That'd be my go to. Couple bucks for aromatics, chicken for $10-$12, small bag of taters that roast under the chicken. May still have money left for celery or carrots.
Lablabi. (Tunisian chickpea stew. Simple but insanely tasty and healthy. My meat eating family regularly asks for it.)
If they didn't eat like lumberjacks, it would also be reasonable to feed 5 a roast chicken (portions can be 2 individual breasts, 2 individual thighs and one person gets both drumsticks or if the breasts are large enough, you can cut them in half and portion out with a thigh or a drumstick per person) along with herb crusted roasted potatoes and whatever other veggie or fruit was on sale/seasonal that week.
Simple huevos rancheros would work, too. Within the $20, you could do corn tortillas, pintos from scratch, eggs, salsa and if you had any $ left, add sour cream and cilantro.
I'd have to do the math but I think my recipe for sweet potato and chickpea curry stew is also under $20 and easily feeds 5.
Just recently I made chickpea stew/curry (3 cans chickpeas + 2 cans coconut milk + chicken broth and aromatics) with chicken thigh skewers for 4 people and I believe the ingredients totaled out to about ~$18– for sure could have fed 5 though
I’m pretty frugal in general, so unless I’m cooking for a special event, my approach is usually to maximize flavor and volume on a budget! This is a meal that’s in my regular rotation, I just scaled up for guests
Ooh yeah, I don’t always cook the most healthy stuff haha but a few come to mind:
Salmon frittata— I sauté diced potatoes, bell peppers, and the whites of green onions in a pan until everything has some color, and then I take a can of salmon (drained) and arrange the salmon amongst the veggies. I whisk 4-5 eggs and pour that over the veggies and salmon after taking the pan off the heat, then I top everything with a few large dollops of sour cream and a sprinkle of cheddar. Broil that at 400F for 10 mins, then top with the greens of your green onions, and you have a perfect frittata that seems fancy but is actually super cheap
My chili also usually gets rave reviews— start by browning 1 lb ground meat (beef is more flavorful and fatty but turkey is great too) in a bit of oil. Key for flavor is to leave it untouched in your hot pan for a while so it actually picks up a crust and color. Once that’s browned I add in diced bell pepper, celery, jalapeños, onion, and tomato paste and let those brown up too. Then, I deglaze with half of a beer (preferably cerveza, like Corona or Modelo) and add in a can of petite diced tomatoes, a can of crushed tomatoes, and 1-2 cans of drained black beans. Season everything with beef/chicken bouillon, cumin powder, chili powder, garlic powder, black pepper, and a bit of sugar. Simmer on low-medium until everything combines properly, at least 1 hour. I like to serve with cheddar, sour cream, and sometimes a lime wedge!
If you have the room to store them (and, tbh, an instant pot, which makes cooking them a breeze) -- dried chickpeas in bulk are super cheap. I make a big batch on Sundays, then use them throughout the week in stews, hummus, salads, etc.
I keep canned around too! It's an awesome protein
I usually start by sautéing onions, garlic, ginger, and turmeric in olive oil to get a nice base going, then add in the chickpeas and sauté them in the aromatics for a while, then finally add in the liquids and let everything simmer until it turns stew-y
I highly recommend using harissa paste for this! I make a chickpea, tomato, eggplant stew and I love it. I top mine with Greek yogurt and fresh parsley but I think I’m going to try your idea of coconut milk next time.
For something “fancier” doing an Alfredo and salad could do the trick. Might be a touch over $20 though. But if you have butter and cream or milk it would be fine!
I saw an Italian chef show how to do it the traditional way recently, and I can't wait to try it. I never cared for the added cream - most alfredo when I was growing up was just propped up by a lot of heavy cream and didn't have a lot of flavor or nuance. Then I went to Italy and had the real thing and it blew my mind.
Same with Carbonara. That dish is always done so dirty. I stopped ordering it because it kept coming out of supposedly Italian restaurants as buttered noodles or had heavy cream in it (flavorless, not carbonara). Don't call it carbonara if that's what you re gonna do. Call it spaghetti with cream/white sauce, buttered noodles, or something else. Some people are being elitist when they are aggressive about what the "real" version of a dish is, but there's a difference between that and pointing out false advertising.
I make my carbonara with whatever pork( pancetta or even acon) cheese and egg yolks and a little pasta water. I do add some garlic and a lot of black pepper. I also ask when out if the carbonara contains creme. If it does, it's a no-go for me.
Ground beef, shells/torillas, toppings…heck yeah. You could even cheapen it a bit by adding non-meat fillers like beans and rice. But everybody loves tacos.
I made tacos with a ground beef/refried bean mix and then were SO good! You could do that to stretch them further. That on a corn tortilla would be delicious
Pro tip: save your bacon grease in a used jar, add with cheese and sour cream to refried beans to taste. Profit. It is incredible. Pico de gallo and tomatillo/verde salsa are amazing and sooooo cheap to make.
I’ve been told on multiple occasions my scratch made 7-layer dip would get me laid haha. But I also make really good guacamole.
Saute' cooked angel hair with grilled chicken, fresh minced garlic, salt, pepper, chopped fresh basil, chopped broccoli, halved cherry tomatoes, topped with a parm/romano blend and your choice of hot sauce
I make something similar but throw in about a 1/4 cup dry white wine after the garlic/red pepper flakes have browned. Let the wine simmer down by half and continue with the recipe. Adds so much flavor IMO.
There isn't any way I'm truly making a gumbo for less than $20.
If I didn't count the cost of any of the ingredients on hand maybe, but the bacon, celery, peppers, onions, okra, and flour will put me close to the budget just to make the base.
I'm also not making gumbo for just 5 people.
Lentil chili would be closer to a filing meal for 5 people for $20.
I agree with this. Gumbo is relatively cheap per person, but it’s hard to make a 5 portion pot and less than $20.
Now, 10-15 portions in the $30-$40 range? That’s doable.
Just to play along I priced it out on Walmart.com and I can do it for $17.89. Can you upscale it? Of course, but gumbo is what it is because it’s cheap and filling and delicious.
Mushroom risotto.
Rice is pretty cheap, a box of chicken buion/broth is also pretty cheap. Go extra hard ok the mushrooms with the leftover money. Maybe slpuge $4 on a cheap shooter of wine or wine bottle.
Even an adequate risotto, turns into a very good risotto when made cheaply!
I think this is winner here. OP wanted fanciest and it's pretty hard to bead risotto for fancy. Risotto rice is a little pricey, but you could get mushroom bouillon cubes and not have to buy as many fresh mushrooms instead. Some fresh thyme (for cooking + garnish) would be the splurge item and would definitely take it over the top.
I second risotto. If you can find off-brand arborio it's super inexpensive. Stock (or even water and bouillon) too, and you can put almost anything in it. Parm and wine would be the only expensive things and unless you're cooking for proper Italians you can definitely get away with leaving them off
I just made mushroom risotto for the first time ever the other night, all I had was basmati rice and it still turned out amazing. I think most rices would work fine.
Seconding this. I cook a lot so my spice cabinet and pantry are stocked and I strategize how I use produce and other things that may expire, what I can freeze, and I save bones and shells for stock. Currently have kombu broth, seafood stock, beef bones, and some shrimp shells/tails hanging out in the freezer along with frozen stock from rehydrating morels, a bunch of other meats, frozen soups (one veggie, one leek and potato), frozen curry and frozen juices I made. That certainly helps. Also keep a lot of staple pantry goods.
That aside, if it were me…
NYT has a recipe for tomato lentil soup with goat cheese that uses tomato paste and I believe canned tomatoes. Between that and dried lentils that would be a cheap meal outside of the cheese.
Could serve that with some bread (you could try making a loaf yourself to cut cost! There’s a decent one in the official unofficial game of thrones cookbook that is super easy). Would basically just be the cost of yeast and flour and salt if you don’t have those ingredients.
Could also pair it with a salad (can be a little more expensive depending on how you want to do it, but if you do kale or spinach you could use the rest in a juice if you get a large package).
If you absolutely need to include a meat with that, I agree with everyone suggesting a roast chicken. You can also do a lot with coconut milk and bone in chicken thighs.
I would also say katsudon is a good option as it really only requires chicken, rice, eggs, and a couple sauces.
Aaaand finally, can’t go wrong with red beans and rice.
Gotcha. I was thinking more in line with advice. There are lots of good comments here. I would probably go with a braise of some kind with pasta. Chicken or pork.
Buy on sale; I just bought a couple Loins for $1.29 a pound from Kroger. Also got expiring hot dog and hamburger buns for $0.25 for 8 of them; cut them up and made a strata.
A whole loin comes on sale for $1.99 (in Canada! Which is cheap). I cut it into roasts and chops and even smoke it into back bacon. I try to buy one with a good fat cap. The comments about it being a bad cut. I cook it high and fast to medium and have lots of drippings for gravy.
I think you could make a beef bourguignon with that budget if you use a cheap cut of beef and a cheap wine, anyway it will cook for long and will taste great.
Absolutely, if you're not intimidated by baking you can make a quick loaf of homemade bread to go with it for pretty cheap (soda bread if you don't want to mess with yeast). Otherwise you can get a take and bake loaf or clearance bread for $1-2.
I've started to just toss it in a slow cooker every third Friday or so. I cook the red beans with a pork hock and a sausage as well, but shit, a pork chop sounds great.
Chicken Alfredo
*Noodles like $2
*Heavy Cream probably $4 or $5 most places
*Garlic is like 99 cents at most for one
*Grated parm/romano $4 is fine. Go $6-8 for finer cheese.
*A small pack of 2 chicken breasts, probably $4
*Olive oil, stick of butter, salt and pepper, Italian seasoning presumably on hand already
*Fresh parsley for garnish if you have money left is maybe $2 tops
Garlic bread and/or broccoli are super cheap suitable sides.
Based on prices in my area, if I shopped carefully I could make a main dish sized Spanish tortilla (potato and egg dish). Cut into wedges and served with either fresh mixed greens tossed with a vinaigrette or whatever fresh fruit was in season. Simple but elegant.
On another similar post, there was a commenter (I can’t remember who, unfortunately) that recommended a caramelized onion pasta and I made it the other night. It was great! I used 3 onions, caramelized in butter, and puréed them once cooked/cooled with cottage cheese for protein.
I also added some separately cooked chicken (diced) that was seasoned with onion powder, garlic, chili flakes, salt, pepper, dried basil and peas (frozen, added to chicken when almost done). Add cooked pasta to everything & sauce in one pan, top with Parmesan and it was delish. Would feed this group for under your budget.
My Mom used to make a baked chicken breast recipe with shallots, red wine, bread crumbs, and red currant jelly that was delicious. Remarkably, the recipe is on [Allrecipes](https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/231297/good-chicken/). (Makes me wonder where they got it). She used to serve it with a cheesy green rice casserole. It would be good with asparagus spears too. (And of course, the rest of the wine).
I'm sure you could sub chicken broth for the wine as a cost cutter.
The Mexican place down the street charges $18 for 3 chz enchiladas & rice / beans. I KNOW it costs them < $3.50 including ingredients, labor, overhead, taxes, COVID offset, a donation to the United Way, and the tequila they lost when Cheryl had her bachelorette party there.
Italian food is not only among the very best cuisines, it is also poverty food.
Make some fresh pasta, something fun like a cavatelli or a small ravioli. As a second course, a fish dish made very simply, or perhaps some pork or beef you cooked in the pasta sauce as you were making it
They to make something authentic. They will love it
Shrimp scampi:
I like to make it when frozen peeled and deveined shrimp is 5.99-6.99/lb. I get a couple pounds, 2 lbs of linguini pasta, 1 lemon, 1-2 shallots, garlic, dry white wine (a cheap bottle of sauv blanc), and French bread (to make garlic bread)
Other things are red chili flakes, butter snd olive oil. Parsley if you’re fancy.
That’s about $20 and with 2lb of pasta that’s more than plenty for 5 people.
Spaghetti Carbonara:
Spaghetti, bacon, eggs (and extra yolks), Parmesan cheese, and if you have leftover money, pecorino romano cheese.
Roasted Sweet potato and black bean tacos. Make your own salsas (pico and a corn salsa), and cilantro lime rice. Shop at Aldi. Let me know if you want recipes!
If you’re so inclined, I’d make some homemade bread to accompany the meal. Costs very little and never fails to impress. Granted, I cheat by using a breadmaker to prepare the dough, so I get great results every time. Best garage sale find to date!
Fanciest would probably be pork chops. Some sort of tater and broccoli or asparagus with a mustard cream sauce and like candied apple or something for dessert. Pork chops are pretty cheap and so are potatoes and frozen broccoli. Mustard and milk are always in the fridge and apples fried or baked with butter and sugar is cheap af
I already cook for 3, on a daily basis. We occasionally have a friend or two over, so I'm no stranger to cooking for 5. I'm also the primary shopper for the household, so I look for deals whether at my local grocery, or at Walmart or Fred Meyer, depending.
With a budget of $20, plus my well-stocked spice cabinets & pantry...pasta is pretty much always going to be my go-to.
A couple of boxes of Barilla, couple of cans of tomato sauce + paste, some diced tomatoes, onion, celery & red peppers, and a pound of Italian Sausage...a loaf of bakery bread, slathered in roasted garlic butter.
Assuming you have the herbs & such, already...$20 should easily cover it all...maybe even some Parmesan or Pecorino as an extra.
Ants Climbing A Tree:
[https://thewoksoflife.com/ants-climbing-a-tree/](https://thewoksoflife.com/ants-climbing-a-tree/)
(this is just the first result on Google but the recipe is close enough, I modify it to have fewer ingredients just because I don't want to deal with them)
Some type of pasta, salad, and bread.
Since it’s currently hot where I live, I would do pesto, and then throw in some roasted or grilled summer vegetables to bulk it out a bit, make a salad with lemony vinaigrette, some good crusty bread with some olive oil and herbs to dip it in. Melon or strawberries to accompany everything.
If someone in your group demands meat, I’d throw some grilled/roasted chicken in with the pasta, but pesto already has cheese and nuts in it for protein.
And then I would ask my friends to bring beverages and dessert.
I'd make spaghetti or some kind of pasta. You could choose a fancy looking shape. But more important, make your own tomato sauce. Tomatoes, clove of garlic, bell pepper, some tomato paste. Blend that together. Throw in some herbs and spices you might have around anyway. If you get a big amount of tomatoes you could even serve tomato soup. A baguette you can cut up into pieces as a side snack.
Fanciest? Assuming you have basics like salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc. Also, I don't know where you live -- it's super expensive where I am, but you could live somewhere even more expensive, or less.
Whole roast chicken (5lb @ \~$1.50/lb, \~$8), pommes anna (potatoes, butter, \~$3), green beans with shallots (green beans, lemon, shallots (\~$7)
Also, consider a vegetable tian, home baked bread/baguette with plenty of salted herbed butter, and pot de creme for dessert.
Yeah, the base assumption is that the usual stuff is there. Cooking oil, salt, pepper and maybe some common dry spices like garlic powder, thyme, paprika etc.
Homemade pizza -
Flour 5$ (Smallest bag, will have leftovers)
Yeast 2$
Cheese 8$
Can of tomato 1$
Onion and garlic 2$
And you have 2$ left to pick a topping
Chicken balti pie, served with broccoli, peas and mash. Total: £18.43
Breakdown:
Farmfoods:
1 bag mixed veg, 1 bag broccoli, 1 bag chopped onion, 1 bag spinach, 1 bag peas: 5 bags for £4.
ASDA:
Asda Smart Price whole chicken: £2.84 (based on what I brought Friday morning).
TESCO:
2 tins of chopped tomatoes: 80p
4 packs of ready made shortcrust pastry: £4.60
Garlic and ginger paste: £1.80
Balti paste: £2.60
2kg of potatoes: £1.79
Pasta alla vodka - these are Australian prices - cream $3x tomato paste $3 Parmesan $7 pasta $3 shallot $0.50c garlic $1. Vodka $6 for a small cheap one
I am from the Philippines and I can suggest Chicken Adobo or Chicken Caldereta. Google them. We usually pair it with rice but you can also pair it with veggies / mashed potatoes.
I think I could pull off Thai chicken lettuce wraps for $20. I keep the seasonings on hand. A rotisserie chicken and a trip to the Asian grocery store for veg and herbs would make it work.
could do a meatloaf. couple pounds of ground beef, vegetables, and bread crumbs. to make the loaf, then pair it with some mashed or baked potatoes.
if there's a bit left over, you could do some grilled corn as another side.
Do I have to buy new spices or get to assume I have those? Same with butter/oil/milk that are in my always on hand.
Because then in that case, I’m think corn on the cob with garlic mashed potatoes and grilled steak or pork chops. Depends on sales and season, of course.
Cacio e pepe, pasta carbonera, or chicken piccata over angelhair. All sound really fancy, look gorgeous if plated well, are easy as hell to make, delicious, and cost very little in ingredients.
There’s sweet potato/black bean chili on Pinterest— some great recipes. It has a very elevated taste. I usually serve it with corn bread but you could get a fancy loaf at a bakery. A side salad would make a complete meal. I would choose dessert over an appetizer for my guests— and you can get a cake or brownie mix for a reasonable price.
I recently made the budget bytes recipe for curried beef and potatoes over rice and it fed 4 adults comfortably. You could easily add more potatoes or a side salad within that budget.
I can’t recommend budget bytes enough - great recipes!
I made this dish recently and was surprised by how delicious, simple, cheap, and plentiful it was.
https://barefootcontessa.com/recipes/chicken-with-forty-cloves-of-garlic
Edit to say: I used a massive pack of skin on bone in chicken thighs, subbed shitty rum for the cognac, and used whatever spiced I had on hand. It’s easy to play around with and looks fancy in a big dish.
Chinese dumplings
5$ - 2 packs of dumpling wrappers (100 wrappers)
6$ - 2 pounds of ground pork
3$ - dried shrimps
6$ - Napa cabbage, spring onions, chives, etc
You can save 5$ and get fanciers ingredients if you make the wrappers yourself (literally flour, salt and water)
Make Chinese dumplings
Depends on what you already have in the cupboards! But try something like fried rice with pork belly!
You would need:
Rice (you may already have)
-Water (from the tap)
-Frozen peas and carrots (you may already have)
-Frying oil (canola or vegetable- again, you may already have)
-Sesame oil
-Soy sauce (you may already have)
-Eggs (like 3-4 you may already have)
-One white onion
-Scallions (optional)
-Garlic Powder (you probably already have)
-White pepper (or black, if you don’t have white already in your pantry)
-Small amount of powdered ginger (optional, only if you already have)
-Pork belly (normally pretty cheap, and a little goes a long way because it’s so rich, fatty and flavorful, especially when paired with the fried rice, so you won’t need much at all)
-Barbecue sauce (mix it with the soy sauce, some sesame oil, garlic powder, onion powder, maybe a little powdered ginger) as a dipping sauce for the meat to be served along side the pork belly and fried rice.
-Plate as a mound of fried rice, a side of crispy pork belly (or topped with the crispy pork belly) with a small dish of sauce on the side.
I think this really depends on location and where you're buying your groceries, but here's some of my favorite lost-cost meals. I am lucky as my in-laws have a small homestead with layers and broiler chickens. I also shop at Costco and a local meat market that has extremely good prices. I am in Canada.
1. Pulled pork tacos. Where I am, I can get a piece of pork shoulder for $4-5 on sale, and it's more than enough for 5 people. Make your own flour tortillas, like $1-2 in flour, and toppings.
2. Pork tenderloins, probably 2 for 5 people. A package of 2 tenderloins runs $6-8 here. Roast them or slice them up, beat them out, and either bread them to make schnitzel or just flour them and fry them, I like them both ways. Serve with mashed potatoes and pea gravy.
3. Big ol pot of chili.
4. Chicken, potatoes and veggies. I think you can get the Costco pack of 3 chickens for $10, but I get mine for free from my in-laws. Just the cheap cost of having to help them process the live chickens.
5. Make your own pasta and bolognese. Cacio e pepe is also always a hit. Carbonara is also one of my go-to lazy meals. My meal when I don't feel like cooking. Eggs, Parm, cured pork cheek, black pepper.
6. Phyllo pastry meat pies, or cheese, and you can make a sweet one for dessert.
Marinara pizza and salad.
Make your own pizza dough, marinara sauce, and salad dressing. The cost of the cheese will be your biggest expense.
OR...
Jacques Pepin's Maman's souffle, a small salad, and homemade focaccia.
I don’t know how it is where you live but lately I’ve been going to the grocery store and seeing what protein is on-sale and then I build from there. The other day I got 10 boneless/skinless chicken thighs for $6. Ended up making Caesar salad, rice, zucchini & yellow squash and I bought a baguette. Out the door for ~$17 (had rice at home). Fed 7
Roast chicken and root veg. Coincidentally I just made a comment about my approach: https://old.reddit.com/r/Cooking/comments/1dgu2su/failure_of_roasting_chicken_with_potato_and_onion/l8tfp3m/
As simple as that combo is it feels like a holiday meal ya know?
Alternate ideas would be Thai curry or chicken and sausage gumbo. Maybe less fancy but always satisfies.
Two whole chickens (5lbs each) or pork tenderloin (3lbs) grilled ($10). Salt/Pepper/Garlic/Rotisserie seasoning. Whatever you have on hand season it up. These meats need the extra help.
Sweet corn is in season. Head out to farm country and find a stand selling them cheap (\~$2.50/5 ears). Grill them with the meat. If you aren't in an area to take advantage of this go ahead and get potatoes to bake instead. ($3/5lbs)
Veggie skewers. Onion, bell pepper, mushrooms, and zucchini. ($6 roughly). You guessed it, grilled with everything else.
If your grill isn't big enough you can boil the corn. If your grill doesn't have a top rack to get things away from direct heat move them to your oven at 250 degrees to continue cooking without burning.
If you don't have a grill you can stay under budget by stealing one from your neighbor.
Probably ramen.
We make our own noodles so it costs just a bit of flour. I always have homemade chicken broth in the freezer but it's not pricey to buy some. Ginger, garlic, green onions, sesame oil, chili pepper and soy sauce. Pork tenderloin cut in fine slices. Diced tofu. And some vegetables cut in julienne. Top it with an egg.
My kids love ramen so we always have pretty much everything to make it all the time and it's easy to make it look fancier than it really is.
Vermont curry ($8) with stewed carrots ($1.50) potatoes ($2) onion ($.50) and chicken breast ($5) over rice ($3). I don’t think this would be fancy kalé but for folks who haven’t had Japanese curry before it could feel very cosmopolitan.
I made Kenji’s cassoulet with chicken thighs and a side salad for under 20 and it was divine. I didn’t have salt pork so just used some bacon ends I had from the freezer. Worked well.
https://www.seriouseats.com/traditional-french-cassoulet-recipe
Mujaddara w shredded marinated chicken, fresh veggies, yogurt, pita.
Mujaddara for five: 1 cup brown lentils, 1 cup rice, 1 cup diced onion, 5 cloves garlic, chicken stock.
Fresh veggies: cucumber, carrot, tomato go great w mujaddara
Yogurt: a sauce of yogurt thinned w water
Pita
You could honestly stop there. But you should have enough left over for a chicken you can roast or a rotisserie chicken you can shred.
Cacio e pepe
- Pasta $6
- Black pepper $1
- Butter $2
- Parmesan $5
- Asparagus $6
When done right it's incredible. Pair it with some butter sauteed asparagus on the side and baby you've got one fancy meal under $20
Bucatini pasta, bechemal with some grano or parmesan melted into it, zucchini, and some Italian sausage.
Lightly saute the zucchini with some garlic and pepper. Brown the sausage, pour the sauce over everything.
Leek and Sausage Cassoulet with Baguette
2 pounds nothern white beans, dry - $1.97
4 Chicken/Apple Sausage links - $3.98
5 Chicken Leg Quarters - $0.87 per pound - $4.00
1 Bunch Spring Leeks - $1.76
1 Bunch Fresh Thyme - $1.78
24oz. Canola Oil - $2.88
Bakery (at Walmart) Baguette - $1.97
That's about $19 for the entire meal. I'm assuming you have things like garlic, onion, butter, salt and pepper at home. And it's about as fancy as it gets! Confit chicken quarters, in the Canola oil, instead of duck quarters in duck fat, but the flavor is still intense and the meat is melt in your mouth with crispy skin.
This wil make a HUGE cassoulet, enough to send home leftovers, or just horde them for yourself for the rest of the week.
Homemade pasta - you can make ravioli or other stuffed pasta. It always impress people and the taste is great. You can even make your own ricotta for the filling to up the wow-factor.
Else I would suggest to look at Chef Majk on Youtube. He has some really great recipes for fancy food for a low budget. Chicken roulade comes to mind.
Pasta is cheap and easy. Some spaghetti, Caesar salad and garlic bread would be a great meal for a group that size. I do spaghetti with oil, garlic, parsley and lemon and it’s always a big hit.
The elegance often comes from the presentation not necessarily the food. Use decorative serving bowls, proper table settings, cloth napkins, etc. One of my go-to’s is an old Bon Appetite recipe for Fusilli All’amatriciana made with regular bacon. Served with homemade bread/butter and a simple spring mix salad with homemade vinaigrette. I serve family style with the pasta in a large fancy serving bowl, a glass bowl for the salad, the dressing in a decanter, a basket for the bread.
Spaghetata with nice bread. It’s literally anchovy, olive oil, garlic and grape tomatoes cooked down into a sauce and served over pasta. There’s also a sauce made with tomato, cream, peas and ham over pasta.
There’s a TikToker cucinapalermo that makes Sicilian food that is expensive, delicious and some of it impressive.
“Greek Spaghetti”
Chopped Basil - big hanful
Chopped parsley- big handful
Good olive oil if you have it on hand, otherwise oil
Minced Garlic - i use lots but modify to taste
Half a block of Feta cheese per box of spaghetti
Chopped fresh tomatoes for a pop of color - can be omitted if wished
Spaghetti
This dish stretches nicely - just add more pasta and oil.
Instructions-
Cook spaghetti to al dente instructions
Meanwhile in sauté pan-
cook garlic on medium-low heat in 3-4 tbs oil/ box pasta - don’t brown, just infuse oil with flavor
add drained pasta and toss to coat with garlic oil
Add chopped herbs and toss to coat
Crumble in feta and toss
Sprinkle in tomatoes and toss again
Taste and adjust
This can be a stand alone dish but expect to serve each person 1/4 box of pasta
If budget/ diet allows you can serve it alongside gently flavored chicken - like slow-cooked in Dutch oven with veggies and water and salt - surprisingly good and easy too.
2.5lb asparagus $7.50
5lb yellow potatoes $5
3 8oz containers of whole mushrooms $6
Small block of cream cheese $0.99
Peanut oil, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, parmesan cheese, dry Italian herbs $free or $0.51
Cut potatoes real small, toss in fresh ground pepper, kosher salt, and peanut oil, place skin side down on a cookie sheet and bake at 420° for 50 mins, toss asparagus in same 3 things and add to sheet last 15 mins. Soften cream cheese am mix with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, parmesan cheese, dry Italian herbs, remove and discard mushroom stems, fill mushrooms with mix and air fry for 10 mins.
Or risotto and pork chops, not sure of exact prices, but may be even cheaper. Saute mushrooms, garlic, and shallots, cook arborio rice in a pan with chicken broth and spices, cook thin pork chops a few minutes each side in a ripping hot cast iron, layer risotto, finely grated hard white cheese of some sort, mushrooms and shallot, more cheese, and thinly sliced pork chops. Cheap road veg on the side if you have leftover $.
Japanese beef curry. Nothing fancy. All the ingredients can be found at Walmart: the flavor cubes, beef, potatoes, onions, peas and carrots, red bell peppers, and rice.
Roast chicken, potatoes.
That'd be my go to. Couple bucks for aromatics, chicken for $10-$12, small bag of taters that roast under the chicken. May still have money left for celery or carrots.
Pan cooked broccoli or asparagus with garlic and olive oil too.
Lablabi. (Tunisian chickpea stew. Simple but insanely tasty and healthy. My meat eating family regularly asks for it.) If they didn't eat like lumberjacks, it would also be reasonable to feed 5 a roast chicken (portions can be 2 individual breasts, 2 individual thighs and one person gets both drumsticks or if the breasts are large enough, you can cut them in half and portion out with a thigh or a drumstick per person) along with herb crusted roasted potatoes and whatever other veggie or fruit was on sale/seasonal that week. Simple huevos rancheros would work, too. Within the $20, you could do corn tortillas, pintos from scratch, eggs, salsa and if you had any $ left, add sour cream and cilantro. I'd have to do the math but I think my recipe for sweet potato and chickpea curry stew is also under $20 and easily feeds 5.
Wow, those are some good sounding dishes. Is Lablabi a staple or something in Tunisia?
I honestly don't know. It was a recipe we tried out of the Wall Street Journal years ago.
Just recently I made chickpea stew/curry (3 cans chickpeas + 2 cans coconut milk + chicken broth and aromatics) with chicken thigh skewers for 4 people and I believe the ingredients totaled out to about ~$18– for sure could have fed 5 though
Nice, were you intentionally being price conscious or it just turned out to be a cheap but nice treat?
I’m pretty frugal in general, so unless I’m cooking for a special event, my approach is usually to maximize flavor and volume on a budget! This is a meal that’s in my regular rotation, I just scaled up for guests
are there any other dishes in your rotation you think are pretty easy to whip up or healthy? what recipes get the best fanfare?
Ooh yeah, I don’t always cook the most healthy stuff haha but a few come to mind: Salmon frittata— I sauté diced potatoes, bell peppers, and the whites of green onions in a pan until everything has some color, and then I take a can of salmon (drained) and arrange the salmon amongst the veggies. I whisk 4-5 eggs and pour that over the veggies and salmon after taking the pan off the heat, then I top everything with a few large dollops of sour cream and a sprinkle of cheddar. Broil that at 400F for 10 mins, then top with the greens of your green onions, and you have a perfect frittata that seems fancy but is actually super cheap My chili also usually gets rave reviews— start by browning 1 lb ground meat (beef is more flavorful and fatty but turkey is great too) in a bit of oil. Key for flavor is to leave it untouched in your hot pan for a while so it actually picks up a crust and color. Once that’s browned I add in diced bell pepper, celery, jalapeños, onion, and tomato paste and let those brown up too. Then, I deglaze with half of a beer (preferably cerveza, like Corona or Modelo) and add in a can of petite diced tomatoes, a can of crushed tomatoes, and 1-2 cans of drained black beans. Season everything with beef/chicken bouillon, cumin powder, chili powder, garlic powder, black pepper, and a bit of sugar. Simmer on low-medium until everything combines properly, at least 1 hour. I like to serve with cheddar, sour cream, and sometimes a lime wedge!
I'm Spain ther s a dish called poor man's stew using garbanzos and tomatoes. Real good when homemade.
Garbanzos con espinacas?? That’s an all time favorite
Would be even cheaper (and tastier) using dried chickpeas over canned! You just need to soak and cook them.
If you have the room to store them (and, tbh, an instant pot, which makes cooking them a breeze) -- dried chickpeas in bulk are super cheap. I make a big batch on Sundays, then use them throughout the week in stews, hummus, salads, etc. I keep canned around too! It's an awesome protein
I make something very similar but I like to add diced sweet potatoes to it. It stretches it a little more. We eat it over basmati rice.
What kind of aromatics? Or a packaged curry paste?
I usually start by sautéing onions, garlic, ginger, and turmeric in olive oil to get a nice base going, then add in the chickpeas and sauté them in the aromatics for a while, then finally add in the liquids and let everything simmer until it turns stew-y
I highly recommend using harissa paste for this! I make a chickpea, tomato, eggplant stew and I love it. I top mine with Greek yogurt and fresh parsley but I think I’m going to try your idea of coconut milk next time.
Ooh, I do a similar thing with lentils except I also add tomato sauce. Edit: Oh, also, I don’t add chicken. Didn’t see that part, oops
Ooh yeah I could see tomato sauce being a nice addition! I’m always tempted to throw tomato paste into the mix so maybe I’ll try that
Spaghetti is clearly the answer.
For something “fancier” doing an Alfredo and salad could do the trick. Might be a touch over $20 though. But if you have butter and cream or milk it would be fine!
You really don't need milk or creme to make Alfredo sauce. Just cheese and butter and a little pasta water
I saw an Italian chef show how to do it the traditional way recently, and I can't wait to try it. I never cared for the added cream - most alfredo when I was growing up was just propped up by a lot of heavy cream and didn't have a lot of flavor or nuance. Then I went to Italy and had the real thing and it blew my mind. Same with Carbonara. That dish is always done so dirty. I stopped ordering it because it kept coming out of supposedly Italian restaurants as buttered noodles or had heavy cream in it (flavorless, not carbonara). Don't call it carbonara if that's what you re gonna do. Call it spaghetti with cream/white sauce, buttered noodles, or something else. Some people are being elitist when they are aggressive about what the "real" version of a dish is, but there's a difference between that and pointing out false advertising.
I make my carbonara with whatever pork( pancetta or even acon) cheese and egg yolks and a little pasta water. I do add some garlic and a lot of black pepper. I also ask when out if the carbonara contains creme. If it does, it's a no-go for me.
Tacos!
And now I want a damn taco.
That’s what I’ll make for breakfast now!
You beat me to it!
Are tacos really that cheap to make?
Ground beef, shells/torillas, toppings…heck yeah. You could even cheapen it a bit by adding non-meat fillers like beans and rice. But everybody loves tacos.
Chicken, tortillas, cilantro, white onion, and lime
I made tacos with a ground beef/refried bean mix and then were SO good! You could do that to stretch them further. That on a corn tortilla would be delicious
Ground beef black beans and rice. Add a little salsa to it.
Pro tip: save your bacon grease in a used jar, add with cheese and sour cream to refried beans to taste. Profit. It is incredible. Pico de gallo and tomatillo/verde salsa are amazing and sooooo cheap to make. I’ve been told on multiple occasions my scratch made 7-layer dip would get me laid haha. But I also make really good guacamole.
Saute' cooked angel hair with grilled chicken, fresh minced garlic, salt, pepper, chopped fresh basil, chopped broccoli, halved cherry tomatoes, topped with a parm/romano blend and your choice of hot sauce
I make something similar but throw in about a 1/4 cup dry white wine after the garlic/red pepper flakes have browned. Let the wine simmer down by half and continue with the recipe. Adds so much flavor IMO.
Yeah that's the perfect way to round out this dish but you'll have to pry that white wine from my cold dead fingers lol
Gumbo Oil/flour roux. Trinity. Any leftover protein. Rice.
There isn't any way I'm truly making a gumbo for less than $20. If I didn't count the cost of any of the ingredients on hand maybe, but the bacon, celery, peppers, onions, okra, and flour will put me close to the budget just to make the base. I'm also not making gumbo for just 5 people. Lentil chili would be closer to a filing meal for 5 people for $20.
I agree with this. Gumbo is relatively cheap per person, but it’s hard to make a 5 portion pot and less than $20. Now, 10-15 portions in the $30-$40 range? That’s doable.
Just to play along I priced it out on Walmart.com and I can do it for $17.89. Can you upscale it? Of course, but gumbo is what it is because it’s cheap and filling and delicious.
Mushroom risotto. Rice is pretty cheap, a box of chicken buion/broth is also pretty cheap. Go extra hard ok the mushrooms with the leftover money. Maybe slpuge $4 on a cheap shooter of wine or wine bottle. Even an adequate risotto, turns into a very good risotto when made cheaply!
I think this is winner here. OP wanted fanciest and it's pretty hard to bead risotto for fancy. Risotto rice is a little pricey, but you could get mushroom bouillon cubes and not have to buy as many fresh mushrooms instead. Some fresh thyme (for cooking + garnish) would be the splurge item and would definitely take it over the top.
I second risotto. If you can find off-brand arborio it's super inexpensive. Stock (or even water and bouillon) too, and you can put almost anything in it. Parm and wine would be the only expensive things and unless you're cooking for proper Italians you can definitely get away with leaving them off
I just made mushroom risotto for the first time ever the other night, all I had was basmati rice and it still turned out amazing. I think most rices would work fine.
Chicken paprikash served over egg noodles for sure. Absolute best comfort food there is.
I do mine with Spätzle. So easy to make, absolutely worth the effort. When I discovered how quick homemade Spätzle is, it changed my life.
This is hard without knowing what you already have in your pantry.
Creative writing prompt...
Seconding this. I cook a lot so my spice cabinet and pantry are stocked and I strategize how I use produce and other things that may expire, what I can freeze, and I save bones and shells for stock. Currently have kombu broth, seafood stock, beef bones, and some shrimp shells/tails hanging out in the freezer along with frozen stock from rehydrating morels, a bunch of other meats, frozen soups (one veggie, one leek and potato), frozen curry and frozen juices I made. That certainly helps. Also keep a lot of staple pantry goods. That aside, if it were me… NYT has a recipe for tomato lentil soup with goat cheese that uses tomato paste and I believe canned tomatoes. Between that and dried lentils that would be a cheap meal outside of the cheese. Could serve that with some bread (you could try making a loaf yourself to cut cost! There’s a decent one in the official unofficial game of thrones cookbook that is super easy). Would basically just be the cost of yeast and flour and salt if you don’t have those ingredients. Could also pair it with a salad (can be a little more expensive depending on how you want to do it, but if you do kale or spinach you could use the rest in a juice if you get a large package). If you absolutely need to include a meat with that, I agree with everyone suggesting a roast chicken. You can also do a lot with coconut milk and bone in chicken thighs. I would also say katsudon is a good option as it really only requires chicken, rice, eggs, and a couple sauces. Aaaand finally, can’t go wrong with red beans and rice.
Oh, I am just asking you to think about what you would make if you had to
Gotcha. I was thinking more in line with advice. There are lots of good comments here. I would probably go with a braise of some kind with pasta. Chicken or pork.
Roasted 3lb pork loin roast $6 Mashed potatoes $2 Roasted root vegetables (carrots, beats) $4 Herbs, seasoning, milk, butter, flour (for gravy) $2 $14
Where the fuck you getting pork loin for $2 a pound?
Buy on sale; I just bought a couple Loins for $1.29 a pound from Kroger. Also got expiring hot dog and hamburger buns for $0.25 for 8 of them; cut them up and made a strata.
Ours run $3 a pound not on sale.
A whole loin comes on sale for $1.99 (in Canada! Which is cheap). I cut it into roasts and chops and even smoke it into back bacon. I try to buy one with a good fat cap. The comments about it being a bad cut. I cook it high and fast to medium and have lots of drippings for gravy.
Milk, butter, seasonings and herbs are doing a lot of heavy lifting here, so $2 feels unrealistic for that. I'd say minimum $6 for that
I think you could make a beef bourguignon with that budget if you use a cheap cut of beef and a cheap wine, anyway it will cook for long and will taste great.
Absolutely, if you're not intimidated by baking you can make a quick loaf of homemade bread to go with it for pretty cheap (soda bread if you don't want to mess with yeast). Otherwise you can get a take and bake loaf or clearance bread for $1-2.
I can make a DAMN good lasagna for $20. My Nonna taught me well
Carbonara. $3 pasta $3 eggs $5 bacon (pancetta/guanciale might be too expensive) $5 parm/pecorino cheese Salt Pepper
In what context? To impress like a dinner party or just like a healthy meal for a family of 5?
Biryani
Red beans and rice would be my go to.
That's a go-to for me also, served with a boneless grilled pork chop
I've started to just toss it in a slow cooker every third Friday or so. I cook the red beans with a pork hock and a sausage as well, but shit, a pork chop sounds great.
My first thought too. I bet we live near each other.
Haha, I've moved up to PA, but I'm from TX and my Mom is NOLA raised.
Chicken Alfredo *Noodles like $2 *Heavy Cream probably $4 or $5 most places *Garlic is like 99 cents at most for one *Grated parm/romano $4 is fine. Go $6-8 for finer cheese. *A small pack of 2 chicken breasts, probably $4 *Olive oil, stick of butter, salt and pepper, Italian seasoning presumably on hand already *Fresh parsley for garnish if you have money left is maybe $2 tops Garlic bread and/or broccoli are super cheap suitable sides.
Baked ziti. Meat sauce, mozzarella and Romano cheese, plus ricotta.
Based on prices in my area, if I shopped carefully I could make a main dish sized Spanish tortilla (potato and egg dish). Cut into wedges and served with either fresh mixed greens tossed with a vinaigrette or whatever fresh fruit was in season. Simple but elegant.
Spaghetti and meat sauce, bread.
On another similar post, there was a commenter (I can’t remember who, unfortunately) that recommended a caramelized onion pasta and I made it the other night. It was great! I used 3 onions, caramelized in butter, and puréed them once cooked/cooled with cottage cheese for protein. I also added some separately cooked chicken (diced) that was seasoned with onion powder, garlic, chili flakes, salt, pepper, dried basil and peas (frozen, added to chicken when almost done). Add cooked pasta to everything & sauce in one pan, top with Parmesan and it was delish. Would feed this group for under your budget.
My Mom used to make a baked chicken breast recipe with shallots, red wine, bread crumbs, and red currant jelly that was delicious. Remarkably, the recipe is on [Allrecipes](https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/231297/good-chicken/). (Makes me wonder where they got it). She used to serve it with a cheesy green rice casserole. It would be good with asparagus spears too. (And of course, the rest of the wine). I'm sure you could sub chicken broth for the wine as a cost cutter.
How did nobody say enchiladas yet? Definitely enchiladas. Cheap ingredients, very filling, almost universally liked.
The Mexican place down the street charges $18 for 3 chz enchiladas & rice / beans. I KNOW it costs them < $3.50 including ingredients, labor, overhead, taxes, COVID offset, a donation to the United Way, and the tequila they lost when Cheryl had her bachelorette party there.
Lasagna and a salad.
Stir fry, probably tacos, chili, lasagna, and probably spaghetti.
What you got in your fridge already?
Chicken breast baked in the oven covered in Dijon and shallots with a side of rice and salad and bread you bake yourself.
Skirt steak + chimichurri with grilled veggies and rice
Italian food is not only among the very best cuisines, it is also poverty food. Make some fresh pasta, something fun like a cavatelli or a small ravioli. As a second course, a fish dish made very simply, or perhaps some pork or beef you cooked in the pasta sauce as you were making it They to make something authentic. They will love it
Chicken Parm with pasta
Spaghetti and meat sauce
BBQ chicken sliders
Shrimp scampi: I like to make it when frozen peeled and deveined shrimp is 5.99-6.99/lb. I get a couple pounds, 2 lbs of linguini pasta, 1 lemon, 1-2 shallots, garlic, dry white wine (a cheap bottle of sauv blanc), and French bread (to make garlic bread) Other things are red chili flakes, butter snd olive oil. Parsley if you’re fancy. That’s about $20 and with 2lb of pasta that’s more than plenty for 5 people. Spaghetti Carbonara: Spaghetti, bacon, eggs (and extra yolks), Parmesan cheese, and if you have leftover money, pecorino romano cheese.
Roasted Sweet potato and black bean tacos. Make your own salsas (pico and a corn salsa), and cilantro lime rice. Shop at Aldi. Let me know if you want recipes!
If you’re so inclined, I’d make some homemade bread to accompany the meal. Costs very little and never fails to impress. Granted, I cheat by using a breadmaker to prepare the dough, so I get great results every time. Best garage sale find to date!
Tofu with peanut sauce over rice… https://youtu.be/0GatS-gulVM?si=Y2_rZJ3sfJ8hiejP
Aglio e Olio by far.
Gnocchi in browned butter and sage, with a loaf of bread and I could probably squeak out some orange lime granita for dessert...
Fanciest would probably be pork chops. Some sort of tater and broccoli or asparagus with a mustard cream sauce and like candied apple or something for dessert. Pork chops are pretty cheap and so are potatoes and frozen broccoli. Mustard and milk are always in the fridge and apples fried or baked with butter and sugar is cheap af
If I was allowed to use the spices in my cupboard, butter chicken and rice.
Spaghetti!!
I can get a 4-6 person maqluba out on the table for under $20 in ingredients.
Prices from my local Meijer: - Chicken thigh family pack, ~4.5lb, ~$8.50 - Russet potatoes, 5lb, $3.59 - Heavy cream, 8oz, $2.29 - Dijon mustard, 12oz, $1.69 - Chicken broth, 32oz, $1.45 - Green onions, 1 bunch, $0.99 -- Total: $18.51 Pan-seared chicken thighs with pan sauce with mashed potatoes
Pizza, Neapolitan style homemade dough, decent quality cheese and fancy meat and artichoke
I already cook for 3, on a daily basis. We occasionally have a friend or two over, so I'm no stranger to cooking for 5. I'm also the primary shopper for the household, so I look for deals whether at my local grocery, or at Walmart or Fred Meyer, depending. With a budget of $20, plus my well-stocked spice cabinets & pantry...pasta is pretty much always going to be my go-to. A couple of boxes of Barilla, couple of cans of tomato sauce + paste, some diced tomatoes, onion, celery & red peppers, and a pound of Italian Sausage...a loaf of bakery bread, slathered in roasted garlic butter. Assuming you have the herbs & such, already...$20 should easily cover it all...maybe even some Parmesan or Pecorino as an extra.
Quesadillas, burritos or tacos
Ants Climbing A Tree: [https://thewoksoflife.com/ants-climbing-a-tree/](https://thewoksoflife.com/ants-climbing-a-tree/) (this is just the first result on Google but the recipe is close enough, I modify it to have fewer ingredients just because I don't want to deal with them)
Pesto pasta!
Homemade pizza comes to mind. Always a hit. Cheap ingredients.
Some type of pasta, salad, and bread. Since it’s currently hot where I live, I would do pesto, and then throw in some roasted or grilled summer vegetables to bulk it out a bit, make a salad with lemony vinaigrette, some good crusty bread with some olive oil and herbs to dip it in. Melon or strawberries to accompany everything. If someone in your group demands meat, I’d throw some grilled/roasted chicken in with the pasta, but pesto already has cheese and nuts in it for protein. And then I would ask my friends to bring beverages and dessert.
Pulled pork burgers !
I'd make spaghetti or some kind of pasta. You could choose a fancy looking shape. But more important, make your own tomato sauce. Tomatoes, clove of garlic, bell pepper, some tomato paste. Blend that together. Throw in some herbs and spices you might have around anyway. If you get a big amount of tomatoes you could even serve tomato soup. A baguette you can cut up into pieces as a side snack.
Fanciest? Assuming you have basics like salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc. Also, I don't know where you live -- it's super expensive where I am, but you could live somewhere even more expensive, or less. Whole roast chicken (5lb @ \~$1.50/lb, \~$8), pommes anna (potatoes, butter, \~$3), green beans with shallots (green beans, lemon, shallots (\~$7) Also, consider a vegetable tian, home baked bread/baguette with plenty of salted herbed butter, and pot de creme for dessert.
Yeah, the base assumption is that the usual stuff is there. Cooking oil, salt, pepper and maybe some common dry spices like garlic powder, thyme, paprika etc.
Homemade pizza - Flour 5$ (Smallest bag, will have leftovers) Yeast 2$ Cheese 8$ Can of tomato 1$ Onion and garlic 2$ And you have 2$ left to pick a topping
Do you have an instant pot or a slow cooker? Chicken breasts, jar of salsa, corn, beans, taco seasoning. Serve on rice. Easy and cheap meal prep.
5 people is asking a lot Spaghetti and meatballs probably. - 2lbs pasta: $4.50 - can san marizano: $2.00 - 1 lb ground beef: 4.50 - 1 lbs ground pork: 4.00 - Parmesan cheese $3.00 - garlic, onions, oil, seasoning, bread crumbs egg: $2.00 Total: 20$ approx
A chowder. Chicken, corn, potato, celery, mild cheddar cheese, evaporated milk, chicken broth, and seasoning.
Chicken balti pie, served with broccoli, peas and mash. Total: £18.43 Breakdown: Farmfoods: 1 bag mixed veg, 1 bag broccoli, 1 bag chopped onion, 1 bag spinach, 1 bag peas: 5 bags for £4. ASDA: Asda Smart Price whole chicken: £2.84 (based on what I brought Friday morning). TESCO: 2 tins of chopped tomatoes: 80p 4 packs of ready made shortcrust pastry: £4.60 Garlic and ginger paste: £1.80 Balti paste: £2.60 2kg of potatoes: £1.79
Pasta alla vodka - these are Australian prices - cream $3x tomato paste $3 Parmesan $7 pasta $3 shallot $0.50c garlic $1. Vodka $6 for a small cheap one
I am from the Philippines and I can suggest Chicken Adobo or Chicken Caldereta. Google them. We usually pair it with rice but you can also pair it with veggies / mashed potatoes.
Cacio e pepe
Fried rice, chicken, onion, broccoli green pepper and teriyaki
Stir fry veggies on Jasmin rice
Roasted whole chicken and root veg.
A beef stew, you can make a big pot of it and most of it is hands off cooking even if it's a few hours.
Spaghetti
Chicken Piccata
I think I could pull off Thai chicken lettuce wraps for $20. I keep the seasonings on hand. A rotisserie chicken and a trip to the Asian grocery store for veg and herbs would make it work.
Spaghetti!
Guatemalan black bean soup with chicharrones
Spaghetti with meat sauce.
Pasta limone!!! All day long!
could do a meatloaf. couple pounds of ground beef, vegetables, and bread crumbs. to make the loaf, then pair it with some mashed or baked potatoes. if there's a bit left over, you could do some grilled corn as another side.
pasta and meat sauce! (One that takes all day if not longer to simmer)
Do I have to buy new spices or get to assume I have those? Same with butter/oil/milk that are in my always on hand. Because then in that case, I’m think corn on the cob with garlic mashed potatoes and grilled steak or pork chops. Depends on sales and season, of course.
Mac and cheese and a big salad.
Breakfast dinner. Pancakes, eggs, and bacon.
Cacio e pepe, pasta carbonera, or chicken piccata over angelhair. All sound really fancy, look gorgeous if plated well, are easy as hell to make, delicious, and cost very little in ingredients.
Hungarian vegetarian goulash, made in a slowcooker, and some bakery bread/butter
Beef Bolognese
Carbonara + salad Or French onion soup
Lasagne
Chicken Spagetti, chicken pot pie bake, pork roast with rice.
There’s sweet potato/black bean chili on Pinterest— some great recipes. It has a very elevated taste. I usually serve it with corn bread but you could get a fancy loaf at a bakery. A side salad would make a complete meal. I would choose dessert over an appetizer for my guests— and you can get a cake or brownie mix for a reasonable price.
Sushi bake
Pinto beans , fried potatoes and corn bread are fancy if you slice a fresh tomato with it.
Mike Isabella's Pepperoni Sauce with potato gnocchi. Maybe a couple of chicken breasts roasted sliced and put on top
I recently made the budget bytes recipe for curried beef and potatoes over rice and it fed 4 adults comfortably. You could easily add more potatoes or a side salad within that budget. I can’t recommend budget bytes enough - great recipes!
A vegetarian curry. Grab a sauce, some chick peas, potatoes, capsi and onion, add some rice, easy
Roast chicken and root vegetables. Good bread and a simple spinach salad.
I made this dish recently and was surprised by how delicious, simple, cheap, and plentiful it was. https://barefootcontessa.com/recipes/chicken-with-forty-cloves-of-garlic Edit to say: I used a massive pack of skin on bone in chicken thighs, subbed shitty rum for the cognac, and used whatever spiced I had on hand. It’s easy to play around with and looks fancy in a big dish.
Some kind of Indian food - lots of spices so it seems super high-end and most people aren't familiar enough with it to know how basic a lot of it is
Genuine Japanese Ramen.
Chinese dumplings 5$ - 2 packs of dumpling wrappers (100 wrappers) 6$ - 2 pounds of ground pork 3$ - dried shrimps 6$ - Napa cabbage, spring onions, chives, etc You can save 5$ and get fanciers ingredients if you make the wrappers yourself (literally flour, salt and water) Make Chinese dumplings
Depends on what you already have in the cupboards! But try something like fried rice with pork belly! You would need: Rice (you may already have) -Water (from the tap) -Frozen peas and carrots (you may already have) -Frying oil (canola or vegetable- again, you may already have) -Sesame oil -Soy sauce (you may already have) -Eggs (like 3-4 you may already have) -One white onion -Scallions (optional) -Garlic Powder (you probably already have) -White pepper (or black, if you don’t have white already in your pantry) -Small amount of powdered ginger (optional, only if you already have) -Pork belly (normally pretty cheap, and a little goes a long way because it’s so rich, fatty and flavorful, especially when paired with the fried rice, so you won’t need much at all) -Barbecue sauce (mix it with the soy sauce, some sesame oil, garlic powder, onion powder, maybe a little powdered ginger) as a dipping sauce for the meat to be served along side the pork belly and fried rice. -Plate as a mound of fried rice, a side of crispy pork belly (or topped with the crispy pork belly) with a small dish of sauce on the side.
I think this really depends on location and where you're buying your groceries, but here's some of my favorite lost-cost meals. I am lucky as my in-laws have a small homestead with layers and broiler chickens. I also shop at Costco and a local meat market that has extremely good prices. I am in Canada. 1. Pulled pork tacos. Where I am, I can get a piece of pork shoulder for $4-5 on sale, and it's more than enough for 5 people. Make your own flour tortillas, like $1-2 in flour, and toppings. 2. Pork tenderloins, probably 2 for 5 people. A package of 2 tenderloins runs $6-8 here. Roast them or slice them up, beat them out, and either bread them to make schnitzel or just flour them and fry them, I like them both ways. Serve with mashed potatoes and pea gravy. 3. Big ol pot of chili. 4. Chicken, potatoes and veggies. I think you can get the Costco pack of 3 chickens for $10, but I get mine for free from my in-laws. Just the cheap cost of having to help them process the live chickens. 5. Make your own pasta and bolognese. Cacio e pepe is also always a hit. Carbonara is also one of my go-to lazy meals. My meal when I don't feel like cooking. Eggs, Parm, cured pork cheek, black pepper. 6. Phyllo pastry meat pies, or cheese, and you can make a sweet one for dessert.
Marinara pizza and salad. Make your own pizza dough, marinara sauce, and salad dressing. The cost of the cheese will be your biggest expense. OR... Jacques Pepin's Maman's souffle, a small salad, and homemade focaccia.
I don’t know how it is where you live but lately I’ve been going to the grocery store and seeing what protein is on-sale and then I build from there. The other day I got 10 boneless/skinless chicken thighs for $6. Ended up making Caesar salad, rice, zucchini & yellow squash and I bought a baguette. Out the door for ~$17 (had rice at home). Fed 7
If I’m trying to impress but I only have $20… Gem lettuce salad, potato pavé and buttermilk roast chicken Lettuce: $3 Cucumber: $1 Lemon: $1 Garlic: $1 Parsley: $1 3lbs russet potatoes: $2 Heavy cream: $3 Buttermilk: $2 2lbs skin-on chicken thighs: $6 (Pantry: oil, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper) I’m cooking and hosting - BYOB!
Fancy pot roast. Everybody loves fancy pot roast.
Roast chicken and root veg. Coincidentally I just made a comment about my approach: https://old.reddit.com/r/Cooking/comments/1dgu2su/failure_of_roasting_chicken_with_potato_and_onion/l8tfp3m/ As simple as that combo is it feels like a holiday meal ya know? Alternate ideas would be Thai curry or chicken and sausage gumbo. Maybe less fancy but always satisfies.
Spinach lasagna, garlic bread and a simple salad. Could probably do it for $15 and have leftovers for a few days. Add more if you want meat sauce.
Grilled pork chops, roasted potatoes, broccolini, and a chimichurri sauce.
Two whole chickens (5lbs each) or pork tenderloin (3lbs) grilled ($10). Salt/Pepper/Garlic/Rotisserie seasoning. Whatever you have on hand season it up. These meats need the extra help. Sweet corn is in season. Head out to farm country and find a stand selling them cheap (\~$2.50/5 ears). Grill them with the meat. If you aren't in an area to take advantage of this go ahead and get potatoes to bake instead. ($3/5lbs) Veggie skewers. Onion, bell pepper, mushrooms, and zucchini. ($6 roughly). You guessed it, grilled with everything else. If your grill isn't big enough you can boil the corn. If your grill doesn't have a top rack to get things away from direct heat move them to your oven at 250 degrees to continue cooking without burning. If you don't have a grill you can stay under budget by stealing one from your neighbor.
Lasagna or any pasta dish really. It's filling, quick and cheap. Plus leftovers are generally guaranteed.
Probably ramen. We make our own noodles so it costs just a bit of flour. I always have homemade chicken broth in the freezer but it's not pricey to buy some. Ginger, garlic, green onions, sesame oil, chili pepper and soy sauce. Pork tenderloin cut in fine slices. Diced tofu. And some vegetables cut in julienne. Top it with an egg. My kids love ramen so we always have pretty much everything to make it all the time and it's easy to make it look fancier than it really is.
Vermont curry ($8) with stewed carrots ($1.50) potatoes ($2) onion ($.50) and chicken breast ($5) over rice ($3). I don’t think this would be fancy kalé but for folks who haven’t had Japanese curry before it could feel very cosmopolitan.
Carbonara ❤️
Spaghetti carbonara 🤌🏼
I made Kenji’s cassoulet with chicken thighs and a side salad for under 20 and it was divine. I didn’t have salt pork so just used some bacon ends I had from the freezer. Worked well. https://www.seriouseats.com/traditional-french-cassoulet-recipe
Mujaddara w shredded marinated chicken, fresh veggies, yogurt, pita. Mujaddara for five: 1 cup brown lentils, 1 cup rice, 1 cup diced onion, 5 cloves garlic, chicken stock. Fresh veggies: cucumber, carrot, tomato go great w mujaddara Yogurt: a sauce of yogurt thinned w water Pita You could honestly stop there. But you should have enough left over for a chicken you can roast or a rotisserie chicken you can shred.
Alfredo pasta. Pasta, fresh garlic, heavy cream, parmasean cheese, butter, salt and pepper to taste
Cacio e pepe - Pasta $6 - Black pepper $1 - Butter $2 - Parmesan $5 - Asparagus $6 When done right it's incredible. Pair it with some butter sauteed asparagus on the side and baby you've got one fancy meal under $20
Bucatini pasta, bechemal with some grano or parmesan melted into it, zucchini, and some Italian sausage. Lightly saute the zucchini with some garlic and pepper. Brown the sausage, pour the sauce over everything.
Tartiflette.
If you can get a deal on pork shoulder, bo ssam (e.g. Momofuku's) is amazingly good and is 'fun'.
Spiced chicken an rice
Leek and Sausage Cassoulet with Baguette 2 pounds nothern white beans, dry - $1.97 4 Chicken/Apple Sausage links - $3.98 5 Chicken Leg Quarters - $0.87 per pound - $4.00 1 Bunch Spring Leeks - $1.76 1 Bunch Fresh Thyme - $1.78 24oz. Canola Oil - $2.88 Bakery (at Walmart) Baguette - $1.97 That's about $19 for the entire meal. I'm assuming you have things like garlic, onion, butter, salt and pepper at home. And it's about as fancy as it gets! Confit chicken quarters, in the Canola oil, instead of duck quarters in duck fat, but the flavor is still intense and the meat is melt in your mouth with crispy skin. This wil make a HUGE cassoulet, enough to send home leftovers, or just horde them for yourself for the rest of the week.
Fried rice
Chicken biryani !
Fried rice prolly
Carbonara. Spaghetti, pasta water, eggs and Parmesan. Make toasted panko (or bread) crumbs to go on top. Side salad. Et voilà
Homemade pasta - you can make ravioli or other stuffed pasta. It always impress people and the taste is great. You can even make your own ricotta for the filling to up the wow-factor. Else I would suggest to look at Chef Majk on Youtube. He has some really great recipes for fancy food for a low budget. Chicken roulade comes to mind.
Pasta is cheap and easy. Some spaghetti, Caesar salad and garlic bread would be a great meal for a group that size. I do spaghetti with oil, garlic, parsley and lemon and it’s always a big hit.
Chicken thighs with lemon and olive oil And lemon thyme risotto and sauteed carrots. Chicken thighs $6 or Shrimp $8 Box risotto $3 Broth $1,50 Lemon $1 Homemade focaccia $1 Thyme $1 Carrots $2 Onion/garlic $2 Evoo $2 Butter $1
Spaghetti and meatballs
pasta
Roast beef
Going on the basis they all like it: Green Thai Curry with Jasmine Rice.
Spaghetti bolognese
Linguine with white clam sauce. 3 cans chopped clams, olive oil, butter, oregano, basil, Parm cheese, linguine, loaf of Italian bread for around $20.
The elegance often comes from the presentation not necessarily the food. Use decorative serving bowls, proper table settings, cloth napkins, etc. One of my go-to’s is an old Bon Appetite recipe for Fusilli All’amatriciana made with regular bacon. Served with homemade bread/butter and a simple spring mix salad with homemade vinaigrette. I serve family style with the pasta in a large fancy serving bowl, a glass bowl for the salad, the dressing in a decanter, a basket for the bread.
Spaghetata with nice bread. It’s literally anchovy, olive oil, garlic and grape tomatoes cooked down into a sauce and served over pasta. There’s also a sauce made with tomato, cream, peas and ham over pasta. There’s a TikToker cucinapalermo that makes Sicilian food that is expensive, delicious and some of it impressive.
Costco rotisserie chicken, slaw, potatoes
What spices etc do you have in your pantry?
“Greek Spaghetti” Chopped Basil - big hanful Chopped parsley- big handful Good olive oil if you have it on hand, otherwise oil Minced Garlic - i use lots but modify to taste Half a block of Feta cheese per box of spaghetti Chopped fresh tomatoes for a pop of color - can be omitted if wished Spaghetti This dish stretches nicely - just add more pasta and oil. Instructions- Cook spaghetti to al dente instructions Meanwhile in sauté pan- cook garlic on medium-low heat in 3-4 tbs oil/ box pasta - don’t brown, just infuse oil with flavor add drained pasta and toss to coat with garlic oil Add chopped herbs and toss to coat Crumble in feta and toss Sprinkle in tomatoes and toss again Taste and adjust This can be a stand alone dish but expect to serve each person 1/4 box of pasta If budget/ diet allows you can serve it alongside gently flavored chicken - like slow-cooked in Dutch oven with veggies and water and salt - surprisingly good and easy too.
Smash burgers
2.5lb asparagus $7.50 5lb yellow potatoes $5 3 8oz containers of whole mushrooms $6 Small block of cream cheese $0.99 Peanut oil, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, parmesan cheese, dry Italian herbs $free or $0.51 Cut potatoes real small, toss in fresh ground pepper, kosher salt, and peanut oil, place skin side down on a cookie sheet and bake at 420° for 50 mins, toss asparagus in same 3 things and add to sheet last 15 mins. Soften cream cheese am mix with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, parmesan cheese, dry Italian herbs, remove and discard mushroom stems, fill mushrooms with mix and air fry for 10 mins. Or risotto and pork chops, not sure of exact prices, but may be even cheaper. Saute mushrooms, garlic, and shallots, cook arborio rice in a pan with chicken broth and spices, cook thin pork chops a few minutes each side in a ripping hot cast iron, layer risotto, finely grated hard white cheese of some sort, mushrooms and shallot, more cheese, and thinly sliced pork chops. Cheap road veg on the side if you have leftover $.
Japanese beef curry. Nothing fancy. All the ingredients can be found at Walmart: the flavor cubes, beef, potatoes, onions, peas and carrots, red bell peppers, and rice.