Welcome to my series aimed at helping families on a budget with some new and cost effective ideas for meals! I aim for around $5-7 per meal while trying to highlight dishes from scratch, meatless options, common ingredients, and whole grains. My typical weekly grocery bill for 4 was $50-60 just a few years ago, but with the current economy and inflation it has increased to about $80-100/week. This series shows you my average family dinners including cost breakdown, links to recipes, and other details to help inspire you!
Step 1 of saving money on your grocery bill is to MAKE A MENU! Once a week I sit down and write out a dinner menu for the next 7 days. I take into account what I have in the freezer, what our schedule is like for that week, what the weather is (hot/cold), and any leftovers. It also stops everyone from asking "What's for dinner??" From this you can easily make your shopping list to only get the items you need while keeping an eye out for any markdowns/clearance items you can stick in the freezer for a different meal. I do 90% of my grocery shopping at Aldi as I find that they have the best prices on most items. For a few other remaining items I go to Walmart.
Some meals I make are easy, some are more complicated. I mostly stick to tried and true dishes that I know everyone likes, but occasionally I like to try out a new one and experiment! I cook many style from American to Italian, Chinese, Mexican, and lots of Tex Mex. Variety is the spice of life!
For my cost breakdowns I will show real or estimated prices of items (based on current prices in western NY), but I don't include typical pantry ingredients i.e. spices/oil/butter/milk etc. unless it's a significant amount.
For this meal I made Butter Bean Curry
Total cost of meal for 4: $4.75
Cost per serving: $1.19
Price breakdown and recipe:
3c cooked butter beans with liquid....$0.50 (I cooked mine from dried, canned is more expensive for 2 cans)
2 medium onions, sliced thinly....$1
3tbs tomato paste (can sub for can of petite diced tomato)....$0.50
1 can coconut milk.....$1.75
4 servings cooked rice.....$1
1tbs curry powder
1/2tbs garam masala
1-2tsp salt (to taste)
1tsp coriander
1tbs minced garlic
If needed, start rice cooking first. Cook onion slices in skillet for approx 10min until starting to carmelize. Add minced garlic and all spices, reduce heat and mix well. Add beans/liquid, tomato paste, and coconut milk. Stir to mix, then bring to simmer. Cook on low for 5-10 min, adjust seasonings to taste. Serve over rice with optional naan, pita, or bread. A dollop of plain yogurt is extra delicious as well!
If you are new to curry dishes, this is a great frugal and healthy one to try. The recipe is very flexible, and you could even sub the coconut milk for whole milk to cut the cost way down! It is not spicy however you can add your favorite spicy spice to kick up the heat.
