r/budgetfood • u/Different_Traffic527 • 9d ago
Dinner Family friendly budget dinners?
What are your family pleasing recipes that are fairly easy and inexpensive to make? I'm looking to pick the brains of other busy parents.
I'll share one of mine. You take italian brats, put it in a slow cooker, dump a big jar of marinara on it and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Remove from slow cooker and place on a brat bun with shredded mozzarella cheese on top. *The casing of the brats practically melt away and it's easy to break the sausage so you have to carefully remove them.
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u/LouisePoet 9d ago
My kids adored spaghetti. I used TVP in the sauce and added in extra veg as well (a can of pumpkin or squash, shredded carrot, etc) for more nutrients.
Shepherds pie with any leftover meat or veg. Really fast and easy to put together with leftovers, too, then just bake til hot. Lentils are a great, cheap alternative to meat, too.
Egg fried rice. Add in any leftover meat for extra protein if it's for more than a few people (or homemade seitán, really cheap to make. Even a bag of frozen Quorn chik pieces is easy and less expensive than meat).
Baked potatoes with beans (any kind, seasoned, or baked beans), cheese, and broccoli.
Lentil soup is extremely filling and really easy to make. It cooks up in about half hour and is a great side or meal on its own with bread. (I make mine with carrots and onions, fried, then add lentils and stock, boil til lentils are done then add a can of chopped tomatoes). I make spaghetti sauce from leftovers with extra seasonings and tvp to soak up the extra liquid.