cheap family meals

A delicious budget friend meal using the popular pantry staple, Spam. The combination of pan fried Spam and potatoes is a delicious family meal.

Fried Spam and Potatoes

Vegetable Oil,

Spam,

Potatoes,

Onion,

Salt and Ground Black Pepper, to taste

Sliced Cheese and Pickled Jalapeno Slices

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium.

Add the diced Spam, potatoes and onion; fry...

Add the diced Spam, potatoes and onion; fry turning occasionally until potatoes are tender and golden brown.

Optional: Add cheese slices on top to melt...

Optional: Add cheese slices on top to melt before serving.

https://mediavine-res.cloudinary.com/video/upload/gru3umcewa46ohhu7gki.mp4

Use a classic budget friendly pantry staple to create a delicious family meal. Fried Spam and Potatoes is ready in about half and hour. Family dinner ideas made easy with Spam fried potatoes recipe.

This budget vegetarian burrito uses tinned beans and frozen sweetcorn. You can even use a microwave to cook the whole recipe.

Each serving provides 733kcal, 24.5g protein, 128g carbohydrate (of which 11g sugars), 12g fat (of which 6g saturates), 13g fibre and 2.5g salt.

Bean and rice burrito

200 grams/7 ounces tomatoes, diced

tbsp white wine vinegar

lime, zest only (juice used below)

salt and pepper

tin Mexican-style bean mix or mixed beans

sweetcorn,

tortilla wraps

150 grams/5½oz long-grain rice, cooked according to the packet instructions

lime, juice only

plain yoghurt

You've got to love a warming toad-in-the-hole recipe when there's a nip in the air. Skip the garlic cabbage if you like and serve with another green vegetable of your choice. This is designed to be a low cost recipe.


Toad in the hole

flour

salt and black pepper

free-range eggs

300 milliliters/10fl oz milk

olive oil

sausages

onions, finely sliced

½ tsp English mustard

500 milliliters/18fl oz stock

Savoy cabbage, shredded, core discarded

garlic cloves,

Packed with goodness, tasty vegetables and layered slices of potato, this hotpot is easy on the wallet too. This is designed to be a low cost recipe.

Vegetarian Lancashire hotpot

onions, finely chopped

carrots,

½ swede (about 350 grams/12 ounces), peeled and chopped

milliliters/1⅓ pint–1 litre/1¾ pints vegetable stock,

pearl barley

thyme, leaves only

900 grams/2lb potatoes,

butter

Spaghetti carbonara is a crowd-pleaser if ever there was one – eggs, cheese, bacon and pasta. And ready in the time it takes to boil spaghetti. This is designed to be a low cost recipe.

Budget spaghetti carbonara

spaghetti

bacon,

garlic clove,

grams/1¾oz

milliliters/1¾fl oz full-fat milk

After browning the meat, this beef stroganoff can be left to tenderise in the slow cooker throughout the day ready for dinner time. Serve with rice or tagliatelle.

You can brown the meat the night before to make things easier in the morning. 

Slow cooker beef stroganoff

sunflower oil

tbsp plain flour

onions, sliced

garlic cloves, crushed

beef stock cubes,

Dijon mustard

Worcestershire sauce

200 grams/7 ounces mushrooms, sliced

125 milliliters/4fl oz soured cream

rice

The classic sausage and mash served with homemade onion gravy and peas. Simple and sure to please all the family. This is designed to be a low cost recipe.

Sausage and mash

½ tsp dried mixed herbs

600 milliliters/20fl oz stock (ideally beef, although chicken or vegetable is fine)

tsp softened butter

tsp plain flour

100 milliliters/3½fl oz milk

300 grams/10½oz frozen peas

An easy veggie curry that makes a cheap and healthy meal. It uses basic store cupboard ingredients so is very quick and easy to cook. It's simple to make vegan too, just swap the yoghurt for a dairy-free alternative.

Each serving provides 335 kcal, 9g protein, 41g carbohydrate (of which 14.5g sugars), 12.5g fat (of which 1.5g saturates), 10g fibre and 0.5g salt.

Easy vegetable curry

potatoes

carrot,

cauliflower (around 300 grams/10½oz),

tbsp sunflower or vegetable oil

onion,

tbsp curry powder

tomatoes

300 milliliters/10fl oz vegetable or chicken stock

peas

mango chutney, to serve

Freshly baked pizza tastes great, and this pizza dough without yeast requires no waiting around for the dough to rise. Just mix it up and you're ready to go. Try it with your favourite toppings.

Easy no-yeast pizza

tin chopped tomatoes

tsp dried mixed herbs, plus extra for topping

caster sugar

garlic

mozzarella (or any other cheese), torn into pieces, for topping

300 grams/10½oz self-raising flour,

tsp baking powder

salt

300 grams/10½oz natural yoghurt

Lisa Faulkner cooks up an easy pizza in less than 30 minutes.

Easy Margherita Pizza

Dhansak is a traditional Parsi curry of lentils, vegetables and meat. This vegetarian version removes the meat, but is still bursting with flavour.

Vegetable dhansak

cauliflower,

sweet potatoes,

vegetable oil

garlic cloves, grated

grams/¾oz fresh root ginger,

tsp turmeric

tbsp garam masala

600 milliliters/21fl oz reduced salt vegetable stock

grams/5½oz green beans or peas

300 grams/10½oz cooked basmati rice

natural yoghurt

flatbreads

coriander,

This stir-fry is packed with veg and vitamins, and plenty of protein too from the eggs and sesame seeds. To scale up this budget stir-fry just add extra veg. 

Each serving provides 286 kcal, 17g protein, 31g carbohydrates (of which 6g sugars), 8g fat (of which 2g saturates), 9g fibre and 0.7g salt.

Vegetable egg-fried rice

tsp rapeseed oil

spring onions, thinly sliced

red pepper, seeds removed and thinly sliced

garlic cloves, finely chopped

broccoli,

300 grams/10½oz freshly cooked basmati rice, cooled

175 grams/6 ounces frozen peas

eggs, lightly beaten

soy sauce

sesame seeds

sea salt and black pepper

A super-simple Chinese-style chicken curry that can easily be adapted to whatever protein or veggies you have available.

For this recipe you will need a food processor or a blender.

Dad’s Chinese chicken curry

brown onion, chopped

fresh root ginger, chopped

red chilli, chopped

plain flour

turmeric

tsp cumin

tsp coriander

500 milliliters/18fl oz chicken stock,

chicken thighs (skin-on

chicken drumsticks

grams/3½oz frozen peas (or any other frozen, tinned

200–300 grams/7–10½oz basmati rice, cooked according to packet instructions

A super-quick way to make a Tex-Mex style supper in under 20 minutes! These cheesy chilli-beany pockets are quick to assemble and bake quickly in the oven rather than one at a time in a pan on the hob. Any leftovers can be eaten cold the next day or reheated in the microwave.

This recipe is part of a <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/budget_family_meal_plan_for_four"> Budget meal plan for four</a>. In March 2023 this recipe was costed at an average of £3.84 when checking prices at four UK supermarkets. This recipe is designed to be made in conjunction with a <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/budget_recipes">low-cost store-cupboard</a>.

Beany quesadillas

tin beans

tin red kidney beans

150 grams/5½oz frozen sweetcorn

flour tortillas

grams/3½oz cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered (optional)

lime,

black pepper

An alternative Sunday roast, this flavoursome pie is much easier to prepare than it looks and makes the perfect centrepiece for a meat-free meal. For a delicious vegan version, swap the milk for a plant-based alternative and make sure your puff pastry is vegan.

This recipe is part of a <a href=" https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/budget_vegetarian_family_meal_plan_for_four"> Budget vegetarian meal plan for four</a>. In September 2023 this recipe was costed at an average of £3.88 when checking prices at four UK supermarkets. This recipe is designed to be made in conjunction with a <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/budget_recipes">low-cost store-cupboard</a>.

Creamy mushroom pie and vegetables

250 milliliters/9fl oz hot vegetable stock, made with 1 vegetable stock cube

pack ready-rolled puff pastry

350 grams/12 ounces medium carrots, peeled and halved lengthways

350 grams/12 ounces medium parsnips, peeled and halved lengthways

250 grams/9 ounces frozen peas

This budget minestrone is the classic Italian soup made with cannellini beans and broken up spaghetti. Feel free to stir in extra vegetables, depending on what you have in the fridge. This is designed to be a low cost recipe.

Each serving provides 300 kcal, 18.3g protein, 37.1g carbohydrate (of which 14g sugars), 5.2g fat (of which 1g saturates), 16.5g fibre and 1.85g salt.

Top 15 cheap family meals recipes from across the web

The most viewed cheap family meals recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine

Top Tags

Fried Spam and Potatoes

Bean and rice burrito

Toad in the hole

Vegetarian Lancashire hotpot

Budget spaghetti carbonara

Slow cooker beef stroganoff

Sausage and mash

Easy vegetable curry

Easy no-yeast pizza

Vegetable dhansak

Vegetable egg-fried rice

Dad’s Chinese chicken curry

Beany quesadillas

Creamy mushroom pie and vegetables

Minestrone soup

Top 15 cheap family meals recipes from across the web

The most viewed cheap family meals recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Fried Spam and Potatoes

Bean and rice burrito

Toad in the hole

Vegetarian Lancashire hotpot

Budget spaghetti carbonara

Slow cooker beef stroganoff

Sausage and mash

Easy vegetable curry

Easy no-yeast pizza

Vegetable dhansak

Vegetable egg-fried rice

Dad’s Chinese chicken curry

Beany quesadillas

Creamy mushroom pie and vegetables

Minestrone soup

The most viewed cheap family meals recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine