Half the packet plus soy cuts the sodium without losing flavour.
Under 30 min · Cheap
Cheap Dinner Ideas
These dinners lean on the cheapest calories in any supermarket: dried pasta, rice, canned beans, eggs, potatoes and cabbage. Pair them with the grocery budget calculator to see what a week of them costs against the USDA Thrifty Food Plan.
36 recipes, fastest first.
No-cook dinner for hot nights.
Under 30 min · Vegetarian · Healthy · Cheap
A no-cook sushi-bowl riff from two cans.
Under 30 min · Healthy · Cheap
The fastest dinner in this collection that still feels like a real meal.
Under 30 min · Cheap · Vegetarian · One pot
Greek yogurt keeps the filling tangy without a jar of mayo.
Under 30 min · Cheap
Mashing half the beans glues the filling together so nothing falls out.
Under 30 min · Vegetarian · Cheap · Family
Instant ramen blocks make this cheaper than takeout by a mile.
Under 30 min · Vegetarian · Cheap
Stirring as you pour is what makes silky ribbons.
Under 30 min · Cheap · One pot
Pre-crisping the tortilla stops a soggy middle.
Under 30 min · Family · Cheap
The spice mix is pantry-only, so you never need a seasoning packet.
Under 30 min · Family · Cheap
Taking the pot off the heat before adding cheese stops it going grainy.
Vegetarian · Family · Cheap · Under 30 min · One pot
Cooking zucchini until it collapses turns it into the sauce.
Vegetarian · Under 30 min · Cheap
Cold rice holds its shape; fresh rice will fall apart.
Under 30 min · Cheap · Vegetarian
Cold rice fries instead of steaming, which is why leftovers make the best version.
Under 30 min · Cheap · Family · One pot
Two cans and a spice jar become dinner for four.
Vegetarian · Healthy · Under 30 min · One pot · Cheap
Squeezing out the water is the difference between crisp and soggy.
Vegetarian · Cheap · Under 30 min
Toasting the seam first seals the burrito shut.
Vegetarian · Cheap · Family
Crumbled tofu browns like mince and soaks up soy sauce.
Vegetarian · Cheap · One pot
Pasta cooks right in the sauce, so the starch thickens it.
One pot · Family · Cheap · Under 30 min
Eggs poached in spiced tomato: a pantry dinner that looks like brunch.
Vegetarian · Healthy · One pot · Cheap
Red lentils need no soaking and melt into a thick sauce in twenty minutes.
Vegetarian · Healthy · Cheap · One pot
Half a cabbage costs little and wilts down to a hearty dinner.
Cheap · One pot
Par-cooking in the microwave halves the frying time.
Cheap · One pot · Family
Eight eggs and a pound of potatoes make four filling portions.
Vegetarian · Cheap · One pot
Underdo the pasta slightly; it finishes in the sauce in the oven.
Cheap · Family
All the flavour of arancini with none of the frying.
Vegetarian · Cheap · Family
Everyday ingredients, zero special shopping.
Cheap · One pot · Family
Browning the tomato paste for a minute gives a long-simmered taste in twenty.
Family · Cheap
Leaving some chunks gives body without a blender. Use veg broth and skip bacon to keep it vegetarian.
Vegetarian · Cheap · Family · One pot
A home for the half-bags of vegetables at the back of the fridge.
Vegetarian · Healthy · Cheap · One pot
One pan, no prep beyond chopping.
Sheet pan · Family · Cheap
Sweet potato thickens and sweetens the chili without meat.
Vegetarian · Healthy · One pot · Cheap
The rice cooks in the chicken drippings, so there is only one pan to wash.
One pot · Family · Cheap
Makes six portions and tastes better the next day.
One pot · Family · Cheap
Mostly hands-off: an hour in the oven while you do something else.
Cheap · Family · Vegetarian
Four hours unattended; the sauce doubles as the braising liquid.
Family · Cheap