{"id":17782,"date":"2022-01-24T08:30:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-24T13:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/einvestingforbeginners.com\/?p=17782"},"modified":"2022-06-01T15:28:41","modified_gmt":"2022-06-01T19:28:41","slug":"cheap-dinner-ideas-ansh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/einvestingforbeginners.com\/cheap-dinner-ideas-ansh\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Healthy & Cheap Dinner Ideas Under $3\/Plate!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

One of the most frustrating things ever when looking for cheap dinner ideas is that people so clearly sacrifice the quality of their ingredients. Look, I get it – you\u2019re trying to come up with ways to eat for cheap and if that\u2019s what you have to do, it\u2019s what you have to do. But I am here telling you that it\u2019s not actually what you have to do\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before we get into the details, here is a summary of the 10 Healthy & Cheap Dinner Ideas Under $3\/Plate if you’re like me and just can’t wait to get to the meat of the article…pun intended!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Mexican Ground Chicken Quinoa Bowl<\/li>
  2. Pork Fried Rice<\/li>
  3. Crockpot BBQ Ribs<\/li>
  4. Turkey, Tomato & Sweet Potato<\/li>
  5. Turkey Sausage & Red Potato<\/li>
  6. Hearty CMC (Chicken Mushroom Crockpot)<\/li>
  7. Savory Pot Roast<\/li>
  8. Chicken Stir Fry<\/li>
  9. Steak & Potatoes<\/li>
  10. Cheesy 3-Egg Turkey Sausage Omelet<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    First off, it all just starts out with a little bit of planning ahead. In general, shopping on the perimeter of the store (i.e. avoiding the aisles) is going to be your best bet to have a cheap & healthy grocery list. Sure, there are going to be some extremely cheap items in the aisles like Ramen noodles, but those have enough sodium for a village for eternity\u2026in every noodle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Obviously that\u2019s a stretch, but other than the canned goods that are in aisles, I will try to avoid them as much as humanly possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I\u2019ve previously written about the 7 most important steps to have a cheap grocery list<\/a> so while I don\u2019t want to go into much detail, I do think it\u2019s imperative to put them in your mind as you go through the remainder of this post:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    1. Have a Plan\/List<\/li>
    2. Meal Prep Your Meals<\/li>
    3. Shop the Specials<\/li>
    4. Buy Ahead of Your Needs<\/li>
    5. Buy Produce in Season<\/li>
    6. Understand Unit Pricing and Buy the Cheapest Option<\/li>
    7. Always Leave Options at Home for \u201cEmergency Meals\u201d<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      If you can maximize the seven items that are listed above, you\u2019re going to be in a great position to really take advantage of these meals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      I shop at Meijer for all of our groceries, which is similar to a Kroger in quality but has the superstore aspect of a Walmart, and the pricing is really in the middle of those two stores. You can obviously bargain-buy and get great items at Walmart, Aldi and others, but for the purposes of this blog, I am going to have all of my pricing from Meijer since that\u2019s truly where 98% of our shopping comes from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Something you\u2019re going to learn about myself and my cooking is that I have three priorities:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      1. Cheap<\/li>
      2. Healthy<\/li>
      3. Easy<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        That\u2019s it, and you\u2019re going to see that reflected in these recipes. Ready to get going? Ok, let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Mexican Ground Chicken Quinoa Bowl<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

        This is one of my favorite meals all around. The taste is good, let\u2019s say a B+, but the beauty of it is that you\u2019re really buying only one thing that needs to be cooked, a couple vegetables to slice up, and then a bunch of canned goods. Throw that stuff in a crockpot and just let it cook.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        This is absolutely a staple for my family if we have to work late one night or just feel like being lazy. It also freezes great so we will even make some extra or have two crock pots going and freeze some of it. Planning ahead!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Ingredients:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n