I Cook Around 200 Recipes Each Year For My Household Of Two; Here's How I Stretch 8 Core Ingredients In Several Different Ways
As someone who writes about food for a living, there are three places you can find me over the course of my workday: writing in front of my computer, whipping up something delicious in my kitchen, or wandering through the grocery store as I cry a single, dejected tear over just how expensive everything is.
FOX / Via itdoesnttastelikechicken.com
Inflation may be cooling off ever so slightly, but if you're still wondering why that loaf of sandwich bread costs five dollars (or more) during your grocery runs, you're not alone. Vox recently reported that profit margins at large food corporations have hit their highest levels in 70 years, so no, you're not dreaming that the prices of your standard groceries are higher than ever; this is the reality of life in 2023.
Though the thought of returning to my lackadaisical 2019 grocery shopping habits gives me full-body chills (remember when you could spontaneously add "fun" items to your cart and still come in under budget?), I'll admit that my Inflation Era has one silver lining — it's made me one hell of a budget shopper.
I've made tiny changes to my weekly meal plans incrementally to keep grocery costs down, like reducing my meat consumption and bulking up meals with cheap ingredients. But the most effective strategy shift I've implemented is to make sure my fridge and pantry are always stocked with several cost-effective staples.
When I keep these items within arm's reach, I know that I can always turn them into a delicious meal when combined with whatever odds and ends I have around my kitchen. These are the budget-friendly ingredients you'll always find in my grocery cart, along with the tasty, filling meals that warrant them being regular purchases in the first place.
1.Frozen Spinach — By weight, frozen spinach is occasionally a quarter of the price of the fresh stuff, and though it can't always replace fresh spinach, I find it to be one of the most worthwhile frozen veggies out there.
You won't have much success swapping salad greens with frozen spinach, but my rule of thumb is this: If a recipe calls for fresh spinach to eventually be cooked down or wilted, you'll save an ungodly amount of money by opting for a bag of the frozen stuff. Unlike fresh spinach, it also keeps for months in the freezer instead of mere days, which means you'll avoid that awful moment when your fresh spinach turns to smelly, soggy mush two days after buying it. Your spinach might not taste like it was freshly plucked from the farm, but I'll take the marginal difference in flavor if it keeps my wallet happy.
Let's say you're cooking up a pasta recipe that calls for five ounces of baby spinach to be wilt. A five-ounce clamshell package of fresh spinach might set you back $4, but a one-pound bag of frozen spinach usually costs around $3 — and you're getting three times as much food.
WHAT TO COOK: I'll never get tired of this creamy curried spinach and tofu, and it's the only "rent-week meal" that I'd happily devour on payday, too.
A singular can of full-fat coconut milk makes this dish incredibly rich and filling, and cooking the frozen spinach down until it's velvety soft lends a luxuriously silky mouthfeel that I'll never get enough of. If tofu isn't your thing, no sweat; I've used cubed rotisserie chicken before and achieved equally tasty results, and the same goes for cooked lentils or chickpeas.
Other favorites: A budget-friendly spinach and artichoke pasta that gives "adult mac 'n' cheese" vibes in the best way possible, or these spinach and feta turkey meatballs that are a meal prep dream come true.
2.Orzo — IDK what it is about orzo, but unlike other pasta shapes, a one-pound box of this stuff lasts for multiple meals in my house.
Hot take: I think orzo is the most adaptable pasta shape out there, and I will die on this hill. It's the only type of pasta I know of that works as well in soups and stews as it does in traditional pasta dishes (or pasta salads!), and because most orzo recipes only call for about a cup or so, one box will likely last you for two or more recipes.
At this point, I also have a killer orzo recipe for every single season. Summer is all about supplementing with fresh veggies, herbs, and vibrant dressings to create WFH-approved salads, while the winter months are better suited for stews and creamy pasta dishes. Maybe I should just go ahead and join the orzo lobby, but I don't think there's an occasion, holiday, or time of year that I couldn't find an orzo recipe to perfectly match.
WHAT TO COOK: For a quick, delicious lunch with minimal effort, whip up a batch of this grilled chicken orzo salad in advance, since it keeps beautifully in the fridge for a grab-and-go meal (and the leftovers get better with time).
This zingy pasta salad calls for avocados, which aren't usually the most budget-friendly ingredient, but I've used a variety of other ingredients to bulk things up when I can't find a decent avo deal — chopped cherry tomatoes add a pop of brightness if you want something light and refreshing, or you can use sautéed zucchini for a similarly soft and creamy texture that the avocados would otherwise lend. The endless options for customization are the reason why I keep this recipe in my regular rotation.
Other favorites: A light and bright (and summer-friendly) orzo salad with lentils and zucchini, or this shockingly simple skillet chicken with buttery orzo.
3.Cabbage — I couldn't stand cabbage for many years, but now, I'd be lost without a big ol' head of it hanging out in my crisper drawer. It lasts a while, works well in a variety of dishes, and offers you so much bang for your buck.
At my local grocery store, I'll usually pay around $1 per pound for conventional green cabbage, and I can find it even cheaper if I venture out to other stores. The cabbage above probably clocked in at about two or three pounds, so for less than $3 total, one of these bad boys will last weeks in my fridge and add to many meals over the course of its lifetime.
As a cabbage fanatic, my best tip is to remove only as much as you need and to leave the rest of the cabbage whole in your crisper drawer. Honest to god, it could last you many weeks. If any of the cut sections start to brown, just trim it off with a knife and the rest will be as fresh as the day you bought it.
WHAT TO COOK: For the nights when cleaning up sounds even worse than prepping a meal, I turn to this coconut cabbage with lemongrass and ginger since it's a *true* one-pot meal.
A 45-minute trip to the oven does something magical to the wedges of cabbage and chunks of carrots that comprise this dish: they turn sweet and nutty, and they soften to a consistency that's creamy yet substantial. The fresh lemongrass takes the whole thing over the top, but I've used a spoonful of green curry paste when I can't get my hands on the former, and it's just as mouthwatering.
Other favorites: This cheesy cabbage gratin that will become a centerpiece at your next holiday table (and every holiday after that), or this sesame pasta salad with cabbage and quinoa that really strikes the perfect balance between "pasta" and "salad."
4.Eggs — Hear me out, friends. I know they're still more expensive these days as a result of the recent avian flu outbreak, but eggs are still more cost-effective than many other animal proteins.
As much as I miss the days of being able to grab a dozen high-quality, orange-yolked eggs for $3 dollars — now, I'm used to paying $5 or so for even the most standard options — you'll never find my fridge without a stash of my favorite quick-cooking protein. Eggs will always be the first item I reach for when I need a fast meal made with whatever ingredients I can find around my kitchen; egg tacos doused in hot sauce, five-minute fried rice, and even "cheater's" deviled eggs save my wallet (and stomach) on a near-daily basis.
Knowing that I have a laundry of list of tasty egg recipes in my arsenal, I also keep eggs in the fridge so I'm less tempted to order takeout or dine out when I can't figure out what to make. And I've gotta say: it's a method that really works.
WHAT TO COOK: When lunchtime hunger strikes on Monday, I make a big batch of Japanese-style egg salad to turn into egg salad sandwiches all week long.
As someone who doesn't even particularly enjoy most egg salads, this is the one recipe I swear by. While traditional egg salad can be mayo-heavy and chalky, Japanese-style egg salad (and the sandwiches that result from the recipe) are light, silky, and full of flavor. The best part is that the leftovers keep exceptionally well...so well, in fact, that I swear this dish tastes best on day two or three.
Other favorites: A comforting bowl of pastina when you want a comforting and cheap meal on the fly, or a piping hot skillet of eggs in purgatory (made with your favorite jarred marinara) to be served alongside a loaf of warm, crusty bread.
5.Canned black beans — While turning dried beans into velvety, creamy goodness is almost always tastier than relying on the canned stuff, canned black beans are still a pantry staple in my house.
Sure, canned beans aren't exactly the most delicious food you could grab at the grocery store, but their wallet-friendly pricepoint and inherent versatility make them worthy of claiming a shelf (or two) in your pantry. Crack open the can, rinse and drain them, and you've got an ingredient that plays well with others in every single capacity, whether you're using them as a topping or turning them into the main event. On the other hand, dried beans require planning, prep, and some babysitting, while canned beans only require a can opener — and maybe a dollar or so per can.
WHAT TO MAKE: For all those moments when I want comfort food that won't make me feel like I just housed an entire container of mac 'n' cheese (to be clear, there's nothing wrong with that), I turn to these crispy black bean tacos that are as crunchy as they are sneakily nourishing.
Though these tacos taste like they're deep-fried, I can assure you they're not; instead of frying the tacos, the store-bought corn tortillas are lightly coated in oil and then baked at a high temperature, which gives them an irresistible shattering texture. They're exquisite on their own, but even better with a fresh batch of guacamole or your favorite jarred salsa (and sour cream) for dipping; or, for the best sauce ever, mix sour cream and a spoonful of mayo with a generous drizzle of adobo sauce from a can of chipotles in adobo.
Other favorites: An actually-tasty batch of black bean burgers that'll make you wonder why you don't eat black bean burgers more often, or these sweet potato and black bean enchiladas that are surprisingly meaty for a dish that's completely vegetarian.
6.Chicken thighs — Though chicken is my protein of choice, I literally cannot keep up with the price of chicken breast these days. Enter chicken thighs, which pack in more flavor, are easily half the cost of breasts, and are much, much harder to overcook.
Bone-in chicken can be scary, but I'm here to tell you that it doesn't have to be. One of the best cost-saving strategies I've implemented in my kitchen is to ensure that I always have a large pack of chicken thighs in my freezer. I use chicken thighs as the base for homemade soups (or even homemade stocks) and roast them to use the meat in salads, and hardly a summer weekend goes by when I don't whip up a massive batch of BBQ chicken thighs on the grill.
IMO, the only way to cook bone-in chicken thighs is to slightly overcook them, as counter-intuitive as that sounds. Though they're technically safe to consume at 165ºF or higher, I cook them until they reach at least 175ª, if not 185º...or even higher. Chicken thighs' higher fat content means that the meat will stay moist and juicy regardless, but the higher internal temperature ensures that the meat becomes tender and falls right off the bone.
Still, if bone-in chicken scares you, buy boneless skinless chicken thighs. While they're more expensive than bone-in, they're still much cheaper than chicken breast, and more flavorful, too.
WHAT TO MAKE: My go-to dish for entertaining is this schmaltzy chicken with kale rice, since it's deceptively easy to whip together and cheap to make even the largest of batches.
While the recipe itself calls for whole chicken legs, I use bone-in, skin-on thighs for ease and find that the results come out even better. The more uniform shape of the chicken ensures that as much fat as possible is rendered out while it cooks, and since that fat joins the luscious sauce for the kale rice — which you should absolutely be prepared to make a double batch of, BTW — it's a very worthwhile swap.
Other favorites: My favorite herb-forward chicken noodle soup that's also loaded with veggies, or these air fryer chicken thighs that taste restaurant-quality every single time.
7.Tortillas — When kept in the fridge, I feel like tortillas, both flour and corn, last for weeks on end. And, like, 80 tortillas for less than $5 is a deal that I can always get behind.
I have nothing against sandwich bread, but if we're talking longevity and price point, tortillas win every single time. I keep mine in the refrigerator so they stay fresh for as long as possible, usually at least two weeks, and they're a satisfying base for a variety of meals and snacks from air fryer tortilla chips to quesadillas. In my most dire rent-week experiences, I've even been known to slather warm tortillas with butter and salt and munch on them as-is...don't knock it 'til you've tried it.
If you have a gas stovetop, my favorite hack for getting store-bought tortillas to taste decidedly fresh is to briefly run them under cool water, pat any excess dry, then toast directly over the flame. You'll end up with an interior that's warm and tender with a crisp, slightly charred exterior, and it's heavenly. You can do this with electric or induction stovetops, too; just toast the tortillas directly in a hot skillet until warmed through and gently crisped.
WHAT TO MAKE: Using budget-friendly shredded rotisserie chicken as the base, these chicken enchiladas are as delicious as they are cheap, and the quick homemade enchilada sauce that accompanies the recipe is A+.
Think of this recipe as a baseline, then customize it as you see fit. To cut down on costs even further, I've occasionally reduced the amount of chicken I use by half and supplemented it with black beans or cooked rice. Importantly, flour tortillas and corn tortillas yield drastically different results; the former produces a dish that's more filling and suuuper comforting, while corn tortillas make for a meal that's lighter and more meat-forward. The choice is all yours!
Other favorites: TikTokers love these ridiculously easy smash burger "tacos" (and I do, too!), or you can try these chilaquiles for a crowd-pleasing breakfast, brunch, or hangover cure.
8.Tofu — Love it or hate it, it's hard to beat tofu when it comes to the myriad options you have for turning it into a meal.
Though I eat plenty of meat, one of my proudest accomplishments is converting my partner, who previously couldn't stand tofu, into a person who now requests tofu-based dishes when we go through our weekly meal plans. The fact of the matter is that tofu will never replace the texture or flavor of meat, but like meat, it plays nicely with just about every flavor profile. Tofu is the greatest blank canvas out there, which means that the one or two packs you keep in your refrigerator could become just one of the thousands of different tofu recipes out there.
WHAT TO MAKE: Even if you're anti-tofu, I can nearly guarantee that this warm tofu with spicy garlic sauce will delight every last one of your tiny little tastebuds. Here, the true hero is the sauce, which comes together with just a few pantry staples.
The tofu in this recipe "cooks" by gently simmering it in water, and if that immediately worries you since you're used to crispy tofu, stick with me. Though it's a concept that's still hard for me to wrap my head around, this method actually draws out excess moisture, which means that the resulting tofu has a satisfying bite to it and isn't soggy whatsoever. Paired with a simple garlicky sauce that you'll want to pour all over anything and everything you eat, it's a weeknight meal I'd recommend for even the staunchest tofu opponents.
Other favorites: This Caesar salad with crispy tofu croutons (yes, you read that right) is truly a showstopper if you're cooking for family or friends, and BBQ shredded tofu is the even-cheaper sloppy Joe replacement that you never knew you needed...seriously.
