Monthly expenses on food significantly increase the family spending of an average American. All their hard-earned monthly salary is spent on their food supply even though they are aware of how much they are spending. Cooking dirt cheap meals at home could be the only way to lower the high food budget. These can quickly be cooked out from scratch with a lot fewer ingredients.
Simply Recipes Which Can Be Made From Any Common Ingredients Besides Being Dirt Cheap Meals
Vegetables with Soy Sauce and Sticky Rice – Meal Planning on Budget
Delicious, yet easy to prepare. Even college students can make this dish in their dormitory. Made this sweet-tangy and cheap healthy meal within a few minutes with the following minimal ingredients.
- Uncooked rice grains (two cups approx).
- Fresh or canned vegetables.
- Soy sauce.
First, mix the two cups of rice with water and then steam it for several minutes. Meanwhile, wash the vegetables properly and start to cut them into smaller pieces. Then, mix those vegetables in a bowl with water and soy sauce and boil for a few minutes.
At last, add the steamed rice to the soup of boiled vegetables and sprinkle soya sauce on it. Now, it can be served hot on the table.
Rice With Black Beans – One of the Easy Meals For A Crowd
This is also quite a healthy meal for the family that can be prepared anywhere. Besides this, it is popularly known as a staple food in many countries and for the diverse cultures. Here are the required ingredients to prepare this meal.
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1 onion of a large size
- 3 cloves of minced garlic
- 4 cups of uncooked rice grains
- 1 tablespoon of cayenne pepper and ground cumin
- 3 cups of black beans
Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a stockpot. Then, add the chopped garlic and onion and stir the mixture for 4 minutes while it’s being fried in oil. After that, add some vegetables to it and add water. Now, boil the preparation in low heat for 20 minutes. When only 8 minutes are remaining out of 20 minutes, add the black beans with some spices for enhancing the taste and flavour of the broth. Finally, turn off the heat and serve the meal while it’s still hot.
Black Bean Burritos With Eggs – Cheap Dinner Ideas
Black bean burritos with eggs is quite easy to make breakfast for someone who is in a hurry to go somewhere. Only, the common food ingredients are required for its preparation.
- Canned black beans
- 8 flatbreads or tortillas
- Eggs
Start heating the tortillas on low heat. While it heats, scramble some eggs on a frying pan. Heat a can of black beans for some time. Now, remove the tortillas away from the heat and start preparing the burritos with those substances.Add some extra ingredients, like mayonnaise and shredded cheese to enhance the flavour. These can also be frozen later on for dinner and you can store it for additional days.
Tomato Soup With Grilled Cheese – One of the Best Dirt Cheap Meals
Loaded with the tangy flavour and richness of the cheese, this could be one of the easiest to prepare delicious meals. It’s an ideal dish for both lunch and dinner. Only the following ingredients are needed to make this mouth-watering dish.
- One loaf of bread
- Cheese slices
- Two cans of chicken stock or vegetable stock
- One can of tomato puree
- Basil leaves
First, cut four slices out of the loaf of bread, then heat a frying pan with a small cube of butter on its bottom. After that, add the bread slices facing towards the hot pan surface. Now, add the cheese slices on top of the bread slices. Then, wait for some time until the cheese melts and turns off the flame. Next, add the bread slices with cheese on top of one another so that two sandwiches get prepared.
For the tomato soup, open up a can of tomato puree and drain all of it on the bowl. Now add 1 ½ cup of water, black pepper powder, salt, and sugar, etc. accordingly. Boil the preparation for 3 minutes and take it off the heat. Now the hot soup with the sandwiches.
Macaroni And Cheese- Healthy Meal Plans On A Budget
Worried about making school lunch fast, for your kid? You can opt for this dish as a lunch-box exquisite for kids while considering and following this as an effective time management strategy. This is something children love to eat as well as adults. Here are the ingredients for preparing this meal inside the home environment.
- Packet of pasta
- 3 cups of whole milk or cream
- You need 3 tablespoons of salt and sugar and flour
- 3 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
First, start boiling pasta in a separate bowl and, after some time, add salt and sugar to it. Then, pour milk into a bowl and add flour to make the preparation more creamy. You can also add black pepper powder to increase the flavour. Now, lower the heat and slowly add cups of shredded cheese to the preparation and stir it gently until the cheese melts. To give it an appetizing look you can add some more stuff like sliced vegetables, onions, tomatoes or bacon to it for. Finally, it is almost ready to serve. Remove the heat and serve it on plates.
Pasta With Chickpeas- Feeding A Large Family On A Tight Budget
This meal is ideal for those who are strictly following a vegetarian diet. Although it is the trending diet right now all over the world. Its ingredients are as follows
- A can of chickpeas
- 1 regular sized onion, diced
- 1 jar of pasta sauce
- Packet of pasta
Heat the pasta separately for some time and then take it off the heat. Add the chickpeas, pasta sauce, and diced onion to it and reheat it again until the onion pieces are cooked. Serve it hot.
Endnote About Dirt Cheap Meals That’s Healthy Too
Meals are an essential part of daily living. They provide us with nutrition and energy for functioning at our best. It has become a habit for most people to eat outside, which could have no hygienic value besides being costly. While cheap healthy meals can be cooked easily at home that is full of nutrients.