Cooking cheap family meals that are nutritious and delicious is a combination of skill and art. When you face the challenge of feeding your family on a budget, you'll discover ways to incorporate less-costly meats and fresh ingredients that you find on sale. You'll also find that made-from-scratch recipes are not only cheaper, but tastier, too.
Soups
Soups are fairly cheap to make, and a big pot of soup will feed a large family. If you're serving a smaller group, it will provide leftovers you can freeze for another meal. Buy an inexpensive cut of meat such as a chuck roast or stewing chicken. Cover it with water and let it simmer on the stove for several hours, then add potatoes, carrots, celery and seasonings. Or put everything into a slow cooker, set it on low and let it cook all day. To complete your meal, add a loaf of homemade bread and a simple dessert such as pudding.
Grilling
When the weather's warm, grilling cheaper cuts of meats will make them tender and more flavorful. Ribs, chicken, chuck steaks and pork shoulder roasts are all good choices for grilling. Use the grilled pork shoulder to make pulled pork with your own homemade barbecue sauce. Add fruits and vegetables that are in season and grown locally. Grilled corn-on-the-cob, a salad and watermelon might round out your meal. Or make macaroni salad, drizzle sliced cucumbers with oil-and-vinegar dressing, and top sliced fresh peaches with ginger-sprinkled honey.
Kids Meals
Many children love hot dogs, macaroni and cheese, pizza, hamburgers and French fries. Although you probably don't want to serve these foods every day, they are a good way to feed your children on a budget. Broil hot dogs in a toaster oven or conventional oven for a nicely browned finish. Cook elbow macaroni until it's tender, then add a few slices of American cheese and a splash of milk. Bake hamburgers and French fries in your oven to cut down on the use of oils. Thaw a loaf of frozen bread dough to make a pizza, topping it with leftover cooked hamburger, hot dog slices, tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese.
Serve Breakfast for Dinner
Pancakes make a great cheap meal, the Cheap Family Meals website notes, and serving pancakes for dinner is usually a hit with everyone --- adults as well as children. Mix up your own pancake batter using flour, an egg, milk and oil. Complete your pancake dinner with regular or turkey bacon, brown-and-serve sausage or fried eggs. Or create meal-in-a-pancake recipes, folding ham cubes, leftover hot dog slices, or sliced bananas into the pancake batter.
Comfort Food Meals
Combine comfort foods, such as meatloaf and mashed potatoes, for a budget meal. Buy ground beef when it's on sale and freeze it. Purchase potatoes when your grocery store is running a special, and keep them in a cool, dry place. Make a traditional meatloaf, or the Kraft Recipes website suggests, mini-meatloaves. These little versions of meatloaf are baked in muffin tins, which reduces baking time. If you prefer not to use the stuffing mix the Kraft recipe calls for, substitute crushed saltine crackers for an even more economical dish.
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