Healthy Meals on a budget
Are you looking for healthy meals on a budget to feed the whole family? Meals that fit your diet but won’t break the bank. I have a whopping 40 suggestions for you that we as a family have enjoyed and I am sure you will too.
Not only this but all fit well into a healthy eating plan like Slimming World! Don’t let people tell you that it is more expensive to eat healthily because it doesn’t have to be with meals on a budget!
The recipe links below are to recipes both on my website and also those of others, all shared with their permission and all look amazing!
If you follow Slimming World, Weight Watchers (WW), Noom or any other weight loss plan you can usually count the ingredients within these recipes in your allowances.
It is of course important to check any plan you follow and remember all nutritional information and ingredients are found in the individual recipe cards.
Healthy meals on a budget with pasta
Why pasta?
Pasta is a cheap easy staple ingredient that is so cheap it features in many budget meals and here are just a few of my favourites. If you look in the supermarket many have a big bag which works out even cheaper if you are prepared to buy 3-4kg at once! I buy it from Farmfoods sometimes too. I have a whole guide full of pasta recipes I am sure you will enjoy.
Spicy sausage pasta bake
This is a great meal to make if you have sausages that need using up and you don’t fancy a sausage casserole or sausages and mashed potato.
Garlic Mushroom and Spinach Pasta Bake
I absolutely love this one and great when you have spinach to use up! Frozen spinach is cheap too.
Spaghetti Primavera
Tasty and looks lovely without looking cheap. The vegetables can be easily swapped for cheaper seasonal choices if you prefer.
This cheap healthy meal is tasty and a bit different to the usual tomato-based pasta dishes.
Leek macaroni cheese
This recipe is great for the whole family and hides a lot of vegetables in a cheesy dish.
It is great if you are looking for cheap meals on a budget for all the family as even kids like macaroni cheese.
Pasta Arrabiata
An easy and delicious Italian pasta recipe that can be made in batches and on a budget. This is great for Unofficial cheap Slimming World meals on a budget.
Chicken Fajita Pasta Bake
This can be made cheaper using frozen chicken, which would come in just over £5 using fresh chicken
Creamy Cheese and Ham Fusilli Bake
This one comes in very close to £5 but depends on where you shop and if things are on offer!
Spaghetti Bolognese
A great one for hiding vegetables if you have a picky eater! Whether you chop them small or blend them you can pack loads in!
This is definitely one to consider if you are looking for cheap healthy meals on a budget.
Mediterranean Vegetable Lasagne
Using vegetables and being thrifty with where you shop you could just about do this one for a fiver, lasagne is such a popular food it would have been a shame to not include it!
Hearty vegetable pasta soup
This tasty vegetable pasta soup is full of nutrients and so easy to make as a cheap budget family meal.
More soups are below as we know soup is a great one to make on a budget.
Healthy meals on a budget – soup
Soup is a great way to use up cheap vegetables that are getting a little past their best.
If you bulk buy a big pack of carrots for example and do not want to waste any then making soup is usually perfect. It freezes well too.
Mushroom Soup
A great one if you buy lots of mushrooms reduced! It freezes well too.
Easy Tomato Soup
This recipe is super easy and super cheap. A real family favourite on a budget. Around £2 for the lot!
Buy cheap brands of each item as you really won’t taste the difference.
Broccoli and Stilton soup
This is so easy to make and really cheap. A good way to make use of a little bit of leftover cheese.
Minestrone Soup
Sounds good and so cheap too! Minestrone Soup is a great way to use up random vegetables! This makes it a perfect way to cook healthy meals on a budget.
Rich Tomato Soup
A great one if you buy lots of fresh tomatoes reduced!
Carrot and Ginger Soup
Super cheap and tasty!
Healthy meals on a budget with rice
Rice as a budget meal
Rice is extremely cheap and if you are on a budget then increasing the amount of a cheap ingredient like rice in your diet and reducing the amount of meat saves a lot of money whilst still keeping you full.
Asparagus pilaf
This asparagus pilaf is such a cheap and easy meal to make you will soon wonder why you didn’t try it sooner.
If you want to swap the asparagus for something else that is easy too.
Butternut Squash Risotto
This is one of my all-time favourites! I am a big butternut squash fan and even wrote a whole post about butternut squash tips and recipes!
Mushroom Stroganoff
This is so tasty and creamy that you really won’t remember you are trying to eat healthily on a budget!
If you buy lots of reduced mushrooms this is a great way to use them.
Nigerian Jollof Rice
This is a lovely dish to have on its own or with other meals. It is great cold for lunch the following day too and so easy to make.
Vegetable Biryani
This is so tasty and you really wouldn’t realise how cheaply it can be made if you have the spices already!
Garlic Mushroom Risotto
This is one of my favourite cheap healthy meals as it is so easy! You can make this stronger by adjusting the quantity of garlic!
Healthy meals on a budget with vegetables
Vegetables are often really cheap when they are in season or when the shop has to sell them off as they are approaching their best-before date.
Vegetables often last far beyond this date, however, especially when stored well, so you can make a cheap, tasty, healthy meal.
Spinach and pea frittata
This is easy to make and great for the whole family. Easy to make with my spinach and pea frittata recipe.
Noodles and Vegetable Stir Fry
Depending on the budget, you can add meat or Quorn. This doesn’t really need a recipe, just chuck in your favourites and give them a fry for easy meals on a budget.
Check out my selection of healthy Chinese fakeaway recipes for inspiration.
Sweetcorn Fritter
In the summer this is one of my favourite cheap healthy meals on a budget as it is easy to make in advance and perfect for sitting outside in the garden!
Simple but a good budget meal which is great for lunches on the go.
Mini Pepper Quiches
Whilst these are not a meal themselves, they could be served with a salad to make nice, cheap, healthy meals on a budget.
Mushy Pea Curry
Sounds weird but is lovely! Even if, like me, you hate mushy peas you will be surprised at this.
I have an easy-to-follow video for this recipe too but once you have made it once you really won’t need it!
Vegetable couscous
This is a tasty meal perfect for taking for lunch at work the following day.
Couscous is really cheap, so it’s a perfect way to make healthy meals on a budget.
Sweet and Sour Vegetables
Popular with kids too this is great with egg noodles!
Healthy meals on a budget with potatoes
Why are potatoes great?
Potatoes are so cheap all year round so using them in recipes is always a great way to make a budget meal.
If you struggle to know which potatoes are good for different dishes when making healthy meals on a budget then check out my potato guide.
Don’t discount the humble jacket potato, there are so many fillings you can have with them!
Aloo gobi
This Aloo Gobi is amazingly cheap and easy to make it could easily become one of your go-to family meals.
Roast plum, sweet potato and quinoa salad
This quinoa salad is a delicious and cheap family recipe.
Homity Pie
This is one of my favourite really cheap and easy meals on a budget to make for all the family, well worth trying out for fussy children.
Gardener’s Pie
Great for around Christmas when supermarkets often have root vegetables on offer!
Cheesy leek and potato pie
Lovely and tasty for all the family, children who love mashed potatoes will love them and not notice the sneaky vegetables inside.
Healthy meals on a budget with meat
How to make them cheaply
Using the cheapest cuts of meat is often better in the slow cooker. Tougher meats tend to be much cheaper but when they are slow-cooked they can be just as good, if not better.
Frozen meat is often a lot cheaper too and really makes very little difference. Try frozen 5% fat mince next time you go shopping! Mince can be used then to make many healthy meals on a budget.
Using cheap items like healthier sausages can be cheap meat to add to a meal too.
For fish, the cheapest meals on a budget to make involve perhaps a cheap can of tuna or a fish pie pack containing a mixture of bits.
Chicken cauliflower fried rice
This chicken cauliflower rice recipe is a great budget meal to make whilst also being low in carbs. If you aren’t so keen on cauliflower rice you could make it half and half with your usual rice.
Sausage Tray Bake
This is so easy to make and perfect for all the family. The overall cost depends on the sausage you use but can easily come in under a fiver.
Ultimate Lazy Tuna Fishcakes
Could be served with salad, vegetables or whatever you fancy really!
Chilli con carne
This is a great, easy recipe for the slow cooker or stovetop, depending on your available time. Perfect for healthy meals on a budget as you could have it with rice one day and a jacket potato another day.
Tasty Cowboy Potato Bake
This healthy meals on a budget recipe is a favourite in our house, as is a similar recipe for cowboy pie.
BBQ Chicken
If you have the store cupboard ingredients already and use frozen chicken, this can be very cheap, or use a lower-cost cut like chicken thigh instead.
An alternative is a BBQ-pulled jackfruit.
Chicken or Tofu kebabs
These are a great way of using whichever vegetables you have that need using. You can use a variety of sauces or spices to flavour your chicken or tofu.
Sausage Casserole
I find this the best value meal on a budget when you use cheap but healthy sausages.
Moroccan chicken casserole
This is a great meal for the whole family and is also easy to make on a budget, as it uses chicken thighs, which are more affordable than breasts.
Unofficial Slimming World meals on a budget using beans and pulses
How to use them for healthy meals on a budget
Beans and pulses like lentils, chickpeas and similar are so cheap they are a great way to make healthy meals on a budget.
You could substitute half of the mince in a bolognese for lentils and no one would even notice! Why not give it a try?
Spanish chickpeas, spinach and egg
Full of nutrients, this Spanish chickpea, spinach, and egg recipe is not only easy to make but also affordable.
Lentil and vegetable moussaka
This probably comes in a little pricier but it is well worth it and can be adapted to make it cheaper using frozen vegetables.
Keema Curry
This is so easy to pop in the slow cooker before a long day out of the house. When you come back the house smells delicious and your tea is ready.
To save more money, add lentils as well as mince!
Other ideas for healthy meals on a budget
Jacket Potatoes
Various fillings can be done with the potatoes very cheaply, such as cottage cheese, baked beans, grated cheese, tuna, mushy peas, and served with a salad. Check out my jacket potato topping ideas. Jackets are one of my favourtie healthy meals on a budget.
Leek and potato soup
This is such a cheap meal choice, but so tasty too. It is very filling, so great for healthy meals on a budget.
Spicy vegetable soup
Another soup you might want to try is spicy vegetable soup.
You can easily adapt it to the vegetables in season to lower the cost as much as possible.
Pasta Salad
Cook some pasta and chuck it in a salad to make the salad a bit more filling! I have a Morrisons low-calorie salad dressing I like to add too.
Make your own curry recipe
Chuck it in Curry – Add lots of vegetables and anything that needs use to the slow cooker with a bit of curry powder!
Omelette
A simple omelette with homemade chips and salad can be cheap and easy to make.
If you struggle to turn over an omelette just cook it on the bottom then pop it under the grill to cook the top!
Bubble and Squeak
Bubble and Squeak is essentially mashed potato and leftover vegetables all fried up with some gravy on or even homemade gravy using a stock cube or stockpot if you want to be lower in calories! One of the healthy meals on a budget that our grandparents made.
Tips for making healthy meals on a budget
If you are looking for 5% beef mince cheaply, try Iceland. They have a great value bag of frozen mince that is only 5% fat, so it is ideal for cutting costs when making healthy meals on a budget.
Frozen vegetables can cut costs and be just as healthy as fresh. they make a good choice when making healthy meals on a budget as they are a fraction of the cost usually.
If something is on offer, for example, on the Aldi Super Six, then I often try to base meals around that to reduce costs.
If you are looking for more healthy recipes, check the others in my recipes tab.
Check out my Quark recipe ideas and my Slow Cooker recipe ideas.
Have you made any of my healthy meals on a budget? Let me know in the comments below.
