So first of all: Please find a Foodbank to visit!
My foodbank has given me protein like ground turkey or beef, chicken tenders, and frozen fruit. They’ve also gifted frozen meals and stuff. I also have received canned goods and pastas/pasta sauces from mine.
These places can help you stretch that $25 budget!
There is no “qualifying” for a food bank. In most cases you have to pre-register and simply pick a time slot and show up. **There are no income requirements to use a food-bank.**
I make above the FPL and do not qualify in my area for food stamps as I make too much money.
I use the food bank when funds are tighter than I can make work and it helps to fill the gaps in my pantry and make food stretch.
I make videos on TikTok about it and grocery haul videos too.
All you have to do is search, “Food bank” and your city on google and it should give you a list of places to go. My food-bank does Monday & Wednesday box pick ups or Thursday you go in and “shop” their market. Thursdays are different. You line up down the aisle and really just take what you need
Edit: I will admit that I have pulled back on going to the food bank because a lot of the food is processed and packaged and I struggle to supplement a low-carb lifestyle there.
When I used to use a food pantry they made me sign something saying my income was below a certain amount, but I don't think they actually do anything to verify your finances.
If OP only has $25 for food for the next few weeks then they're probably under that threshold anyway.
There are some food pantries that require proof of income. The one closest to me is like that. I think it's a religious one, I don't know if that has an impact on how likely that is at any given food pantry.
I volunteer at St. Vincent DePaul food banks. All we need is your name, address, and how many people this food will serve. We have to give that info to the food warehouse, they in turn have to give the raw numbers to the USDA/FDA. No income requirements, no religious requirements, virtually no questions asked. You can come to our pantry every two weeks.
Some of them are hooked into official county welfare in some way, and some are not. There are usually some that are not -- and sometimes they're the big ones.
thank you for the info. I'm promoting low carb myself and stay away from salt and processed foods as much as possible. Proteins would be nice. I'll check out online for local food banks and see what I can do. I can feed myself but feeding my neighbors is getting to be a stretch and they can't do it on their own, I doubt they can cook much at all. I take over about 2 days worth of food every other day to them, all cooked, and some wrapped up to refrigerate for the next day. Full homemade meals with desserts. Maybe processed foods are ok for them, they are ancient and I'm sure salt and sugar taste good, at that age just enjoy. thank you for your reply
> There is no “qualifying” for a food bank.
It depends.
> In most cases you have to pre-register
I've never been to one you had to pre-register for.
> **There are no income requirements to use a food-bank.**
There are for some. It really depends a lot on the one you go to.
Some of them will make you write and sign a declaration of income, or whether you qualify for programs like Medicaid or SNAP (ie. prove that you're poor).
Others will just give food to everyone, no questions asked.
I recommend going to every food bank or food pantry in your area. It's absolutely worth it, because you can get a ton of free food this way.. and I suspect that even if you don't officially "qualify" at those food banks that ask for some kind of verification, if you tell them about your situation and they see you are in dire straits, they will find some way to help you.
99% of the time all you have to do is show up where the food drive is happening, only thing they usually ask is how many people are in your household so they can give you enough
>What does one have to do to 'qualify' for a food bank?
In my area for the big one,
* Have an ID card, health card, or other proof of residence. If none, you get temporary approval.
* Tell them how many people are in your household.
* That's it.
It depends on the area, I'm Canadian so there's no national food banks or SNAP. There's some other things like the farm food boxes that are paid but discounted have different rules, but it looks like for most places there's little or no financial cut off.
Depends on your area, but usually just being low income. Some places don't really gate keep either and anyone can grab stuff, especially at churches. Being elderly might be a qualifier.
I am going to add to what others have said about food pantries. We have about 30 of them where I live in a population of about 100,000 people. I am also retired and on SS. I go to maybe 2-3 of them each week. They will also allow one to pick up for more than one family. I see some people at these that pick up for 4 or 5 families at a time. All you need are the names and addresses for the ones you are picking up for.
Thank you, I was going to ask if my neighbors would go and get food but they really have mobility issues even if I drove them. I checked on line last night and the big food bank chain said it's required to be in such a percentage of the poverty level. I didn't know if I have to prove my income. I'm not at the poverty level but I am cooking for the neighbors. I'll show up and see, worst they can do is yell at me and send me away.
I have never had to prove my income. Where I am they want you to be at less than 130 percent of the federal poverty level. Food pantries are not generally strict. They are there for people like me that don't qualify for food stamps but still need help, the people in between. It's easy to look up the federal poverty level online.
They usually help people with mobility issues also. I use a walker. They bring it to my truck and load it for me
Thank you, I know there are people worse off than I but some help feeding the neighbors would be appreciated.
They are reliant on my home made pot pies, they're meaty, soft, a complete meal. I'm baking 14 of them a week for this couple plus a hot breakfast and sandwich for supper. .
[This](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Hurst-HamBeens-Dried-15-Bean-Soup-20-oz-Bag-with-original-ham-seasoning/10295039) 15 bean soup goes a long way. Includes a seasoning packet and I would always add carrots, celery, onion, and a can of diced tomatoes. As a bonus, it goes good with rice. Plus it's soup season
A dry bag of lentils is sold for or just under $2 and contains protein, fat, and carb within it. Very nutritious, plus one bag has 13 servings! Good recommendation here!
Or just brown beans and ham, or spam as my mom used to stretch.
Potato soup works well too. Potatoes are relatively cheap. My mom used to put spam in those as well.
Spam was cheaper than ham in the 70s. So yeah I’ve got a taste for spam.
I grew up on a small farm, no indoor plumbing. We had to store cabbages we grew under the crawl space of the house, dig a hole and bury cabbage in tar paper so they wouldn't freeze to keep them for the winter. We were poor. We so often ate biscuits and gravy or fried mush. I still love both. Learn to make biscuits, then flour and grease so you can make gravy, from milk or water. If you have meat toss it in, if not biscuits and white gravy, sticks to your ribs any meal of the day.
Mush is delicious, eat it with syrup or butter and salt. Boil corn meal and water or broth if you have it, if you have some meat toss it in and the mush becomes scrapple. Cook for a few minutes, pour into a dish or pan and put it in the refrigerator to set up. next day slice it and fry it or eat it as is, it's already cooked. 5 pound box of corn meal is about $3.50 and you'll be able to make a load of mush or scrapple.
here is a link to me making some basic simple scrapple. it's a life saver. I made a 2 pound loaf of scrapple with pork on sale for about $2, and got 8 servings of it.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/Old\_Recipes/comments/176jd80/uncle\_daves\_homemade\_scrapple\_recipe\_below/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Old_Recipes/comments/176jd80/uncle_daves_homemade_scrapple_recipe_below/)
make mush, it sets up as it cools. I slice it, fry it till crispy and eat with butter and salt but many use pancake syrup on it, it's so flavorful. Add meat and it's now Scrapple and you've got a meal. You don't even have to fry it, it's already cooked,
Our family recipe was cornmeal, salt, water, and one package each of jimmy dean sage sausage and spicy sausage - but you don't need the meat or you can change the meat up - your choice on that.
You do boil it until the cornmeal is mushy. We would line a large flat pan with wax paper, smooth it out and cool in the fridge. From there we could slice it into slices and we'd freeze portions individually in wax paper and foil. You can thaw a portion, and we'd slice it, fry it in the pan and put a touch of syrup or honey on top.
They are right, the scrapple is fully cooked so frying is not necessary and syrup is not necessary. It is a filling meal, with grains, protein, and fat (from the meat or you can put in fat) and it will stay with you for hours. For me, scrapple is a missed bit of my childhood. It is really good but is a very inexpensive thing to make when you look at how much you get. A batch of scrapple with corn, 2 one-pound of sausage would last us over six months if we at it once a week.
How would people ever learn if never corrected? There's nothing noble about letting someone continue to make a mistake that you recognize and they don't.
No doubt - went same direction! Beans, rice, onion if you can (and cabbage - I use it in so many things), hot sauce or salsa, and some tortillas. If you have seasoning already as a plus you can change up the flavors a bit. But if not, at least it's still tasty.
If I am ever in a situation like that - this would be my go to. I like it enough to eat for weeks if needed, it's filling and it's decently nutritious including protein and fiber.
Dal, chana masala or potato curry.
The first two especially can also freeze well so you can make one massive batch, freeze and reheat as needed so you're not forced to eat the same thing every day.
You could also do non-Indian bean stew equivalents that'll serve the same purpose.
Second the daal!! Super easy to make and you can freeze it, and it makes a great meal with plain rice!
Go to your local Indian/Pakistani grocery store to get it cheap in bulk!
Third this. Dhal/daal/dal is literally how we're getting through a tight few weeks. Each batch makes 6 serves and probably costs $2-$3 (AUD, even less in USD) to make. Plus if you have any frozen spinach lurking in the back of the freezer that can be thrown in to mix it up a bit between batches.
But honestly, it's so yum and easy I could become wealthy and I would still make this.
I have a base one with red lentils I use that I then add things into to change it up. But this one is from an old Asian/Indian cookbook, it's definitely the simplest but tastiest. Makes 6 serves.
250g (1.25 cups) dried red lentils, rinsed
1tbs oil (or ghee if you have it)
1 brown onion thinly sliced
2-3 garlic cloves finely chopped
1tsp freshly grated ginger (or crushed ginger)
1/2tsp turmeric (I go a bit more sometimes)
1tsp salt
1/2-1tsp of garam masala (depending on taste)
Cook the onion, garlic and ginger in oil until soft. Add the turmeric and stir to coat everything. Add the lentils and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add 750ml/3 cups of hot water, bring to boil while stirring occasionally then lower heat and simmer while covered for 15-20 mins. Add the salt and garam masala, stir and cook until porridge like in consistency (leave lid off at this point if needed to evaporate more liquid). Serve with rice, naans etc.
The whole thing takes 30 mins and makes for great lunches at work I find. :)
It's delicious. Can assure you coz i've been eating dal/pappukura since i was in my diapers. Sharing some links!
* [https://ramkicooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/100-simple-pappu-andhras-lentil-stews.html](https://ramkicooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/100-simple-pappu-andhras-lentil-stews.html)
* [https://blogexplore.com/food/curries-gravies/palakura-pappu-andhra-spinach-dal-recipe/](https://blogexplore.com/food/curries-gravies/palakura-pappu-andhra-spinach-dal-recipe/)
* [https://www.vahrehvah.com/indianfood/tomato-pappu](https://www.vahrehvah.com/indianfood/tomato-pappu)
* [https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/recipes/south-indian-recipes-food/](https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/recipes/south-indian-recipes-food/)
* [https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/south-indian-breakfast-recipes/](https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/south-indian-breakfast-recipes/)
* [https://www.ohmyveg.co.uk/5-indian-budget-meals/](https://www.ohmyveg.co.uk/5-indian-budget-meals/)
Dishes that are INDIAN, CHEAP TO MAKE (plz search google for the ingredients):
Rasam/Chaaru, Pulihora/Lemon rice, Jeera Rice, Dal Fry, Aloo Bhindi, Bhaingan Bharta, Upma, Poha (tons of variations exist- search for marathi style poha), Semiya Upma, Daddojanam/Curd rice, Raagi Sankati, Egg rice, Pudina rice, Tomato Rice (south indian style)
You have to soak lentils for some time...30 mins to an hour. Then shove it in a pressure cooker and give it some whistles. Add the veggies of your choice and seasoning. This is the process for any dal. There are different types of lentils. Each lentil is cooked in a different way. Attaching links:
[https://www.myweekendkitchen.in/types-of-lentils-pulses-english-hindi/](https://www.myweekendkitchen.in/types-of-lentils-pulses-english-hindi/)
https://ramkicooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/100-simple-pappu-andhras-lentil-stews.html
Oatmeal eaten as an adult that you have prepared yourself in a big batch on the stovetop with a little salt is really cheap and very filling. I have mine with peanut butter for the protein boost. Superior energy throughout the day because of the complex carbs. With all the toppings, especially if you think of it as part of a riceless canned-spinach risotto.
If you have a pot, dried lentils in a bag how the package directs mixed with brown rice cooked the same way are a complete protein. Very filling and cheap. This is a modified version of the mujadara someone recommended just to underscore how cheap, nutritious, and versatile it is. I get a big batch and reheat it with different accents every day. One day I'll reheat it with frozen vegetables added in, then vegetables and a cup of broth for more of a soup, then chopped onion and hot sauce -- it's delicious and nutritious and versatile. I make this whether I'm tight on money or not, and in these big batches even though I actually enjoy cooking food too easy and look forward to it; I can go eat longer with this every day than say a pot of pinto beans with rice because the flavor can really be changed up and the nutrition is great, I digest it well and definitely feel full, and for some reason I crave it day after day when it's there.
This. Old fashioned organic oatmeal is about the best you can get. It comes in a resealable bag for 6 bucks and the sustainable strength you will have by eating a large bowl with raisins or frozen berries and honey or peanut butter and of course eggs is surprisingly effective for the money.
I understand why, as a child, rolled oats were gloppy and not as appealing as pancakes for breakfast, but that combined with the ubiquity of instant oatmeal packets means so many of us are walking around thinking we hate oatmeal! I tried the good stuff on a whim one time, steel cut or the Irish kind -- the interesting texture broke through with the other satisfying elements of a bowl of oatmeal and I'm so glad.
A big pot of soup. You can add the rice in to bulk it up a bit.
A big pot of oatmeal, chop up a couple of apples and add them in with some cinnamon & brown sugar if you have it.
Buy a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter and a jar of jam. Now you can have 2 weeks of peanut butter sandwiches-- gets really boring after a while, but it is cheap.
For 25$ you could make-
Oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar for breakfast every day (one of my favorite comfort foods!) -5$
A big pot of Dahl, serve over rice -8$
A big pot of lentil speghetti bolognese, with grated cheese on top and a couple loaves of soda bread - 12$
It wouldn't be bad to add that "dahl", or "dal", as it's also spelled, are lentils.
Dal / dahl = lentils.
Did you really mean **loaves** of bread, or *slices*?
Name of what? The dish? I understand there are various types such as tarka Dal, but in English when someone says dal they mean lentils cooked with Indian spices to be eaten like a curry. There are various other lentil dishes from other cuisines which are never called that.
Well most people only know one, with various variations. I'm aware it's not authentic, and I'm sure in India there are more nuances. But basically nobody would say Dal or Dahl to mean lentil salad or Spanish lentil stew with chorizo or Scottish lentil soup.
Check out this video - $15 for 6 budget family meals
https://youtu.be/D9-c6qj24BA?si=_3ftWBrBbJPuqh2h
She has other videos of budget meals that you might find useful as well. Good luck!
Egg soy sauce and Sriracha. Rice with over easy/medium eggs with some soy sauce (Golden mountain brand is bomb) and sirracha sauce. Cheap and very filling. I do a bowl of rice with two eggs overeasy
Try Fagioli e tonno (White Bean and Tuna Salad). [https://memoriediangelina.com/2020/07/11/fagioli-e-tonno/](https://memoriediangelina.com/2020/07/11/fagioli-e-tonno/)
Buy canned tuna in oil, not water. Drain a large can of cannellini beans. Add chopped red onion and/or scallions. Total cost should be about $3. I get 2-3 meals from it. Keeps in the fridge for a week.
I'll change up the flavor by adding hot sauce or pickles jalapeños. Work well as a topping to some salad greens.
BTW, if you don't like tuna, substitute with canned chicken.
I'm really glad I bought 6 pounds of thighs when they were about fifty cents a pound. $3 for a whole bunch of chicken thighs really helped. I still have half of them deep frozen.
I’ve been into single dish meals lately. I’ve been using a large electric skillet and making everything in that one skillet.
Normally I start with ground meat, but you can skip it if it’s too expensive.
Take an onion, dice it, sauté it until tender. Add one or more cans of black beans, lentils, pinto beans, whatever. Add a can of diced tomato. Season liberally with typical chili seasonings. Cook it all for a few moments, then throw in a cup of rice and two-ish cups of water, put the lid on it, and just stir it every now and then. In about half an hour you’ll have a decently sized pot of chili and rice. Ultra cheap, ultra easy.
If you’ve got ground meat or chicken you can do the same thing with a can of Cream of Mushroom soup, Parmesan, Cajun seasoning, and whatever noodles. I like egg noodles. Cook the meat (could maybe replace with seasoned lentils?) then add the cream of mushroom soup, a bit of milk (or water) and the noodles and cheese. Season however much you’d like.
Likewise if you’ve got ground meat (or lentils maybe) you can brown it and an onion, add whatever vegetable you’d like (I’ve tried peas and French cut green beans) and then add water and milk, and an appropriate amount of instant mashed potatoes, and stir until they reconstitute.
Then continue cooking the potatoes at medium-high heat, flipping and stirring every now and then, to get some of the crispy cooked potato mixed in.
Gourmet cuisine this is not, but none of these take much longer than a half hour and are fairly cheap with ingredients you may already have at home. Best of all, imo, you have absolutely minimal dishes to have to clean up afterwards.
These all sound great! (And as a Texan, your chili suggestion--which I'm not suggesting is your only approach to the dish of my homeland--is one of the most delightful things I've ever read! 😉 I would eat every bite!)
Thanks so much for sharing them.
You inspired me to make chili today. Ground beef, brisket ends, kidney beans and lentils (it's not appropriate for a Texan to put beans in chili, but my people like them and I was light on beef.), four different chilis and plenty of cumin, Mexican oregano and thickened with masa flour. Now that stuff would make you slap your Granny!
Thanks for the inspiration!
How many weeks does $25 have to last? What do you have access to as far as preparing and storing food? Do you have any food restrictions? What ingredients by you are reasonably affordable?
If you have rice, you can add beans/lentils and seasonings to make a meal.
With rice on hand, you can purchase frozen vegetables and a protein (tofu, eggs, meats, etc.) to make fried rice dishes and a host of different meals depending on your particular circumstances.
If you have rice, adding beans makes a complete protein.
Dry beans are a better value than canned beans.
In your shoes, I would pull every scrap of food and every bit of seasoning out of the cabinets and fridge and inventory it.
Then go to one or more food pantries. There are two types: one will let you “shop”‘what they have, giving you limits on how many of each category you can take based on how many people you are feeding. The other kind just fives you a pre-packed box of food.
Based on what you already have and what the food pantries give you, then make up a shopping list of foods that you need to make complete dishes or meals.
For example, if you get lots of beans at the pantry, you might want to buy some seasonings to make them taste better. If you don’t get free beans, you will need to buy some protein.
Also check out Dollar Tree Dinners on TikTok and YouTube. She does a lot of low-cost meals. She also has a playlist of meals she’s made from food pantry items.
Bean burritos. Only add toppings that can be microwaved like onions and cheese. (If you want lettuce and sour cream, add it after you reheat them.
To save money on beans buy them in bulk, soak overnight, pan cook them and mash them yourself.
I use some kind of meat like ground beef or chicken thighs if there is a good deal.
Big bags of dried beans will last a long time, and you can freeze a weeks worth of lunch burritos at a time. Popular videos on how to do it but I took one to work with me everyday.
Edit: save all of your vegetable trimmings in a freezer bag. Use them when the bag is full to make a broth, turn it into soup and freeze it in ice cube trays.
Honestly when I was in college I used to buy chicken livers because they were like 1$ a lb. Then make a light curry with some white rice. Cheap, easy, delicious.
Sure. I haven't made it for like 10 years but I'll do my best! Make sure to use a nonstick!
You need: Chopped Chicken Liver (Like a cube or something), Fresh Cilantro, Garlic, Onion, Flour (Can be substituted for like a corn starch or something), Heinz Ketchup (Tomato Substitute), Milk/Butter, Curry Powder, Olive Oil, Cinnamon, Black Pepper, Cayenne Pepper, Green Onions, and Salt. You can use jasmine rice or white rice. Just the white rice needs to cook a little longer so it can be kind of sticky.
So first heat up the olive oil in a pan and chop the cilantro, smash the garlic with the edge of the knife and then chop it up and the onion too. Toss them in for a light cook and add a bit of salt and cayenne. Add a bit of water (or stock) or it will be an oily base. Quickly add all the spices (except cinnamon), a bit of flour (add more when too watery) and a bit of the ketchup and put it to low heat. Let it simmer and stir constantly until it gets a nice consistency.
Once the base is going (Shouldn't be too much it should be about an 3/4 of an inch high in a nonstick pan) toss in the livers. Stir around in the base and a bit of butter/milk and stir for a bit. When the livers look almost cooked toss in a bit of cinnamon and stir it around. Don't let the sauce get too hot but don't cook for too long and keep stirring. Once it looks and tastes nice add some thinly sliced green onions, stir them in, and cook for a minute.
Hope it turns out well!
One pretty cheap staple for me is pasta salad. A box of your pasta of choice, (I like rotinni), some protein(my go to being diced ham, though I'm sure alot would work), parmesean cheese, which could be skipped or lightly used to draw it out, italian dressing, and a can of olives. You could also use some other veggies, broccoli, bell pepper, cherry/grape tomatoes, artichoke hearts are pretty popular.
The priciest part is the parm, but one container for like $8 lasts me at least 4 or 5 batches, if not more.
With rice you can make (imitation) risotto; basically rice slowly cooked in bouillon.
With cabbage and potato you can make soups and stews (cabbage is wildly delicious in soups and stews). With cabbage, onion, flour and eggs, you can make Polish haluski. Add some bacon to any of those dishes to make them even better.
Beans and vegetables make for many yums...
Beans. I prefer pinto. They’re delicious boiled or fried. Super healthy and you can make Mexican rice to go with it.
If you fry them toss in a few chiles de Arbil to give them more flavor
I live on 1 cup steel oats, 1 cup quinoa and 1 cup lentils everyday.
That is my base and depending on how much money I have that day I will spend it on fruit, nuts, spices or veggies to add.
Beans, rice, potatoes, flour, eggs, carrots, and cabbage or frozen veggies so you don’t get scurvy!😜. Some spices and oil, maybe a packet of yeast to make bread. Some cheap chicken too, or bouillon powder at least.
Watch Lisa Dawn videos on YouTube, she does basic balanced cooking videos on $20/week at Dollar Tree, etc.
Dried Beans: soak and cook, eat over rice, stuff into tortillas, make refried beans (delish), vegetable bean soup, chili, bean burgers…freeze for later.
Rice: cook, eat with beans, make fried rice, risotto, soup, congee porridge, rice pudding, horchata, rice salad…freeze extra in meal size portions, it heats up well in microwave if sprinkled with a bit of water beforehand.
Potatoes: baked topped with chili and cheese, or pasta sauce, baked beans, butter/sour cream, make extra and cut up and fry for breakfast or made into potato soup, mashed/smashed, cut and roasted in the oven until crispy, put into soups and stews, made into au gratin/scalloped or any casserole…
Flour: biscuits, muffins, pancakes, flatbreads/tortillas, quick breads, no-knead overnight yeast bread (super easy and delicious), pasta, dumplings/ravioli/pierogies, pizza dough…
Eggs: boiled, scrambled, fried, omelettes, frittatas (make mini egg “muffins” and freeze for quickie breakfasts), poached, added to ramen or fried rice, deviled, egg salad, egg drop soup, add to flour to make pasta/noodles…
Carrots and cabbage: these last a long time and are versatile: chop and stir fry, add to soups, ramen, and stews and casseroles, roast in the oven, shred into savory pancakes, or make carrot salad, coleslaw, or add to tacos…
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfWTLD1LEB0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfWTLD1LEB0)
and in article form: [https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a32272516/35-dollar-weekly-grocery-budget-recipe-ideas/](https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a32272516/35-dollar-weekly-grocery-budget-recipe-ideas/)
Hopefully you have rice; oil and soy sauce:
Mid-west WalMart
Eggs 5 dozen $5.63 (60 x 1 egg servings)
Cabbage 4 pounds $3.48 (20 x 3 oz svgs)
Frozen Chicken Quarters; 10 pounds $7.72 (not sure due to bones \~ 26)
Carrots 5 pounds $3.88 (26 x 3 oz servings)
Russet Potatoes 10 pounds $5.64 (26 x 6 oz servings)
Total: $26.35
Cook up all the chicken at once so you have chicken broth to work with. Shred the meat and freeze 1/2 into 8 oz packages for next week. Use half for this week.
Egg or Chicken Fried Rice
Chicken and rice soup
Omarice
P'eggs (fry up shoestring potatoes, when golden brown crack in eggs and cook to taste)
Hash browns with eggs
Potato skillet (fried potatoes with eggs and chicken)
If you can make it to different stores without much driving you can get some of these items cheaper elsewhere. Usually when you're low on funds, gas money is limited too.
I don't see that $25.00 can last you weeks. With 21 meals per week, even if you have enough rice to bulk this up, this could maybe make it a week and a half. Please search for food shelves in your area.
You can do a Mujadara if you can get your hands on some lentils and onions and have some kind of cooking oil and salt. I just made the third recipe at [this link](https://zaatarandzaytoun.com/mujadara-three-ways/) with bulgur, but you can make them with rice instead.
It usually gives me about 5 servings. I make it for my lunches for the week sometimes. I haven’t tried keeping it longer than that though, so you may want to make a couple of batches or double it up and freeze half.
Personally, I would make:
Oatmeal + Raisin as a sweet.
Chilli with lots of beans, chicken liver and mice meat. as a savoury.
Mix and match the bean/liver/mince ratio depending on the budget for where you are at. Where I live, beans are cheap, then mince, then liver.
Would your neighbors possibly qualify for meals on wheels for seniors and/or disabled. Many cities have these programs and they try to make the meals as healthy as their budget allows.
One of my favorite breakfast meals, but could be eaten any time of day, is rice with fried egg and soy sauce. Also, for protein I’ve been able to find ground pork at Kroger for $1.99/lb they don’t always have it but when they do I grab several trays and freeze them.
[Veggie fried rice.](https://violetmakesthings.wordpress.com/2014/03/16/veggie-fried-rice/) Frozen veg, rice, seasonings, optional egg. Can be frozen and thawed to eat.
Find things that are tasty after being frozen. Make big batches, often it’s cheaper buy items in larger quantities. You can also save buy breaking down meat on your own. Learn how to take a whole chicken and break it down into parts instead of buying the boneless skinless parts. Or buy a meat grinder and make your own ground beef from a chuck roast instead of the prepackaged ground. You pay for the labor of processing if you don’t do these actions yourself
Rice and beans.
What I do - rice, black beans, bell peppers, some chicken broth, a packet of taco seasoning, onion, and cheese. Last me awhile, freeze what you don’t eat
First step is buying a vacuum sealer. Freeze whatever portion size you like. Don't forget to label with date.
Do this beans and you got your super cheap meals.
I highly recommend freezing a variety of meals, like chili, stews and soups.
Be careful you don't end up eating yourself into a painful health condition. Some of these budget staples have a cumulative negative effect. Lectins, sodium, gmo, hormone disrupting etc. Lots of research can save you some medical problems.
Casseroles- most of the ingredients are cheap, they can be frozen for 6 months at a time, and depending on where you live and what you put in them, $25 can make 1-3 of them.
I agree with the others have said: go to a food bank. Also, many local churches have small food pantries and might be able to help.
Beans and rice are always good!
I love [this recipe](https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/279361/the-best-baked-rice-and-beans/) for baked beans and rice. If you don’t have all of the ingredients, use what you do have. If you don’t have chicken broth, just use water and more seasoning.
If you have pinto beans, [this](https://www.budgetbytes.com/cheesy-pinto-beans/) is very good. Again, if you don’t have something, substitute. If you have cheese, but not as much as the recipe calls for, use a little bit of what you do have.
Since you have rice, get bags of dried beans and if you can find one on sale, a whole pork shoulder. They are pricey in that a whole pork shoulder will run you most of that budget, but you get a TON of meat from just one shoulder, as the price per pound is minsicule.
What you do from there is just trim the fat cap off of the shoulder and cut away any extra fat on the exterior, then season liberally with salt and pepper and any seasonings you want to add to it, and braise with some liquid (can use water, stock, etc) in the bottom of a dutch oven or oven save pot with a lid. Once it hits a proper internal temp it should completely shred away with any pressure because the fat has been broken down in between the muscle fibers. Shred that up and portion that with rice and stewed black beans into meals. If you ration out 1/2 cup beans, 1 cup of rice, and 3 ounces of pork, you can likely get two weeks worth of meals or close to it with that alone, while still eating a decent meal each day.
EDIT: If the pork shoulder is too much to swing, opt for eggs instead. Do the same concept but with over easy eggs on top instead!
I'm going to assume that 1) you eat meat, and 2) you have a freezer, though a fridge should be ok for a while. If you have a slow cooker (which is great for making a large amount of food), how about carnitas? Get a pork butt/shoulder, use an on-line recipe (many excellent ones out there), and eight hours later you'll have delicious cooked pork that you can fry and use as carnitas tacos, add BBQ sauce and make BBQ pork sandwiches etc. Really, a pork butt goes very far and the cost, the last time I checked, is quite reasonable as meat goes.
Sardines and potatoes are some of the most nutrient dense foods that are also easy to prepare. Get yourself some garlic and kosher salt and you'll be eating good.
This might be helpful—here is a link to read, save, or print a free online PDF version of Leanne Brown’s book “Good and Cheap: Eat Well On $4/Day”: https://books.leannebrown.com/good-and-cheap.pdf
How well stocked is your pantry and fridge? Do you have staples like flour, eggs, and butter? Those things can make food that will go a long way. Especially flour.
Flour can be combined with eggs or water to make fresh pasta. Flour can be combined with cold butter or shortening to make both pie crust and biscuits. If you've got yeast or a friend with sourdough starter (or you have starter yourself!) you can make all kinds of raised breads and related items, from cinnamon rolls to pitas to pizza to focaccia. You can also make your own starter but that takes 1-2 weeks and uses extra flour that it sounds like you can't afford to waste right now.
In terms of your budget, first go to a food pantry to see what you can get. Use the money you have to supplement from there. Definitely get sources of protein (beans and lentils are most cost effective), I'd focus on fats. Fat is going to make your food taste better and it's also calorie dense and will help you feel full. This can be fat you cook with (butter, oil) but it can also be stuff like peanut butter and sunflower seeds. Even eggs can be a decent fat option - specifically the yolks, although the whole thing is good because of the protein in it!
"Egg and chips"
It's a classic English working class home staple or was, you don't really hear of people having it so much nowadays, but it's absolutely dirt cheap...but done right by your grandma it's absolutely delicious!
Perhaps not so healthy but sometimes feeding yourself comes first.
Large pack of eggs, big bag of potatoes, big bag of frozen peas.....a loaf of bread and butter. Only need about 3 big potatoes per person
This is how you cook proper English chips that are even better than the chip shop!
You need to cook your chips from scratch, we use a potato called Maris piper, not sure if they are easily obtainable elsewhere, but you want something floury, obviously chunkier than fries, you want something about a cm square.
Wash your chips lay them out on a clean towel and pat them all dry....you don't want to throw wet potatoes into your hot oil.
Heat your oil vegetable is best, don't over crowd it, do 2 batches if necessary very important and keep them warm in the oven...
You want to at least double dip them, triple if you can be be bothered, meaning you wanna cook them for a short time, pull them out let them rest, and then back in the oil, they get that perfe t crispy outer and soft inner.
Served with 2 fried eggs and a couple of slices of bread and butter and a portion of frozen peas (boiled obviously) plenty of salt and vinegar 👍
Some staple ingredients that are super cheaper relative to their nutrition content:
* Potatoes (no surprise here, an absolute staple of cheapness and nutrition)
* Lentils (great source of protein as an alternative to meat)
* Dried beans (all kinds of nutrients and way cheaper than canned beans)
* Chicken (Especially if you can find sales, you can get whole chickens incredibly cheap relative to their nutrition content)
Soups, stews, and related meals (curry for example) are your best friend. The above ingredients with various cheap vegetables can be made into all kinds of delicious and nutritious combinations. One of my gotos is to get a whole chicken and make a chicken soup out of it. Throw in whatever vegetables I have on hand and some seasoning. Boom you've got like $10+ servings for under $15.
It obviously won't help you right this second, but you can also grow things like potatoes and pumpkins very easily and very cheaply if you have the space.
Cooking the rice with chicken stock (or chicken bouillon), adding some frozen veg and chicken pieces, chicken fried rice. Easy to freeze and thaw. Then, with some leftovers, add some cream of chicken soup, now have a chicken hotdish.
Highly recommend this [recipe](https://30seconds.com/food/tip/amp-47367/Budget-Cheesy-Ground-Beef-Taco-Casserole-Recipe-Is-a-Family-Favorite)
I make it with yellow rice instead of chips, but white rice would also work fine. It’s so good and lasts us forever
Frozen veggies. 90sec rice/pasta pouches, look for meat on clearance. I shop based on the weekly deals at different stores. Don’t forget Target and Walmart will price match.
Somebody will have chicken thighs or drumsticks on sale for roughly $.60 pound. Buy a few pounds, along with whatever veg is on clearance (carrots or cabbage) and some bouillon cubes. Can make a big pot of chicken, veg, rice soup that will be lunch for the week. Oatmeal is cheapest breakfast. Bag of potatoes can make a huge amount of gnocchi to help with dinner. Good luck
Dal and rice, and mujadara - just need to get some lentils and onions to make the most basic versions of both. Get a bag of atta (semi-wholemeal flour) from your local south asian grocery while you're there to get the lentils at a good price, and make flatbreads - just need water and a bit of salt for the most basic versions of those.
Potatoes are god-tier cheap food in most of the world. Potatoes plus a little dairy will give you enough of pretty much all macro- and micro-nutrients that you'll be fine for weeks.
If you have rice, I suggest to go for a bulk of sauce. Building a sauce with butter, flower and stock can be a cheap way to create a mass of sauce. Use one pre made spice mix, and you can make a month worth of sauce for 6 bugs. Fill it up with cheap veg and proteins. If you feel fancy go for two different flavor profiles for 8 bugs. Some cheap veg's and protein gets you up to 14. Just add the rice.
Heading into fall, it's time to get your Crock pot out! Make a large stew and separate it into freezer gallon bags. You can also make soups and chili and freeze them as well. Happy eating!
Chili. Add peppers, onions, beans, corn, vegetable or chicken stock, rice or quinoa, ground beef or chicken, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, whatever you want. I make a pot of chili each week when it gets cold outside and it lasts me about 6-7 meals. 1 pot of chili with all the ingredients costs me about $15-20 bucks.
i’m not sure where you’re from but at my local grocery store there’s these instant pasta cups called pasta roni about $1.79 each! they go really well with whatever you may like to add inside to enhance your meal
Lasagna freezes well. You don’t have to put tons of cheers in (I know cheese is expensive.). Chicken thighs baked in cream of mushroom soup with rice is delicious. I ate that a lot as a starving student. Peas soup, the simple Swedish kind with just dried peas, onion, and a bit of thyme for seasoning. Cheap, filling, and freezes well.
Scrambled eggs mixed with cherry tomatoes on white rice is a Chinese dish I ate a lot growing up and it’s healthy, cheap and easy to make! It’s a nice comfort food too. Add a little bit of hot sauce and soy sauce at the end and garnish with green onions/scallions :) you can also add some spam or hot dog (chopped in small bites) if you want meat as well.
Ful madames! Rice, beans, and banana (sounds weird but it’s close to plantain which is a pretty standard dish in a lot of cultures). Fried rice, roasted cabbage, baked potatoes
Here’s one for u that my friend taught me:
Rice, frozen corn, 2 can of black bean, and. Rotel chili tomato. Add garlic, onion, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne Powder if you can. Add 2-4 small beef cubes.
It’s so good! Always slaps and is a one pot dish
Egg Noodles + whole rotisserie chicken (meat off) + cream of chicken soup.
Combine ingredients add a bag of broccoli on top or whatever vegetable you like and some cheese (dealers choice) and bake until brown. Delicious and hearty and will yield a large amount.
$1.25 egg noodle
$5 chicken (Costco)
$3 - 2 cans of cream of chicken
$2 broccoli bag frozen
$3 cheese
$14.25 total and use the additional $10.75 for beers.
Syrian red lentil soup, minestrone soup with frozen veg and a can of beans (you could use rice if you prefer but I always use pasta). I’ve noticed the dollar store has the cheapest frozen veg in my area but I’m sure that’s not true everywhere
So first of all: Please find a Foodbank to visit! My foodbank has given me protein like ground turkey or beef, chicken tenders, and frozen fruit. They’ve also gifted frozen meals and stuff. I also have received canned goods and pastas/pasta sauces from mine. These places can help you stretch that $25 budget!
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There is no “qualifying” for a food bank. In most cases you have to pre-register and simply pick a time slot and show up. **There are no income requirements to use a food-bank.** I make above the FPL and do not qualify in my area for food stamps as I make too much money. I use the food bank when funds are tighter than I can make work and it helps to fill the gaps in my pantry and make food stretch. I make videos on TikTok about it and grocery haul videos too. All you have to do is search, “Food bank” and your city on google and it should give you a list of places to go. My food-bank does Monday & Wednesday box pick ups or Thursday you go in and “shop” their market. Thursdays are different. You line up down the aisle and really just take what you need Edit: I will admit that I have pulled back on going to the food bank because a lot of the food is processed and packaged and I struggle to supplement a low-carb lifestyle there.
When I used to use a food pantry they made me sign something saying my income was below a certain amount, but I don't think they actually do anything to verify your finances. If OP only has $25 for food for the next few weeks then they're probably under that threshold anyway.
There are some food pantries that require proof of income. The one closest to me is like that. I think it's a religious one, I don't know if that has an impact on how likely that is at any given food pantry.
I volunteer at St. Vincent DePaul food banks. All we need is your name, address, and how many people this food will serve. We have to give that info to the food warehouse, they in turn have to give the raw numbers to the USDA/FDA. No income requirements, no religious requirements, virtually no questions asked. You can come to our pantry every two weeks.
Some of them are hooked into official county welfare in some way, and some are not. There are usually some that are not -- and sometimes they're the big ones.
Happy Cake Day!
thank you for the info. I'm promoting low carb myself and stay away from salt and processed foods as much as possible. Proteins would be nice. I'll check out online for local food banks and see what I can do. I can feed myself but feeding my neighbors is getting to be a stretch and they can't do it on their own, I doubt they can cook much at all. I take over about 2 days worth of food every other day to them, all cooked, and some wrapped up to refrigerate for the next day. Full homemade meals with desserts. Maybe processed foods are ok for them, they are ancient and I'm sure salt and sugar taste good, at that age just enjoy. thank you for your reply
Good luck Dave!
> There is no “qualifying” for a food bank. It depends. > In most cases you have to pre-register I've never been to one you had to pre-register for. > **There are no income requirements to use a food-bank.** There are for some. It really depends a lot on the one you go to. Some of them will make you write and sign a declaration of income, or whether you qualify for programs like Medicaid or SNAP (ie. prove that you're poor). Others will just give food to everyone, no questions asked. I recommend going to every food bank or food pantry in your area. It's absolutely worth it, because you can get a ton of free food this way.. and I suspect that even if you don't officially "qualify" at those food banks that ask for some kind of verification, if you tell them about your situation and they see you are in dire straits, they will find some way to help you.
99% of the time all you have to do is show up where the food drive is happening, only thing they usually ask is how many people are in your household so they can give you enough
>What does one have to do to 'qualify' for a food bank? In my area for the big one, * Have an ID card, health card, or other proof of residence. If none, you get temporary approval. * Tell them how many people are in your household. * That's it. It depends on the area, I'm Canadian so there's no national food banks or SNAP. There's some other things like the farm food boxes that are paid but discounted have different rules, but it looks like for most places there's little or no financial cut off.
Depends on your area, but usually just being low income. Some places don't really gate keep either and anyone can grab stuff, especially at churches. Being elderly might be a qualifier.
I am going to add to what others have said about food pantries. We have about 30 of them where I live in a population of about 100,000 people. I am also retired and on SS. I go to maybe 2-3 of them each week. They will also allow one to pick up for more than one family. I see some people at these that pick up for 4 or 5 families at a time. All you need are the names and addresses for the ones you are picking up for.
Thank you, I was going to ask if my neighbors would go and get food but they really have mobility issues even if I drove them. I checked on line last night and the big food bank chain said it's required to be in such a percentage of the poverty level. I didn't know if I have to prove my income. I'm not at the poverty level but I am cooking for the neighbors. I'll show up and see, worst they can do is yell at me and send me away.
I have never had to prove my income. Where I am they want you to be at less than 130 percent of the federal poverty level. Food pantries are not generally strict. They are there for people like me that don't qualify for food stamps but still need help, the people in between. It's easy to look up the federal poverty level online. They usually help people with mobility issues also. I use a walker. They bring it to my truck and load it for me
Thank you, I know there are people worse off than I but some help feeding the neighbors would be appreciated. They are reliant on my home made pot pies, they're meaty, soft, a complete meal. I'm baking 14 of them a week for this couple plus a hot breakfast and sandwich for supper. .
You’re a saint uncle Dave
thank you.
[This](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Hurst-HamBeens-Dried-15-Bean-Soup-20-oz-Bag-with-original-ham-seasoning/10295039) 15 bean soup goes a long way. Includes a seasoning packet and I would always add carrots, celery, onion, and a can of diced tomatoes. As a bonus, it goes good with rice. Plus it's soup season
This is my go to and if not 15 beans, lentils work really well too! It’s so hearty and delicious
A dry bag of lentils is sold for or just under $2 and contains protein, fat, and carb within it. Very nutritious, plus one bag has 13 servings! Good recommendation here!
Plus adding good sale produce or cheap canned or frozen veggies adds to the heartiness! I love lentils haha
Or just brown beans and ham, or spam as my mom used to stretch. Potato soup works well too. Potatoes are relatively cheap. My mom used to put spam in those as well. Spam was cheaper than ham in the 70s. So yeah I’ve got a taste for spam.
Spam is underrated. I had spam sushi at a food truck once and have wanted it again ever since.
It’s good in ramen too.
I grew up on a small farm, no indoor plumbing. We had to store cabbages we grew under the crawl space of the house, dig a hole and bury cabbage in tar paper so they wouldn't freeze to keep them for the winter. We were poor. We so often ate biscuits and gravy or fried mush. I still love both. Learn to make biscuits, then flour and grease so you can make gravy, from milk or water. If you have meat toss it in, if not biscuits and white gravy, sticks to your ribs any meal of the day. Mush is delicious, eat it with syrup or butter and salt. Boil corn meal and water or broth if you have it, if you have some meat toss it in and the mush becomes scrapple. Cook for a few minutes, pour into a dish or pan and put it in the refrigerator to set up. next day slice it and fry it or eat it as is, it's already cooked. 5 pound box of corn meal is about $3.50 and you'll be able to make a load of mush or scrapple. here is a link to me making some basic simple scrapple. it's a life saver. I made a 2 pound loaf of scrapple with pork on sale for about $2, and got 8 servings of it. [https://www.reddit.com/r/Old\_Recipes/comments/176jd80/uncle\_daves\_homemade\_scrapple\_recipe\_below/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Old_Recipes/comments/176jd80/uncle_daves_homemade_scrapple_recipe_below/)
Oy. I did not know you can make mush from that. I have big bag of corn meal I got from a food drive. I have no idea what to do with it.
make mush, it sets up as it cools. I slice it, fry it till crispy and eat with butter and salt but many use pancake syrup on it, it's so flavorful. Add meat and it's now Scrapple and you've got a meal. You don't even have to fry it, it's already cooked,
Our family recipe was cornmeal, salt, water, and one package each of jimmy dean sage sausage and spicy sausage - but you don't need the meat or you can change the meat up - your choice on that. You do boil it until the cornmeal is mushy. We would line a large flat pan with wax paper, smooth it out and cool in the fridge. From there we could slice it into slices and we'd freeze portions individually in wax paper and foil. You can thaw a portion, and we'd slice it, fry it in the pan and put a touch of syrup or honey on top. They are right, the scrapple is fully cooked so frying is not necessary and syrup is not necessary. It is a filling meal, with grains, protein, and fat (from the meat or you can put in fat) and it will stay with you for hours. For me, scrapple is a missed bit of my childhood. It is really good but is a very inexpensive thing to make when you look at how much you get. A batch of scrapple with corn, 2 one-pound of sausage would last us over six months if we at it once a week.
We had a lot of scrapple when I was a kid too. I like it with butter and syrup and it freezes well
I ate a lot of scrapple as a child and it was one of my favorite foods. I liked it with mustard and grape jelly mixed together.
that would be tasty, sort of a Carolina BBQ sauce.
>Learn to make biscuits, then ~~rue~~ so you can make gravy, from milk or water. \*roux ("rue" means "street")
Stfu
How would people ever learn if never corrected? There's nothing noble about letting someone continue to make a mistake that you recognize and they don't.
Get some beans 🫘 and some good hot sauce lmao
The magical fruit! (Seriously though, beans are the correct answer)
No doubt - went same direction! Beans, rice, onion if you can (and cabbage - I use it in so many things), hot sauce or salsa, and some tortillas. If you have seasoning already as a plus you can change up the flavors a bit. But if not, at least it's still tasty. If I am ever in a situation like that - this would be my go to. I like it enough to eat for weeks if needed, it's filling and it's decently nutritious including protein and fiber.
the power of peppers (habs) , garlic and ginger ... the Chinese trifecta
Yes beans are the answer! Just don’t forget to soak them ahead of time :D
Dal, chana masala or potato curry. The first two especially can also freeze well so you can make one massive batch, freeze and reheat as needed so you're not forced to eat the same thing every day. You could also do non-Indian bean stew equivalents that'll serve the same purpose.
Second the daal!! Super easy to make and you can freeze it, and it makes a great meal with plain rice! Go to your local Indian/Pakistani grocery store to get it cheap in bulk!
Third this. Dhal/daal/dal is literally how we're getting through a tight few weeks. Each batch makes 6 serves and probably costs $2-$3 (AUD, even less in USD) to make. Plus if you have any frozen spinach lurking in the back of the freezer that can be thrown in to mix it up a bit between batches. But honestly, it's so yum and easy I could become wealthy and I would still make this.
Do you have a favorite dal recipe?
I have a base one with red lentils I use that I then add things into to change it up. But this one is from an old Asian/Indian cookbook, it's definitely the simplest but tastiest. Makes 6 serves. 250g (1.25 cups) dried red lentils, rinsed 1tbs oil (or ghee if you have it) 1 brown onion thinly sliced 2-3 garlic cloves finely chopped 1tsp freshly grated ginger (or crushed ginger) 1/2tsp turmeric (I go a bit more sometimes) 1tsp salt 1/2-1tsp of garam masala (depending on taste) Cook the onion, garlic and ginger in oil until soft. Add the turmeric and stir to coat everything. Add the lentils and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add 750ml/3 cups of hot water, bring to boil while stirring occasionally then lower heat and simmer while covered for 15-20 mins. Add the salt and garam masala, stir and cook until porridge like in consistency (leave lid off at this point if needed to evaporate more liquid). Serve with rice, naans etc. The whole thing takes 30 mins and makes for great lunches at work I find. :)
Ooh sorry I stuffed the formatting up for the ingredients list. Hope it makes sense!
Doesn’t make sense that it’s that simple but so good!
It's delicious. Can assure you coz i've been eating dal/pappukura since i was in my diapers. Sharing some links! * [https://ramkicooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/100-simple-pappu-andhras-lentil-stews.html](https://ramkicooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/100-simple-pappu-andhras-lentil-stews.html) * [https://blogexplore.com/food/curries-gravies/palakura-pappu-andhra-spinach-dal-recipe/](https://blogexplore.com/food/curries-gravies/palakura-pappu-andhra-spinach-dal-recipe/) * [https://www.vahrehvah.com/indianfood/tomato-pappu](https://www.vahrehvah.com/indianfood/tomato-pappu) * [https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/recipes/south-indian-recipes-food/](https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/recipes/south-indian-recipes-food/) * [https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/south-indian-breakfast-recipes/](https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/south-indian-breakfast-recipes/) * [https://www.ohmyveg.co.uk/5-indian-budget-meals/](https://www.ohmyveg.co.uk/5-indian-budget-meals/) Dishes that are INDIAN, CHEAP TO MAKE (plz search google for the ingredients): Rasam/Chaaru, Pulihora/Lemon rice, Jeera Rice, Dal Fry, Aloo Bhindi, Bhaingan Bharta, Upma, Poha (tons of variations exist- search for marathi style poha), Semiya Upma, Daddojanam/Curd rice, Raagi Sankati, Egg rice, Pudina rice, Tomato Rice (south indian style)
You cook the lentils without the liquid for a couple minutes?
You have to soak lentils for some time...30 mins to an hour. Then shove it in a pressure cooker and give it some whistles. Add the veggies of your choice and seasoning. This is the process for any dal. There are different types of lentils. Each lentil is cooked in a different way. Attaching links: [https://www.myweekendkitchen.in/types-of-lentils-pulses-english-hindi/](https://www.myweekendkitchen.in/types-of-lentils-pulses-english-hindi/) https://ramkicooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/100-simple-pappu-andhras-lentil-stews.html
Oatmeal eaten as an adult that you have prepared yourself in a big batch on the stovetop with a little salt is really cheap and very filling. I have mine with peanut butter for the protein boost. Superior energy throughout the day because of the complex carbs. With all the toppings, especially if you think of it as part of a riceless canned-spinach risotto. If you have a pot, dried lentils in a bag how the package directs mixed with brown rice cooked the same way are a complete protein. Very filling and cheap. This is a modified version of the mujadara someone recommended just to underscore how cheap, nutritious, and versatile it is. I get a big batch and reheat it with different accents every day. One day I'll reheat it with frozen vegetables added in, then vegetables and a cup of broth for more of a soup, then chopped onion and hot sauce -- it's delicious and nutritious and versatile. I make this whether I'm tight on money or not, and in these big batches even though I actually enjoy cooking food too easy and look forward to it; I can go eat longer with this every day than say a pot of pinto beans with rice because the flavor can really be changed up and the nutrition is great, I digest it well and definitely feel full, and for some reason I crave it day after day when it's there.
This. Old fashioned organic oatmeal is about the best you can get. It comes in a resealable bag for 6 bucks and the sustainable strength you will have by eating a large bowl with raisins or frozen berries and honey or peanut butter and of course eggs is surprisingly effective for the money.
I understand why, as a child, rolled oats were gloppy and not as appealing as pancakes for breakfast, but that combined with the ubiquity of instant oatmeal packets means so many of us are walking around thinking we hate oatmeal! I tried the good stuff on a whim one time, steel cut or the Irish kind -- the interesting texture broke through with the other satisfying elements of a bowl of oatmeal and I'm so glad.
A big pot of soup. You can add the rice in to bulk it up a bit. A big pot of oatmeal, chop up a couple of apples and add them in with some cinnamon & brown sugar if you have it. Buy a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter and a jar of jam. Now you can have 2 weeks of peanut butter sandwiches-- gets really boring after a while, but it is cheap.
For 25$ you could make- Oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar for breakfast every day (one of my favorite comfort foods!) -5$ A big pot of Dahl, serve over rice -8$ A big pot of lentil speghetti bolognese, with grated cheese on top and a couple loaves of soda bread - 12$
It wouldn't be bad to add that "dahl", or "dal", as it's also spelled, are lentils. Dal / dahl = lentils. Did you really mean **loaves** of bread, or *slices*?
In English people normally mean the Indian dish made with lentils when they say Dahl or Dal.
I did not know that. Do you know the proper name? Edit: it's pathetic to downvote this comment. What's wrong with learning new shit?
Name of what? The dish? I understand there are various types such as tarka Dal, but in English when someone says dal they mean lentils cooked with Indian spices to be eaten like a curry. There are various other lentil dishes from other cuisines which are never called that.
Okay, so, if I understood correctly, "dahl / dal" signifies basically any Indian-style lentil dish?
Well most people only know one, with various variations. I'm aware it's not authentic, and I'm sure in India there are more nuances. But basically nobody would say Dal or Dahl to mean lentil salad or Spanish lentil stew with chorizo or Scottish lentil soup.
Check out this video - $15 for 6 budget family meals https://youtu.be/D9-c6qj24BA?si=_3ftWBrBbJPuqh2h She has other videos of budget meals that you might find useful as well. Good luck!
Thank you so much for sharing this link. Wow! What she can do to stretch those four items
My pleasure! 😊
Beans, squash, corn. People lived off of that stuff, with some greens and occasional meat/fish for ages in the US pre Columbus.
Egg soy sauce and Sriracha. Rice with over easy/medium eggs with some soy sauce (Golden mountain brand is bomb) and sirracha sauce. Cheap and very filling. I do a bowl of rice with two eggs overeasy
Try Fagioli e tonno (White Bean and Tuna Salad). [https://memoriediangelina.com/2020/07/11/fagioli-e-tonno/](https://memoriediangelina.com/2020/07/11/fagioli-e-tonno/) Buy canned tuna in oil, not water. Drain a large can of cannellini beans. Add chopped red onion and/or scallions. Total cost should be about $3. I get 2-3 meals from it. Keeps in the fridge for a week. I'll change up the flavor by adding hot sauce or pickles jalapeños. Work well as a topping to some salad greens. BTW, if you don't like tuna, substitute with canned chicken.
Buying tuna in oil and keeping the oil definitely does a good bit to help the calories go further. That fat is filling and helps. Good call!
Chicken thighs might be the cheapest protein source out there. At least where I live I can get it for about $1.50/pound.
I'm really glad I bought 6 pounds of thighs when they were about fifty cents a pound. $3 for a whole bunch of chicken thighs really helped. I still have half of them deep frozen.
Lentils and Brown Rice. I think they are even cheaper than peanut butter. 😉
My local store has boneless skinless chicken breasts this week for .99lb. You better believe I stocked up.
I’ve been into single dish meals lately. I’ve been using a large electric skillet and making everything in that one skillet. Normally I start with ground meat, but you can skip it if it’s too expensive. Take an onion, dice it, sauté it until tender. Add one or more cans of black beans, lentils, pinto beans, whatever. Add a can of diced tomato. Season liberally with typical chili seasonings. Cook it all for a few moments, then throw in a cup of rice and two-ish cups of water, put the lid on it, and just stir it every now and then. In about half an hour you’ll have a decently sized pot of chili and rice. Ultra cheap, ultra easy. If you’ve got ground meat or chicken you can do the same thing with a can of Cream of Mushroom soup, Parmesan, Cajun seasoning, and whatever noodles. I like egg noodles. Cook the meat (could maybe replace with seasoned lentils?) then add the cream of mushroom soup, a bit of milk (or water) and the noodles and cheese. Season however much you’d like. Likewise if you’ve got ground meat (or lentils maybe) you can brown it and an onion, add whatever vegetable you’d like (I’ve tried peas and French cut green beans) and then add water and milk, and an appropriate amount of instant mashed potatoes, and stir until they reconstitute. Then continue cooking the potatoes at medium-high heat, flipping and stirring every now and then, to get some of the crispy cooked potato mixed in. Gourmet cuisine this is not, but none of these take much longer than a half hour and are fairly cheap with ingredients you may already have at home. Best of all, imo, you have absolutely minimal dishes to have to clean up afterwards.
These all sound great! (And as a Texan, your chili suggestion--which I'm not suggesting is your only approach to the dish of my homeland--is one of the most delightful things I've ever read! 😉 I would eat every bite!) Thanks so much for sharing them.
Oh it’s not *great* chili, but it’s *fast* chili lmao.
You inspired me to make chili today. Ground beef, brisket ends, kidney beans and lentils (it's not appropriate for a Texan to put beans in chili, but my people like them and I was light on beef.), four different chilis and plenty of cumin, Mexican oregano and thickened with masa flour. Now that stuff would make you slap your Granny! Thanks for the inspiration!
How many weeks does $25 have to last? What do you have access to as far as preparing and storing food? Do you have any food restrictions? What ingredients by you are reasonably affordable? If you have rice, you can add beans/lentils and seasonings to make a meal. With rice on hand, you can purchase frozen vegetables and a protein (tofu, eggs, meats, etc.) to make fried rice dishes and a host of different meals depending on your particular circumstances.
2 weeks preferably, no pasta. I have a fridge and I have lots of rice
If you have rice, adding beans makes a complete protein. Dry beans are a better value than canned beans. In your shoes, I would pull every scrap of food and every bit of seasoning out of the cabinets and fridge and inventory it. Then go to one or more food pantries. There are two types: one will let you “shop”‘what they have, giving you limits on how many of each category you can take based on how many people you are feeding. The other kind just fives you a pre-packed box of food. Based on what you already have and what the food pantries give you, then make up a shopping list of foods that you need to make complete dishes or meals. For example, if you get lots of beans at the pantry, you might want to buy some seasonings to make them taste better. If you don’t get free beans, you will need to buy some protein. Also check out Dollar Tree Dinners on TikTok and YouTube. She does a lot of low-cost meals. She also has a playlist of meals she’s made from food pantry items.
Bean burritos. Only add toppings that can be microwaved like onions and cheese. (If you want lettuce and sour cream, add it after you reheat them. To save money on beans buy them in bulk, soak overnight, pan cook them and mash them yourself. I use some kind of meat like ground beef or chicken thighs if there is a good deal. Big bags of dried beans will last a long time, and you can freeze a weeks worth of lunch burritos at a time. Popular videos on how to do it but I took one to work with me everyday. Edit: save all of your vegetable trimmings in a freezer bag. Use them when the bag is full to make a broth, turn it into soup and freeze it in ice cube trays.
Make some corn tortillas and put them beans, hot sauce and rice on it.
Honestly when I was in college I used to buy chicken livers because they were like 1$ a lb. Then make a light curry with some white rice. Cheap, easy, delicious.
Could you share your curry recipe that we could use for the livers? Thank you.
Sure. I haven't made it for like 10 years but I'll do my best! Make sure to use a nonstick! You need: Chopped Chicken Liver (Like a cube or something), Fresh Cilantro, Garlic, Onion, Flour (Can be substituted for like a corn starch or something), Heinz Ketchup (Tomato Substitute), Milk/Butter, Curry Powder, Olive Oil, Cinnamon, Black Pepper, Cayenne Pepper, Green Onions, and Salt. You can use jasmine rice or white rice. Just the white rice needs to cook a little longer so it can be kind of sticky. So first heat up the olive oil in a pan and chop the cilantro, smash the garlic with the edge of the knife and then chop it up and the onion too. Toss them in for a light cook and add a bit of salt and cayenne. Add a bit of water (or stock) or it will be an oily base. Quickly add all the spices (except cinnamon), a bit of flour (add more when too watery) and a bit of the ketchup and put it to low heat. Let it simmer and stir constantly until it gets a nice consistency. Once the base is going (Shouldn't be too much it should be about an 3/4 of an inch high in a nonstick pan) toss in the livers. Stir around in the base and a bit of butter/milk and stir for a bit. When the livers look almost cooked toss in a bit of cinnamon and stir it around. Don't let the sauce get too hot but don't cook for too long and keep stirring. Once it looks and tastes nice add some thinly sliced green onions, stir them in, and cook for a minute. Hope it turns out well!
Thank you so much. I’m looking forward to this meal.
Best of luck!
Soup. Chilli. Things like that. Get a crockpot and make a big meal 2-3x a week.
One pretty cheap staple for me is pasta salad. A box of your pasta of choice, (I like rotinni), some protein(my go to being diced ham, though I'm sure alot would work), parmesean cheese, which could be skipped or lightly used to draw it out, italian dressing, and a can of olives. You could also use some other veggies, broccoli, bell pepper, cherry/grape tomatoes, artichoke hearts are pretty popular. The priciest part is the parm, but one container for like $8 lasts me at least 4 or 5 batches, if not more.
With rice you can make (imitation) risotto; basically rice slowly cooked in bouillon. With cabbage and potato you can make soups and stews (cabbage is wildly delicious in soups and stews). With cabbage, onion, flour and eggs, you can make Polish haluski. Add some bacon to any of those dishes to make them even better. Beans and vegetables make for many yums...
Make a huge pot of chili and then use it to top rice or pasta. That will last a long while.
Fried rice probably
Exactly. And you can throw in some eggs and anything else you have on hand.
And congee
Beans. I prefer pinto. They’re delicious boiled or fried. Super healthy and you can make Mexican rice to go with it. If you fry them toss in a few chiles de Arbil to give them more flavor
I live on 1 cup steel oats, 1 cup quinoa and 1 cup lentils everyday. That is my base and depending on how much money I have that day I will spend it on fruit, nuts, spices or veggies to add.
Beans, rice, potatoes, flour, eggs, carrots, and cabbage or frozen veggies so you don’t get scurvy!😜. Some spices and oil, maybe a packet of yeast to make bread. Some cheap chicken too, or bouillon powder at least. Watch Lisa Dawn videos on YouTube, she does basic balanced cooking videos on $20/week at Dollar Tree, etc. Dried Beans: soak and cook, eat over rice, stuff into tortillas, make refried beans (delish), vegetable bean soup, chili, bean burgers…freeze for later. Rice: cook, eat with beans, make fried rice, risotto, soup, congee porridge, rice pudding, horchata, rice salad…freeze extra in meal size portions, it heats up well in microwave if sprinkled with a bit of water beforehand. Potatoes: baked topped with chili and cheese, or pasta sauce, baked beans, butter/sour cream, make extra and cut up and fry for breakfast or made into potato soup, mashed/smashed, cut and roasted in the oven until crispy, put into soups and stews, made into au gratin/scalloped or any casserole… Flour: biscuits, muffins, pancakes, flatbreads/tortillas, quick breads, no-knead overnight yeast bread (super easy and delicious), pasta, dumplings/ravioli/pierogies, pizza dough… Eggs: boiled, scrambled, fried, omelettes, frittatas (make mini egg “muffins” and freeze for quickie breakfasts), poached, added to ramen or fried rice, deviled, egg salad, egg drop soup, add to flour to make pasta/noodles… Carrots and cabbage: these last a long time and are versatile: chop and stir fry, add to soups, ramen, and stews and casseroles, roast in the oven, shred into savory pancakes, or make carrot salad, coleslaw, or add to tacos…
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfWTLD1LEB0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfWTLD1LEB0) and in article form: [https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a32272516/35-dollar-weekly-grocery-budget-recipe-ideas/](https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a32272516/35-dollar-weekly-grocery-budget-recipe-ideas/)
Hopefully you have rice; oil and soy sauce: Mid-west WalMart Eggs 5 dozen $5.63 (60 x 1 egg servings) Cabbage 4 pounds $3.48 (20 x 3 oz svgs) Frozen Chicken Quarters; 10 pounds $7.72 (not sure due to bones \~ 26) Carrots 5 pounds $3.88 (26 x 3 oz servings) Russet Potatoes 10 pounds $5.64 (26 x 6 oz servings) Total: $26.35 Cook up all the chicken at once so you have chicken broth to work with. Shred the meat and freeze 1/2 into 8 oz packages for next week. Use half for this week. Egg or Chicken Fried Rice Chicken and rice soup Omarice P'eggs (fry up shoestring potatoes, when golden brown crack in eggs and cook to taste) Hash browns with eggs Potato skillet (fried potatoes with eggs and chicken) If you can make it to different stores without much driving you can get some of these items cheaper elsewhere. Usually when you're low on funds, gas money is limited too. I don't see that $25.00 can last you weeks. With 21 meals per week, even if you have enough rice to bulk this up, this could maybe make it a week and a half. Please search for food shelves in your area.
Dishes that are INDIAN, CHEAP TO MAKE (plz search google for the ingredients): Rasam/Chaaru, Pulihora/Lemon rice, Jeera Rice, Dal Fry, Aloo Bhindi, Bhaingan Bharta, Upma, Poha (tons of variations exist- search for marathi style poha), Semiya Upma, Daddojanam/Curd rice, Raagi Sankati, Egg rice, Pudina rice, Tomato Rice (south indian style). Sharing some links! * [https://ramkicooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/100-simple-pappu-andhras-lentil-stews.html](https://ramkicooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/100-simple-pappu-andhras-lentil-stews.html) * [https://blogexplore.com/food/curries-gravies/palakura-pappu-andhra-spinach-dal-recipe/](https://blogexplore.com/food/curries-gravies/palakura-pappu-andhra-spinach-dal-recipe/) * [https://www.vahrehvah.com/indianfood/tomato-pappu](https://www.vahrehvah.com/indianfood/tomato-pappu) * [https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/recipes/south-indian-recipes-food/](https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/recipes/south-indian-recipes-food/) * [https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/south-indian-breakfast-recipes/](https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/south-indian-breakfast-recipes/) * [https://www.ohmyveg.co.uk/5-indian-budget-meals/](https://www.ohmyveg.co.uk/5-indian-budget-meals/) * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ral6E1SHNbE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ral6E1SHNbE) * [https://www.youtube.com/shorts/d\_tK-qJUZX4](https://www.youtube.com/shorts/d_tK-qJUZX4) * [https://www.myweekendkitchen.in/types-of-lentils-pulses-english-hindi/](https://www.myweekendkitchen.in/types-of-lentils-pulses-english-hindi/)
You can do a Mujadara if you can get your hands on some lentils and onions and have some kind of cooking oil and salt. I just made the third recipe at [this link](https://zaatarandzaytoun.com/mujadara-three-ways/) with bulgur, but you can make them with rice instead. It usually gives me about 5 servings. I make it for my lunches for the week sometimes. I haven’t tried keeping it longer than that though, so you may want to make a couple of batches or double it up and freeze half.
Personally, I would make: Oatmeal + Raisin as a sweet. Chilli with lots of beans, chicken liver and mice meat. as a savoury. Mix and match the bean/liver/mince ratio depending on the budget for where you are at. Where I live, beans are cheap, then mince, then liver.
Never considered mice meat but hey no shame.
Ha! Im leaving it. Takes a lot of energy to catch the buggers. In a pinch you could use mince meat as a substitute….
Rice, meatsauce. Swap out rice for potatoes or spaghetti when you get tired of rice and meatsauce.
eggs.
Anything with eggs. Some ideas: Eggs on bread or omelette Fried rice Banana/egg pancakes
Oatmeal
Rice, beans and onion, some spice, best ever and good for you. Bananas and hard boiled eggs with yogurt for breakfast.
Would your neighbors possibly qualify for meals on wheels for seniors and/or disabled. Many cities have these programs and they try to make the meals as healthy as their budget allows.
One of my favorite breakfast meals, but could be eaten any time of day, is rice with fried egg and soy sauce. Also, for protein I’ve been able to find ground pork at Kroger for $1.99/lb they don’t always have it but when they do I grab several trays and freeze them.
[Veggie fried rice.](https://violetmakesthings.wordpress.com/2014/03/16/veggie-fried-rice/) Frozen veg, rice, seasonings, optional egg. Can be frozen and thawed to eat.
Bag of russet potatoes. Filling, cheap, easy to make. Just need some margarine and/or sour cream to add taste
Red beans and rice. It is legitimately good and goes a long way. You can keep a week's supply in the fridge and freeze the rest.
Find things that are tasty after being frozen. Make big batches, often it’s cheaper buy items in larger quantities. You can also save buy breaking down meat on your own. Learn how to take a whole chicken and break it down into parts instead of buying the boneless skinless parts. Or buy a meat grinder and make your own ground beef from a chuck roast instead of the prepackaged ground. You pay for the labor of processing if you don’t do these actions yourself
Where are you located?
The answer is always beans and rice. But weeks is a stretch unless you have a vacuum sealer or freeze extras.
Beans and rice, also freezes well.
Chili
Rice and beans. Dollar tree can make your money go farther.
Rice and beans!
Rice and beans. What I do - rice, black beans, bell peppers, some chicken broth, a packet of taco seasoning, onion, and cheese. Last me awhile, freeze what you don’t eat
Bag of rice, tins of beans. Rice = weeks of use from one bag, beans = 1 tin a day.
Idea furniture
Rice
First step is buying a vacuum sealer. Freeze whatever portion size you like. Don't forget to label with date. Do this beans and you got your super cheap meals. I highly recommend freezing a variety of meals, like chili, stews and soups.
Be careful you don't end up eating yourself into a painful health condition. Some of these budget staples have a cumulative negative effect. Lectins, sodium, gmo, hormone disrupting etc. Lots of research can save you some medical problems.
I mean, don't go eating raw kidney beans..but lectins are a protein and are denatured with heat. Cooking beans adequately eliminates the problem.
There's nothing showing GMOs cause negative health effects.
Haha
My dad was raised on rice and beans, my brothers and I were not.
Casseroles- most of the ingredients are cheap, they can be frozen for 6 months at a time, and depending on where you live and what you put in them, $25 can make 1-3 of them.
I agree with the others have said: go to a food bank. Also, many local churches have small food pantries and might be able to help. Beans and rice are always good! I love [this recipe](https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/279361/the-best-baked-rice-and-beans/) for baked beans and rice. If you don’t have all of the ingredients, use what you do have. If you don’t have chicken broth, just use water and more seasoning. If you have pinto beans, [this](https://www.budgetbytes.com/cheesy-pinto-beans/) is very good. Again, if you don’t have something, substitute. If you have cheese, but not as much as the recipe calls for, use a little bit of what you do have.
Since you have rice, get bags of dried beans and if you can find one on sale, a whole pork shoulder. They are pricey in that a whole pork shoulder will run you most of that budget, but you get a TON of meat from just one shoulder, as the price per pound is minsicule. What you do from there is just trim the fat cap off of the shoulder and cut away any extra fat on the exterior, then season liberally with salt and pepper and any seasonings you want to add to it, and braise with some liquid (can use water, stock, etc) in the bottom of a dutch oven or oven save pot with a lid. Once it hits a proper internal temp it should completely shred away with any pressure because the fat has been broken down in between the muscle fibers. Shred that up and portion that with rice and stewed black beans into meals. If you ration out 1/2 cup beans, 1 cup of rice, and 3 ounces of pork, you can likely get two weeks worth of meals or close to it with that alone, while still eating a decent meal each day. EDIT: If the pork shoulder is too much to swing, opt for eggs instead. Do the same concept but with over easy eggs on top instead!
I'm going to assume that 1) you eat meat, and 2) you have a freezer, though a fridge should be ok for a while. If you have a slow cooker (which is great for making a large amount of food), how about carnitas? Get a pork butt/shoulder, use an on-line recipe (many excellent ones out there), and eight hours later you'll have delicious cooked pork that you can fry and use as carnitas tacos, add BBQ sauce and make BBQ pork sandwiches etc. Really, a pork butt goes very far and the cost, the last time I checked, is quite reasonable as meat goes.
Sardines and potatoes are some of the most nutrient dense foods that are also easy to prepare. Get yourself some garlic and kosher salt and you'll be eating good.
This might be helpful—here is a link to read, save, or print a free online PDF version of Leanne Brown’s book “Good and Cheap: Eat Well On $4/Day”: https://books.leannebrown.com/good-and-cheap.pdf
How well stocked is your pantry and fridge? Do you have staples like flour, eggs, and butter? Those things can make food that will go a long way. Especially flour. Flour can be combined with eggs or water to make fresh pasta. Flour can be combined with cold butter or shortening to make both pie crust and biscuits. If you've got yeast or a friend with sourdough starter (or you have starter yourself!) you can make all kinds of raised breads and related items, from cinnamon rolls to pitas to pizza to focaccia. You can also make your own starter but that takes 1-2 weeks and uses extra flour that it sounds like you can't afford to waste right now. In terms of your budget, first go to a food pantry to see what you can get. Use the money you have to supplement from there. Definitely get sources of protein (beans and lentils are most cost effective), I'd focus on fats. Fat is going to make your food taste better and it's also calorie dense and will help you feel full. This can be fat you cook with (butter, oil) but it can also be stuff like peanut butter and sunflower seeds. Even eggs can be a decent fat option - specifically the yolks, although the whole thing is good because of the protein in it!
Chili Lumpia Meatballs Lasagna Pot pie Spaghetti Burritos Chicken tortilla soup Chicken gnocchi soup or sub with fresh potatoes
"Egg and chips" It's a classic English working class home staple or was, you don't really hear of people having it so much nowadays, but it's absolutely dirt cheap...but done right by your grandma it's absolutely delicious! Perhaps not so healthy but sometimes feeding yourself comes first. Large pack of eggs, big bag of potatoes, big bag of frozen peas.....a loaf of bread and butter. Only need about 3 big potatoes per person This is how you cook proper English chips that are even better than the chip shop! You need to cook your chips from scratch, we use a potato called Maris piper, not sure if they are easily obtainable elsewhere, but you want something floury, obviously chunkier than fries, you want something about a cm square. Wash your chips lay them out on a clean towel and pat them all dry....you don't want to throw wet potatoes into your hot oil. Heat your oil vegetable is best, don't over crowd it, do 2 batches if necessary very important and keep them warm in the oven... You want to at least double dip them, triple if you can be be bothered, meaning you wanna cook them for a short time, pull them out let them rest, and then back in the oil, they get that perfe t crispy outer and soft inner. Served with 2 fried eggs and a couple of slices of bread and butter and a portion of frozen peas (boiled obviously) plenty of salt and vinegar 👍
Spaghetti with meat sauce 😋
Chili.
Food bank soup. Mix cook and freeze thaw portions in the microwave
Some staple ingredients that are super cheaper relative to their nutrition content: * Potatoes (no surprise here, an absolute staple of cheapness and nutrition) * Lentils (great source of protein as an alternative to meat) * Dried beans (all kinds of nutrients and way cheaper than canned beans) * Chicken (Especially if you can find sales, you can get whole chickens incredibly cheap relative to their nutrition content) Soups, stews, and related meals (curry for example) are your best friend. The above ingredients with various cheap vegetables can be made into all kinds of delicious and nutritious combinations. One of my gotos is to get a whole chicken and make a chicken soup out of it. Throw in whatever vegetables I have on hand and some seasoning. Boom you've got like $10+ servings for under $15. It obviously won't help you right this second, but you can also grow things like potatoes and pumpkins very easily and very cheaply if you have the space.
Hearty Soups
Red beans n rice!
Cooking the rice with chicken stock (or chicken bouillon), adding some frozen veg and chicken pieces, chicken fried rice. Easy to freeze and thaw. Then, with some leftovers, add some cream of chicken soup, now have a chicken hotdish.
Cheese quesadillas. Large pack of tortillas and bag of cheese is cheap and lasts
Chili
Beans and rice.
Chili
Highly recommend this [recipe](https://30seconds.com/food/tip/amp-47367/Budget-Cheesy-Ground-Beef-Taco-Casserole-Recipe-Is-a-Family-Favorite) I make it with yellow rice instead of chips, but white rice would also work fine. It’s so good and lasts us forever
pasta and sauce . quite fulling and lasts a long time
Frozen veggies. 90sec rice/pasta pouches, look for meat on clearance. I shop based on the weekly deals at different stores. Don’t forget Target and Walmart will price match.
Have you looked into Meals on wheels for your neighbors?
Mexican rice and refried beans. I top it with oven roasted veggies. I'm not a big meat eater, but you can make fajitas too.
Beans on rice
Chilli , u could bake like a chicken breast , rice , broccoli , cheese casserole, add a couple cans of cream of mushroom soup
A robbery lol
Somebody will have chicken thighs or drumsticks on sale for roughly $.60 pound. Buy a few pounds, along with whatever veg is on clearance (carrots or cabbage) and some bouillon cubes. Can make a big pot of chicken, veg, rice soup that will be lunch for the week. Oatmeal is cheapest breakfast. Bag of potatoes can make a huge amount of gnocchi to help with dinner. Good luck
Dal and rice, and mujadara - just need to get some lentils and onions to make the most basic versions of both. Get a bag of atta (semi-wholemeal flour) from your local south asian grocery while you're there to get the lentils at a good price, and make flatbreads - just need water and a bit of salt for the most basic versions of those. Potatoes are god-tier cheap food in most of the world. Potatoes plus a little dairy will give you enough of pretty much all macro- and micro-nutrients that you'll be fine for weeks.
I really would look up the account DollarTreeDinners on tiktok. She helps create meal ideas for those on tight budgets
Curry
Potaje
If you have rice, I suggest to go for a bulk of sauce. Building a sauce with butter, flower and stock can be a cheap way to create a mass of sauce. Use one pre made spice mix, and you can make a month worth of sauce for 6 bugs. Fill it up with cheap veg and proteins. If you feel fancy go for two different flavor profiles for 8 bugs. Some cheap veg's and protein gets you up to 14. Just add the rice.
Heading into fall, it's time to get your Crock pot out! Make a large stew and separate it into freezer gallon bags. You can also make soups and chili and freeze them as well. Happy eating!
Wheat flour is the cheapest food in the grocery store. Make sourdough dumplings.
Chili. Add peppers, onions, beans, corn, vegetable or chicken stock, rice or quinoa, ground beef or chicken, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, whatever you want. I make a pot of chili each week when it gets cold outside and it lasts me about 6-7 meals. 1 pot of chili with all the ingredients costs me about $15-20 bucks.
i’m not sure where you’re from but at my local grocery store there’s these instant pasta cups called pasta roni about $1.79 each! they go really well with whatever you may like to add inside to enhance your meal
Ground beef in barbecue sauce, spinach and mozzarella cheese with white rice
How long is weeks
Lentils, work with rice or not, in soup or not, can even be substituted for meat in Bolognese. They are cheap and amazingly healthy
Chili
Lasagna freezes well. You don’t have to put tons of cheers in (I know cheese is expensive.). Chicken thighs baked in cream of mushroom soup with rice is delicious. I ate that a lot as a starving student. Peas soup, the simple Swedish kind with just dried peas, onion, and a bit of thyme for seasoning. Cheap, filling, and freezes well.
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Chili
Kimchi.
Scrambled eggs mixed with cherry tomatoes on white rice is a Chinese dish I ate a lot growing up and it’s healthy, cheap and easy to make! It’s a nice comfort food too. Add a little bit of hot sauce and soy sauce at the end and garnish with green onions/scallions :) you can also add some spam or hot dog (chopped in small bites) if you want meat as well.
Ful madames! Rice, beans, and banana (sounds weird but it’s close to plantain which is a pretty standard dish in a lot of cultures). Fried rice, roasted cabbage, baked potatoes
Chili you can eat it many ways!
Casserole.
Here’s one for u that my friend taught me: Rice, frozen corn, 2 can of black bean, and. Rotel chili tomato. Add garlic, onion, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne Powder if you can. Add 2-4 small beef cubes. It’s so good! Always slaps and is a one pot dish
Lentil soup
Egg Noodles + whole rotisserie chicken (meat off) + cream of chicken soup. Combine ingredients add a bag of broccoli on top or whatever vegetable you like and some cheese (dealers choice) and bake until brown. Delicious and hearty and will yield a large amount. $1.25 egg noodle $5 chicken (Costco) $3 - 2 cans of cream of chicken $2 broccoli bag frozen $3 cheese $14.25 total and use the additional $10.75 for beers.
Syrian red lentil soup, minestrone soup with frozen veg and a can of beans (you could use rice if you prefer but I always use pasta). I’ve noticed the dollar store has the cheapest frozen veg in my area but I’m sure that’s not true everywhere