For happy wallets and heavy plates.
Everything is just really expensive right now. Thanks, inflation. So if you're trying to cut back on eating out, we have some good news for you. We've compiled our favorite delicious and creative dinner recipes that prove that you can still have a great meal while being kind to your wallet. *Chef's kiss*
1. Buffalo Chickpea Wraps
![68 Easy And Cheap Dinner Ideas That You'll Want To Make On Repeat (2) 68 Easy And Cheap Dinner Ideas That You'll Want To Make On Repeat (2)](https://i0.wp.com/img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-static/static/2024-05/3/21/asset/ad0086a7d1ac/sub-buzz-5474-1714773070-1.jpg?downsize=700%3A%2A&output-quality=auto&output-format=auto)
Sauté chickpeas with spices and Buffalo sauce, then roll into a wrap with crisp romaine, juicy tomatoes, tangy red onions, and a drizzle of creamy hummus dressing. Dinner is served, and money is saved!
Recipe:Buffalo Chickpea Wraps
2. 3-Ingredient Teriyaki Chicken
![68 Easy And Cheap Dinner Ideas That You'll Want To Make On Repeat (3) 68 Easy And Cheap Dinner Ideas That You'll Want To Make On Repeat (3)](https://i0.wp.com/img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-static/static/2024-05/3/21/asset/10dc86f19d85/sub-buzz-2671-1714773081-1.jpg?downsize=700%3A%2A&output-quality=auto&output-format=auto)
With just three simple ingredients – boneless, skinless chicken thighs, soy sauce, and brown sugar – you can create a mouthwatering chicken teriyaki that's both easy on your wallet and your schedule.
3. Garlic Veggie Rotini Pasta
This easy, meal-preppable recipe will keep you away from takeout temptation all week. Made with budget-friendly ingredients – mushrooms, broccoli, peppers, and garlic – you can whip up this delicious and nutritious dinner in no time.
Recipe:Garlic Veggie Rotini Pasta
4. Sweet Potato And Black Bean Burritos
These cheesy vegetarian burritos with sweet potatoes, corn, and black beans are easy to make and light on the wallet.
5. Chili Lime Baked Tilapia With Avocado Crema
Tilapia is one of the most affordable fish to buy. This recipe elevates baked tilapia with a spicy and tangy marinade featuring chili powder, lime, and garlic.
6. Barbecue Beer Can Chicken
This whole chicken is enough for multiple meals. Season the chicken with a BBQ rub, then cook it on a can of beer on the grill for juicy and flavorful results.
Recipe:Barbecue Beer Can Chicken
7. Energy-Boosting Buddha Bowl
Tasty / Via tasty.co
This rainbow bowl also serves as a rainbow of nutrients. It's packed with energizing ingredients like quinoa, mushrooms, beets, herbs and a tangy tahini dressing — a nutritious and filling budget meal.
Recipe:Energy-Boosting Buddha Bowl
8. Zucchini Noodles with Kale Pesto
Tasty / Via tasty.co
These noodles are literally made of vegetables — so this meal is doing double duty as comfort food with a healthy twist. Add kale to your pesto to sneak another veggie in there. Kids won't know the difference, and everyone will think it's totally delicious!
9. Chicken & Biscuit Bake
Tasty / Via tasty.co
This dish just feels like home. It gives you everything you want in a meal: the healthiness of vegetables, the protein of chicken, and the delightful texture of a biscuit. This recipe takes less than half an hour to make. So what are you waiting for?
Recipe:Chicken & Biscuit Bake
10. One-Pot Lemon Garlic Shrimp Pasta
Tasty / Via tasty.co
Get rid of that idea in your head that cooking seafood is hard! With this recipe, it's sure to go *swimmingly.* Cook your favorite pasta (we recommend linguine); once you take it out of the pot, keep using the same pot to cook your shrimp—and the delicious flavors of garlic andcrushed red pepper. It's that easy!
11. Pesto Chicken Bake
Tasty / Via tasty.co
This dish is so delicious, you won't believe it only calls for a handful of ingredients. The secret is pairing pesto with mozzarella cheese — it's always a crowd pleaser. This recipe makes 4 servings, so you can have it as leftovers, invite friends over, or eat it all — we wouldn't blame you.
Recipe:Pesto Chicken Bake
12. Chicken Alfredo Penne
Tasty / Via tasty.co
Great news! This dish is super easy (and quick!) to make. You probably already have all of the ingredients on handand it takes less than 20 minutes to make. With this cheesy pasta dish, you'll be cheesin' in no time.
Recipe:Easy Chicken Alfredo Penne
13. Healthier Veggie Fried Rice
Who doesn't like fried rice? With brown rice, peas, carrots, eggs and scallions, this dish is a classic. This veggie fried rice is also a great call if you get home hungry — Instant Pot to the rescue!
Recipe:Healthier Veggie Fried Rice
14. Avocado Quinoa Power Salad
Let's just face the facts: quinoa in salad is elite. This salad is a vegetarian's dream, with a refreshing combo of cucumbers, tomatoes, spinach. Top it all off with a lemony dressing to really seal the deal.
Recipe:Avocado Quinoa Power Salad
15. Chicken & Veggie Stir-Fry
Stir-fry is always a good idea. This recipe is flexible, since we all know stir-fry can be made with everything and the kitchen sink and still taste delicious! You can even switch out the rice for noodles for a change in texture.
Recipe: Chicken & Veggie Stir-Fry
16. Tofu Scramble
Simple Veganista / Via simple-veganista.com
This recipe is easy and delicious — and, even better, you can swap out some of the vegetables for ones already in your fridge. If you have tofu, dijon, and something green, you are most of the way there. So what are you waiting for? Get scrambling!
Recipe:Tofu Scramble
17. Cheese Tortellini in Creamy Marinara
A Couple Cooks / Via acouplecooks.com
It only takes 15 minutes to whip up this simple-but-satisfying masterpiece. Plus, the whole recipe only requires one pan. So not only will cooking be easy, but so will clean up!
18. Sushi Bowl
Budget Bytes / Via budgetbytes.com
Craving sushi but don't want to go out? We got you. Even better, the recipe is flexible, so you can swap out the veggies or protein for whatever you happen to have on hand.
Recipe:Sushi Bowl
Simple Veganista / Via simple-veganista.com
The recipe calls for a mixture of kidney beans, black beans, and pinto beans, but of course you can swap in whatever canned beans or grains that are already in your kitchen.
Recipe: Vegan 3-Bean Chili
20. Egg Pizza With Scallions
Feel free to use store-bought pizza dough to make this recipe a cinch to throw together.
Recipe:Egg Pizza With Scallions
21. Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala
This hearty chickpea masala is the perfect recipe for vegetarians and can be prepared spicy or mild, depending on your taste. The recipe calls for a splash of heavy cream, but you can use coconut milk to keep it vegan.
22. Taco Pizza
Kitchen Gidget / Via kitchengidget.com
This easy, kid-friendly dish starts with crescent roll dough on the bottom, then it's loaded with ground beef, cheese, and any of your favorite taco toppings.
Recipe: Taco Pizza
23. Bacon and Egg Toast Cups
This recipe uses baby kale to stuff the toast cups, but feel free to use spinach or arugula if kale isn't your favorite.
Recipe:Bacon and Egg Toast Cups
24. Baked Eggs With Roasted Vegetables
Feel free to use any hearty veggies you have on hand in place of the beets and radishes. Brussels sprouts, diced sweet potatoes, and carrots would all work well.
This creamy mac 'n' cheese is loaded with all kinds of good stuff, like white cheddar, broccoli, and seared chicken. Vegetarian? Leave out the chicken. Broccoli isn't your favorite? Feel free to substitute it with whatever vegetables you have on hand.
Recipe: White Cheddar Mac 'n' Cheese With Chicken and Broccoli
26. Caprese Grilled Cheese
This baby is everything you love about caprese and grilled cheese crammed into one delicious sandwich. Serve it with salad or soup, and you've got yourself a dinner that's both fancy and budget-friendly.
Recipe:Caprese Grilled Cheese
27. Chicken Noodle Soup
Courtesy Love Grows Wild / Via lovegrowswild.com
This recipe calls for a lot of basic ingredients you'll already have in the pantry. It makes six to eight servings too, so you can enjoy leftovers for lunch all week.
Recipe:Chicken Noodle Soup
28. Dal
Alexandra Stafford / Via food52.com
Dal is a timeless classic — and this version is an ideal starter if you've never made it before. You only need a handful of ingredients, and the whole thing only takes 20 minutes. The original recipe calls for red split lentils, but if you want to get more creative, add some French lentils, too.
Recipe:Dal
29. Black Bean Burgers
Tasty
Black bean patties are one of the most popular alternatives to meat. They're also pretty easy to make.
Recipe:Black Bean Burgers
This chicken recipe breaks down to only $4.83, and the all-purpose glaze — with paprika, brown sugar, and cayenne — is packed with flavor. Pair it with any greens you have handy!
Recipe: Sweet and Spicy Glazed Chicken
32. 20-Minute Kimchi Fried Rice
Tangy, spicy kimchi (or Korean-style fermented vegetables) is another way to add a ton of flavor to a dish for not a lot of money. Keep a jar stocked in the fridge, then work it into fried rice, noodle bowls, or burgers.
Recipe:20-Minute Kimchi Fried Rice
33. Rice Bowl With Fried Egg and Avocado
Top it off with your favorite hot sauce and you're good to go.
One-pan creamy goodness.
35. Creamy Tomato Shells
This recipe calls for only three ingredients, and you can always add a protein to the mix if you want.
Recipe:Creamy Tomato Shells
36. Chicken Pesto Bowl
Healthy, tasty, and cheap!
Recipe:Chicken Pesto Bowls
37. Zucchini Corn Quesadillas
Ready in 25 minutes, these quesadillas are a perfect spring dinner.
Recipe:Zucchini Corn Quesadillas
38. One-Pan Pizza Chicken
You had me at pizza.
Recipe:One-Pan Pizza Chicken
39. Super-Fresh Cucumber Tomato Salad
Guaranteed to be just as good as your local salad bar, for half the price.
40. One-Pot Caprese Chicken Pasta
Ready in 35 minutes for the perfect weeknight dinner.
41. Vegan Creamy Kale Pasta
Deliciously creamy, and without any meat or dairy.
Recipe:Vegan Creamy Kale Pasta
A protein-packed vegetarian dinner.
Recipe: Greek Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
43. One-Pot Bacon Broccoli Mac 'n' Cheese
Pretend your mac 'n' cheese is actually healthy by adding some broccoli to the mix.
Fast, budget-friendly, and healthy: What more do you need?
45. Chicken and Mandarin Salad With Simple Sesame Dressing
A super-fast summertime salad for your weeknight dinners.
Recipe:Chicken and Mandarin Salad With Simple Sesame Dressing
46. 5-Ingredient Coconut Curry
The perfect option for your meatless Monday.
Recipe:5-Ingredient Coconut Curry
48. Vegetarian Sheet Pan Zucchini Parmesan
A healthy-ish, delicious, and vegetarian take on the classic chicken Parmesan.
49. Vegetable Enchilada Casserole
If you want to add some meat, you can always brown some chicken and add it to the mix.
The recipe calls for both whole wheat spaghetti and zucchini noodles, but you can skip the spaghetti if you want to go fully low-carb.
Recipe: Burst Tomato and Zucchini Spaghetti With Avocado Sauce
51. Amazing Slow Cooker Turkey Tacos
If you're looking for inspiration for your next Taco Tuesday, search no more.
A great copycat recipe for the perfect night in.
53. Orzo With Spinach and Roasted Red Peppers
A super-straightforward weeknight dinner that you can serve with grilled chicken if you want some added protein.
54. Creamy Pappardelle Al Limone
Family Style Food / Via familystylefood.com
Introducing your new favorite pasta sauce, made with nothing more than egg yolks, Parmesan cheese, and fresh lemon.
Recipe:Pappardelle Al Limone
Pinch of Yum / Via pinchofyum.com
This recipe calls for tofu, broccoli, and sweet potato, but you can always swap in whatever protein and veggies you like best.
Recipe: 5-Ingredient Thai Green Curry
56. Sausage and Creamy Cajun Orzo Skillet
Gal on a Mission / Via galonamission.com
Orzo, sliced sausage, bell pepper, heavy cream, and a handful of spices are all there is to this Cajun-inspired skillet.
Dash of Sanity / Via dashofsanity.com
Grab some chicken broth, rotisserie chicken, canned diced tomatoes, ranch dressing, and canned fiesta corn mix to make this heartwarming chicken soup with a Mexican flair.
Pinch of Yum / Via pinchofyum.com
Have toast for dinner, but make it fancy with this mixture of artichoke hearts, spinach white beans, and basil mashed into a creamy and savory spread.
59. Portobello and Poblano Fajitas
Cookie and Kate / Via cookieandkate.com
Don't let the ingredient list overwhelm you. All you really need to make these fajitas are portobello mushrooms, peppers, onion, and tortillas. Swap the avocado sauce for store-bought guacamole or diced avocado and you've got a delicious meal.
60. Spicy Lentil Nachos With 3-Cheese Sauce
Lentils are often used as a healthy staple — but they can also be gloriously indulgent.
61. Flourless Black Bean Brownie Muffins
Black beans in chocolate muffins might sound odd, but they get super creamy and batterlike — and it absolutely works.
62. Chicken Satay With Peanut Sauce
You can also use coconut curry as a marinade for your meats. Here, the chicken marinates for two hours in a mixture of coconut milk, soy sauce, curry powder, turmeric, garlic, ginger, brown sugar, and fish sauce.
63. Sun-Dried Tomato, Kale, and White Bean Skillet
Beans and greens = always worth reaching for.
64. Grilled Cheese and Cream of Tomato Soup
Cozy comfort in a bowl.
65. Baked Eggs in Marinara Sauce
Using store-bought marinara sauce means prep is a breeze.
Recipe: Baked Eggs in Marinara Sauce
67. Simple Black Bean Soup
Black beans + salsa + cilantro + cumin + garlic.
Recipe:Simple Black Bean Soup
68. Big-Batch Minestrone
Prep takes all of 10 minutes, and you'll have plenty of leftovers.
Recipe:Big-Batch Minestrone
This article contains content previously curated by Hannah Loewentheil, Jesse Szewczyk, Marie Telling, Melissa Jameson, and Ailbhe Malone. It was compiled by Lavanya Narayanan.