Here are 32 dinners that feed six people for under $20 and you still get seconds. What a steal. This is just bananas because you’re going to get basically dinner for six people for about $3 per person.
1) Whole Roast Chicken and Potatoes
This is a favorite in our house. We like to take a cast iron skillet and put some potatoes, carrots, and celery in the bottom, then season your whole chicken and just put that right on top. You can bake that right there in the oven and it’s a complete meal. You’ve got your protein, your veggies, and your carbs.
This is such a great meal for the whole family, and it’s so flavorful because all the flavors you put on the chicken drip down onto the veggies below. And there’s plenty for leftovers.
2) Sausage and Peppers
This is a really fun one because you can literally cook this on a cookie sheet in the oven. Put some sausage, either whole or chopped up, and some bell peppers, all different colors. It’d be so pretty.
Then, if you keep the sausages whole, you could serve them right there in a hamburger bun, whatever your favorite is, or if you chop up the Italian sausage, you can serve it over a bed of rice, polenta, pasta, or quinoa, whatever carb you have at the house. That’s a complete meal right there, so colorful and flavorful.
3) Chicken Fried Rice
So like shrimp fried rice, but with chicken in it. Sure, why not? Take some day old rice, so it should be cold. Then take some ginger, garlic, soy sauce, and green onions, chop them up, and put that in the skillet over the stove with some olive oil, and soft scramble some eggs. I would cook the chicken first, then throw the chicken in, and then throw in the rice.
I, of course, love to add a lot of vegetables, so I like to do some frozen peas and carrots. That’s an easy one for us and delicious. You could top it off with a little more soy sauce if you like. Super good, the whole family loves this one.
4) Baked Ziti for a Crowd
You can take your pasta, like your ziti, and however many boxes you have. If you have six people, you might need two boxes. Pour over two jars of spaghetti sauce, whatever your favorite is, and then top it off with some ricotta and mozzarella and bake it in the oven. It’s going to be so good when it comes out. If you want to add some ground turkey or ground beef to this, you totally could for a little extra.
And then I would, of course, serve some vegetables on the side, so maybe a side salad, a can of green beans, or some fresh veggies if you have those on hand. A great balanced meal, so delish.
5) Pot Roast
Pot roast is so yummy. It just heats you all the way through. So good. You can make this in the crock pot if you’d like, or the oven. It’s so delicious, so flavorful, and full of protein.
This would go really great with some carrots and potatoes, and then that yummy leftover gravy can just go right over those potatoes, especially if it’s mashed potatoes. So good. You could also serve it with some green beans if you like, something green in there. That is a beautiful balanced meal.
6) Pork Carnitas
I like to make my pork in the crock pot because I feel like it’s easy, you don’t have to worry about it. When it’s done, you can just shred it up and serve it over your favorite tortilla. You could do a corn tortilla, or a flour tortilla, spinach tortilla, low carb, whatever you have.
And then I would use some avocado or guacamole and some cilantro. You could add some lettuce to this if you’d like, some salsa, fresh tomatoes. Delish, delish meal.
7) Turkey Chili
You can make this over the stove or the crock pot. You can use some ground turkey, it’s great and a little bit lower in saturated fat than beef. Then go ahead and throw in some beans, whatever beans you like, I like to use kidney beans in this recipe. And then, of course, a couple cans of tomatoes, and you’re going to use lots of chili powder to give you lots of flavoring.
I like to serve our chili with cornbread, easy to make in a cupcake tin. You can buy the box of ready-to-go cornbread mix if you’d like. You can mix in a can of corn if you’d like to have some whole corn pieces in that, and you could top that off with some honey butter, which would be really good. Or you can serve this with some rice or something if you don’t want the cornbread.
It’s such a good, delicious meal, and you can top it off with some green onions if you’d like, or some sour cream. Super good.
8) Goulash
You could use some ground beef or ground turkey if you’re trying to be mindful of your saturated fats, and you could use some pasta. We like to use elbow macaroni. Use a bunch of veggies in there, like tomatoes, garlic, and onions, to give it lots of flavor.
This is such a great classic. I feel like this meal reminds me of my childhood. You’re going to have a lot of protein, carbs, and some veggies in there. What a great meal. Super good, and it’s going to feed the whole family.
9) Pulled Pork Sandwiches
We like to cook our pulled pork in the crock pot because it’s so easy. Once it’s done, we like to serve it with some barbecue sauce on top of a hamburger bun, and then serve it with some coleslaw on the side.
You could either buy some coleslaw or make it yourself, it’s actually not hard to make at all if you get a bag of cabbage. We like to add some diced green beans to it, and you could add some sunflower seeds, that’s what we like to do. And then we actually top it off with a little bit of toasted top ramen. I know, call me crazy. We take the package from the top ramen and make a delicious dressing to go on top of our coleslaw, but you can make your coleslaw any way you like. It’s so nice because it adds some cold freshness and some veggies to that pulled pork sandwich.
And then you’ll have leftover pork to do whatever you want with. You can make some tacos, nachos, quesadillas, a sandwich, you could even make it with your breakfast the next morning.
10) Baked Beans and Cornbread
Delish. Beans are so good for you, right? There’s so much fiber in baked beans, and there’s so much you could do with beans as a food. There’s black beans, kidney beans, red kidney beans, so many different types, and they’re so high in fiber and so good for you.
You could serve this with some cornbread. You can get the box, or you can make it from cornmeal, add a couple of ingredients, and it’s good to go. Such a delicious, yummy meal. You could add some more veggies to this if you’d like, like a side salad or some carrot sticks, and that’s super easy.
11) Pinto Beans and Rice
Fun fact, did you know that combining beans and rice, they complete each other and form a complete protein? So what one lacks, the other makes up for, and that’s why we always combine beans and rice. They are a great combination food.
Whatever type of beans you like, my favorites are pinto and black beans, and then you could use brown rice or white rice. I like to use our rice cooker because it just makes life so easy, and then you could add lots of yummy flavoring. If you’re making the beans from scratch, I love making beans in the crock pot. If you’ve never done it, it’s really fun, and you could add a lot of flavoring, but you could also just cook it right there over the stove, adding some onions and garlic if you want a little extra flavor.
Of course, I would probably do some pico de gallo or some cilantro on top for some extra flavor, and you could even put some avocado or guacamole in this. Super good.
12) Jambalaya-Style Rice Skillet
If you’ve never had jambalaya, it’s such a delicious cultural meal, so delicious with sausage, onion, celery, and bell peppers. It’s so flavorful. You’re going to have lots of protein in this meal, the carbs from the rice, and of course you’re going to get your veggies from the bell peppers and tomatoes. Making this all together, all those flavors get to really mix, and it’s such a fun, special, different kind of meal that can really stretch far.
13) Black Bean Tacos
When I’m in a pinch and I don’t have a lot in the food cabinet but I’m trying to make a meal, this is definitely one of my go-tos. I love black beans. I’ll take a tortilla, I like the raw ones you can find from Costco, and just warm that up on the stove, put a little shredded cheddar or Mexican cheese, whatever you have, then heat up a can of black beans over the stove, and that’s pretty much it.
You can add whatever you have on hand, like some cabbage. I like to tear up some spinach leaves, just because I like some color in there. Dice up some fresh tomatoes, avocado, salsa if you have it. Delish, and such a good meal. Lots of cilantro on this one for me, yes please.
14) Enchilada Casserole
This is a family favorite for us. Enchiladas are not easy to make, right? You have to roll them up, and then when you’re serving them, you have to determine where one ends and the other begins. So enchilada casserole really makes it easy. You just chop up the tortillas into one-inch squares, we usually use corn tortillas, and then put those in the casserole dish. Just spray the casserole dish first so nothing sticks.
You could use black beans in here, and if you want to add some cooked ground turkey or ground beef, that would be fine. And of course, lots of enchilada sauce and cheese. Then when it’s done baking, you can top it off with some sour cream and green onions. If you like, you could serve it with a side of guacamole or avocado, and if you want to serve some rice or salad on the side, that would be delish.
15) Chicken Tortilla Soup
Yes, a favorite for us, and it could last a long ways, we always have leftovers of this. We like to cook our chicken and then make the soup part of it. We like to add beans in there, I like refried beans because I feel like it gives it a certain creaminess.
Then I try to add as many veggies as possible, so I’ll put in some corn, dice up some zucchini, feel it out and see what veggies you have. And then, of course, shred your chicken, adding that into the soup until all the flavors really marry together. You can add lots of herbs and spices into this to get a really good flavor.
When it’s done all marrying together and cooking, you can serve it in a bowl with some chips or tortilla strips, cheese, avocado, and lime. Yes, I said avocado. More avocado and some cilantro. So good.
16) Chicken Fajitas
This is like a monthly, weekly thing for us. Grab your favorite tortillas and warm those up on the stove, putting some shredded cheese on top. Then in a pan, go ahead and slice up your bell peppers, I like to use all the different colors, and cook your chicken with some fajita seasoning. I like to shred up carrots for extra veggies, and chop up an onion as well, letting all those flavors come together for a while.
Then serve that over the tortilla with cheese, and serve with a side of beans and rice if you’d like, or a can of corn for the kids maybe. Add some cilantro, avocado, and salsa. Delish. And then I always have leftovers the next day.
17) Spaghetti with Meat Sauce
This is a great idea for a big family or a big group getting together. You can boil a big pot of spaghetti, then use some ground turkey or ground beef, cooking that and adding whatever pasta sauce you have. Then put it all together, the spaghetti and the meat sauce on top, and add some parmesan cheese on top of that.
I would serve it with a side salad if you want to get some veggies on the side. There are also tons of veggies you can add to the meat sauce if you want to sneak some in. Carrots and mushrooms tend to be a favorite for us, and you could also do bell peppers, whatever you like to add a little veggies to that meal. Such a great family meal.
18) Meatballs and Marinara
Oh yes, we make this on the regular because we have a kiddo who does not like the meatballs and sauce to be on the pasta, so it has to be served separately. We always have frozen meatballs in our freezer, and we’ll just cook those on the stove for about 20 to 25 minutes with the pasta sauce. Then you can serve this over whatever your choice is for that evening, whether it’s mac and cheese or pasta of any shape with a little butter and parmesan.
You could also put these into a sandwich, and if you do, you could serve it with some delicious garlic bread on the side. That would be really good as well. And of course, I would try to get in some additional vegetables, so a side salad, some asparagus, something like that.
19) Stovetop Mac and Cheese
This is a weekly favorite for us, probably several times a week, more than I want to admit. Of course they make the box of mac and cheese, but sometimes you feel like, oh gosh, how many times a week does my kid want to eat this box? You’d be surprised, actually, because making homemade mac and cheese is not hard, and you don’t have to use the macaroni shape. You can use any shape of macaroni. So that tends to be a fun choice in this family, what shape of pasta do you want tonight? Whether it’s the wheels, the elbows, the fusilli, the penne, we’ll use any shape.
Once that pasta is boiled, this is the way I make it, you remove it from the pot and leave it in the colander. Then over that warm pot on low, like a four, melt some butter in there and put in some milk. Then I shred up some sharp cheddar cheese, put that in, and let it all melt together. Then I add some nutritional yeast, just because I have a picky eater and I’m trying to get some more B12 in there. Let that all melt together, then add the pasta back in and stir. It’s a beautiful, wonderful meal.
I’ve also seen some cheats recently where you take a raw egg and stir it into a warm pan over the pasta and let that egg cook in there. I haven’t tried it yet, but that’s a fun idea. You could also try some chicken broth in there as well to get some protein in. We like to use Goodles for our noodles because that adds a little bit more protein to the pasta. And of course you could serve this with any protein and vegetable you like to make it a complete meal.
20) Baked Spaghetti
You can absolutely make your pasta in the oven in a casserole dish. Put the cooked pasta in there and top it off with your favorite cheese, whether it’s ricotta or mozzarella, and of course the sauce. So the pasta and the sauce go in first, then top that off with your favorite cheese, and you can bake that. You can also add an egg beaten into the pasta before you add it to the pan.
21) Chicken Noodle Soup
A winter favorite for us. You could cook this on the stove, or you can add it all into a crock pot in the morning and forget about it. You come home, the house smells amazing, and it’s literally just ready. Well, you have to add the noodles just shortly before serving, because you can’t have the noodles cooking in there for eight hours. But after you add the noodles, that’s it.
It’s a complete meal. You’ve got your carrots and celery for the veggies, your protein in the chicken, and your noodles. You could serve it with a grilled cheese sandwich on the side if you’d like something to dip, but you don’t have to, because it’s a totally complete meal.
22) Lentil Soup
A favorite in our house. You could use whatever lentils you have on hand, we like the green ones, but brown ones are good too. We like to add some celery, carrots, and a can of tomatoes in there as well, and of course some broth. Let that cook over the stove. It doesn’t take a long time, so you could do that while you’re doing something else and let it all cook together.
This is going to be such a colorful, flavorful, high fiber meal. You can serve this with some meat if you’re trying to get some extra protein in. Sometimes we’ll add some garlic bread on the side or put some fresh parmesan cheese on top.
23) Shrimp Creole over Rice
What a fun and fancy, but not fancy, meal. Use some frozen shrimp, we always have frozen shrimp in this house, and it doesn’t matter what size. For us, it’s convenient if the tails are removed and it’s deveined, because it’s less work for me. Then cook that shrimp, adding lots of flavors and vegetables like bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, celery, garlic, and some cayenne to give it a little bit of spice and flavor.
Then you’re going to serve that over whatever rice you have, white rice, brown rice, or quinoa. What a delicious meal. I would serve it with a side of veggies if you’d like, but you do have some celery and bell peppers in there as well, so you can do either one.
24) Split Pea Soup
Yes, my sister’s split pea soup is so delicious. The ham in there gives it so much flavor, or you can use a leftover ham bone. You’re going to add lots of flavor with the onions and carrots, and you’re going to let this cook over time, and it’s going to give you such a great smell and such a good flavor. You could add more veggies to this if you’d like, like some celery or something. But what a delicious meal.
25) Broccoli Cheddar Soup
You don’t have to go out to eat to get broccoli cheddar soup, you could actually make it right at home. Pretty easy with some broccoli, carrots, and onions, and of course some delicious sharp cheddar. This comes together really wonderfully and has such good flavor. You can serve it with some meat on the side if you’d like, or some bread to dip into the soup. What a fun, delicious meal.
26) Chickpea Curry
Chickpeas are such a great thing to have in the food pantry because they’re so versatile, right? You can bake them, or you could put them into a soup. This is a delicious curry, and with the coconut milk, onions, garlic, ginger, and of course curry powder, it’s going to give it so much flavor, plus some protein and fiber.
You could serve it with some spinach and diced tomatoes for a little bit more color and carbs. We love ours with some naan bread, they have garlic and regular naan, and you can warm it up a little bit. So delicious, flavorful, colorful, and nutrient-packed.
27) Loaded Baked Potatoes
Why do I always forget about baked potatoes? What a fun meal, because you just bake those potatoes right in the oven, making sure to pierce and oil them. Then when they’re done, split them open and you could put whatever toppings you have on hand. You could keep it plain with just butter and cheese, or you could add sour cream, bacon bits, broccoli, scallions. You could do chili if you want to be fancy. What a fun meal.
My sister recently made a sweet potato version that sounds so good, you dice them in half, bake them sliced side down, then turn them over, and you can serve them the same way. You could serve them with whatever you want inside, like some meat, some veggies, and some sour cream. Whatever you want, that’s so good.
28) Breakfast for Dinner
So many times growing up, I requested breakfast for dinner and I thought, wow, I have the coolest mom ever. Come to find out now as an adult, she was just so excited when we requested that, because it was so easy for her, and it was a win for us as kids.
For breakfast for dinner, you can have eggs, bacon, sausage, French toast, pancakes, sourdough toast, waffles, whether they’re frozen or homemade. This is a dinner that everyone is going to like and it’s going to be so memorable.
I would try to make sure to get some fruit or veggies in this meal as well. An easy way to do that is I like to dice up whatever veggies I have leftover from last night’s dinner, maybe mushrooms or asparagus, or throw in some torn up spinach leaves and scramble that up with my eggs. Or you could just serve some fruit. There’s nothing special about vegetables that fruit doesn’t have as well, right? Vitamin C, all the vitamins, antioxidants, fruit is just as good.
29) Ham and Cheese Sliders
We like to use the Hawaiian sweet rolls. They actually have ones that are pre-sliced now if you want to get those. You just take off the top half, leave them all connected, and put them in a casserole dish. Pile up your ingredients such as ham, turkey, and cheese, put the top back on, then you could mix up some sort of dressing on top. I like to do a butter and mustard glaze on top.
Then bake that, and when it comes out, you just have to use a knife to slice up each of the little sandwiches. They’re like pull apart sandwiches, and they’re so good, so delicious for a party or for dinner.
30) Sloppy Joes
Oh, I ate this so much as a kid. It’s such an easy meal. You need some hamburger buns of your choice, then you can use ground beef or ground turkey, some tomato sauce, and some Worcestershire. You could dice up some onions and green bell peppers, and some mushrooms would go really well and hide really well in the meat sauce too. Just serve that right on top of the hamburger bun.
If you didn’t add veggies to it, I’d go ahead and serve some veggies on the side. You could do some pickles, carrot sticks, coleslaw, or a salad, it’d be really easy.
31) Cheeseburger Casserole
Sure, why not? Anything can be a casserole. I think this is really fun with the ground beef or ground turkey, and you can use some pasta, tomato sauce, and cheese, and bake it all together. Super good. Serve it with some pickles, lettuce, and tomatoes, and there you go. It’s a cheeseburger in a casserole dish.
32) Chili Mac
So it’s like chili meets mac and cheese. Delicious, what could go wrong here? You could make your chili homemade, which is not hard to do, using ground beef or ground turkey. You could add lots of veggies to chili, I like to add celery, carrots, and mushrooms all diced up. Or no shame in grabbing a can of chili, that’s fine too and sometimes that works in a pinch.
Then you can combine that with some macaroni, truthfully whatever shape of pasta you have, and it’s so good together. Of course, I’d put lots of sharp cheddar cheese on top of this. If you didn’t add veggies to your chili, I would serve some veggies or a side salad along with it.
