Mama2Many4 Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Please help me with some tips or recipes that can feed a family of five on only $5 per meal. We've been buying a lot of frozen dinners lately because sometimes that seems to be cheaper than getting fresh ingredients. I don't like my family eating so much processed food, but with the cost of food just going up I don't know what to do. Can anyone link me to some good blogs on frugal meal planning or offer some tips. I need a little help in this department. :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 My strategy is more of a buy what is REALLY on sale (like 40-50% off or more) and then plan menus around that. I use ground beef and roasts from when we buy 1/2 cow (big up front cost but savings in meat) and skinless boneless chicken breats (on sale this week for $1.67/lb and there is no waste from skin or bones). Aldi is a great place to get the basics even cheaper than most store sales. If money is really tight, and you are not opposed to it, you might want to check out WIC for your youngest. That would provide milk, cheese, eggs, bread, cereal, peanut butter, and some fresh fruits and veggies which might really help ease your budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 My strategy is more of a buy what is REALLY on sale (like 40-50% off or more) and then plan menus around that. I use ground beef and roasts from when we buy 1/2 cow (big up front cost but savings in meat) and skinless boneless chicken breats (on sale this week for $1.67/lb and there is no waste from skin or bones). Aldi is a great place to get the basics even cheaper than most store sales. If money is really tight, and you are not opposed to it, you might want to check out WIC for your youngest. That would provide milk, cheese, eggs, bread, cereal, peanut butter, and some fresh fruits and veggies which might really help ease your budget. I try to do this, too, and I find it's helpful to use the Coupon Mom site. At the top of each store's list are the items that you can get free with coupons (I am not a big couponer. I just use what comes in one Sunday paper), or nearly free. We're not big on processed foods, so even if something is 80-100% off, I'm not going to buy it if I don't want my family eating it. She also lists the sale items in order of their percentage off. I use the top half of her list (50%, or more, off), if it's whole foods, and plan my menu around that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gentlemommy Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Soups! Creamy tomato soup- Big can of crushed tomatoes $2 Cup of heavy cream $.50 Two cups chicken stock $1 Salt, pepper to taste Naan bread drizzled with olive oil and baked at 400 for 2-3 minutes $2 Lentil soup/stew over brown rice- 3 cups chicken stock $1.50 1 cup dry lentils $1 1 cup dry brown rice $1 Left over veggies-carrot, celery, onion free Veggie chilli- Three cups of beans, either all the same or a mix of pinto, kidney, black, ect...$2 Can of crushed tomatoes $2 Onion, garlic, leftover veggies $1-$2 Salt, pepper, cumin, paprika, chillipowder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Remember whole grains and veggies are more filling. So brown rice is more expensive, but you need less of it to fill your kiddos, and all of it is good stuff. Drinks are out - water is free. If they haven't already, they will learn to like it. Proteins like beans or lentils are really cheap compared with meat. Use meat as an accent, and/or augment with beans. So - beans, brown rice, tomatoes/onions/garlic/zukes/corn - you can make up a ton of it for $10 and easily have enough for two meals. Use canned tomatoes and corn if it's cheaper in your area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyinTN Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 http://www.grocerycartchallenge.blogspot.com/ I enjoy this one...she post a menu and then shops. http://theprudenthomemaker.com/default.aspx This one is great as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaMa2005 Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 I do freezer meals (huge $$$$ savings) and this is a great source for recipes for those plus make ahead and crockpot meals. http://makeaheadmeals.blogspot.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyinTN Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 :iagree: Her cookbook rocks!:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom31257 Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i.love.lucy Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 First, :grouphug:. I know just how you feel. I walk out of the grocery store almost dizzy with figuring out how I spent so much. What I like to do is plan that one or two nights will be beans, and one night eggs, and one night tuna. I hardly ever make a meat and two sides because it seems you need so much meat! Its better for me to mix the meat in with what I am making to stretch it farther. Even if my family will eat 8 or 9 eggs scrambled or fried, that's still only about $1 worth of protein. Make some pancakes from scratch to go with them and you have a pretty cheap meal. You can also use day-old bread to make a strata casserole with them too. Eggs have endless versatility! I use my freezer a lot too. I make casseroles and instead of having the other half of a 13x9 go to waste because we are tired of the leftovers, I freeze the other half for later. I also make crock pot ready bags of stuff like stew or bbq chicken with veggies so that it's cheaper to buy the veggies in season and have for later to pop in the crock pot. I agree on the drinks. You can spend a fortune on milk and soft drinks! You can buy a small amount for breakfast, then no more for the rest of the day. We don't eat cereal (except dh because he likes raisin bran and I don't get up and cook anything else for him). My kids like other things, so cereal is not a huge budget drain. I also think snacks are a big drain. Chips and cookies and goldfish. They are all just empty calories and my kids are hungrier later after they have eaten them. I try to get them to pair a cheese stick with a fruit for snack. I don't recall who posted this but it was fab! Take one cup of lentils, and one cup of brown rice, throw it in your crock pot with 4 cps of water and 1 pkg of taco seasoning. It made a big amount of taco "meat" and it wasn't until after eating tacos that my husband said "I think that might not have been hamburger, but it was great!" You could use that for tacos, burrito filling, taco salad, etc. Good luck! It's so tough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IATeachingMom Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Shephard's Pie Brown a little bit of ground beef (venison, or whatever) with an onion, thyme, rosemary (spices added near the ned) and/or garlic add... Frozen veggies, peas, corn, carrots..... dollop and smooth out on top..... Leftover or not- mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes work too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougarmom4 Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 I'll second the Prudent Homemaker website--I love this website. What I've found to be helpful is to gather meal ideas & price them out. Then I figure out how much I can spend for the week and plug the meals in there...usually mixing the cheaper meals with a few that might be more expensive. My $5 (or close to it) dinners include: Scrambled Eggs & Toast (or Breakfast Burritos or Fried Eggs) Spaghetti--without meat Black Beans & Rice--maybe a little shredded chicken, in tortillas or over lettuce as a salad or with cheese quesadillas Chicken Gravy over Rice (using cream of chicken soup, a little bit of shredded chicken, rice)--sometimes we add pineapple, olives & chinese noodles to make Hawaiian Haystacks French Toast Homemade Pizza Burritos or what we call "Mexican Pizza"--tortillas w/refried beans & cheese broiled until crisp & cheese melted; then add taco toppings Baked Potatoes or Twice-Baked Potatoes I do coupon and buy a lot of shelf-stable items so I can keep the costs lower...if you haven't done this, I'd recommend it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2Many4 Posted October 9, 2011 Author Share Posted October 9, 2011 I've been purging the bookshelves so I'm just reading this all now. Thank you to everyone who linked sites and ideas! I'll be sitting down tonight with this and pouring over it all! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IdahoMtnMom Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Every week I buy a whole fryer chicken that is between 6 and 7 pounds. Depending on sales, this runs $5-$9 per chicken. I roast it up on Monday morning with just salt and pepper. I take every ounce of meat off of the carcass and it gets me enough chicken for 3 dinners (things like chicken tacos or quesadillas, bbq chicken pizza, chicken alfredo, chicken and rice casserole, bbq chicken sandwiches, etc...) and 2 lunchs of chicken salad sandwiches. Every other week, I will buy a 4-5 pound chuck roast for $9-$13 and cook it in the crockpot. I can get 3 meals out of that like bbq beef sandwiches, shredded beef tacos, and plain roast beef and mashed potatoes. If there is any extra, I make it into a salad like chicken salad with mayo, onion, celery and have it as sandwiches. Two nights a week we eat meatless... navy bean soup, marinara sauce and pasta, black bean soup, black beans and rice, salad and baked potatoes, french toast and eggs, potato and egg breakfast burritos, and so on... that really saves money, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Photo Ninja Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 I find that a whole chicken gives me the most options. I usually get one each week and use it as the basis for 3-5 meals. Buy a whole chicken ($5-6). I usually buy it already roasted because the ones I get from Costco already roasted are larger that what I can get raw at the grocery store and are usually about the same price. If you buy it raw, then roast it at home. Remove all the meat and save everything else for broth. Make broth from the rest of the chicken carcass - use everything that is not meat and put it into a large pot (mine is about 6 quarts or so) and toss in a bulb of garlic, with the cloves crushed. You can add onions if you want to (but I usually don't). Fill the pot with water, cover it, and simmer for about 4-5 hours. Add more hot water if too much is evaporating. Strain out the broth and toss all the bones. I make soup with the broth. This amount of broth makes a lot of soup, and it doesn't cost me anything because I already had the chicken bones. With your dc's ages, you can probably get two dinners from one large pot of soup. I shop sales on everything except milk and eggs (they don't go on sale often). I stock up on canned beans when they are on sale for under $1 can. But it is still much cheaper to buy dry beans and cook them yourself. You can freeze the cooked beans in 2 cup quantities to use later instead of using canned beans. My cost estimates below are based on using about 1/3 of the whole cooked chicken, about $1.75 cost for the chicken in the recipe. Other costs are based on sale prices for cans of beans or frozen veggies. Soup: Chicken noodle (carrots, your favorite noodles, about 1/3 of the chicken meat) Costs about $4.00 for a large pot. Chicken vegetable (carrots, broccoli, can crushed tomatoes, cabbage, green beans, about 1/3 of the chicken meat, and/or any other veggies you like) Costs about $5.50 for 7-8 adult servings. Chicken Rice Vegetable (carrots, broccoli, rice, some of the chicken meat) Costs about $5 for a large pot, about 7-8 adult servings Chicken Tortilla Soup (small an tomato paste, taco seasoning to taste, a couple cans of black or pinto beans (or cook them yourself for less money), can of corn (or frozen) some of the chicken, break up tortilla chips into a bowl and top with the soup. Add some shredded cheese if you want to.) Usually costs about $5.50 for a large pot, about 8 adult servings. So you can probably get two dinners from one large pot of soup, which gives you some money left over to get or make bread to go with it. Use the rest of the chicken (about 2/3 of the meat still left after making soup) for other meals: Chicken Broccoli Rice casserole: Mix cooked rice, rice and about 1/3 of the chicken in a casserole dish and add either a can of cream of chicken soup or use a couple cups of the broth you made and mix it into a roux to thicken it and use that. Top with some shredded cheese if you have it. Bake at 350 until hot and bubble. Costs about $5 for a 9x13 dish. Lentil Rice Casserole: Mix brown rice and lentils and chicken or beef broth (can use water for the liquid, but I prefer broth because it is more flavorful) and some Italian seasoning. Bake for a couple hours until the rice and lentils are cooked. Top with some shredded cheese. You can also toss in some broccoli before cooking if you want to. It is not pretty, but it tastes delicious. Costs about $3.50 for a 9x13 pan Eat it this way the first night. Because of the ages of you dc, you will probably have leftovers. You can add a bit of chicken to them and some salsa and make taco filling for tacos. Aztec Chicken: mix some of the chicken, a can or two of black or pinto beans, a can of corn (or frozen) and some salsa to make a nice moist mixture. Heat through, then serve as is or stir in some cream cheese to make a nice, creamy sauce. Serve over rice. Costs about $7.00 and it serves about 7 adults (you will have left overs for another dinner). Chicken Tortellini Casserole: Mix some chicken, some cooked cheese tortellini (I get dry tortellini because it is cheaper than fresh), some broccoli and some Alfredo sauce in a casserole dish. It is cheaper if you make the Alfredo sauce yourself, but I buy it when it is on sale. Bake at 350 until it is all hot and bubbly. Costs about $5.50 for a 9x13 pan. Burritos: Place some refried beans or whole beans (whichever you prefer) onto a tortilla along with some chicken mixed with a bit of salsa to moisten. Add some shredded cheese and fold. Costs about $1 per large burrito for my family. BBQ Chicken Sandwich: Shred some of the cooked chicken and mix with BBQ sauce. Heat through and serve on hamburger buns. Costs about $5 for 5 adult sized sandwiches. Chicken Stir Fry: Stir fry a bag of Asian vegetables or stir fry vegetables, add some of the cooked chicken and heat through. Add some stir fry sauce of teriyaki sauce. Serve over rice. Costs about $5 for 5 adult servings Teriyaki chicken: Mix some of the chicken with teriyaki sauce and some shredded carrots. Heat. Serve over rice. Costs about $4 for 5 adult servings. Enchilada Casserole: In a casserole dish, layer some enchilada sauce, some corn tortillas, some beans, some chicken, and some shredded cheese. Add another layer of tortillas, sauce, beans, chicken and cheese. Be sure that the top is a layer of tortillas covered with sauce. Cost is about $6.50 for a large casserole dish (about 7 adult servings) Creamed Chicken: Make a basic white sauce and add shredded or cubed chicken and some mixed vegetables. Heat through. Serve over rice. Costs about $4.50 for 5 adult sized servings. Chili and Rice: Heat cans of chili (plan 1/2 can per person) and serve it over rice. Very filling. Costs me about $3 for 4 adult servings. Baked Potatoes: Bake potatoes and top with whatever your family likes: butter, shredded cheese, bacon, broccoli, chili Costs about $1 per potato, depending on toppings you choose. Chili and cornbread: Make a pan of cornbread (costs about $1.50 a pan for 6 large pieces) and a couple cans of chili (about 1/2 can per adult) or make your own chili. Costs about $4.50 for 5 adult servings Cost can be reduced if you make your own chili from dry beans instead of using canned chili. Fried Rice: Cook rice. Add oil to a pan and add the cooked rice, or cook a few pieces of bacon and crumble them, then use some of the grease from the bacon to heat up the cooked rice. Add a couple eggs and mix well. Add some mixed vegetables and heat through. Add some soy sauce and mix well. Instead of bacon you can use whatever left over meat you have. Costs about $3.00 for 5 adult servings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
butterflymommy Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 http://www.cheapcooking.com/index.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danybug Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Wow, thanks, "Photo Ninja", for a bunch of new ideas for me! I didn't want to quote it, because it was so long. Thanks for taking the time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPoppy Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 I feed our family of 8 for $3 a day for 3 meals plus an afternoon snack. Sometimes it is even less. Please come on over and visit my site. Make sure to read my page Eat for Less and build your pantry at the same time (under the Shopping Wisely tab). I talk about some of the ways that I make cheap meals for even cheaper on there. For example, most days we eat breakfast for .22. This month I've spent $3.70 on food and tolietries. That's all we've had. I may not have any more this month. And that's okay. We still have plenty of food in our pantry to eat, and swiss chard is growing abundantly in the garden right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EJCMom Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I feed our family of 8 for $3 a day for 3 meals plus an afternoon snack. Sometimes it is even less. Please come on over and visit my site. Make sure to read my page Eat for Less and build your pantry at the same time (under the Shopping Wisely tab). I talk about some of the ways that I make cheap meals for even cheaper on there. For example, most days we eat breakfast for .22. This month I've spent $3.70 on food and tolietries. That's all we've had. I may not have any more this month. And that's okay. We still have plenty of food in our pantry to eat, and swiss chard is growing abundantly in the garden right now. I really like your site. I'm curious what you eat for breakfast that only costs .22. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Make broth from the rest of the chicken carcass - use everything that is not meat and put it into a large pot (mine is about 6 quarts or so) and toss in a bulb of garlic, with the cloves crushed. You can add onions if you want to (but I usually don't). Fill the pot with water, cover it, and simmer for about 4-5 hours. Add more hot water if too much is evaporating. Strain out the broth and toss all the bones. So many good ideas in that post! I wanted to add that when I'm chopping veggies, I put some of the cuttings into a bag in the freezer, and when I make broth I add some of what's in the bag to the crockpot along with the chicken bones, etc. Things like the tops and outer tough-but-not-paper-y layer of onions, any hard pieces I chop off from celery, tops of leeks, stems of swiss chard, peelings from carots, etc. Nothing slimy, of course. After straining out the broth, I put it in the fridge to cool. Then I skim off the fat, which is solid once it's cooled. I make broth in the crockpot, on low, left overnight to simmer. The kitchen smells wonderful in the morning! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McKay Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I buy pizza dough from a local pizza shop. The shop sells dough for a large size pizza for $1. After I've spread this out on the pan I add pizza sauce, possibly some veggies and shredded cheese. The large pizza costs me less than $5 to make. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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