The EASIEST Extreme Budget Meal Plan to Tame the Grocery Budget

If you're looking for quick and tasty meals that you can easily cook on a budget, then these super easy budget meals are perfect for you! You'll be able to whip up delicious meals without spending a lot of money or time in the kitchen! No need to spend hours cooking from scratch to save money. I've got a few ideas here for quick and simple meals on a shoestring budget that only take minutes to make!

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[kyoung]

Although my husband and I are having a hard time with money at the moment, we were gifted 3 big boxes of canned goods a couple weeks back and decided to give a little over half to a church with a food pantry. I'm a firm believer in paying it forward when ever we can.

[chuchuachuu]

i'm a disabled college student who just escaped an abusive, neglectful, and hoarding home and i had to learn everything from scratch, even cooking and money management. im so glad i found this channel because now i can finally eat everyday without heavily struggling. thank you so much for this 😭😭

[planningfoodmoneywithmiche]

If you have a cup of sugar at home you could buy store brand peanut butter for about the same cost as the cookie mix. Mix 1 egg 1 cup of sugar 1 cup creamy peanut butter scoop onto baking sheet bake at 350 (F) for around 10 minutes. You will have peanut butter left over for something else. I love your videos. Thank you for your time to help us!

[jenprovencal]

Another cheap way to thicken a soup is with instant mashed potatoes, Walmart sells them for a 1.00 a piece and you just sprinkle it in until it’s as thick as you like

[lorid]

Kinda proud of myself for cooking tonight's supper. I got cabbage, a pound of ground beef, tomato sauce & rice from my food pantry. I made "Cabbage Roll Casserole" with all the ingredients. It made a lot, so leftovers & lunches are taken care of. Thanks for the helpful videos.

[shannonmurphy]

Just finding your channel today. I'm a school secretary and I was loving your video watching what you did on a $20 budget. and then I LOVED LOVED LOVED your video once you started giving tips on where folks with food insecurity can find resources (schools, food pantries, etc.) I'm a high school secretary and our staff and community members donate funds and food items to our school pantry. We do have students and families who use our pantry regularly. Not only do we have food items, but we also get donations of toiletry items, winter clothing, and so much more. Whenever our pantry starts running low, our finance secretary sends out a message with items that are needed. (although our pantry doesn't run low very often because we have quite a few staff members who regularly donate). It's an honor to work in a school and be able to provide these items for our students. Some staff members are also having a hard time financially so there is no expectation that anyone donate - it's totally volunteer. Thank you so much for your channel that gives great advice as well as tips and tricks for folks who need even more help securing food.

[colleensessentallife]

As a low income mom I am thankful for people like you who donate. I live in s Wisconsin and our school district has a Christmas vacation food giveaway for low income families. Its called bags of hope. They literally saved us in Dec 2018 when I moved into a low income apartment a week before Christmas and didn't have food money. So thank you for all you do.

[Krisarooooo]

You're an amazing woman!! When you said that you and your hubby have donated over $10, 000 for food insecurity I was just amazed. Bless you and your family...I'm sure your donations have helped so many in need...Happy Holidays!❤

[PopFizzPaperDani]

Ok so I’ve watched a decent amount of cooking channels on YT over the years, from fancy to budget, and never before today have I seen someone talk about food insecurity in a cooking video, much less offer suggestions to help with that. Amazing. We need more examples of raising awareness like that. 👏❤️ New sub!

[MrsAlmaTrumble]

You are a blessing from God. I don’t know any other way to explain how much help you have been lately. I don’t know what I would do without you and these budget meals. They have helped me stretch our budget more.

[makingyourlife]

My husband and I are trying to save for a down payment on a house. Your meals have really helped me, especially because I was never really taught how to cook. Thank you Mindy.

[jimmiepatrum]

Your extreme budget meal plans are so helpful. I am widowed, living alone, so it's good to be able to save money and yet have some tasty food. My freezer is my best friend...besides you. Diane in NC

[randijohnson]

I think this could be made to be sustainable by adding in meals that aren't as convenient. Dry rice, dry beans, fresh potatoes, and inexpensive pasta are how we made it through our tightest times. I also learned how to roast and use a full chicken, and could typically get 3 meals out of it for our family of 4 by shredding the meat, and it really meant I only cooked the protein on day 1, then had 2 more dinners worth of meat ready to go. I also learned how to make stick from the scraps, on the 3rd day's meal would typically be chicken noodle or chicken and rice soup from the leftover chicken and stock. That time stretched me in ways I needed, and has helped me help others. I am grateful God let me struggle.

[HeronCoyote]

Earlier this week, I cleaned out my friend’s pantry. This afternoon, I cleaned mine out. Really expired food got pitched. Cans with late 2023 expiration dates, and unopened boxes (still good, we’ll just never eat them), I donated to our local food pantry. We have a family-run market/butcher in the center of town. They’ve been here 40+ years. They have a drop off bin near the registers. I bring quick hauls there.

[ymciuxb]

Thank you for continuing to help people understand food pantries for themselves and others

[GriefCoachCindy]

One important lesson of your extreme budget videos is how difficult it is to get vegetables, particularly fresh ones, with tight budgets. And fruit is even harder. We’re do hard times on people for eating ultra processed food, but that’s what is most affordable.

[saravannorman]

I love your budget videos. I’ve been out of work for awhile and the dish I always make when I’m down to almost nothing is strata. If I have little bits of veggies or meat leftover that won’t make a meal, I throw it in the freezer and add it to my leftover strata.
A dozen eggs (I have chickens so I often have lots of eggs) mixed with a cup of milk (salt/pepper/seasoning) over cubed stale bread and any leftover meat/veggies/cheese and baked for 45 minutes at 350.
I can eat this for a few days with maybe a salad and it’s always a new mixture of flavors and textures.

[Meggs]

Thank you for directing folks to food charities. ALL food nonprofits have been hit very hard with overwhelming needs and can use all your support.

[Queenofchaos]

This is exactly what I was looking for- Currently experiencing a rough patch and looking for ways to cut down on food waste and grocery expenses.
Thank you, love how real you are compared to everything else out there ❤

[ericahanna]

Thanks for thinking outside the box with these meals! It seems like most of the other "extreme budget" meal plans are the same 5 recipes. You rock!