5 Intensely Cheap Recipes

(Curried deviled eggs)

Every once in a while Yahoo (or whoever) will run an article boasting a recipe for cheap food--something like salmon that comes out to something like $3 or $4 per serving. I'm not bashing that, but it doesn't impress me. Every time I read those articles I think, "That's just homemade food; homemade food is always cheap." And it is. Or at least cheaper than it's restaurant or TV dinner counterparts. But that's not really really cheap. And really really cheap is what I want to talk about today.

Really really cheap is what you need if you already make most of your food at home, but still need to pinch a grocery penny. Really really cheap is how people have survived through famines and depressions, war rationing, and other shortages. And every once in a while, even in our so-privileged-we-don't-always-remember-we're-privileged society, we need to cut back severely and it's really really cheap that comes along to save the day. Here are some ideas for eating well, but crazy dirt cheap--like, less than $.50/serving.

I should note that it's helpful to find yourself a super cheap store in which to buy your food. In the Midwest we've got Aldi and Ruler Foods. These super cheap stores are the type of stores where every single item is (almost always) cheaper than Walmart. These stores are little gems of cheapskaterlyness. Most of my pricing is based on these stores. That said, you can generally find super cheap produce (and other cool things) at Asian stores. Or shop sales. Or with coupons. But even if you don't do any of those things, these foods are the cheapest there are.

1. Rice and beans and beans and rice. It doesn't have to be unpleasant. Check out these crock pot re-fried beans. Serve them with rice if you want a meal for less than $.25/person. But if you're, like, rich and stuff, you can serve them with tortillas and a little cheese, or maybe some salsa or garden tomatoes. Or sauteed peppers. Or whatever awesome summer veggies sound good. A whole pot of beans (4-8 servings) costs $.35-.40. That is $.05-.10/serving. This (with all due respect to those fabulously well-written Yahoo articles) is cheap. But it is still oh-so-good.

2. Lentils. They're a legume that's quick, cheap, and healthy. Not everyone loves them. Some people hate them. I believe that if there's a solution for that problem, it is this dal. I have tried dozens of dals and lentil soups, but this is the best I've found (by a good long shot in my humble opinion). Even my husband--a devout lentil hater--likes it. This comes up to about $.50/serving. Add a tortilla or somekindawonderful naan and you're up to a whopping $.60, you big spenders you. (And, yes, you will be full. And happy. And full. )

(Note: This is the Coconut Red Lentil Dal--it's my second favorite and it had prettier pictures.)

3. Eggs Eggs Eggs. You can eat them a billion ways. Recently I posted a Dutch Baby recipe, which is a fabulous way to dress them up, but these deviled eggs can't be beat either. Add a seasonal salad and you're set. Two deviled eggs (4 halves) are going to run you about $.20/serving. Add yourself a cucumber tomato salad and you're going to add another $.50 (with summer seasonal veggies). Note: I get that if you're a man or teenage boy, this might not tide you over, but it's pretty filling and satisfying for me. And there's always bread....(see number 5).

4. Potatoes. This is our favorite potato soup. And this one--a close second for me--has a potato base, but also boasts a whole lotta spinach. More spinach than the average American eats in a meal or likely a week. More spinach than the stereotypical poor person (should he or she actually exist) ever eats. And that for $.40/bowl.

5. Bread. Oh poor bread. It's gotten such a sad, bad name for itself in recent years. But bread is cheap. And it can be healthy. During the summer, after I've made some homemade jam (which I do once or twice a summer because I think it's fun and awesome), one of my favorite things in this world to do is to make a loaf of bread, eat it with some fresh jam, and a bowl of fruit thereby. It's like heaven on a table. It's like mid-summer Thanksgiving. We all love it. Bread is also a great receptacle for eggs, cheese, nut butters, and other healthy stuff. This 100% whole wheat bread is classic and delicious ($1.15/large loaf). Want one that's dumb easy (and doesn't require kneading of any sort)? Try this refrigerator bread ($.50/loaf). Or this one-hour bread ($.45/loaf).

Dutch Babies with Whey (with option Lemon Butter)

I think that one of the secrets to super cheap eating is that sometimes (as in at least once a week), you eat a meal that is intensely cheap.

Dutch babies (otherwise known as German pancakes) are the perfect fit. Generally made with eggs, milk, flour, and a bit of butter, a pan-ful can usually be made for about $.50. They can be topped with savory toppings like sauteed greens or mushrooms. Or sweet things like syrup, powdered sugar or fruit.

(oh, look, it's like a 3-eyed strawberry monster with creepy blueberry teeth--and this is what happens when i try to pose my food)

These are even more exciting because they use whey. Okay, so that's only exciting if you make homemade yogurt or cheese. (Note: If you don't have whey you can absolutely use regular milk in these.) If you make yogurt or cheese (and this crock pot Greek yogurt is as stupid easy as they come), you will know that after all is said and done you have a bunch of whey. Now some of those foods (like crock pot Greek yogurt--shameless 2nd plug) are so cheap to make that throwing out the whey is not a terrible financial crime, but whey does carry with it some of the proteins and calcium from the milk. And sometimes it feels a shame (and a waste) to just toss those nutrients out. And yet, if you've ever made yogurt or cheese, you know that you can be just drowning in whey. What to do with it all? This is just one idea. And it's a good one--it doesn't feel like you're subbing in whey at all. If feels like it was born to be made with whey.

And cost? This meal comes up to about $.12/serving. And, yes, that is what I mean by a super cheap meal. I will confess that a serving of Dutch babies might not fill you up (depending on how big/hungry you are), but two servings (at $.25) would more than fill me up, plus they leave plenty of wiggle room in the budget for a side of fruit, salad, nuts, or whatever.

Dutch Babies with Whey
adapted from Smells Like Brownies
serves 4
Makes 1 10-inch skillet of food
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Cost: $.55
eggs: .30, whey (free, but milk would be .10), flour: .10, butter: .15

Notes: 
-This is for a 10-inch skillet. I only have a 12, so I added an egg and upped the whey and milk by a couple tablespoons each and that worked.
-You must use a skillet that is oven proof.
-If you'd like you can double this and make it in a 9x13 inch pan.

3 eggs
2/3 C whey (or milk)
2/3 C flour
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 450 (yup--hot). As it preheats, put the butter into the pan and let it melt while the oven heats.

Mix together eggs, whey, flour, and vanilla. (A few lumps are no big deal.)

When you're butter is melted and your oven is HOT, pour the batter into the pan, right over top the butter (some of the butter will likely come to the top of your batter--that's okay).

Bake for 15-20 minutes (I pulled mine out at 17). This is going to puff up into a crazy puff monster and the edges will brown. You'll know it's ready when the edges are brown.

Take it out of the oven. (Note: Don't forget to use a hot pad. Maybe that sounds like a no brainer, but when you see a pan, sometimes you just grab the handle because it's, well, a pan. This pan handle is 450 degrees. For the love of epidermis, do not grab it without a hot pad.) It will immediately deflate like this (see that butter up top).

Cut and serve. We served this with some lemon butter (1/8 C melted butter, 1/8 C powdered sugar, 1-2 Tbsp lemon) and fruit. (Note: The lemon butter will add $.45 to the cost of your meal.)

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Black Rice Wraps

Never heard of black rice? It's okay; I hadn't either. And then a few weeks ago, there I was at our co-op picking up my raw milk, like a properly crunchy mother. And there in the bulk bins was black rice. It was beautiful, like little slivers of onyx. Which may not have quite been enough to win my heart except that my picky picky son who loves rice wanted to buy some. So we did. Just a little to test it out.

I had no idea what to do with it. Did I cook it like normal rice? Were there dishes people made with such a food? Turns out that black rice is actually crazy healthy. It's a whole grain rice with all the anti-oxidants associated with purple foods (think blueberries and acai berries). In ancient China the nobles did what nobles do and they took it all and forbade the peasants to have any at all. Thus, it is often called "forbidden rice." Which, I don't know, just makes it seem even more cool, doesn't it (not the whole repression of peasants thing, but the title--"forbidden rice")?

For our first foray into Forbidden Rice, we made...wait for it...rice. That's right--I wanted to see how it would taste when we just made it, well, like normal. And guys--it was really good. I mean, I don't want to amp it up too much and make you think it will taste like chocolate. It is still rice and all, but it was very very tasty rice. It had a more complex flavor with more depth and nuttiness--I would almost say sweetness (you'll be seeing a black rice pudding on here soon). So it had the whole grain goodness of brown rice with the semi-sweetness of white rice. And then it had something else--something complex and nutty. Also, it's a very very dark purple when cooked. Seriously, I loved it.

Maybe that's unfortunate because for rice (motto: cheapest food on earth), it is expensive. Not quite organic raw nut expensive, but definitely much more expensive than we normally pay for our grains. Ours rang up at a little over $4/pound. Also, you will probably not find it in a normal grocery store. You'll likely find it in a health foods store or perhaps an Asian market. It is the hope of my heart that it gains popularity in the U.S. and becomes a bit more accessible and less expensive (less "forbidden" if you will--ha ha, why am I too funny). For now, I will enjoy it for what it is--which is not a cheap side dish, but a wholesome and delicious main course. Or--as is sort of the case in today's dish--a delightful and complex component of your next burrito. 

People often use black beans in burritos. I like black beans okay and they're good for you, but my family won't touch a black bean so they usually get left out. But this. This was better than black beans and without the texture of black beans (which is what my family dislikes). Yet it added the color and a pleasant textural contrast to the wrap. It was just good. And simple. And the family didn't hate it. And you don't need a ton so nobody has to break the bank.

Here's how we made them.

Black Rice Wraps

You'll need:

tortillas
Ground beef
Pork and beans
Cheese (sharp cheddar is my favorite, but knock yourselves out with whatever)
salsa
cream cheese
black rice
corn, cooked/warmed

Step 1: Cook your black rice. It's like cooking brown rice.
-Add 1 C rice to a pot with 2-2 1/2 C water.
-Cover.
-Bring to a boil.
-Reduce to simmer.
-Cook for 40-45 minutes or until very tender.
-Note: If you'd like to reduce your cooking time, you can soak your rice for 1-8 hours. Then your rice needs a bit less water and only takes about 25 minutes to cook. Of course, then you have to have several hours of foresight, but it is my understanding that there are people like this in the world. As for me, I think these wraps are just the perfect way to use up leftover rice. Then you've got a 15-minute meal and you don't waste you $4/lb rice. Win win. 

Step 2: I made a batch of cheap ground beef by using my favorite beef cheapening technique: I combined ground beef and a can of pork and beans (yeah, you heard me). Even for chief bean hater among us (that'd be my husband), this is a hit. The pork and beans adds a bit of a sauce and a bit of something barbeque-y to the beef, which he loves. The ratio is 1 pound ground beef to one can of beans.

Step 3: Warm your tortilla (if you wish).

Step 4: Layer tortilla with beef/bean mixture, then a scoop of cooked rice, then cheese, corn, salsa, and sour cream.

Step 5: Wrap it up. Told you it was good.