I got this idea from a Reddit thread. There are inexpensive meals some from my childhood that I just love. Here are 2
Pioneer Women’s soup beans. 2#s dry pinto beans, 4 slices of thick sliced bacon, salt to taste cover with water 2-3 inches and bring to a boil then simmer for a few hours. I usually just make jiffy cornbread. It makes a lot.
A spaghetti sauce recipe my grandmother got off an old tomato soup can. 1# of ground beef/round, 1 large onion chopped, 2 cans of tomato soup, 2 6 oz cans of tomato paste, 2 6 oz cans of water (I use the tomato paste cans), 1 can of mushroom stems and pieces liquid included, T of brown sugar, t of garlic powder, t of oregano, 1/4 C of parmesan cheese. Cook ground beef and onion, drain, bring to a boil then simmer 1 hour. Put over preferred pasta. Makes several servings.
Both cost less than $10 for several servings, can be frozen and my family loves.
What we call goulash – while noodles from a box of mac and cheese are cooking, brown ground beef. Drain noodles and add the dry cheese packet, an 8 oz can of tomato sauce, meat, oregano and thyme.
Sadly, your spaghetti sauce is now costing more than $10. I make a similar recipe and just the cans of tomato soup now cost about $3 (for 2). My recipe uses about 1/4 pound of bacon, which sends it into luxury land!
The first thing that comes to mind (and also thinking not just cheap meals, but cheap meals that actually taste good!) is a tomato-vegetable based sauce/dish and a nice hunk of good bread.
Beans are sooooo cheap, but can you be bothered to let them soak overnight? If so, you’ll get umpteen low cost meals out of them.
My go to cheap meal is chili. I put in lots of bits of veg. I use Lightlife Smart ground, or I keep it strictly vegetarian with just beans. There are always leftovers, which some people won’t eat, but my family loves them.
Couscous with Trader Joe’s harissa paste, chicken, and veg is another good cheap meal.
Cilantro rice with lime, coconut milk, and chicken is delicious. Add whatever green veg you have.
I shop at Aldi. At least here the soup is about a dollar a can, the tomato paste $.69 per 6 oz can. the mushrooms less than a dollar. I can get ground round for $4. I go to Kroger and buy my thick sliced bacon and only purchase what I need. 1/4 # would be about $1.75 there. Still at about a generous 6 servings it would still be no more than $3 per serving.
Many soups…with a nice baguette. Really…split pea soup is pretty cheap, filling and we love it. Same with French onion soup. Same with minestrone. Even chicken soup because the chicken can also then be used for chicken salad.
We do “crawdad stew.” Box of Kraft Mac & Cheese with cut up hotdogs. I have no idea why the name. It’s what our sitter called it when she fed it to the kids. We still eat it from time to time.
Similar to that, baked beans (canned, doctored up or homemade) with cut up hot dogs in it. (when I was young and MAYBE a few times when I’m not young, this is enhanced by some crushed potato chips on top) - add a veggie or two on the side.
My kids love to make ramen. To regular cheap packaged ramen, they add a soft-boiled egg, some greens or other veggies if we have them, some garlic or sesame oil etc.
Also dishes made from left-over rice such as rice pudding and gallo pinto (a sort of fried rice made with black beans, minced onion and peppers, cilantro, condiments.)
So many good soups - corn and bacon chowder, taco soup, chicken noodle, lentil. Rachel Ray’s Mexican lasagna is good for a cheap, easy meal - I use ground turkey instead of ground beef.