A Cheap, Healthy Meal Plan to Feed My Family
We took our family of four out to dinner and ice cream on a recent Friday night. Two adult entrees, two kids’ entrees, gratuity and a round of ice cream cones later, we had effortlessly racked up an $80 dinner bill. While we enjoy treating ourselves to dinner out, it makes me appreciate how I can stretch our food budget to feed my family healthy meals all week long, often for about what we spend for just one meal at a restaurant. Relying on trusty low-cost meal planning tricks makes for healthy family meal plans on a budget week after week. Don’t Miss: I Cooked My Family Vegetarian Dinners for 30 Days and Here’s What Happened Here are my best tips for creating a cheap, healthy meal plan for the week (to feed two adults and two kids) based on a budget of $100, plus inexpensive recipe ideas to try for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. And don’t miss the shopping list below! Low-Cost Healthy Meal Planning Tips Follow these tips for creating a healthy meal plan on a budget each week. 1. Scan the weekly grocery deals Proteins, like chicken or beef, tend to be the most costly items on the grocery list, so build a meal plan around items that are on sale. Consider seasonal produce, which tends to be cheaper, like asparagus in the spring and fresh berries in the summer. 2. Build a budget-friendly fridge and pantry Keep a stock of cheap staples like eggs and canned tuna that can be used in multiple meals throughout the week. Hard-boiled eggs add protein to your morning avocado toast or your kid’s lunchbox. Canned tuna becomes an easy meal-prep filling for lunch wraps and doubles as melts for a quick dinner. When shopping, keep an eye out for deals and stock up when stuff goes on sale. 3. Write in a few meatless meals Pound for pound, plant-based proteins like lentils and canned beans are a steal compared to animal proteins (and some actually contain more protein than meat). Plus, research suggests that eating more plants is good for our health. Add in a few meatless options throughout the week for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. 4. Plan on theme nights for dinner Assigning theme-night meals based on different meal types (like Slow-Cooker Sunday, Meatless Monday or Stir-Fry Friday) or based on pantry staples like brown rice and whole-grain pasta (think Rice Bowl Thursday or Pasta Wednesday) is a good way to stick to your budget and also reduce meal-planning decision fatigue. Adding in a leftover night (or two!) is also a good idea. 5. Stretch the leftovers. Pack up tonight’s leftovers for tomorrow’s lunch, or transform whatever is left into another meal for the family. Make loaded sweet potatoes with leftover chili, a frittata to use up any remaining cooked spaghetti noodles, or burritos with the last of a roasted chicken. What I’m Making This Week This week, I’m keeping things simple with no-cook breakfast options, versatile meal-prep lunches and kid-friendly dinners that come together in about 30 minutes or less. To minimize food waste and save on groceries, I’ll use many of the same ingredients for multiple meals. Breakfast Whole-wheat toast with nut butter and banana Planning simple, quick breakfasts I can serve in minutes is key to less-chaotic mornings in our house. I’ll meal-prep a big batch of overnight oats to be eaten on demand during the week or packed up to-go. Or, I’ll toast a stack of whole-wheat bread and let everyone choose their toppings. On the Menu Overnight oats with sliced banana or berriesWhole-wheat toast with nut butter and banana, or with avocado and sliced hard-boiled egg Budget Ingredients Rolled oats, whole-wheat bread, bananas, frozen berries Creamy Blueberry-Pecan Overnight Oatmeal Everything Bagel Avocado Toast Peanut Butter-Banana Cinnamon Toast Lunch 4565000.jpg We keep lunch extra-easy in my house with snack-style lunches for the kids and salads or rice bowls for the adults. Meal-prepping a few ingredients in advance minimizes cooking during the week and allows everyone to help assemble their own lunch. I like to have a couple of protein options, a batch of cooked grains, and some washed lettuce and cut vegetables on hand. Check out our best base recipes for meal prep for inspiration for what to make. On the Menu Bento-box lunches for the kidsEgg salad (to stuff in tortillas, lettuce wraps or sandwiches)Rice bowls with black beans and vegetables (I’ll use leftover veggies from dinner the night before if I have them or will sauté whatever veggies I have in the fridge.) Budget Ingredients Eggs, canned black beans, brown rice, leftover vegetables from dinner Egg Salad Lettuce Wraps Bean & Veggie Taco Bowl Dinner 5571688.jpg I rely heavily on a well-planned dinner menu because this is where I spend the bulk of my grocery budget (plus it ensures I’m not scrambling to find something to serve come 6 p.m.). I’ll plan on three easy recipes plus a night of repurposing the leftovers. Because our evening schedule can be unpredictable, I’ll pick up ingredients for a pantry meal that won’t go to waste if I end up not cooking one night (the canned salmon recipe this week). Make your own menu or try one of our budget dinner plans. On the Menu Monday: Lentil Sloppy Joes served open-face on toast + cabbage slawTuesday: Slow-Cooker Hearty Beef ChiliWednesday: Microwaved sweet potatoes stuffed with leftover lentil sloppy Joe mixture or chiliThursday: Eggs in Tomato Sauce with Chickpeas & Spinach + whole-wheat toastFriday: Black Bean & Salmon Tostadas Budget Ingredients Lentils, cabbage, beef stew meat, sweet potatoes, eggs, canned salmon, black beans Easy Vegetarian Chili Baked Eggs in Tomato Sauce with Kale Black Bean-Smothered Sweet Potatoes Cheese Quesadillas with Peppers & Onions Easy Chicken Fried Rice American Goulash Snacks & Treats See how to cut calories to lose weight I like to plan snacks and treats based on one or two staples or on ingredients that are already part of the meal plan. Smoothies are the perfect way to use up yogurt, bananas and frozen berries, and my kids love them as after-school snacks. Lately we’ve been crazy about salted roasted chickpeas, the best one-ingredient snack you’ll ever make. And none of us can turn down a square of dark chocolate with a schmear of peanut butter after dinner. On the Menu Fruit and yogurt smoothiesRoasted chickpeasDark chocolate squares Budget Ingredients Apples (or any leftover fruit), peanut butter, canned chickpeas Apple Peanut-Butter Smoothie Crunchy Roasted Chickpeas 2-Ingredient Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream Chocolate & Nut Butter Bites Grocery List for the Week From the Pantry From the Pantry A number of our meals this week incorporate a few pantry staples that I often have on hand. Here’s what I’ll rely on this week. Note: I did not include these items in my budget, but included approximate cost per serving for reference. Dijon mustard $0.05Mayonnaise $0.08Worcestershire sauce $0.04Ketchup $0.08Salsa $0.11Pickled jalapeños $0.42Brown rice $0.14Olive oil $0.27Vinegar $0.05Maple syrup $0.12Brown sugar $0.01Dried herbs, spices, salt, pepper $0.05 From the Store From the Store For $100 ($101.44 to be exact), I was able to pick up all of the ingredients I’ll need to feed my family of four for five days, including breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks and treats. Produce: Bananas (8) $0.73Apples, organic (2 lbs., or about 5) $4.98Avocados (3) $3.75Green bell peppers, organic (3) $2.99Red onion (1 medium) $0.53Onion (1 medium) $0.43Garlic (1 bulb) $0.42Scallions (1 bunch) $0.99Celery, organic (1 bunch) $3.50Carrots (1-lb. bag) $0.98Sweet potatoes (4 medium) $1.61Romaine lettuce (3 medium heads) $2.09Baby spinach, organic (5-oz. box) $3.00Cilantro (1 bunch) $0.98Green cabbage (1 medium head) $1.59 General Grocery: Oatmeal (18-oz. container) $2.99Whole-wheat bread (1 loaf) $4.29Whole-grain tortillas (1 package) $2.99Natural peanut butter (16-oz. jar) $3.29Lentils, brown (1-lb. bag) $0.99Canned black beans (4 14.5-oz. cans) $3.92Canned chickpeas (2 14.5-oz. cans) $1.96Canned green chiles (4-oz. can) $0.89Canned diced tomatoes (28-oz. can) $1.99Canned crushed tomatoes (14-oz. can) $1.19Canned tomatoes and chiles (10-oz. can) $1.29Tomato paste (6-oz. can) $0.89Tomato juice (32-oz. can) $2.09Canned wild salmon (6-oz. can) $4.49Bittersweet chocolate bar (2.5-oz. bar) $2.49 Dairy & Eggs: Greek yogurt (32-oz. container) $5.49Sharp Cheddar cheese (8-oz. package) $2.79Almond milk (½ gallon) $3.29Eggs, organic (2 dozen) $8.18Heavy cream (½ pint) $1.89 Meat: Beef stew meat (1½ lbs.) $10.49 Frozen: Blueberries (15-oz. container) $4.99 The Bottom Line With a bit of planning and creativity, you can feed your family a week’s worth of nutritious meals for a little more than what you’d spend at a restaurant. Use this healthy meal plan on a budget as inspiration to make the most of your grocery budget without sacrificing taste or variety! See all of our other healthy meal plans and healthy dinner plans. WATCH: How to Meal-Prep a Week of Healthy Lunches for Less Than $20 The Ingredients to Have on Hand for 30-Minute Dinners Our Best Budget Dinners to Save You $130 This Week Tips for How to Live & Eat Healthy on a Budget Healthy Budget Recipes
` View Series Why Kids Don’t Eat Enough Seafood and How They Can Enjoy It 5 Easy Snack Ideas You Can Pack in a Mason Jar The Number of Teens Diagnosed with Prediabetes Has Doubled in the Past 2 Decades—Here’s What Every Parent Needs to Know Kids Who Don’t Eat Meat Are Just as Healthy as Kids Who Do, New Research Says
A Cheap, Healthy Meal Plan to Feed My Family
A Cheap, Healthy Meal Plan to Feed My Family
A Cheap, Healthy Meal Plan to Feed My Family
We took our family of four out to dinner and ice cream on a recent Friday night. Two adult entrees, two kids’ entrees, gratuity and a round of ice cream cones later, we had effortlessly racked up an $80 dinner bill. While we enjoy treating ourselves to dinner out, it makes me appreciate how I can stretch our food budget to feed my family healthy meals all week long, often for about what we spend for just one meal at a restaurant. Relying on trusty low-cost meal planning tricks makes for healthy family meal plans on a budget week after week.
Don’t Miss: I Cooked My Family Vegetarian Dinners for 30 Days and Here’s What Happened
Here are my best tips for creating a cheap, healthy meal plan for the week (to feed two adults and two kids) based on a budget of $100, plus inexpensive recipe ideas to try for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. And don’t miss the shopping list below!
Low-Cost Healthy Meal Planning Tips
Follow these tips for creating a healthy meal plan on a budget each week.
1. Scan the weekly grocery deals
Proteins, like chicken or beef, tend to be the most costly items on the grocery list, so build a meal plan around items that are on sale. Consider seasonal produce, which tends to be cheaper, like asparagus in the spring and fresh berries in the summer.
2. Build a budget-friendly fridge and pantry
Keep a stock of cheap staples like eggs and canned tuna that can be used in multiple meals throughout the week. Hard-boiled eggs add protein to your morning avocado toast or your kid’s lunchbox. Canned tuna becomes an easy meal-prep filling for lunch wraps and doubles as melts for a quick dinner. When shopping, keep an eye out for deals and stock up when stuff goes on sale.
3. Write in a few meatless meals
Pound for pound, plant-based proteins like lentils and canned beans are a steal compared to animal proteins (and some actually contain more protein than meat). Plus, research suggests that eating more plants is good for our health. Add in a few meatless options throughout the week for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.
4. Plan on theme nights for dinner
Assigning theme-night meals based on different meal types (like Slow-Cooker Sunday, Meatless Monday or Stir-Fry Friday) or based on pantry staples like brown rice and whole-grain pasta (think Rice Bowl Thursday or Pasta Wednesday) is a good way to stick to your budget and also reduce meal-planning decision fatigue. Adding in a leftover night (or two!) is also a good idea.
5. Stretch the leftovers.
Pack up tonight’s leftovers for tomorrow’s lunch, or transform whatever is left into another meal for the family. Make loaded sweet potatoes with leftover chili, a frittata to use up any remaining cooked spaghetti noodles, or burritos with the last of a roasted chicken.
What I’m Making This Week
This week, I’m keeping things simple with no-cook breakfast options, versatile meal-prep lunches and kid-friendly dinners that come together in about 30 minutes or less. To minimize food waste and save on groceries, I’ll use many of the same ingredients for multiple meals.
Breakfast
Whole-wheat toast with nut butter and banana
Planning simple, quick breakfasts I can serve in minutes is key to less-chaotic mornings in our house. I’ll meal-prep a big batch of overnight oats to be eaten on demand during the week or packed up to-go. Or, I’ll toast a stack of whole-wheat bread and let everyone choose their toppings.
On the Menu
Overnight oats with sliced banana or berriesWhole-wheat toast with nut butter and banana, or with avocado and sliced hard-boiled egg
Budget Ingredients
Rolled oats, whole-wheat bread, bananas, frozen berries
Creamy Blueberry-Pecan Overnight Oatmeal
Everything Bagel Avocado Toast
Peanut Butter-Banana Cinnamon Toast
Lunch
4565000.jpg
We keep lunch extra-easy in my house with snack-style lunches for the kids and salads or rice bowls for the adults. Meal-prepping a few ingredients in advance minimizes cooking during the week and allows everyone to help assemble their own lunch. I like to have a couple of protein options, a batch of cooked grains, and some washed lettuce and cut vegetables on hand. Check out our best base recipes for meal prep for inspiration for what to make.
Bento-box lunches for the kidsEgg salad (to stuff in tortillas, lettuce wraps or sandwiches)Rice bowls with black beans and vegetables (I’ll use leftover veggies from dinner the night before if I have them or will sauté whatever veggies I have in the fridge.)
Eggs, canned black beans, brown rice, leftover vegetables from dinner
Egg Salad Lettuce Wraps
Bean & Veggie Taco Bowl
Dinner
5571688.jpg
I rely heavily on a well-planned dinner menu because this is where I spend the bulk of my grocery budget (plus it ensures I’m not scrambling to find something to serve come 6 p.m.). I’ll plan on three easy recipes plus a night of repurposing the leftovers. Because our evening schedule can be unpredictable, I’ll pick up ingredients for a pantry meal that won’t go to waste if I end up not cooking one night (the canned salmon recipe this week). Make your own menu or try one of our budget dinner plans.
Monday: Lentil Sloppy Joes served open-face on toast + cabbage slawTuesday: Slow-Cooker Hearty Beef ChiliWednesday: Microwaved sweet potatoes stuffed with leftover lentil sloppy Joe mixture or chiliThursday: Eggs in Tomato Sauce with Chickpeas & Spinach + whole-wheat toastFriday: Black Bean & Salmon Tostadas
Lentils, cabbage, beef stew meat, sweet potatoes, eggs, canned salmon, black beans
Easy Vegetarian Chili
Baked Eggs in Tomato Sauce with Kale
Black Bean-Smothered Sweet Potatoes
Cheese Quesadillas with Peppers & Onions
Easy Chicken Fried Rice
American Goulash
Snacks & Treats
See how to cut calories to lose weight
I like to plan snacks and treats based on one or two staples or on ingredients that are already part of the meal plan. Smoothies are the perfect way to use up yogurt, bananas and frozen berries, and my kids love them as after-school snacks. Lately we’ve been crazy about salted roasted chickpeas, the best one-ingredient snack you’ll ever make. And none of us can turn down a square of dark chocolate with a schmear of peanut butter after dinner.
Fruit and yogurt smoothiesRoasted chickpeasDark chocolate squares
Apples (or any leftover fruit), peanut butter, canned chickpeas
Apple Peanut-Butter Smoothie
Crunchy Roasted Chickpeas
2-Ingredient Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream
Chocolate & Nut Butter Bites
Grocery List for the Week
From the Pantry
From the Pantry
A number of our meals this week incorporate a few pantry staples that I often have on hand. Here’s what I’ll rely on this week. Note: I did not include these items in my budget, but included approximate cost per serving for reference.
Dijon mustard $0.05Mayonnaise $0.08Worcestershire sauce $0.04Ketchup $0.08Salsa $0.11Pickled jalapeños $0.42Brown rice $0.14Olive oil $0.27Vinegar $0.05Maple syrup $0.12Brown sugar $0.01Dried herbs, spices, salt, pepper $0.05
From the Store
From the Store
For $100 ($101.44 to be exact), I was able to pick up all of the ingredients I’ll need to feed my family of four for five days, including breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks and treats.
Produce:
Bananas (8) $0.73Apples, organic (2 lbs., or about 5) $4.98Avocados (3) $3.75Green bell peppers, organic (3) $2.99Red onion (1 medium) $0.53Onion (1 medium) $0.43Garlic (1 bulb) $0.42Scallions (1 bunch) $0.99Celery, organic (1 bunch) $3.50Carrots (1-lb. bag) $0.98Sweet potatoes (4 medium) $1.61Romaine lettuce (3 medium heads) $2.09Baby spinach, organic (5-oz. box) $3.00Cilantro (1 bunch) $0.98Green cabbage (1 medium head) $1.59
General Grocery:
Oatmeal (18-oz. container) $2.99Whole-wheat bread (1 loaf) $4.29Whole-grain tortillas (1 package) $2.99Natural peanut butter (16-oz. jar) $3.29Lentils, brown (1-lb. bag) $0.99Canned black beans (4 14.5-oz. cans) $3.92Canned chickpeas (2 14.5-oz. cans) $1.96Canned green chiles (4-oz. can) $0.89Canned diced tomatoes (28-oz. can) $1.99Canned crushed tomatoes (14-oz. can) $1.19Canned tomatoes and chiles (10-oz. can) $1.29Tomato paste (6-oz. can) $0.89Tomato juice (32-oz. can) $2.09Canned wild salmon (6-oz. can) $4.49Bittersweet chocolate bar (2.5-oz. bar) $2.49
Dairy & Eggs:
Greek yogurt (32-oz. container) $5.49Sharp Cheddar cheese (8-oz. package) $2.79Almond milk (½ gallon) $3.29Eggs, organic (2 dozen) $8.18Heavy cream (½ pint) $1.89
Meat:
Beef stew meat (1½ lbs.) $10.49
Frozen:
Blueberries (15-oz. container) $4.99
The Bottom Line
With a bit of planning and creativity, you can feed your family a week’s worth of nutritious meals for a little more than what you’d spend at a restaurant. Use this healthy meal plan on a budget as inspiration to make the most of your grocery budget without sacrificing taste or variety! See all of our other healthy meal plans and healthy dinner plans.
WATCH: How to Meal-Prep a Week of Healthy Lunches for Less Than $20
The Ingredients to Have on Hand for 30-Minute Dinners
Our Best Budget Dinners to Save You $130 This Week
Tips for How to Live & Eat Healthy on a Budget
Healthy Budget Recipes
Whole-wheat toast with nut butter and banana
Whole-wheat toast with nut butter and banana
4565000.jpg
4565000.jpg
5571688.jpg
5571688.jpg
See how to cut calories to lose weight
See how to cut calories to lose weight
From the Pantry
From the Pantry
From the Store
From the Store
` View Series Why Kids Don’t Eat Enough Seafood and How They Can Enjoy It 5 Easy Snack Ideas You Can Pack in a Mason Jar The Number of Teens Diagnosed with Prediabetes Has Doubled in the Past 2 Decades—Here’s What Every Parent Needs to Know Kids Who Don’t Eat Meat Are Just as Healthy as Kids Who Do, New Research Says
` View Series
Why Kids Don’t Eat Enough Seafood and How They Can Enjoy It 5 Easy Snack Ideas You Can Pack in a Mason Jar The Number of Teens Diagnosed with Prediabetes Has Doubled in the Past 2 Decades—Here’s What Every Parent Needs to Know Kids Who Don’t Eat Meat Are Just as Healthy as Kids Who Do, New Research Says
View Series
View Series
