Cook on a Shoestring » Simple Recipes and Sample Menus

Simple Recipes and Sample Menus

Everyone, regardless of whether they’re cooking on a shoestring, needs dinner ideas. Most of us want simple meals that taste good and don’t cost us a lot of money. That’s why we’ve put together a sample menu for the week to help you get started cooking and eating good, healthy meals at home.

Below are some simple, frugal dinner recipes you can use to help you save money cooking on a shoestring. Most recipes will feed 4 people easily, but could also be tweaked a little to serve more if necessary.

Any of these meals could be dressed up with some fruit, vegetables, or breads on the side. Everyone of these recipes is versatile enough to become an easy vegetarian meal just by substituting vegetables for the meat or omitting the meat altogether.

Week 1: When You Go to the Grocery Store this Week, Buy…

Here is what you’ll want to pick up at the grocery store this week, if you want to follow the menu we’ve outlined below:

2 lbs. of ground turkey (it’s cheaper than ground beef) – $4
1 large box of lasagna noodles – $1.50
1 box of spaghetti noodles – $1.50
2 jars of spaghetti sauce – $3
1 bag of frozen, boneless chicken breasts – $6-$8, depending on brand (you won’t use all of it this week)
1 small bag of rice ~ $2
1 5 lb. bag of potatoes – $4
2 bags of frozen assorted vegetables – $4
1 can of green peas ~ $1
1 can red kidney beans ~ $1
1 can black beans ~ $1
1 can diced tomatoes ~ $0.75
1 can diced peppers ~ $0.75
1 loaf of sliced wheat bread – $1.00 on up, depending on brand

Grand Total: Roughly $30-$35 for 1 week’s groceries.

You’ll also want to track down some mozzarella cheese, a bag of cornmeal (or a couple of boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix), basil, oregano, marjoram, garlic powder, paprika, butter/margarine, milk, turmeric, and crushed red pepper. Hopefully you already have some of these items in your pantry, but if you don’t, you won’t have to buy any additional spices or seasonings for some time; think of this as an investment in good cooking during the coming weeks. Please note that prices are going to vary from region to region, depending on taxes and seasonal sales; the prices I listed above are based on grocery shopping in the Midwest United States, so they should still be fairly accurate for most of the U.S.

Alright! We’ve got our groceries. Let’s get cooking.