Episode 443-Inexpensive Meals That Stretch Your Food Budget

Today I will be trying to inspire you to create simple family-style meals using inexpensive proteins and starches. With food prices on the rise, many families need some inspiration to keep things interesting, tasty and not break the bank.

Today I will focus on the following foods to use as a starting point:

Ground Beef
Chicken Thighs
Rotisserie Chicken
Black Beans
Rice

I won’t go into super detail on each recipe idea rather just go over some of the basics and ways to switch them up to make simple meals your family loves. Here are some of the ideas I’ll speak about:

meatballs, meatloaf, taco salad/Burritos, stuffed peppers, stuffed cabbage with tomatoes over rice
Thai chicken over rice, butter chicken, skewers with peppers, onions, grilled over rice
Chicken salad, chicken caser salad, chicken noodle soup, use carcass to make stock
Black beans and rice, black bean, roasted squash, cheese burritos, taco bowl, rice beans, ground beef, avocado, cheese, tomato, black bean chili, black bean burgers
Green rice, chicken and rice soup, fried rice-add just about anything to stretch, rice pudding, risotto, Arroz con pollo

I make many of these dishes each month and we thoroughly enjoy them and they save us money on grocery bills and most importantly-they keep us out of restaurants.