52 Cheap Family Dinners Your Family Will Love
Cheap family dinners saved me long before I ever thought much about the cost. My mom soaked a bag of beans (mostly pinto) overnight and cooked them the next day in the pressure cooker with tons of spice, diced potatoes and finely diced plantains, and that whole dinner came to almost nothing. It’s still one of my favorite things to eat.
A bag of dried beans goes further than anything else in the store in servings and price. I reach for canned more often than I’d like to admit. They’re a shortcut when the day gets away from me and I havent soaked or prepped beans, and I only have 20 minutes to prepare dinner.
Most of what I cook comes out of the pantry, and it makes it easy to stock up for dinner. Jasmine rice, canned beans, tomato sauce, and every spice I use often, all bought in bulk because it’s cheaper that way,, and I especially love to buy more when they’re on sale.
I also keep low-sodium chicken stock on hand. It’s the easiest way I know to add a lot of flavor wihtout having to cook for hours in order to developp layers of flavor, and it’s what I go for when I’m prepping chicken stew or a pot of beans for dinner with a side of white rice.
What Makes a Cheap Family Dinner Worth Cooking
- Start with something inexpensive that fills a plate, so beans or rice or potatoes or plantains. They’re filling, and pair well with proteins.
- Add a small amount of protein rather than building the whole meal around it.
- Season it properly, because honestly that’s the whole difference between cheap food and food that just happens to be inexpensive.
My Favorite Budget Friendly Flavor Hack
Sofrito does most of the seasoning work in my kitchen. Onion and pepper and garlic and cilantro, cooked down slowly before anything else goes in the pot. It turns a plain can of beans into something that tastes delish.
Make a big batch at once and freeze it portioned out in glass containers then defrost them or portion them out in silicone trays.
Drop a cube straight into the pot when you start your beans. No thawing, no chopping, no thinking about it.
It keeps for months, so I never really run out.
Here’s my Sofrito Recipe, and the Quick and Easy Puerto Rican Recaito if you want the authentic Puerto Rican version that my aunt taught me to make.
Cheap Family Dinners for Bean and Rice Nights
Beans and rice together make a complete protein, which is why half the world eats them this way, and honestly it’s never once felt like we were eating cheap food. If you only make one thing off this whole list, make it something from here.
Dried Beans or Canned
My mom soaked a bag of dried beans overnight and cooked them the next day, and a bag still goes further than anything else in the store. But I reach for canned more often than I’d like to admit, and they are a great and easy shortcut.
Dried beans cost a fraction of canned, so cook a whole bag and freeze what you don’t use.
Canned beans just need seasoning. Garlic, cumin, a little onion, and about twenty minutes.
Low-sodium chicken stock instead of water is my favorite trick, in either version. It adds so much flavor for almost nothing.
20-Minutes For The Best Canned Black Beans (Frijoles Negros)
Canned frijoles negros seasoned with my go-to garlic and cumin and a little sweet onion. Twenty minutes, and I promise they don’t taste like they came from a can.
Puerto Rican Style Stewed Black Beans (Habichuelas Negras)
Habichuelas negras simmered slowly with sofrito until they go soft and a little sweet. These take longer than the quick ones above, and they’re worth every extra minute.
Black Beans and Rice with Green Chiles
Beans and rice cooked together in one pot with mild green chiles. A whole dinner for less than a coffee, which still makes me happy every time.
Vegan Arroz con Gandules
Puerto Rican rice with pigeon peas and plenty of sofrito. Meatless, made in one pot, and it stretches further than anything else here.
Delicious Sopa De Lentejas with Plantains
Green lentils simmered with sweet plantains until the whole pot goes thick. The crispy plantain crumble on top is my favorite part and I never skip it.
The Rice I Serve With All of It
Rice is what turns a pot of beans into dinner, and it’s the cheapest thing on this whole list. I always have a bag of jasmine in the pantry, and I make a big pot on Sunday so it’s already there when I need it.
Easy and Delicious Cilantro Lime Rice
Cilantro lime rice made with jasmine rice, fresh cilantro and plenty of lime. I make a big pot on Sunday and we work our way through it all week.
The Best Colombian Coconut Rice (Arroz con Coco Colombiano)
Arroz con coco, the Colombian coconut rice I grew up eating. It costs almost nothing and it makes a plain piece of chicken feel like an occasion.
The Easiest Stovetop Basmati Rice
Stovetop basmati rice that comes out fluffy every time, no rice cooker needed. It’s the base under half the meals on this list, so it’s worth getting right.
Cheap Family Dinners With Ground Beef
A single pound of ground beef goes such a long way when there’s rice or potatoes underneath it, and nobody at my table has ever noticed the beef doing a little less work than usual. It costs a fraction of what any cut of beef does, which is why it shows up here more than anything else.
Cuban Beef Picadillo That Solves Weeknight Dinner
Ground beef simmered with olives and warm spices, spooned over white rice. I make a double batch on purpose. It’s always better the second night.
Taco Rice with Mexican-Style Seasoned Ground Beef
Seasoned beef and rice in a Dutch oven with all the taco toppings. It’s easily the cheapest thing I cook all week.
Cheesy Taco Rice Skillet Recipe
A cheesy taco rice skillet with seasoned ground beef and rice under a lot of melted cheese, all in one pan. There’s almost nothing to wash afterward, which counts for a lot on a Tuesday.
Ground Beef and Potato Casserole with Tomato Sauce
A ground beef and potato casserole layered with tomato sauce and baked until the top goes golden. It feeds everyone and it reheats beautifully for lunch.
Ground Beef and Potato Casserole with Cheddar Cheese
The same ground beef and potato casserole with sharp cheddar instead of tomato sauce. Cheesier, and the one my family reaches for first.
Southwest Ground Beef and Sweet Potato Skillet
A southwest ground beef skillet with sweet potato, warm spices and tomato, all in one pan. Filling without feeling heavy, which is a hard balance to get right.
Mini Crispy Baked Ground Beef Tacos in Just 35 Minutes
Little baked tacos that come out shatteringly crisp. The small ones disappear faster than full size, every single time.
Ground Beef Orzo with Tomato Cream Sauce and Fresh Basil
Ground beef orzo in a tomato cream sauce with fresh basil. It tastes so much more expensive than it actually is.
Ground Beef with Lemon and Parsley
Simple ground beef brightened with plenty of lemon and fresh parsley, and it’s low histamine friendly too.
Stews and Soups Are the Best Cheap Family Dinners
A big pot of soup or stew is the cheapest way I know to feed everyone twice. Some of these take an afternoon and some are done in half an hour, but every one of them makes more than we need and tastes better the next day.
Colombian Chicken Stew (Sudado de Pollo)
Sudado de pollo, chicken stewed with potatoes in tomato and sofrito until everything goes soft. This is the one I grew up eating, always over white rice.
Puerto Rican Sancocho
Sancocho, a big one-pot stew with root vegetables and plantains. It takes a while and it makes enough for days, which is the whole point.
Healthy Ground Chicken Taco Soup
Ground chicken taco soup with black beans and corn, all the taco seasoning in soup form. One pot, and it costs almost nothing.
Mexican Chicken and Black Bean Soup
Chicken and black beans in a warm brothy soup with cumin and garlic. Filling enough that nobody asks what else there is.
Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup
Chicken enchilada soup with black beans and corn and enough cheese to make it creamy. This is what saves dinner on the first cold night of the year.
Smoky Tomato Chicken and Corn Soup
Smoky tomato broth with chicken and sweet corn. Cheap, warming, and it comes together faster than most stews.
45-Minute Creamy Coconut Milk Chicken Thighs
Chicken thighs simmered in coconut milk until the sauce goes silky and rich. A can of coconut milk costs very little and it does more for a pot of chicken than almost anything else. Swap in bone-in chicken legs to make it even cheaper.
Cheap Family Dinners You Can Eat With Your Hands
A tortilla and something cheesy is one of the least expensive dinners there is, and it’s usually the one nobody argues about. Most of these come together in about twenty minutes.
Why a Bag of Tortillas Is Worth Keeping
Tortillas cost very little and they turn almost anything into dinner. Beans, leftover chicken, a spoonful of rice, whatever’s in the fridge.
Buy the burrito size and the small ones, because the big ones hold a full meal and the small ones make quesadillas and taquitos for lunchboxes. They keep for weeks in the fridge and they freeze well too, so I always have a bag going. And when a tortilla starts to dry out, that’s when I bake it into tostadas rather than throwing it away.
Baked Bean and Cheese Burritos With Refried Beans
Bean and cheese burritos baked four at a time on one sheet, with seasoned refried beans and two melting cheeses. Meatless, cheap, and done in about thirty minutes.
Cilantro Lime Chicken Quesadillas
Cilantro lime chicken quesadillas with Oaxaca and Monterey Jack melted between two tortillas. This is the one I get asked for most, and I’ve never once minded making it again.
20-Minute Cheesy Elote Quesadilla with Cumin Lime Crema
An elote quesadilla with sweet corn and cotija under a cumin lime crema. Meatless, twenty minutes, and it costs almost nothing to put together.
Stuffed Sweet Corn Poblano Quesadillas
Sweet corn and roasted poblano quesadillas, which give you a little warmth without any real heat. Frozen corn works perfectly here, so I make them all year.
Rotisserie Chicken Quesadillas with Veggie Fajitas
Rotisserie chicken quesadillas with peppers and onions folded in. This is my leftover chicken dinner and it takes almost no work at all.
Mini Chicken Quesadillas
A whole tray of little chicken quesadillas for dinner or lunchboxes. I make these on Sundays. They never last the week.
Mini Chicken Taquitos with Cheese
Mini chicken taquitos rolled and baked until crisp. Bake a tray and let everyone grab, which is usually how they disappear.
Tortilla Chip Enchilada Skillet for Any Night
An enchilada skillet made with tortilla chips instead of rolled tortillas, with enchilada sauce and melted cheese all in one pan.
Baked Blue Corn Tostadas
Blue corn tortillas baked until they shatter instead of fried, then piled with beans and cheese and whatever else is around.
Smoked Sausage, the Ingredient I Always Have
One package of kielbasa turns a pot of rice into an actual dinner, and I keep it in the fridge the way other people keep eggs. It lasts for ages, it’s inexpensive, and it brings so much smoky flavor that you barely need anything else.
One-Skillet Onion and Pepper Kielbasa with Rice
Smoked sausage with sweet peppers and onions, all in one skillet, and no shopping trip required.
One-Skillet Sweet Corn Fried Rice with Kielbasa
Fried rice with sweet corn and kielbasa. This is what I make with leftover rice and whatever’s left in the drawer.
Cajun Sausage and Rice
Cajun sausage and rice cooked together in one pot, with one pan to wash at the end of it.
Eggs and Canned Tuna
These are the two cheapest proteins in any grocery store, and I lean on them more than I’d admit at a dinner party. A carton of eggs and a few cans of tuna have carried us through more weeks than I can count.
The Best Tuna Salad Recipe For Sandwiches
The best tuna salad for sandwiches, creamy enough to hold beautifully for a few days, so lunch takes no cooking at all.
Quick Corn Tuna Salad
Corn tuna salad with sweet corn stirred right in, ready in twenty minutes. It sounded strange to me too, until I tried it.
Easy Deviled Egg Pasta Salad
All the flavor of deviled eggs in a pasta salad, and it feeds a crowd for almost nothing.
Plantains and Potatoes
These are what fill out a plate when the protein is doing less work, and they’re some of the cheapest things in the whole produce aisle. Plantains especially, which cost almost nothing and turn a simple dinner into something that feels a little special.
Easy Fried Sweet Plantains (Maduros)
Maduros, sweet plantains fried until the edges caramelize and go a little sticky. Nobody’s ever left one on the plate in my house.
Crispy Fried Patacones
Patacones, green plantains smashed and fried twice until they shatter. Salt them while they’re still hot, that part matters.
20-Minute Boiled Plantains
Boiled plantains two ways, ready in twenty minutes, and about as inexpensive as a side dish gets.
The Best Colombian Papas Rellenas
Papas rellenas, Colombian beef-stuffed potatoes fried golden. More of a weekend project than a weeknight one, but it stretches a small amount of meat such a long way.
Pasta That Feeds Everyone
A box of pasta is still one of the cheapest ways to fill a table, and I love that these three never taste like a compromise. Keep a couple of boxes in the pantry and you always have dinner.
One-Pan Angel Hair Chimichurri Pasta
Silky angel hair tossed in herby chimichurri butter. Meatless, fast, and I love that it feels like a restaurant plate.
Southern-Style Macaroni Salad
Creamy, tangy macaroni salad that makes enough for days and costs almost nothing to put together.
Creamy Tuna Pasta Salad
Creamy tuna pasta salad that quietly covers both lunch and dinner for a couple of days.
20-Minute Mexican Pasta Salad
A black bean pasta salad ready in twenty minutes. Almost every ingredient comes out of the pantry. It feeds a crowd for very little.
Creamy Dill Pickle Pasta Salad
Creamy dill pickle pasta salad with a tangy dressing running all the way through it. A jar of pickles and a box of pasta, which is about as cheap as dinner gets.
Easy Pickle Pico De Gallo Pasta Salad
Pickle pico de gallo pasta salad. Sharp, crunchy, and the same idea as the one above with fresh tomato and onion stirred through.
Bruschetta Pasta Salad
Bruschetta pasta salad with fresh tomato and basil and a lot of garlic. It feels like summer any time of year, and it costs almost nothing to put together.
20-Minute Elote Pasta Salad
Elote pasta salad with sweet corn and cotija, ready in twenty minutes. Frozen corn works perfectly here, so I make it all year.
Creamy Cilantro Lime Pasta Salad with Avocado and Sweet Corn
Cilantro lime pasta salad with avocado and sweet corn. Lighter than the creamy ones above and just as inexpensive.
If You Like This You’ll Love These
Here are a few others I’ve made and loved:
My Favorite Ways to Make Beans for Dinner for more of the cheapest protein in the house.
My Favorite Rice Bowls and Seasoned Rice Recipes since most of these end up over rice.
One-Pot Meals for Dinner Tonight for the nights you want one pan to wash.
Easy Dinners For Lazy Nights for when even this feels like too much.
If you make any of these cheap family dinners, leave a comment. I love reading your comments and will try to get back to every single one.
