Cheap Meal Ideas

People living alone often face the problem of preparing meals as they don't have much time to spend on entire meals and nor does extensive lunch or dinner plans fit in a bachelor's budget! Not only these loners, but sometimes even families face the problem of meals on a budget, especially during the festive season when the house is loaded with guests. That is when you need some cheap meal ideas for families. Following are some meal ideas for large groups, which are cheap yet tasty.

Herb Roasted Chicken
Ingredients

• ½ tsp dried oregano
• 1 tbs olive oil or butter, softened
• ½ tsp dried basil
• ½ cup water
• ½ tsp dried rosemary
• 1 clove garlic, crushed with press
• 1 whole (3½ pound) chicken
• 1¼ tsp coarsely ground black pepper
• ¾ tsp salt

Ingredients

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Discard the bag with giblets and neck from the cavity from chicken. Take a small bowl and mix herbs, garlic and olive oil in it and set aside. If there is skin on the chicken breast, remove it with fingertips. Rub the herb mixture on the chicken and tie the legs with a string. Now make a mixture of ¾ tsp salt and ¼ tsp coarsely ground black pepper, rub this mixture on the entire chicken. Place the chicken, breast side up, in a small roasting pan with a rack. Pour ¼ cup water in the pan and then roast chicken for about 1 hour, until the thermometer inserted in the meat reaches 175 degrees F. When chicken is thoroughly cooked, tilt it until the juices which are inside the cavity run down into the pan. When done, place it on platter and let set for about 10 minutes. This can be one of the cheap meal ideas for two also, you just need to reduce the ingredients by half.

Homemade Beans
Ingredients

• 1 sprig parsley
• 1 small onion, cut in half
• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• 1 bag(s) (16-ounce) dried red kidney beans
• 1 bay leaf
• Water

Process

In a strainer rinse beans with cold water. Check for shriveled beans or stones and set aside. Take a 5 quart saucepot, pour about 2 inches water in it, place beans in it and cover the pot. Let the beans soak overnight. The next day, drain the beans and put them again in the saucepot. Add parsley, bay leaf, onion and garlic; pour 6 cups water and boil on high heat. When the water boils, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for about 45-60 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender. When done, drain beans and throw away the bay leaf and parsley.

Rice Pilaf
Ingredients

• 2 tbs lemon juice
• 2 cup water
• 1 tsp butter
• 1 (10¾ oz.) can condensed chicken broth, undiluted
• 1½ cup uncooked long-grain rice
• 1 (1¼ oz.) env. onion soup mix
• 1 tsp dried whole basil
• 1/8 tsp pepper
• ⅓ cup dry white wine

Process

Take a 12×8×2 baking dish and combine all the above ingredients into them, stir well. When done, cover with a heat-proof dish and bake for about 1 hour 15 minutes at 350 degrees, until the rice is tender and all the juices are absorbed. This is one of the easy and cheap meal ideas for college students.

With these ideas at hand, you do not need to worry about budget at all! So try all the above recipes at the next party at your place. Bon appetit!