Comments on: Stretch Your Meat Budget

By: Bramble

Bramble — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 23:17:23 +0000

I try not to buy meat unless it’s less than a dollar a pound. sounds crazy but it exists and now there is 8lb of pork roast in my freezer that i dont know what to do with.
that said, here is what i do when whole chickens go on sale:
day 1: roast chicken dinner
day 2: open face chicken sandwiches with gravy
day 3: chicken and rice
day 4: chicken and rice soup
day 5: chicken pot pie

i got a bunch of chickens for 79 cents a pound the other day, each chicken can be nearly a weeks worth of food if you have just a few staples for mixing or sides!

By: Jaki - inexpensive home decor

Jaki - inexpensive home decor — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 01:15:46 +0000

Chili is my favorite meat stretcher and if I have the time stuffed peppers. As food keeps gets more expensive I think we’ll see a lot more advice on stretching the food budget in general. Keep it coming people

By: Stretch Mark Mama

Stretch Mark Mama — Sat, 31 May 2008 07:23:59 +0000

When making a “Meat” meal, I pack about half of it away in storage containers before we eat. That way, we are not tempted to overeat, and there are leftovers for the next day.

By: Susan

Susan — Sat, 31 May 2008 03:51:12 +0000

The recommended serving size for meats is the palm of your hand, so my husband and I started splitting a single chicken breast, steak, etc. We’ve instantly saved 50% and we don’t even notice a difference at the dinner table. I was worried that we wouldn’t feel full, but that hasn’t been the case at all.

By: Carol

Carol — Fri, 30 May 2008 21:17:46 +0000

Get an invite to my sisters house. Or at least ship the kids to her once a week.

Ok, really though we love Mac & cheese and Spaghetti and sauce.

By: emily

emily — Fri, 30 May 2008 20:16:08 +0000

I totally agree with the black beans comment. We eat black beans and rice all the time. Speaking of…. rice is a great filler. If I make something like a chicken and rice casserole I just add a little more rice and a little less chicken and it goes just as far.

By: Mom of three

Mom of three — Fri, 30 May 2008 19:50:21 +0000

Just cook less. If there are 5 of us eating, I cook 4 pork chops. The kids don’t eat a whole one, so when they are done, I cut the meat off the bones. They eat the round fleshy part, I eat the parts next to the bones. Add veggies and a salad, and I saved 20% on the meal.

I used to cook enough that we always had leftovers, which never got eaten. Now I cook less, and if you aren’t totally full after dinner, you can have dessert. We are eating less, wasting less, and it’s funny but they rarely ask for that dessert. Once we eat, and talk for a while, everyone feels full on less food.

By: Mrs. Micah

Mrs. Micah — Fri, 30 May 2008 19:26:02 +0000

One thing we’ll do with a lot of recipes that call for meat is put in about half meat and half black beans (my favorite beans!). Works like a charm.

By: Lisa- Domestic Accident

Lisa- Domestic Accident — Fri, 30 May 2008 18:57:08 +0000

I would just add chili and stew although those seem more like winter-fare.

By: Courtney

Courtney — Fri, 30 May 2008 17:08:38 +0000

Black Bean and Corn Salsa:

1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)
1 can Mexicorn (not drained)
1 small jar prepared salsa
several Tbsps chopped green onion
several Tbsps chopped cilantro

Mix ingredients and chill.

Great served with cheese quesadillas!