# good cheap meal



## SouthernAngler

any suggestions?


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## BlueWater2

Sidelines ,,at the beach


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## Tuna Man

Loaves and Fishes is able to supply ample high quality, nutritious meals.oke

Are you talking about going out or cooking at home...I take it..going out.


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## SouthernAngler

Cooking meals at home. Im in college and am tired of the tostinos, ramen, and fast food. Whats a good meal to cook?


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## D-Train

Stir fry. I get a big bag of frozen "oriental" vegetables from Sam's, put some olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, you can add cooked rice, chicken, beef, or tuna, crack an egg or two in it, a little soy sauce, find some stir-fry seasoning or add your own spices. It is pretty quick and you can make enough for leftovers which will still taste pretty good. 



Also try making some casseroles. There are normally recipes on the side of Campbell's cream of chicken soup. The cheesy chicken and rice one is pretty good. You can probably google that one.


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## konz

A great cheap meal that will feed you for days......get you some of your fav. cheese, some milk, and make a cheese sauce. Brown some beef and boil some elbow noodles.......throw them all together and you got a filling meal. You can go cheaper by buying some mac n' cheese (creamy cheese not powder) and then adding some browned beef.


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## reelfinatical

Chili - you can make your own or buy it in the can, crock pot it for a few hours and its goooood this time of year on cool days

Chicken Dumplins - you can buy frozen for the crock pot or in a can to microwave

Near the Hamburger Helper boxes in the grocery store, there are some boxed Meal Kits - - some of them are really good & easy to make (like the lemon herbrice and chicken something like that = yum!)


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## SKEETER

Here is what ya do...Cook you some white rice, or get pre cooked rice. Then get you (2) cans of okra and tomatoes, mix both well, and put a side with it. You will have enough to eat for a couple of days. Whip out a couple of slabs of bread, and lather some butter on them to complete this meal.


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## Atwood

Fry and crumble a few slices of bacon, boil pasta, beat some eggs. When the pasta is done drain and put it back in pot,immediatly pour beaten egg and bacon into hot pasta and toss to mix. The hot pasta will cook the eggs. Add parmesian cheese and salt and pepper.


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## Framerguy

I'm with reelfanatical on the chili meals! I just made half of a 16 qt. stock pot full of chili last week and I have had chili every day since!! I still have almost a gallon left over and some went into the freezer for later in the month when the urge hits me again.

Here is what I do and in no particular quantities of ingredients:<UL><LI>I use dried kidney beans and soak them but you can use canned if you want. They are just much more expensive that way. Anyway, get your beans ready, boil them or open the cans.</LI><LI>I add about a quart of water to the quantity that I made this time just to keep everything from drying out during the cooking.</LI><LI>Brown a couple of pounds of hamburger, drain off the water and fat,and add to the beans. I added 5 lbs. to this last potful and it was just right.</LI><LI>Simmer all the ingredients as you add other things to the mixture. I add veggies according to their cooking rate but you can just throw everything together and run with it also. </LI><LI>I chop up 2 green peppers, a large sweet onion or 2 medium onions, a half of a full stalk of celery, maybe 6 to 8 individual stalks, and I add a goodly amount of about 15 different herbs and spices and a honkin' big portion of chili powder to suit my personal taste. I like spicy chili. Oh, and don't forget to mince a couple of buds of fresh garlic and throw into the mixture. Also, I like to put a couple of large cans of diced or crushed tomatoes in the mix. You can add some tomato paste or replace the water with either tomato juice or V-8 juice if you want to spend the extra money. It just enhances the overall taste of the chili.</LI><LI>I like to add a few tablespoons of tabasco and some Louisiana Hot sauce also but I do like my chili to be spicy. I judge good chili by how much it makes me sweat! Around the back of the head and down the neck, maybe 2 stars, when my entire bald head breaks out in a flowing stream and runs down into my eyes, that is 4 star chili on my scale!!!</LI>[/list]

I don't get into the habanero or extremely hot peppers much. I look for hot but not blistering spice in my chili. If I want to blister my mouth, I'll drink a few shots of Drano and go to the ER for treatment.

You can vary this basic mixture with most anything you want to add. sometimes I add a few pounds of frozen sweet corn or I will cube some Yukon Golds and throw into the mix. I have even substituted popcorn shrimp for the hamburger and it turned out to be very taste tempting!

I haven't gotten into the varous types of homemade soups that you can make from scratch yet. Once you play around with the chili mixture and gotten your fill, try some homemade beef barley soup or some vegatable soup or some chicken noodle soup with homemade egg noodles! The soups are nearly endless in the variety and styles that you can throw together right in your kitchen.Temper the size of your pot of soup by either how much storage room you have in your refrigerator or how many of your buddies are coming over to help you eat your creations!

Oh, and if you like to set out crab traps, you can do a good ol' fashioned Southern Crab Boil and just blow everyone's socks off!!!

Good luck and let us know how your soups turned out.


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## booyahfishing

Being a recently graduated college student, I found a rice cooker to be the best bang for your buck cause it also comes with a steamer. There are a lot of ways to flavor up rice plus with the steamer you can do vegetables and meat. THe cooker is only like 15 bucks at wal mart


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## Hangout

Find a chuck roast on sale and put it in a crock pot. Put a package of Lipton onion soup mix on top and add splash of water. Cook on low for 10-12 hours and serve with rice and a salad. Wish I had some right now. :hungry


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## Tuna Man

Any type of pasta (12 minutes to cook) and there are a number ofdecent (other then home made) jar sauces.

Sams has a 2 pack of frozen Italian dishes, such as Eggplant (my favorite), that will make 2-3 meals per package. $10-$12 for a 2 pack...Thats $2.50 a meal.

I brown ground deer meat, or beef, (about a #) add a can of celery soup with a little water to rinse the can. Add this to elbow pasta. Makes enough for 2-3 meals 15 minute dish. Pasta in one pan meat and soup in another.

Progresso makes a good clam chowder. No need to add (except heat) anything (right out of the can) except pepper or whatever.

I can eat French toast anytime.

Often I will make a meal on either Cream of Wheat (whatever 1/2 cup makes. or Oatmeal, I buy the large box for less then $3.00. I cook a cup of uncooked oats at a time. Heart healthy!!

Eggs, hash browns, toast, grits, bacon, ..any combination anytime.


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## Downtime2

Mater gravy n' grits and a egg/bacon sammich. (Cholesterol bomb)


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## Stressless

Do you have a kitchen or only hotplates in a dorm?



I've a dozen or so easy ones - depends on the method of "heat".



Stressless


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## SouthernAngler

I live in an apartment so the only thing I dont have is a grill(not allowed). I do have a George Foreman but I generally only use that for grilled cheese sandwiches. Im just tired of eating the same things and want to try something new. Every once in a while I will put a roast in the oven and have some steamed vegetables or a salad with that but that just takes too much effort.


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## hjorgan

That there George Foreskin grill can cook just about anything.

Chicken breasts, steaks, venison roasts, etc.

Secret is to keep it clean so it doesn't nasty up.


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## WW2

Shepherds Pie.


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## Ocean Man

Get a box of Zatarain's rice and a pound of hamburger or sausage to throwin it. You can cook it on the stove or in the microwave. Takes about 30min and no work, tastes good too.


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## welldoya

Hamburger helper. Eggs and grits. Pancakes. All are pretty cheap and I still eat them for supper sometimes. I ate a LOT of macaroni and cheese and grits in college.


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## jim t

I agree, a couple of the Hamburger Helper meals are tasty... 

Try this too...

http://shop.zatarains.com/zatarains®-red-beans-rice-p-882.html?=

Just add a pound of your favoritesliced sausage (I like Polish Kielbasa).

Be careful when you pick up the box... you'll want the one with pre-cooked beans already in the package. 30 minutes, all you have to do is slice some sausage and stir.

Jim


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## Wharf Rat

Two things come to mind:



--get a crock pot, buy a boston butt, dry rub it, cover it in water in the crock pot, cook on low overnight and you will have pulled pork BBQ sandwiches for at least a week...plus, you can throw all kinds of things in the crock pot like that - chicken with veggies, beef roast, etc

--tater tot casserole

* 1 bag tater tots

* 2 cans cream of mushroom

* some shredded cheddar

* 1.5 lb browned beef

* can of corn drained and 1/2 can green beans drained



Put down the tots in a big casserole dish. Mix together the other ingredients and pour over the tots. Cook per the directions for the tots in the oven. Serve and eat, cover what's left with foil and throw the whole dish in the fridge. You can get 6 meals out of that.


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## Halfmoon

Wait til someone leaves the table and eatwhat they left.:letsdrink


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## jim t

> *Halfmoon (11/18/2008)*Wait til someone leaves the table and eatwhat they left.:letsdrink


Damn Mark, I expected ONE word...

"beer" :letsdrink:letsdrink

Jim


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## SKEETER

Here is a good desert that is very good, and easy.

*FRUIT CRUMBLE COBBLER* 

INGREDIENTS: 

1 can pie filling of choice
1/2 pkg of yellow or butter cake mix (approx 1-1/2 cups)
1/2 stick butter or margarine (cut up) 

DIRECTIONS: 

Pour pie filling in a square glass baking dish. Shake dry cake mix on top until completely covered. Place dots of cut up butter all over top of cake mix. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

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*TATER CHIP CHICKEN *

INGREDIENTS: 

2 pounds chicken pieces (skinless) 
1 cup butter or margarine (melted)
2 cups crushed sour cream & onion flavored potato chips 

DIRECTIONS: 

Dip chicken in melted butter and roll in crushed potato chips. Place on baking sheet that has been lightly coated with cooking spray. Pour remaining chips and butter over chicken. Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


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## Halfmoon

> *jim t (11/18/2008)*
> 
> 
> 
> *Halfmoon (11/18/2008)*Wait til someone leaves the table and eatwhat they left.:letsdrink
> 
> 
> 
> Damn Mark, I expected ONE word...
> 
> "beer" :letsdrink:letsdrink
> 
> Jim
Click to expand...

That was my first answer, but he said cheap. LOL!:letsdrink


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## BananaTom

*I cooked this last, had not done soin 20 years, but this was one of most favorite bachelor meals, cooked really fast.*

*One can of Pork & Beans (Last night Grillin Bean), *

*2 pork chops, chopped/cut into small pieces.*

*One onion cut up large.*

*Put in pan and cook until the meat is tender and the onion just starts to turn clear*



*Boy that meal brought back good memories last night, My wife of 19 years said "why have not cooked this before/" I said " Because I am not a bachelor."*


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## opus68

Oat meal is a very cheap breakfast. It will keep you full for a long time and it is very healthy. i also mix it into my meatloaf recipe.


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## SouthernAngler

> *Halfmoon (11/18/2008)*
> 
> 
> 
> *jim t (11/18/2008)*
> 
> 
> 
> *Halfmoon (11/18/2008)*Wait til someone leaves the table and eatwhat they left.:letsdrink
> 
> 
> 
> Damn Mark, I expected ONE word...
> 
> "beer" :letsdrink:letsdrink
> 
> Jim
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> That was my first answer, but he said cheap. LOL!:letsdrink
Click to expand...

Cheap was the wrong word to use. I am just tired of eating junk food all the time. Plus whatever is not spent on food is spent on weekends.:letsdrink


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## CJF

15 bean soup. Buy the dried bean mix in the dried bean section at the grocery store. a couple cans of tomato sauce, couple of onions, peppers, a pack of conecuh sausage,... whatever else you wanna throw in there. sometimes i throw in a packet of chili seasoning. cook it in the crock pot for about 5 hrs or on the stove. gooooood eats! and cheap. always draws a crowd at my house. cook some rice too and put it on top. Awesome!! I'm hungry now.:letsdrink


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## Sailor612

I know where your comin from! I'm a full time student too @ uwf, workonly afew hours a week, and have to commute to UWF from GB 4 times a week! Money gets tight for me some weeks!!

Keep your eye out for meats that are on sale! Meats that can be frozen and still taste good later work real good! Like porkchops/ground beef/chicken.... Cook a couple of whatever you get that night for dinner, wrap the rest in saran (sp) wrap (only a meal/wrap), and stick into a plastic bag drop it in the freezer until it sounds good...just pull out the meal size wrap when you want and cook it up! That way you don't have to "eat" it all once you thaw it!! (i usually eat by myself, if I cook for more than just me, pull out two wrapped meat)

For sides, just hit up the frozen or canned section of the store for stuff like corn, peas, beans, garlic bread.....

Whatever it is, I like to stick to frozen/canned/or non pershibles cuz I dont always eat fresh stuff before it goes bad!

Crockpot chili is another great way to go!!!! Set it up before you leave for class, when you get home it will be done!!!


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## reelhappy

here's a way to eat free for now till new years. crash xmas parties say you work in the mail room if any ask! eat all you can and than don't forget to stuff your pockets for later! the holidays are great time for free food! crash the right party and drinks are included too! good luck and happy holidays to ya!


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## fishinstevez

catch some fish!


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## Ithaca37

You can buy two Cornish Hens at Walmart for about four bucks. Just one hen fills me and the wife up. You can grill it, bake it, smoke it, or whatever. Add a bag of rice and you got yourself a cheap meal.


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## Emerald Ghost

Go to the frozen food section area at Wally World or Publix and try the "Shrimp Premivera Mediterranean Style" by Bertoli's. It is fast to prepare, ( microwaveable) and excellent tasting. They have other entrees as well. It tastes best when cooked for 8 minutes on stove top w/ the lid over it.


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## thegarb

1 box Mac'n Cheese, 1 can tuna, 1 can sweet peas. After you make the Mac'n Cheese, throw in the peas/tuna, cracked pepper, a little garlic powder (or whatever you want, of course) and mix it all up over low heat. Eeeeasy stuff, cheap, and tasty.


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## Boatgone

Southern Angler one of the easiest meals I was ever introduced to is the tuna mac recipe a divorced buddy of mine taught me. The cleanest part of this meal is it is all done in one pot. If you want to have only one dish to clean just eat out of the pot.

1 can of Tuna in water (drained)

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

1 box of mac and cheese (whatever kind you like: for me the cheaper the better)

cook the noodles as directed, drain the noodles. combine the drained Tuna and the cream of mushroom soup. add the mac and cheese mix stir todesired heatand eat. This stuff is quick and easy. 

After months of fast food and junk this comes at you like gourmet food. We still have it from time to time; 20 years and four kids later.


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## Tuna Man

Here's one from a pasta lover. Susan picked this up last week. It calls for the addition of chicken. She added the chicken which I don't eat (I pick it out)or like in a dish so adding the chicken is optional. Quite good and not only a one pan dish but more then enough for a meal. For one person there would be leftovers. Without the chicken it was more then enough for me.

Calls for 1# chicken, 2TBLs butter, and 3/4 C milk...10 to 12 minutes after water boils.

For a 1 pan dish, cook chicken first then set aside, cook contents and add chicken.










Bertolli, makes some good meals in a bag...

http://www.villabertolli.com/

Check this link out... http://www.villabertolli.com/recipes.asp

You can tell I'm a pasta lover:banghead


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## tom1s

try this one...its got me threw a lot of hard times :banghead and costs less then 10$ and will make 3 good meals. 



Find *chicken thys* on sale...i just got 6 for 3.50$



1)in iron skillet or glass bake try add *3/4th cup rice*

2)pour *one can of chicken broth* in to cover rice

3)pour *one can of drained vegie mix* over rice

4)cover rice and vegies with chicken, any cut but i like thys for this one

5)cover chicken with *can of cream of chicken soup*, or cream of whatever you like

6)bake at 350 for about an hour and a half



the chicken will cook down into the rice and get all gooey :letsparty



i like it cause you can use any cut of chicken you can find on sale, and use any extra spice...whatever you like personally. from the time you put the grocery bags on the counter it can be in the oven in less then 5 mins and the only dirty dish is a skillet and a spoon :clap


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## fishn4real

Ramon Noodles. About 2,487 varieties and still only 12 cents each; cheaper by the case.:hungry

And then, of course, if you want to splurge and have a real economical gourmet meal, there are the ever famous MREs, if you can find them.


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## fishFEEDER9697

spagetti for sure.

boil noodles of choice (angel hair)

brown ground beef

add sauce

10-15 minutes max + there are a lot of interesting sauces on the market these days.

and it's even better the next day.


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## Buckyt

Using a George Forman grill, I covered the bottom tray with chicken fingers, then layered some thin slices of sweet onion, and some sliced baby portabellas. This had been marinating in wostershire sauce for about 1 hour. I closed the grill for 10 minutes. When I opened it up, I topped with grated mozerella cheese. It was easy and good.


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## fishn4real

Goulash!. (Not real hungarian goulash... but good, and cheap.)

1 lb Cheapest Groung Beef

Elbo Macaroni (don't know how much - 1/2 cup maybe_

1 large Onion- diced

1 large Potatoe-diced

Large Can of Whole Tomatoes

Brown the beef with the onions, crush the tomatoes and stir in with juice and 1/2 can water, add mac and potates, salt, pepper, (chili powder or cajun spice if you like, bay leaf if you have it, or any other spices you want). Cook until potatoes are done. Good with crakers; great with cornbread.


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## Tuna Man

I'm not a Gumbo lover but Susan bought this and it wasn't that bad. Makes 58 oz, serves a good 4 maybe 6 for $4.00 15-20 minutes, one pan. :banghead:banghead She bought it in China Mart. About $1.00 per meal.










Two bowls have been removed and eaten before the picture.


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## Emerald Ghost

Bertolis has great microwaveable quick dinners.

Shrimp Primivera, Mediterranean style is my favorite.

(on the stove top for 8 minutes with the lid on is my favorite way to prepare)


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## ScullsMcNasty

get some "Culinary Delights" jambalaya and add some hotdogs to it. its easy to cook and tastes great. itll feed you for a few days. my first roomate and i used to cook it like once a week cause we could both eat off of it for 2 days and it only costs like 5 bucks.

also anything in a crock pot works well. i know when i was in college i wasnt a great cook so we would just throw stuff in a crock pot and turn it on. throw it in there before you go to class and when you get hungry for dinner, its done. i used to cut up deer meat into cubes and throw it in there with a bunch of different can soups, add a lil water and its money!!


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## ScullsMcNasty

i dont remember if you said youre tired of hotdogs or not but.... go to taco bell and steal a bunch of mild and hot sauce packets. nuke a few hotdogs, fold a piece of bread around it(cheaper and more efficient than buns), put a packet of mild sauce on it, add some shredded cheese and you got some badass chilli dogs

promise you will love this


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## Tuna Man

Keep in mind that at Publix, the items that are marked 2 for 1 doesn't mean you have to get two. You can buy one at half price. Check attachments.:doh

Can't upload photo... *"The application encountered an unexpected problem"*


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## Waverunnr99

That sounds great and easy! I'll have to try the chicken potato chip recipe!


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