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Saving & Simplicity
November 20, 2019June 24, 2022

50 Cheap Meal Ideas

Frugal Living / Recipes
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cheap and easy dinner ideas
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cheap meals

cheap meal ideas

Cheap Meal Ideas

Are you stuck on what to make for dinner? Well you have come to the right place. Keeping costs low and providing your family nutritious healthy meals are important. Below you will find 50 frugal meal ideas to help you feed your family and save money. 

Frugal Meal Ideas

When it comes to keeping the grocery budget intact, food costs low frugal meal ideas are what you need.  Simple, easy to follow recipes and meal ideas that get dinner on the table and under budget.  Meals your family likes, meals you can repurpose and serve again.  Meals that get you through when money is tight. 

Cheap Meals

Below you will find a list of 50+ cheap and frugal meals but to help give you an idea of what a frugal meal is.  

Cheap Meal Plans

In any given monthly meal plan in our house you will find pasta dinners, homemade pizza, fried rice and breakfast for dinner.  I love breakfast foods – they are both cheap and fast to make. 

Cheap  & Easy Meal Ideas

Pasta meals are versatile, cheap and easy to make on a busy weeknight. Homemade pizza is fun to make and it uses up leftover meats, cut vegetables and it’s a cheap meal. Fried rice is super easy to make and again uses up and repurposes your leftovers. 

Frugal Meals

You could make beans and rice or breakfast for dinner and you are still providing a nutritious meal for cheap. My favorite frugal meal would have to be either eggs on toast or soup. You can’t go wrong with a bowl of soup. 

Broke Meal Plan

What to cook when you are broke?  Or your income is running low?  For starters don’t stress it.  Take charge and check the cupboards.  What do you have? What can you make?  Dinners don’t have to be perfect to be pleasing.  

Busy and short on time.  Pin this article for later.  Click here.

Cheap Dinner Ideas

Simple frugal dinner ideas could include spaghetti and salad, baked potatoes with toppings, stir fry and rice, tacos or breakfast for dinner.  Dinner doesn’t have to be complicated or take forever to cook to be delicious and satisfying.

Cheap Dinner Recipes

If you are looking for frugal recipes to help you get dinner on the table and under budget especially during a busy week here are some amazing sandwich recipe ideas, salad meals and some great slow cooker frugal recipes. 

Cheap Lunch Ideas

Cheap and simple lunch ideas for at home or on the go. Sandwiches and soup are a great frugal lunch.  Homemade mac and cheese.  Or a simple salad or yogurt and fruit.  Samosas are a great cheap lunch so are nachos or tacos. Leftovers from dinner make great cheap lunches on the go. 

Meal Related Posts:

  • Simple Meals To Make Life Easier
  • 100 Cheap & Frugal Freezer Meals
  • Best Instant Pot Recipes

Frugal Meal

Soup is an amazing frugal meal.  You can make soup out of just about anything. Cream of vegetable soup, beef and barley soup, egg drop soup. Your options are endless.  

Cheap Family Dinners

In our house dinner time is the meal we all enjoy together. It’s our frugal family meal. It may be pasta, or soup and sandwiches, breakfast for dinner, burgers, roasted chicken with sides, baked potatoes with BBQ or tacos.

Cheap Low Cost Meals

A frugal family meal is a low cost meal your family enjoys and eats together. It could be comfort food frugal meals, healthy frugal meals or yummy frugal crockpot meals.  Frugal homemakers know that a frugal family meal ticks the box if it satisfies, is cheap to make and is easy to prepare. 

Healthy Cheap Meals

Soup is cheap to make, filling and nutritious. Bone broth is a great meal anytime as well, and even cheaper to make – you are using leftover bones and vegetables. Bone broth is great for your body and can be used for breakfast, lunch, dinner or a snack.

Cheap Family Meals

Simple cheap meals like pastas, rice bowls, soups, casseroles and breakfasts for dinner can help get you through from paycheck to paycheck.

frugal meal ideas

50 Cheap & Easy Meals:

  1. Baked ziti
  2. Homemade pizza
  3. Quiche and salad
  4. Beans on toast
  5. Hamburger soup
  6. Tacos
  7. Stew
  8. Beans and rice
  9. Rotisserie chicken
  10. Vegetarian curry
  11. Cabbage stew
  12. Egg drop soup
  13. Spaghetti
  14. Cereal
  15. Fajitas
  16. Finger food appetizers
  17. Quinoa and beans
  18. Tortilla soup
  19. Sausage and beans
  20. Meatballs
  21. Egg salad
  22. Cabbage rolls
  23. Chicken and rice bowls
  24. Ramen and vegetable bowls
  25. Bunwiches and soup
  26. Chili and cornbread
  27. Homemade soup or bone broth
  28. Chicken pot pie
  29. Goulash
  30. Sloppy joes
  31. Salad
  32. Stir fry and rice
  33. Shepherd’s pie
  34. Tuna casserole
  35. Breakfast for dinner
  36. Meatloaf
  37. Spanish rice
  38. Lasagna
  39. Nachos
  40. Burrita bowls
  41. Pancakes or waffles
  42. Baked potatoes
  43. Sandwiches
  44. Omelettes
  45. Freezer meals
  46. Pesto pasta
  47. Quesadillas
  48. Chicken fried steak
  49. Stroganoff
  50. Orzo pasta salad

Cheap Meal Prep

If you are looking for more recipe ideas to help with your cheap meal prep here are over 3 months of free frugal recipes that are perfect for the frugal busy cook. 

Frugal Recipes:

  • 35 Cheap & Easy Crockpot Recipes
  • 100+ Instant Pot Recipes
  • Best Ground Beef Recipes
  • Mason Jar Meals

Cheap Meal Planning

If your pocket book is running low or you are simply planning cheap meals to save money.  Improvise, use what you have on hand. Some of the best meals are thrown together with what you have in the cupboards and fridge.

Meal planning can help you save a ton of money. Learn how to meal plan and stretch your grocery budget with MyFreezEasy.  Simple easy money saving meals.

Busy and short on time.  Pin this article for later.  Click here.

Related Meal & Recipe Posts:

  • 21 Super Easy Delicious Cupcake Recipes
  • 25 Delicious Sweet Potato Recipes
  • Amazing Starbucks Copycat Recipes
  • 35+ Low Carb Dinner Recipes

♥ More About Saving & Simplicity

Welcome! I am so glad you are here I am Cynthia, primary frugal mom blogger at Saving & Simplicity. 

Where you will find frugal, money saving posts and articles along with DIY projects, cheap & easy recipes and so much more.

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Updated June 24, 2022

Cheap & Frugal Meal Ideas

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Hello, my name is Cynthia. I am a wife and mother to two. A frugal mom blogger. A lover of all things frugal living & DIY. A strong coffee and dark chocolate lover. An out-of-the-box thinker. Welcome to Saving & Simplicity!

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It is about that time of day... The afternoon coff It is about that time of day... The afternoon coffee crave. 
It's also the rush from work, to school pick up or afternoon activities. 
Save a ton of cash on your afternoon coffee pick me up with these great Starbucks money saving hacks. 
Link in my bio or check this out: https://savingandsimplicity.com/starbucks-hacks-cheap-drinks/
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Sometimes you just have to slow down and enjoy the Sometimes you just have to slow down and enjoy the little things. Like sitting by the fire with family and catching up. #saturdayevening #familytime #restandrecharge #firepit🔥 #patiotime #simplelifehappylife
It’s a coffee kinda morning around here. Even if It’s a coffee kinda morning around here. Even if mom forgets her coffee and has to drink it cold. Loved the sign so I had to take a picture and share it. #homeschoollife #momlife #coffeelover #coffeetime #lovemycoffee #simplethingsinlife
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#happytuesday❤️ The laundry is swapped. Homesc #happytuesday❤️ The laundry is swapped. Homeschool is underway. Mom has a cup of coffee and some reading #montessoritoddler And dinner is in the crockpot (check the link in my bio for some great easy dinner recipes. Have an amazing day! #homeschoolmom #momreading #easydinnerrecipes #stayathomemomlife #workfromhomemom #homeschoolfamily #simplelifehappylife #frugalfamily
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