Ask Lemmy

Indian food my friend! Loads of pulse based dishes that are not difficult, and very inexpensive. Dal, Channa, Pani Puri, Paneer etc... If it works for 1 billion modest Indians, it will work for you.

Even if you add meat, you can use the cheapest cuts and include the bones for savoury broth making built into the dish.

Chili garlic tofu

Though to be honest I don't usually use a recipe or cook anything. I cube a block of soft/silken tofu, dump on some chili oil, add some kind of vinegar (and maybe sesame oil if I have it), and eat it raw and cold.

You could probably do it with any kind of sauce you like and put it on rice if you're feeling fancy

A good stew. Most expensive ingredient will be the osso-buco, or any similar meat-on-the-bone.

You cook the meat, bone and all, till the marrow melts out. Vegetables can be... Anything. One pot can last you a week and it's a real hearty meal.

two jars of salsa

chicken thighs

veggies

crock pot on low for 4 hours

serve with rice

Curry.

• Any vegitables
• chickpeas or tofu
• rice
• curry paste or some spices
• coconut milk

Prep:

• cut and steam vegetables, rice
• bake tofu
• mix everything
• wait 20min

Lovely vegan curry. Could switch to meat if you want. Costs me roughly €2,50 per portion for a very tasty and healthy meal.

Beans and rice takes many forms, and is generally cheap, and fairly nutritious

I’m a fan of pork butt (or shoulder) in a slow cooker all day (or oven on low) it manages to be pretty cheap per serving, and you can spice it to match any cuisine

Beef is just for special occasions unfortunately

Some fish, like tilapia, can be cheap proteins… I cook mine with lemon and dill

Canned proteins should not be overlooked

Bread is one of those things that is cheaper to buy than make IMO

If only cheese wasn’t so fucking expensive lol

The noble potato, savior of many a meal

Meat is expensive, so veggie meals first. Something simple, nourishing and tasty is Risotto

some bread you like(soft bread is good for this), cheese slices, tomato. optionally tuna or salmon if you can find some with decent price, maybe some spices(i like dill and oregano). You can also just skip the tuna/salmon, its pretty good with just cheese and tomato too.

Butter the bread, put tomato slice on it and cheese on top of it. Put it on oven and set it to 200c. Let them be there until cheese has properly melted and bread has toasted a bit. Take it out and put tuna on top of it or small slice of salmon. or put something else you like on it.

You can put the spices on top of the cheese before the oven or after it.

And naturally you dont have to make just one singular bread, make as much as you want.

Another food i have been occasionally making is mashed everything. I boil some potatoes, sweet potatoes and carrots until they are soft, then just mash them with the wooden.. smasherthingy..? (perunanuija). Add some cream if you want, also some salt and other spices you feel might work (again, i like dill and oregano, they go with everything. Some other spices might work for you better so experiment). If it tastes good, its done, if not you could try putting it on stove for some time so new ingredients mix up better.

Potatoes are good. Cut up potatoes (peeled or not, I like unpeeled because less work and more nutrients that way), season with olive oil (rapeseed oil will also work probably) and thyme (or other herbs of your choice), cook in a 225℃ oven for 20-25 minutes. (I recommend setting a timer for 20 minutes, then checking if they are done yet and setting a timer for 5 more minutes if not to prevent burnt potatoes.)

Are you just sick of beans and rice or have you not found a recipe you like? If the latter, try this one. I made it a day or two ago and it's good.

Serious Eats Foolproof Pan Pizza is one of my regulars. You can put all kinds of stuff on a pizza and it's still good. I'm vegetarian so I use fake chicken and such, but here are a few of my favorites. (they all have mozzarella)

• Teriyaki sauce base, fried tofu, green beans, mushrooms, red onion, fried eggplant
• Barbecue sauce base, chicken, mushrooms, red onions, pickled jalapenos, sweet corn
• Refried bean base, cheddar, onions, mushrooms, pickled jalapenos. Top with Romain salad w/ ranch.
• Tomato sauce base, mushrooms, onions, peppers, olives. (flexible, use what you like)

You can make the pickled jalapenos. And the refried bean base is just a can of beans with a little water, garlic, and salt. Heat to cook the garlic then blend/mash.

I also like a good vegetable pot pie. That one is made with simple ingredients like potatoes, carrots, celery, and mushrooms, along with any spices you like. She has a nice pie crust recipe too. Turned out well when I made it.

Mille feuille nabe. It's cabbage and pork (sliced thin) layered together and cooked in dashi or whatever broth you have. Pack it with other veggies, mushrooms, whatever is on sale. Simmer for 20-30 minutes, serve with rice or noodles.

I like to put the whole pot on the table and have people take pieces like hot pot.

Also a good time to break out any sauces you have. Ponzu, chili oil, sriracha, whatever your taste. It's very flexible.

put anything you want into a rice cooker and that's it

Potatoes and lardons

https://lemmy.ml/post/41968717

You can basically never go wrong with a curry/stew. Japanese curry/rioux cubes are amazing and people sleep on the jarred thai curry pastes. Excellent with frozen veggies although I try to still grab fresh carrots or some other root vegetable.

Aside from that? My go to (that I made probably a bit too much during the pandemic...) is a boxed rice mix (think zatarans or goya), some low sodium spam, and some varying quality chicken stock. Minimal effort, basically all stuff you can buy in bulk and keep in the pantry. and it usually makes 2-3 servings depending on your tolerance for sodium. Bonus points if you use half and half homemade stock (which is a lot less effort than people would think) and carton, but Better than Boullion is an expensive way to get close.

Go-to meals that don't break the bank:

• Butter/Vindaloo Chicken
• Marinara/Ragu/Bolognese
• Whole air-fried chicken
• Roast Pork Butt w/ ratatouille
• Madras Lentils
• Refried Black/Pinto beans + wraps

Tips:

• I buy a bag of taters and pressure cook like 6-12 at one time (depending on size) then individually freeze them. Now potato sides, baked potatoes, etc are greatly simplified.
• Buy a large pork butt and either section it yourself and freeze or roast the whole thing for leftovers. Collect the drippings and make a pork broth, great for a soup base!
• Roasting a whole chicken with simple seasonings/butter, then sectioning and using the carcass for stock - lots of precooked chicken and 'free' stock in the fridge!

Kale chips! Take some kale, remove the stems, brush it with oil and seasonings, then throw it in the oven on some parchment paper

cheap is tacos here.

heat up the tortillas
heat up whatever goes in the taco (usually some leftovers from the fridge, or some ground meat)
saute some onions
make some salsa
put it all together
eat the taco

you should probably do it in the order that has them all done at the same time, but like tacos is usually leftovers. like, leftover pork butt, leftover beef, leftover whatever. it's delicious.

i've also got a cheap pasta

-boil some water, add a small handful (about 1 T) of salt
-get a can/jar of unseasoned tomato sauce, passatta if you can get it
-brown some ground beef/pork/italian sassage (meat optional, you can just add the spices and wine to the tomate if you're going veg)
-season the sassage (use italian seasoning if you don't know what you're doing, if you do or want to learn: add garlic, basil, oregano, fennel/aniseed, pepper of your choosing (i usually add red/white/black in ratios of my whim that day) a little sugar if you want i never do (that's my mother's variation), some onion if you want i never do (that's my wife's variation)
-when the sassage is browned deglaze the pan with a decent red wine of your choosing and add the tomate
-let the sauce warm, bring to a simmer
-MEANWHILE: boil the pasta in the salted water. about halfways through, add 1/2c of pasta water to the tomate. this helps the sauce stick to the noodle.
-If it's a long noodle, when the noodles are al dente add them directly to the tomate with tongs. don't use a strainer. if it's a short noodle, get a spider skimmer, do the same. finish in the tomate. serve with a good crusty pugliese.

Tater tot casserole.

Soup, easy to make, you just need a big pan and some water and some ingredients

Cook in bulk. Everything is cheaper if you can make 10 portions, divide and freeze.

What are your best economical recipes that aren't just beans, chickpeas, and rice?

I mean I eat beans and rice almost daily and always look forward to it, so...

Try this Eggplant with Garlic Sauce. I just use standard dark soy sauce and an American eggplant, it's still great. Anyone in college in particular should try it, just because of how cheap and easy it is.

Also cabbage soup is one of my favorite lunches.

All possible variations of one-pots.

You can use what's available and make dozens of variations with cheap ingredients. Plus easy cooking and low energy costs because you only use one pot.

For cheap ingredients, don't forget to pop into your local supermarket near closing. You'll find a lot of fresh things like veg and bread will be reduced down to almost nothing.if your lucky you can score a cooked rotisserie chicken.

Meals based on pasta and rice will be filling and cheap.

Soups are a great way to get nutrition on a budget and shouldn't be overlooked. Theres a reason soup kitchens are a thing.

Don't forget to take into account cooking costs. Make a large batch of something and portioning it off in a freezer. Also heating in a microwave is ofern cheaper every wise than a stove or oven.

Veggie Pasta

1 Red Onion diced 2 Carrots diced 1 Celery diced Fresh Mozzarella 4oz bacon 6oz fusilli pasta (My personal favorite is Dellalo) 1.5c Marinara sauce Parsley for topping

Cook the bacon to desired doneness in a 10 to 12" skillet. Personally, I like it just a bit chewy, rather than crispy.

Drain the bacon on a plate with a paper towel while you cook the veggies.

Cook the veggies until soft and browned. Add sauce and bacon and warm.

While the veggies are cooking, bring a well salted pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta per directions on the package.

Aliquot the pasta onto two plates add fresh mozz into the pasta and spread the sauce evenly between the two plates. Top with parsley.

This makes enough for two people.

Carnitas is pretty inexpensive if you get a pork butt on sale. Slow cook it all day with some spices and then all you really need is some tortillas.

The meat is usually good enough to eat by itself but you can get other things to go on it

Pico Hot sauce Guac

But none of that is strictly necessary.

Total cost for days of food is miniscule