healthy, low budget meals

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hollyisamermaid
hollyisamermaid Posts: 2 Member
in Recipes
Hi everyone! i was just wondering whether anyone had any recommendations for meals i can make on the weekend in bulk, and then reheat when needed throughout the week? preferably for a low budget (student struggles).

thank you! :)

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  • LaDivaNicotina
    LaDivaNicotina Posts: 11 Member
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    I highly recommend Budget Bytes for recipes that are fairly frugal, and can be made in bulk, especially the black bean quesadillas and swamp soup. Not sure what your nutrition goals are, but I bet a lot of the recipes can be adjusted to suit your needs/tastes.
  • TuesdayLucero
    TuesdayLucero Posts: 86 Member
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    One of my favorite things to make is Chicken Taco Soup. You can make it on the stove, or in a crockpot. Just throw in a couple of chicken breasts, some broth, a can of rinsed black beans, can of diced tomatoes, corn, some canned green chiles, and then some spices like garlic/onion powder, cumin, chili powder, etc. and it makes a really low calorie meal that is tasty.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    Can you invest in a slow cooker? You can make stews and chilis that will store and reheat well. Stews and chilis are even better reheated. Try lentil and legume based cooking (very cheap, especially if you start with dry beans or lentils).
  • melodicraven
    melodicraven Posts: 83 Member
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    Meat and Veggie Soup. For about $10 you can make a giant stockpot full that will definitely last the week out. :)

    This is how I make mine. You can really sub in any meat. I just got sausage cause it was on sale that week. And feel free to throw in any veggies you like.

    2.00 lb(s), Cabbage - Raw
    18.00 oz fried, Hot Pork Sausage
    1.25 Cup, Original - Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilis (think rotel - or just regular petite diced tomatoes. whatever floats your boat. :) )
    3.00 large, raw, Whole Yellow Squash
    3.50 cup, 1 Whole Can Cut Green Beans W/Salt
    2.00 medium, Carrots - Raw
    3.00 stalk large (11"-12" long), Celery - Raw
    1.00 each (150 g), Yellow Onion - Large
    1.00 Large, Green Bell Pepper
    1.00 container (10 tbsp ea.), Tomato Paste (can use the small .50 can too - tomato paste just adds a lot of umami. Just make sure to get the kind that has no sugar added)
    5.25 cup, Beef Broth, Low Sodium & Fat Free
    28.00 fl oz, H20 (enough water to fill your stockpot 1/2 to 3/4 of the way full depending on how big it is)
    1.00 container (9 oz ea.), White Sliced Mushrooms 8 oz (226 G

    And of course, spices - salt, pepper, garlic, basil, onion powder, thyme, little rosemary, etc. - really whatever you like.
  • csillabrimer978
    csillabrimer978 Posts: 90 Member
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    Buy a Squash, a bigger one is like 5$ at Walmart, slice it and roast it in the oven. yummy, feels you up and low cal
  • ericGold15
    ericGold15 Posts: 318 Member
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    jgnatca wrote: »
    Can you invest in a slow cooker? You can make stews and chilis that will store and reheat well. Stews and chilis are even better reheated. Try lentil and legume based cooking (very cheap, especially if you start with dry beans or lentils).
    Slow cookers are murder to nutrients like vitamins.

    I am a devotee of our pressure cooker, and second your recommendation of lentils. I make enough for ~ 5 days of soups. Most of the water is added to the meal at preparation time.
    Tofu is pretty cheap these days, and if you like it heated up in a microwave with frozen veggies and Soy sauce like me it is very quick to prepare.


    I happened to look at our budget today. We spent somewhere between $350 - $700 on two people these past 30 days. Unfortunately I cannot be more precise because the relevant stores are used for food + other stuff.
  • learningtolove
    learningtolove Posts: 288 Member
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    Last week I made unstuffed cabbage roll casserole,reheats great.
    Also made a few dozen muffins to freeze up.
    Last night I made a puree soup- acorn squash coconut curry,and a few vegetarian stuffed peppers.
    Also boiled up several ears of corn to reheat throughout the week
    ( All this was cheaply made because I got produce deals this week when shopping around-thats the key to eating healthy and cheaply)
    Other good "cheap" staples are beans/lentils-canned or dried,canned tuna, rice or quinoa.
    I like to make up a Mediterranean kind of plate with canned 6 bean medley on a pita with rice on the side,topped with hummus or taziki.
    Soups can be made cheaply with whatever wilting produce or half freezer burnt veggies you have kicking around.
  • dogcatac
    dogcatac Posts: 124 Member
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    i have been workin my crockpot. chili, jambalaya, greens, field peas... anything. soooo easy, just chop everything up and set it to low and portion it at the end of the day (or when you wake up the next day).

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