Freezer Meal Product testing campaign How to Frugal food specials a Cooking Plan Specias Works for Frugal food specials. Frugap old standby- grilled cheese, peanut butter, lunch meat if you can find a good deal on it. And then your Monday lunch, too. If you too crave something bolder, try the method with taco seasoning instead. Cooking for one can be just as satisfying and delicious as serving a crowd. You're welcome.

Frugal food specials -

Dairy Queen isn't just for soft serve and Blizzards, especially in rural areas where there's a DQ in practically every town. Found mostly in the western United States, Del Taco is another reliable bet for cheap, fast Mexican eats. Almost everyone has celebrated a special event at Red Lobster, a seafood chain that's as good for families as it is for date night.

Which one of these two names you'll see on the sign depends on which part of the country you're in, but whether it's known as Hardee's or Carl's Jr. BJ's gets its Brewhouse moniker from the microbreweries at some locations, but every location of this casual sit-down chain has a menu of pizza and homestyle favorites.

Found mainly in the Southwest, El Pollo Loco is the place to indulge in Mexican favorites based around savory grilled chicken, including grilled chicken breasts.

Dating all the way back to , Bob Evans serves up hearty comfort food in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic in a country living-themed atmosphere. Cooking up sliders since , White Castle is often credited as the first fast-food burger chain. Now it can be found in 13 states, mostly in the Midwest.

Named after the football huddle, Huddle House is a hour family restaurant that was founded in the s and is concentrated in the Southeast. Spaghetti, lasagna, and garlic breadsticks are crowd-pleasers, so it's no surprise this Italian restaurant chain is a hit with families.

Best known for its outlandish slogans, commercials, and having "all the meat," Arby's satisfies its customers with roast beef, curly fries, and fresh deli sandwiches. Biscuit and fried chicken lovers adore this Southern fast-food chain that serves breakfast all day.

You can add a swipe of creamy pimento cheese to any biscuit — and you should. Looking for a healthier breakfast option? Check out these healthy fast-food breakfast items.

With about locations, mostly in the Southern states, Zaxby's has carved a niche out of the fried chicken market, selling only tenders sometimes in sandwiches and wings.

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So what are you waiting for? Get rid of that idea in your head that cooking seafood is hard! It's that easy! Recipe: One-Pot Lemon Garlic Shrimp Pasta.

This dish is so delicious, you won't believe it only calls for a handful of ingredients. The secret is pairing pesto with mozzarella cheese — it's always a crowd pleaser. This recipe makes 4 servings, so you can have it as leftovers, invite friends over, or eat it all — we wouldn't blame you.

Recipe: Pesto Chicken Bake. Great news! This dish is super easy and quick! to make. You probably already have all of the ingredients on hand and it takes less than 20 minutes to make. With this cheesy pasta dish, you'll be cheesin' in no time. Recipe: Easy Chicken Alfredo Penne. Who doesn't like fried rice?

With brown rice, peas, carrots, eggs and scallions, this dish is a classic. This veggie fried rice is also a great call if you get home hungry — Instant Pot to the rescue! Recipe: Healthier Veggie Fried Rice. Let's just face the facts: quinoa in salad is elite. This salad is a vegetarian's dream, with a refreshing combo of cucumbers, tomatoes, spinach.

Top it all off with a lemony dressing to really seal the deal. Recipe: Avocado Quinoa Power Salad. Stir-fry is always a good idea. This recipe is flexible, since we all know stir-fry can be made with everything and the kitchen sink and still taste delicious!

You can even switch out the rice for noodles for a change in texture. This recipe is easy and delicious — and, even better, you can swap out some of the vegetables for ones already in your fridge. If you have tofu, dijon, and something green, you are most of the way there. Get scrambling! Recipe: Tofu Scramble.

It only takes 15 minutes to whip up this simple-but-satisfying masterpiece. Plus, the whole recipe only requires one pan. So not only will cooking be easy, but so will clean up!

Recipe: Cheese Tortellini in Creamy Marinara. Craving sushi but don't want to go out? We got you. Even better, the recipe is flexible, so you can swap out the veggies or protein for whatever you happen to have on hand.

Recipe: Sushi Bowl. The recipe calls for a mixture of kidney beans, black beans, and pinto beans, but of course you can swap in whatever canned beans or grains that are already in your kitchen. Recipe: Vegan 3-Bean Chili. Recipe: Egg Pizza With Scallions. This hearty chickpea masala is the perfect recipe for vegetarians and can be prepared spicy or mild, depending on your taste.

The recipe calls for a splash of heavy cream, but you can use coconut milk to keep it vegan. Recipe: Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala. This easy, kid-friendly dish starts with crescent roll dough on the bottom, then it's loaded with ground beef, cheese, and any of your favorite taco toppings.

Recipe: Taco Pizza. This recipe uses baby kale to stuff the toast cups, but feel free to use spinach or arugula if kale isn't your favorite. Recipe: Bacon and Egg Toast Cups. Feel free to use any hearty veggies you have on hand in place of the beets and radishes.

Brussels sprouts, diced sweet potatoes, and carrots would all work well. Recipe: Baked Eggs With Roasted Vegetables. This creamy mac 'n' cheese is loaded with all kinds of good stuff, like white cheddar, broccoli, and seared chicken.

Leave out the chicken. Broccoli isn't your favorite? Feel free to substitute it with whatever vegetables you have on hand. Recipe: White Cheddar Mac 'n' Cheese With Chicken and Broccoli. This baby is everything you love about caprese and grilled cheese crammed into one delicious sandwich.

Serve it with salad or soup, and you've got yourself a dinner that's both fancy and budget-friendly. Recipe: Caprese Grilled Cheese. This recipe calls for a lot of basic ingredients you'll already have in the pantry.

It makes six to eight servings too, so you can enjoy leftovers for lunch all week. Recipe: Chicken Noodle Soup. Giving chunky zucchini pieces a hard sear develops lots of texture and color while minimizing sogginess. The dilly sour cream provides a garlicky counterpart. When you need a weeknight-friendly recipe that doubles as a cheap dinner idea, stir-fry is the answer.

Is there ever a bad time for a quesadilla? This one is easy, cheesy, and a smart way to finish up that jar of kimchi hanging out in the fridge. Although we and most of our readers love the mixture of nutritional yeast , garlic powder, and onion powder on these vegan nuggets, one commenter was less impressed.

If you too crave something bolder, try the method with taco seasoning instead. The humble onion is given center stage in this cheap meal. Seared, then gently roasted with paprika and tomato paste, these onions prove they have star quality.

Transform a can of pumpkin purée into a near-instant pasta sauce—no slow cookers here— that delivers major fall feels. Bonus: Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for two to three days. With a generous layer of caramelized onions and plenty of sharp Gruyère cheese, this tart packs the depth of French onion soup into every bite.

The tofu in this cheap recipe absorbs all of the flavors in the sauce—and there are a lot of them: shallots, ginger, garlic, cumin, red chile, turmeric, coconut cream , and peanut butter.

It all becomes a sauce you have to make and see to believe. Crunchy fried onions transform a simple cabbage salad into a sensorial delight: hot and cold, crisp and soft, sweet and spicy.

Make sure to assemble it just before eating in order to capture those different textures. When the coffers are dry and so is the bread on the counter, this is the one.

This cheap meal requires just a few other ingredients, most of which are already in your kitchen. A garlicky mixture of ginger, soy sauce, brown sugar, and maple syrup cooks down until almost sticky in this riff on a Chinese-American classic sesame chicken.

An untraditional but logical addition to the sauce: tahini. You might be surprised by just how flavorful a combination of chicken stock, celery, and chickpeas can be. Garlic, red chiles, lemon, and fresh cilantro contribute to making it so—while still keeping it feeling clean.

If you can swing it, add a big pinch of asafetida for an extra savory note. Quick-cooking, budget-friendly, and pretty hard to screw up that dark meat is automatically juicier , chicken thighs are our default weeknight dinner—and this is our simplest way to prepare them.

These battered, oven-baked florets come out crackly before getting bathed in a sticky-sweet gochujang glaze. It means you have croutons. Ground turkey is a lean protein that, when simmered with white beans, seasonings, and chipotle chiles in adobo and topped with Greek yogurt, delivers major body and richness.

The key to stress-free stir-frying is in the prep work. Be sure to chop, slice, and grate everything before even thinking about turning on the stove. Once you do, it comes together in 15 minutes. A little bit of flour and butter, garlic, lemon juice, and capers , and you've got a super savory supper.

Say that three times fast. This cheap recipe leaves out the smoked pork or turkey, which is typical in the American South, and goes heavy on garlic for flavor.

This all-star easy dinner recipe will work long after corn has gone out of season. In the winter, just sub in shaved cauliflower or torn kale. This soup packs in all the ingredients that would make your doctor happy—lentils, sweet potatoes, leafy greens—but the fiery Thai green curry paste keeps things interesting.

This Haitian meal consists of sos pwa nwa, black bean sauce enriched with coconut milk, served alongside mayi moulen, a creamy cornmeal porridge flavored with garlic and herbs. Nothing is cozier. This family-friendly weeknight dinner takes a cue from Japanese grilled chicken meatballs called tsukune as well as the glossy, sweet-and-sour sauce that comes with them.

A classic Italian pesto , this is not. Spinach, cilantro, and miso come together for this uber-green sauce, which dresses, of course, springy ramen noodles. In this brothy beans recipe, caramelizing fennel, shallots, and lemon builds a base layer that is sweet, tangy, and bright.

Tinned sardines add protein and a briny flavor. A beloved Hong Kong dish with approximately one billion variations, this soup—which relies heavily on fridge and pantry staples—is meant to be a little sweet and a touch sharp.

Specoals for some cheap dinner ideas? Sure, we speicals are—and we wholeheartedly believe that spevials can speciale Frugal food specials while spending less. It just takes some clever spevials and inexpensive ingredients specails as Frugal food specials, pasta, beans, frozen produce, and chicken Frugal food specials. Turn your stash Budget-friendly condiment prices spicy one-pot kimchi and squash mac and cheesethe ultimate comfort food; pantry-staple pasta; or turmeric-infused red lentils and spinach. The cheap and delicious meal to begin our collection of cheap dinner ideas is comprised of mainly pasta and garlic. Toasted nutritional yeast, full of umami, also pushes this easy recipe into a deeply savory, deeply tasty zone. The relatively long ingredient list—kidney beans, bell peppers, celeryparsley, rice—might not read as a budget meal, but the most expensive item is the andouille sausage. by Discounted grocery savings Toney Frugal Living 20 comments. Is money tight? Frugal food specials you vood Frugal food specials speciaals on your food budget? Here are more than 20 frugal meal ideas to get you started and help you keep you grocery bill down! Back a few years ago my husband worked in sales- at a commission-only position.