I shopped for dinners at Aldi on a $60 budget. I was shocked at how many meals I got for my family of 4.

Terri Peters
·7 min read
10
A shopping cart at Aldi full of broccoli, green beans, a yellow taco dinner kit, ground chicken with a blue design, canned items, a pack of sausages, and a blue and orange bag of shredded cheese
I filled my cart with dinner ingredients on a $60 budget.Terri Peters

  • I shopped for dinners for my family of four at Aldi on a $60 budget.

  • I bought six nights' worth of quick, easy dinners and only went $4 over budget.

  • I used the ingredients to make several meals, including tacos, butter chicken, and spaghetti.

As someone who's shopped at Aldi for years, the store has always been my go-to when I need to stick to a strict grocery budget. The chain offers numerous discounts that I happily take advantage of each time I visit.

In fact, Aldi recently announced plans to lower prices on hundreds of items this summer. The growing store is able to keep prices low by offering store-brand products that are ordered in bulk and displayed in the same materials they're shipped in.

To see how far a $60 budget would stretch at Aldi, I recently shopped for a week's worth of dinners for myself, my husband, and our two kids.

Turns out, $60 can go a long way.

The writer holds a clear plastic bag of green beans in front of a shelf of produce at Aldi
The produce section at Aldi gives me inspiration on what meals I should make that week.Terri Peters

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Next, I sorted through the selection of heat-and-serve foods.

Several cardboard boxes with red, green, and blue designs containing frozen pizzas on shelves at Aldi
There were plenty of Mama Cozzi's Take-and-Bake pizzas to choose from.Terri Peters

The refrigerated section was full of heat-and-serve foods, including various breadsticks, Park Street Deli pulled pork, and Mama Cozzi's Take-and-Bake pizzas.

In the past, many of these heat-and-serve options have saved me from spending money on takeout when I didn't feel like cooking.

I checked out the condiments and sauces to see if anything looked good.

Several jars of sauces with yellow, red, and blue labels in red cardboard boxes at Aldi
Several Burman's simmer sauces were in stock.Terri Peters

The condiment section is another one of my first stops when I walk into Aldi. This area typically has Crock-Pot meal kits and other just-add-protein-style sauces that have come in handy in the past.

On this trip, I noticed Burman's simmer sauces in korma, butter-chicken, and tikka-masala flavors.

The meat section provided more dinner inspiration.

A package of pork loin with an orange marinade and label on a shelf at Aldi
I spotted center-cut pork-loin filets in the meat section.Terri Peters

After looking through the sauces, I headed to the meat section to see what looked fresh, affordable, and delicious that day. The meat section at my local Aldi always seems well-stocked with dinnertime protein essentials like chicken breast, fish, steak, and pork.

I grabbed a premade dinner kit, too.

Bright-yellow boxes with teal lettering spelling ou
Aldi had several meal kits, including a Casa Mamita soft taco-dinner variety.Terri Peters

Aldi also sells various meal kits for quick taco nights or pasta dinners. On this trip, I snagged the Casa Mamita soft taco-dinner kit.

In the end, I went about $4 over budget.

Screen at Aldi self-checkout station. The screen shows an illustration of a woman at a self-checkout counter and a list of several scanned items and a total bill of $64.26
The total bill was $64.26.Terri Peters

To fully test the boundaries of my $60 grocery budget, I grabbed the essential ingredients for as many meals as possible before I thought I reached my spending limit.

In the end, I went about $4 over budget. However, the $64.26 total, which bought six nights' worth of dinners, was significantly cheaper than it would have been if I ordered name-brand groceries through Instacart or went shopping at my local Publix.

Finding everything I needed to whip up nightly dinners for my family was easy. Better yet, shopping only took about 20 minutes because I visited Aldi on a weekday morning when the store wasn't busy.

For my first weeknight dinner, I made a $10.20 pizza-and-salad combo.

A cardboard box with red detailing containing a meat pizza next to a black and purple bag of chopped salad on a stone countertop
Pizza and salad made an easy dinner for a busy night.Terri Peters

My teens are usually pretty busy with their own schedules, and my husband and I both work, so we love super-easy weeknight meals. For our first dinner, I prepared Mama Cozzi's Take-and-Bake ultimate-meat medium pizza ($7.20) and a Fresh Express pesto-Caesar chopped-salad kit ($3).

The pepperoni-and-sausage pizza was really tasty. My family enjoyed the low-key meal, which probably would've cost twice as much if we'd ordered out.

We had a cheap taco night for $11.30.

A container of ground chicken with blue labels, a can of black beans, a red pouch of Spanish rice mix, a blue and orange bag of shredded cheese, and a yellow and blue box with
The taco-dinner kit, ground chicken, shredded cheese, Spanish rice, and black beans made a satisfying meal.Terri Peters

My family observes Taco Tuesday as often as possible, especially because it involves a simple, protein-packed meal we can throw together on busy nights.

On this day, we had the Casa Mamita soft-taco dinner kit ($3.10), Dakota's Pride canned black beans ($0.80), Earthly Grains Spanish rice and sauce ($1.10), Happy Farms shredded Mexican-style cheese ($2.90), and Perdue ground chicken ($3.40). The meal was a highlight for my taco-loving teenagers.

I used two of my favorite Aldi products for another quick weeknight meal that cost $10.90.

A black package containing meatballs, a bag with images of garlic knots, a jar of marinara sauce, and a green and tan box of pasta on a stone countertop
I went for an Italian vibe with meatballs, spaghetti, marinara sauce, and garlic knots.Terri Peters

I knew I liked the L'Oven Fresh garlic knots and Aldi's premade mild Italian-style meatballs from previous shopping trips. Both items are delicious and easy to incorporate into a weeknight meal.

I paired the knots ($2.90) and meatballs ($4) with Simply Nature organic marinara sauce ($2) and the brand's organic, whole-wheat spaghetti ($2) for another simple weeknight dinner.

Indian-inspired food is a family favorite, so I made one of our comfort meals for $10.60.

A yellow package of Kirkwood chicken breasts, a blue and tan pouch of Basmati rice, and a jar of butter-chicken curry sauce with a black lid on a stone countertop
The dinner made with chicken breast, butter-chicken sauce, and basmati rice was just as delicious as takeout.Terri Peters

My family loves Indian-inspired food, so I made a simple version of creamy, tangy butter chicken. For this meal, I used Burman's butter-chicken simmer sauce ($3.60), a pack of Kirkwood chicken breasts ($5.60), and Earthly Grains 90-second microwavable basmati rice ($1.40).

At just over $10, this nearly effortless meal was much cheaper than going out for dinner.

I air-fried veggies and sliced sausage for an easy, tasty meal that cost $11.30.

A pack of sausages with blu packaging, a bag of potatoes, broccoli, and a red and blue can of crescent rolls on a stone countertop
I kept things simple with sausage, crescent rolls, potatoes, and broccoli.Terri Peters

One of my favorite air-fryer meals is a mix of sliced sausage, green vegetables, and potatoes. It's relatively healthy, hearty, and pairs well with buttery crescent rolls, which my kids like to snack on.

I used a package of Never Any! spinach-feta chicken sausage ($3.40), broccoli ($2.60), potatoes ($3.30), and Bake House Creations crescent rolls ($2).

My last dinner, which used grilled pork loin, was only $10.40.

A package of pork loin with an orange marinade, a clear plastic bag of green beans, a gray box of rice, and a yellow can of biscuits on a stone countertop
I used wild rice, biscuits, a pork loin, and green beans to make a yummy weekend meal.Terri Peters

My husband loves to grill on the weekends, so I snagged a mesquite-barbecue center-cut pork-loin filet ($4.70) and green beans ($1.80) for him to prepare.

We paired the meat and green beans with a box of Earthly Grains wild rice ($2) and Bake House Creations jumbo flaky biscuits ($1.90) for a delicious Sunday dinner.

My $64 grocery haul kept my family happy for the whole week.

Selfie of the writer, wearing a beige tank top, in front of a tomato display at Aldi
I was impressed with all the ingredients I bought at Aldi.Terri Peters

Shopping at Aldi on a $60 budget reminded me of the benefits of visiting a store instead of using a grocery-delivery service like Walmart+ or Instacart, which I've been a fan of recently.

Roaming Aldi's aisles allowed me to see the available products and get inspired to create tasty, seasonal meals for my family.

I'll never be ready to give up the convenience of having groceries delivered to my house, but my $60 Aldi run proved that I don't always have to spend a lot on groceries to feed my family of four.

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