mexican Dinner
Mushroom Ham Fettuccine
No-Cheese Burritos
Noodle Soup

Open Face Sandwiches
Porcupine Balls
Potato Pancakes
Ramen Noodle Stir Fry

Ramen Veggie Soup
Red Beans and Rice
Shepherd's Pie Recipes
Southern Green Beans
Spaghetti Alfredo with Crab and Broccoli

Stir-Fry Chicken and Vegetables
Summer Pasta Salad
Surprise Mexican Soup
Taco Hash Browns

Taco Soup
Taco Squares
Tater-Tot Casserole
Teriyaki Sauce & Stir-Fry
Twice Baked Potatoes

Veggie Noodle Stir-Fry
Winter Warmer Vegetable Soup
Whatever Soup

Answer 6

My cottage pie consists of 500gms lean mince, tin tomatoes, 1 large onion, herbs and spices. 6 medium potatos. Fry onion, then add mince until cooked add herbs and spices, then tin tomatoes (crushed) simmer for about 20 minutes. Boil your potatoes, then mash. put mince in baking dish, top with mashed potato, and a little grated cheese. brown in oven for a few minutes serve with steamed vegies.
Baked Potato
slice potaoes thin about 8 potatos, layer in baking dish , sprinkle each layer with french onion soup (packet) then drizzle cream over then continue layering potatoes, then soup and cream finish with a layer of french onion soup and cream. Cook in 180 degree oven for about 40 minutes until potatos are soft. this can be served with the mince pie or any meat dish.

Answer 7

beef stew and dumplings
chicken stew and cornbread
chili and baked tea biscuits
stir fry veggies and meat with rice
home made hearty soups with fresh bread
baked beans and sausages and salad
casseroles of any kind
baked rigatoni and meatballs
lasagne
hot hamburger sandwiches with french fries
swedish meatballs, noodles, veggies and salad

Answer 8

COUNTRY STYLE CHICKEN AND VEGETABLES

4 lg. cloves garlic
2 tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary or 2 tsp. dried rosemary
2 tsp. chopped parsley
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1/4 c. Olive oil
3 lg. Portobello mushrooms, cut into1-inch pieces
2 lbs. small red potatoes
4 medium carrots
1 medium onion
6 chicken quarters
2/3 c. chicken broth
1 c. chicken broth

Heat oven to 400 F. Coat two large roasting pans with non-stick cooking spray. In a small bowl, combine the chopped garlic, rosemary, parsley, salt, pepper and oil. In a large bowl, toss mushrooms, potatoes, carrots and onion with two tablespoons herb mixture. Spoon into roasting pans, dividing the mixture equally between the two. Brush the remaining herb mixture over chicken pieces. Place chicken, skin side up in pans and arrange the vegetables around them. Bake in 400F. oven for 45 minutes. Add 1/3 cup of chicken broth to each roasting pan. Baste the chicken with pan juices. Continue to bake for 15 minutes longer. Remove the chicken and vegetables to a serving dish, keep warm. Place one pan over medium heat on stovetop. Add 1 cup chicken broth. Bring to a simmer, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan. Pour liquid through strainer to a small bowl. Repeat with remaining roasting pan and chicken broth. Pour pan juices over chicken and vegetables and serve.

PAPRIKA CHICKEN STEW

4 lbs. chicken (8 pieces)
1 tblsp. olive oil
1 tblsp. butter
1 red onion, cubed
1-1/2 tbsp. paprika
28 oz. canned tomatoes (with juice)
2 cloves garlic, blanched and smashed
1 green pepper, cubed
Flour, seasoned with salt & pepper

Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Skin chicken. Dredge with flour. Sear chicken in skillet for 4 min. each side over medium-high heat. Add butter, onion & paprika. Cook for 6-7 minutes. Add tomatoes with juice and garlic. Season and bring to a boil. Transfer to an oven-proof casserole. Cover with foil, bake 30 minutes. Serve with buttered biscuits.

Answer 9

i make "goulash" you need

1 lb. of lean ground meat
1 16 oz. can of diced tomatoes
cooked macarroni.

almost like spaghetti, but yuymmy

Answer 10

pasta is always cheap and you can do just about anything with it. other than that i use allrecipes.com they have all kinds of recipes and ideas. good luck.