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There are 5 adults and 2 kids in this home right now so I am trying to come up with cheaper meals for the family. Anything you can think of is helpful. Thanks!
Look in to buying a traditional Provencal cook book as traditionally that part of France was a poor area where people had large families but the food is great and usually simple to prepare. On a different note Italian pasta dishes are typically cheap and filling especially if you don't mind making the sauces yourself and a small amount of protein added in (meat or anchovies or what not) can really enhance the flavor and insure everyone gets a taste of the meat even if there isn't that much in the dish. Lastly, eggs are pretty darn cheap certainly cheaper then meat so working eggs into the menu is a good way to get people protein for not a lot of money.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nan5623
break out the crock pot and fill er up..
An excellent idea I hadn't thought about. Crockpots can turn those cheap tough cuts of meat into genuinely tender and flavorful meals.
Stews, pasta dishes, items like a pork shoulder slow cooked, rice dishes with meat. Depends what type of food you generally like eating and finding something from there.
Some thing we might make would be Chili Verde (stewed pork shoulder with roasted tomatillos,cilantro ect) with tortillas,beans and rice, feeds an army! Spanish rice with ground beef, onions,peppers ect, can be stretched as a large as you like. Slow cooking pork,tough cuts of beef and just seasoning it with salt, and using it in different dishes during the week. Rice and baking potatos are generally pretty cheap and can be used in many different ways, so is pasta, you dont have to use as much protein if the carbs are well done and flavorful.
This may sound weird but with regards to meat - when you dice it up small, it feeds more. My husband is a huge meat eater but I stretch many meals by dicing the meat up smaller so that there's meat in every bite w/o having to buy more than I need. HE feels satisfied in regards to how much there is, as do all our kids. no fighting over who got how much meat.
If you use tuna don't buy cans. You are dumping most of what you paid for in the sink. I love the bagged tuna. There is no waste. It taste like tuna in the cans used to taste like when I was a kid. Remember when it came out of the can as a chunk?
Sometimes I make a big pot of white rice and add a can of mixed vegatables to it.
We eat it with soy sauce...and its filling.
Im spanish and I came from a big family
I remember my mom making a big pot of beans, spanish rice and home made tortillas we had to have chili on the side.
That always accompanied the meat.
Stews, pasta dishes, items like a pork shoulder slow cooked, rice dishes with meat. Depends what type of food you generally like eating and finding something from there.
Some thing we might make would be Chili Verde (stewed pork shoulder with roasted tomatillos,cilantro ect) with tortillas,beans and rice, feeds an army! Spanish rice with ground beef, onions,peppers ect, can be stretched as a large as you like. Slow cooking pork,tough cuts of beef and just seasoning it with salt, and using it in different dishes during the week. Rice and baking potatos are generally pretty cheap and can be used in many different ways, so is pasta, you dont have to use as much protein if the carbs are well done and flavorful.
Oh my your making me hungry...thanks for the warm and delicious memories
[quote=jeepgirl27;15265896]
I remember my mom making a big pot of beans, spanish rice and home made tortillas we had to have chili on the side.
quote]
I could eat this every day! How do you make the chili? I had a friend whose mother was from Mexico and she would make this but I never found out how and I haven't seen her in ages. Thanks!
I love to buy ham when it is on sale. It can cover several meals. How about a nice dinner of scalloped potatoes with ham. With the ham going into the dish instead of on the side you use less meat. Potato soup, split pea soup, or lentil stew are other good ones. Of course ham and beans made with the bone. Just leave a little meat on it and I also use some of the ham skin for flavor. My mom made a boiled dinner with ham instead of corned beef. A boiled chicken is another meat that can go a long way. Plus you get the broth to add flavor to all these dishes. Chicken tetrazzini is a family favorite. Chicken enchiladas is another wonderful casserole to make. Chicken and noodles or chicken and dumplings both made with a good amount of veggies like carrots, celery, and onions are wonderful tasty dishes. Chicken pie made with the carrots, celery, onions, potatoes, and peas with a biscuit top is also good. And of course the old standby chicken soup. Soups are always good because the liquid makes them filling.
mexican food is usually quite economical.
using rice and beans and just smaller amounts of meat and chicken throughout.
also lots of soups and stews
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