Tess Rose Lampert is a New York City-based writer, beverage educator, and lover of savings. With over a decade in the alcoholic beverage industry, she strives to enhance consumers' everyday experiences with food and beverage through dynamic and interactive writings, educational seminars, and events.
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For busy people, breaking out the recipe book and cooking homemade meals to save money can seem like a hassle. But making large batches once or twice a week and using the leftovers can be a timesaver, especially when juggling other priorities at home, and buying ingredients in large quantities on sale lowers costs when you cook. Here are 35 drool-worthy, cheap meals that go a long way.
This classic, budget-friendly pasta bake never gets old, and it can be reinvented with different fillings to use cheap seasonal produce such as tomato. Stock up on noodles and sauce when they're on sale. Ricotta cheese can be bought on sale and frozen for use later.
Recipe: Allrecipes
Pesto is best and cheapest when it's homemade with fresh ingredients. Basil often comes in large bunches, so make a big batch of pesto during meal prep and use it throughout the week in a variety of ways, such as a sandwich spread, on top of roasted meat, or in salad dressing. Extra pesto can also be frozen.
Recipe: Pinch of Yum
Eggplants are an inexpensive and healthy way to add bulk to dishes, which makes them great for feeding a crowd. While making rollatini is an easy process, there are several steps involved; maximize your efforts by making large batches. You can even make a separate tray to freeze for later in the week or month.
Recipe: MyRecipes
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This slow-cooker recipe is easy to make, and one batch provides many hearty meals family meals. The cut of lamb is a relatively inexpensive one, and the other ingredients are all super-cheap and big on flavor. You could also use chicken or an inexpensive cut of beef in the cooker.
Recipe: A Year of Slow Cooking
For many people, brisket is a hearty and celebratory meal. Beef lovers can save by turning to this large cut of meat to cook instead of indulging in high-cost cuts of steak that yield only one or two servings. Use the leftovers all week long in sandwiches, tacos, and burritos.
Recipe: Allrecipes
Related: The Best Frozen and Ready-to-Eat Meals from Trader Joe's
Roasting a chicken or two once a week for a cheap dinner is a great way to save money while eating well. Use the meat all week long in a variety of ways, including in sandwiches with fresh toppings such as greens and tomato, tossed in pasta, on salads, or with vegetables for quick meals. Don't forget to use the carcass and any leftover meat for soup or stock.
Recipe: Allrecipes
It's much easier to enjoy salad as a light meal or side dish if it's already prepared. Making a big salad on Sunday (it should take under 30 minutes!) to enjoy throughout the week saves time and money. Keep the dressing in a jar to add just before eating, and add a protein such as shrimp, chicken, or beans (try pork for an experiment) to complement the sharp feta cheese and make it a meal.
Recipe: Allrecipes
Related: 22 Quick and Easy Cold Salads for People Who Hate Lettuce
This stew-like Moroccan dish uses inexpensive pieces of chicken and is full of flavor from spices and herbs. Double the recipe for a big batch that will last for days to be enjoyed with couscous or used as a stuffing for pita sandwiches and multicultural burritos.
Recipe: Epicurious
Related: 50 Cheap and Easy Chicken Recipes
Here's another great option to add to Essentially a Mexican lasagna, the flavors of this casserole are the classic tastes of Mexican-American comfort food, including cheese and tomato. Tortillas and beans are an inexpensive base, even more so when using dried beans rather than canned. Each portion is hearty, and extra protein such as beef, chicken, or seitan, also known as wheat gluten, can make it even more substantial.
Recipe: The Splendid Table
Canned chipotles in adobo sauce are low-cost and provide a huge pop of flavor when you cook. Buy the large cans to get the best price, and transfer leftovers to a glass jar to keep in the fridge for up to two months. These make-ahead meatballs can be made with other ground meats like chicken or turkey with good results. Use the meatballs as a tasty filling for hero sandwiches, on top of potatoes, or with pasta.
Recipe: Simply Recipes
Thick and hearty black bean soup is one of the most filling meals you can make for under $1 a serving. Starting with dried beans will yield a meatier texture and lower overall cost. Likewise, using homemade broth is the cheapest and best-tasting option. Switch it up with different toppings to keep the meal fresh throughout the week.
Recipe: Cookie and Kate
A classic comfort food, this one-dish meal is ideal when made in large batches. As it sits, the flavors meld, and the leftovers are even better than freshly cooked chicken and dumplings. The chicken thighs are one of the least-expensive parts, bringing down the overall cost of the dish.
Recipe: Martha Stewart
During the week, it can be tempting to order takeout just for convenience. But stocking the fridge with homemade takeout favorites like shrimp fried rice is a much cheaper and healthier option that is nearly as convenient. Swap out the shrimp for a favorite protein, such as chicken, pork, tofu, or beef, to make the recipe your own.
Recipe: Damn Delicious
This low-carb dish gets better as it sits overnight and the flavors develop, which makes it an ideal large-batch recipe. Use frozen broccoli to keep costs low and for extra convenience. In addition to serving with rice or noodles, you can use it as a sandwich filling throughout the week.
Recipe: Food.
This quick and easy dish keeps well in the fridge for up to a week. To keep costs as low as possible when you cook, change the vegetables every season to take advantage of fresh and inexpensive produce, or use cheap frozen veggies.
Recipe: Minimalist Baker
Chili is all about comfort and never seems to get old. Whether using inexpensive dried beans, low-cost ground beef, or a combination of the two, the building blocks of chili are cheap. (This recipe also makes good use of jalapeño and tomato, and versions can be made in a slow cooker.) Enjoy it throughout the week in a bowl with your favorite toppings, on nachos, or on sandwiches.
Recipe: Food.
This rich and spicy dish gets its big taste from curry paste, which is an inexpensive way to add great, bold flavor to simple ingredients. Using a cheaper cut of chicken, like thighs rather than breasts, works well in this recipe and helps bring down the overall cost. The flavors only get better the longer the dish sits in the fridge.
Recipe: BBC Good Food
This dish is a go-to whenever bell peppers are on sale. The stuffing is an opportunity to use whatever you have on hand, including leftover meats, vegetables, scraps of cheese, or frozen ingredients. Building layers of flavor this way helps is one of the best ways to reduce waste while creating something delicious.
Recipe: The Kitchn
This old-country dish is made from inexpensive ground meat and vegetables for a humble yet filling meal. Vegetarians can substitute mushrooms for the meat and get just as much flavor and texture. These rolls freeze well, so while you're taking the trouble to make them, double the recipe and freeze a tray for later.
Recipe: Food Network
Meat sauce and pasta are a family favorite. Double or triple the batch to guarantee leftovers when you make ahead, storing the pasta and tomato sauce separately. The sauce can be used in a variety of other ways — on pizzas, for example — or frozen for later use. Keeping pre-cooked pasta on hand is easy. Just toss al dente pasta with oil and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days.
Recipe: Taste of Home
Related: 20 Creative Recipes That Highlight Pasta’s Many Shapes
Rice-based dishes are usually very low-cost, since rice is so cheap, and earthy mushroom risotto is no exception. It's a meal in itself, or alongside a small salad, and a large batch is just as easy to make as a small batch. It will stay good in the fridge for up to four or five days. Refresh each serving with a pinch of fresh herbs just before serving.
Recipe: Food Network
Squash is a nutritional powerhouse and one of the cheapest ingredients you can find to eat. The stuffing can vary widely based on your favorite flavors and the ingredients you have on hand. Get creative with different fillings to find combinations that make use of cheap staples like bread crumbs and vegetables for tasty multi-day meals.
Recipe: Organic Authority
An American staple, meatloaf is a quick, cheap, and easy supper to prepare. Stock up on ground meat when it goes on sale and freeze it for later use. Leftovers can be used for sandwiches throughout the week, which makes this tomato-accented meatloaf worth cooking two at a time for a large family.
Recipe: Real Simple
This spiced and warming meal is made from two nutritious and dirt-cheap ingredients, lentils and rice. Its big taste comes from aromatic vegetables and spices, layered to create complex flavor from very humble ingredients. Large batches will last throughout the week and can also be frozen. There are also versions of this recipe that can be made in a slow cooker.
Recipe: Chef Michael Smith
Quiche is an inexpensive way to have a nutritionally sound and satisfying meal. Making your own crust or omitting the crust entirely brings the cost down even more. Flavor the quiche with ingredients such as leftover cooked meats and vegetables and scraps of cheese, rather than buying expensive fillings when you cook. For a gourmet touch, decorate the top with herbs or thinly sliced tomato.
Recipe: Food.
Pot pies are homey and crave-worthy at the same time. The basic building blocks are inexpensive frozen vegetables; kitchen staples like milk, butter and flour; and a protein of your choice. For chicken or turkey pot pie, use leftover bits from a whole roasted bird for the best value. Use mushrooms and tofu or just extra veggies to make a meat-free option.
Recipe: Pillsbury
This blend of creamy cheese and vegetables is rich, indulgent, and made from cheap ingredients such as zucchini and lasagna noodles. While it may be tempting to buy the pre-sliced mushrooms, buying them whole and slicing them yourself saves money, keeps costs low, and can provide the best taste.
Recipe: Food & Wine
Goat is one of the more sustainable and inexpensive meats on the market, and it also has a lot of natural flavor, which stands up well to the intense spices of Jamaican curry. Slow cooking breaks the cheap goat stew meat into tender chunks. Enjoy it from the cooker with rice, salad, or bread.
Recipe: Immaculate Bites
A big pan of shepherd's pie is rich in flavor and long on comfort. Potatoes are always inexpensive, and ground beef can be purchased on sale and stashed in the freezer. Using homemade broth or stock helps keep costs as low as possible.
Recipe: Simply Recipes
This layered rice dish gets its flavor from a blend of Indian spices, additions such as tomato and onion, and yogurt-marinated meat. Inexpensive meats such as chicken thighs or goat stew meat break down and become tender. You can also omit meat and make a vegetarian dish that is just as satisfying.
Recipe: Food.
Buying a whole fish is a better value than buying just fillets, and it yields more food. Leftovers from a whole fish can be enjoyed on salads, in sandwiches, or in tacos throughout the week. The tail, bones, and head can be made into homemade stock for another use.
Recipe: Food & Wine
This Italian street-festival dish is best made when bell peppers go on sale. Combined with inexpensive sausage, onions, and spices, this filling and zesty dish can be repurposed into many different meals. Make ahead and try it as a filling for sandwiches, on top of nachos, over potatoes, or with avocado and rice.
Recipe: Food Network
This chicken-thigh dish uses the least-expensive part of the bird but also yields a tender and flavorful final outcome. These chicken thighs can be eaten alongside rice and vegetables, with pasta, on a sandwich, or with griddled tortillas as tacos. You can substitute other herbs for cilantro, such as parsley or oregano.
Recipe: Delish
Almost anything lentil-based is inexpensive and packed with nutrition. A simple lentil soup is a hearty meal in itself and can take on different flavorful toppings to keep it fresh. Opt for a basic recipe that works with different flavors. Be sure to use homemade broth or stock to make each serving for just pennies.
Recipe: Martha Stewart
Turkey is a staple deli meat for many Americans, but roasting turkey breast for dinner and using leftovers for sandwiches (complemented by good bread, interesting condiments, and vegetables such as tomato) is a cheaper and healthier option. Along with a few cheap vegetables and homemade stock, a turkey breast yields enough portions for several days.
Recipe: Food Network