Anonymous wrote:I'm trying to think but my guess so far is Mexican tacos. A head of lettuce is $1.50-2 and lasts two weeks. Tomatoes for a week is $3. Taco shells are $3 for a week. Cheese is $3 for a week. 1 pound of meat is $5.

So 7-10 meals for $15-16 isn't bad I think.

I think you need to add a bag of dried beans to this menu, to stretch the meat and cheese, and some seasonings.
Lettuce doesn't last 2 weeks if you are eating it every night. I would also add an onion. Tortillas are cheaper than premade taco shells, usually.

And, you can make your own tortillas from scratch, out of masa harina, some oil and salt.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1016122-almost-from-scratch-corn-tortillas

Now, for the cheapest hot breakfast for the week -- I make overnight oats and it is really, really cheap.

1 pound of old fashioned oats - $1.00
1 cup raw walnuts - $1.00
1 cup hemp seeds/chia seeds/flax seeds -- whatever is on sale. -- about $1.00
1-2 cups dried raisins/craisins/etc -- about $1.00
about 5 cups of milk. $1.50

Put in a large Tupperware container and cover with water to soak, then mix it well, Leave it overnight in the fridge.
It will last 5 days in the fridge.

In the morning, scoop out how much you want and add 1 cup whatever milk you like. ($0.25?) Heat it in the microwave for a minute.

Top with sliced banana, berries (on sale) -- another $2-3
and some brown sugar or maple syrup if you have it.

That's about $7 for 5 days of breakfast. Way more filling and nutritious than a bowl of cereal and milk.

Ugh this thread is DCUM classic. Berries and Hunts? Try apples and generic.

Op:
- beans and rice
- Mac and cheese (but big blocks and make your own sauce) and veggies on the side ( frozen broccoli, cut up carrots, whatever you like)
- pasta with marinara
- chili
- baked potatoes with salad, or leftover chili, or veggies
- fried rice with egg and cut up carrots/frozen peas, etc…
- tacos work too

Aldi

Anonymous wrote:French Onion soup with carrots and cucumbers on the side? When I was a child and things were tough (think single mom, recession in the 1980's), my mom would make huge pots of bean soup and freeze them. We would have them for weeks on end. I can still remember the taste! I hated her for it at the time but now as a mom, I see the choices she was making and appreciate them.

You hated your mom for making you a nutritious meal? Wow.

You want to make the same thing every day? I would do a veggie stir fry with a small amount of protein.
Vary the veggies but yeah, use Napa cabbage, bulk purchased carrots, maybe a pepper, onion etc.

French Onion soup with carrots and cucumbers on the side? When I was a child and things were tough (think single mom, recession in the 1980's), my mom would make huge pots of bean soup and freeze them. We would have them for weeks on end. I can still remember the taste! I hated her for it at the time but now as a mom, I see the choices she was making and appreciate them.

I agree pasta primavera is going to be super cheap. Especially if you make the sauce by buying garlic and canned crushed tomatoes. Add in whatever veggies are on sale. You can do a week of these meals for $10, maybe less if you can find less expensive cans of crushed tomatoes (think Hunts, not San Marzano).

We also do a veggie bibimbap that just rice, carrots, cucumbers, mushrooms, and seasoning. Sometimes we do a fried egg. Carrots and cucumbers are very cheap and will keep for over a week. If you buy your rice, soy sauce, fish sauce, etc in large bulk quantities, you will spend a negligible amount per serving. The mushrooms are the most expensive part but if you stick with button mushrooms and buy from Giant or Trader Joe’s, still cheaper than meat. Same with eggs— if you don’t pay extra for cage free organic whatever, you can get a dozen eggs for $2.50. This is a really nutrient rich meal than can break out to $1-2 a serving.

Pasta e fagiole soup with cheese toasts on a crusty bread.

How many people are you serving?

A head of lettuce in our house lasts 1, maybe 2 days max.(family of 6).


Make spaghetti Primavera- pasta super cheap (Ludl is like .82) and add in whatever bite-size veggies you like .

Rice risotta is cheap and easy too. Again, pick n choose whatever veggies are on sale and go from there.

In college my meals were a bowl of cereal w/berries mixed. Berries will be cheap soon with the onset of spring.

lentils are cheap.

You can do lentils with onions, carrots, potatoes, I use frozen mixed veggies and canned tomatoes, and some chicken stock and make soup or a thicker stew like version. Maybe some cabbage to stretch it. Maybe a little meat like sausage or bacon for flavor.

A big pot can last for days.

one pound of meat for tacos isn't going to last a week.

Stir fries; veggie omelets; pasta or spiced rice with a veggie heavy sauce; lentils or beans with veggies (I do lentils with onions, garlic and spinach); minestrone. The cheapest — and one of the most delicious— is probably Asian-inspired cabbage pancakes [cabbage, egg, a bit of flour, a tablespoon of oil for frying, sesame oil, and whatever else you want to add].

Vegetarian chilli

Moo shu... cabbage, carrots, egg and seasonings. Much cheaper than lettuce, tomato, and meat.

I'm trying to think but my guess so far is Mexican tacos. A head of lettuce is $1.50-2 and lasts two weeks. Tomatoes for a week is $3. Taco shells are $3 for a week. Cheese is $3 for a week. 1 pound of meat is $5.

So 7-10 meals for $15-16 isn't bad I think.