100+ Cheap & Easy Dinner Recipes That Are Practically Easier Than Ordering Delivery
Ditch takeout and boring meals for good.
Though we're all for pulling out all the stops for a wildly impressive dinner for a romantic date night or special occasion, most weeknights, we're looking for something cheap and easy. These recipes hit both criteria, with ease. You don’t have to drop major dough to make something delicious that can be on your table in an hour or less—save money by choosing cheaper proteins (we’re talking chicken, ground beef or turkey, or vegetarian options like tofu) and time by making these dishes all in one pan or via some of our top kitchen shortcuts. Whatever your style, these 100+ cheap and easy meals will please your entire family without breaking the bank.
One of the easiest ways to cut down on dinner costs is to go for cheaper cuts of meat, or utilizing more expensive ones in creative ways. Try adding ground beef, turkey, or chicken to help bulk out old standbys. Try roasting a whole chicken (or buying a rotisserie chicken), then utilizing it for everything from pizza to tacos all week long. Try adding more expensive seafood or steak to pasta or rice to help make smaller, more affordable portions go further, like in our salmon & potato skillet, our marry me shrimp pasta, our creamy steak fettuccine. It’s all about the way you use the protein that matters, not avoiding them altogether.
If you’ve been on the fence about certain kitchen appliances, like slow cookers, air fryers, and Instant Pots, consider this your sign to take the plunge and get one. They help dinners come together SO fast. Check out our more in-depth lists for your air fryer (over 100 recipes!), Instant Pot, and Crockpot.
Even if you’re not ready for another appliance, we bet you have some things in your kitchen already that’ll help you get dinner on the table fast, like sheet pans, a Dutch oven, and casserole dishes. We’ve included a number of our favorite recipes here, like our sheet-pan garlicky shrimp & veggies, our hamburger casserole (no more flipping individual burgers!), our chicken shawarma sheet-pan dinner, or our Mexican beef 'n rice skillet, but once you’ve got the basics down, feel free to get creative.
One of the best ways to save some money is to go meatless (and not just on Mondays). And we don’t mean by replacing proteins with all those high-priced meat substitutes (though we’re all about those sometimes)—instead we’re talking about making vegetarian meals out of cheap beans, tofu, and plants. Try our spinach & artichoke white bean skillet, our sweet & sour tofu, our cream of mushroom pastina, or our baked feta chickpeas to see how versatile and filling these meals can be.
Want more cheap and easy meals? Check out our favorite 5-ingredient meals, our top 30-minute meals, and former food editor June’s entire Budget Eats series. You won’t believe what she came up with for under $25!
Baked Feta Chickpeas
Thought the baked feta pasta craze was over? Think again. Let me introduce you to your next obsession: baked feta chickpeas. Tossed in a fresh garlic-burst cherry tomato sauce and served with slabs of bubbling browned feta, these chickpeas are your weeknight ticket to protein-packed dinnertime bliss.
Get the Baked Feta Chickpeas recipe.
Monster Meatballs
Meatballs will forever be one of our favorite foods, but even we'll admit that forming a million of them can be tedious. Enter: monster meatballs. This recipe only makes 4 giant ones, perfect over a plate of spaghetti for an easy dinner.
Get the Monster Meatballs recipe.
Chicken Parm Pasta
The goal of this recipe is for you to have 0% less stress and 100% more chicken Parm, so we used store-bought breaded chicken breasts and tomato sauce so you don’t have to do any heavy lifting. Honestly, at the end of a long day, that’s all any of us is really looking for, right?
Get the Chicken Parm Pasta recipe.
Onion Boil
Have you made an onion boil yet? We hate to say it… but we're kind of obsessed. Using the most humble of pantry ingredients, this viral TikTok sensation features a whole sweet onion (such as a Vidalia) cored out, stuffed with a spiced-savory butter, and roasted until it becomes meltingly tender. Questioning its deliciousness? Make it and see for yourself.
Get the Onion Boil recipe.
Classic Stuffed Peppers
Bell peppers are strong enough to hold their shape in the oven, and the flavor is subtle enough to go well with just about anything. This is our favorite recipe, but the customization options are endless—check out all our stuffed pepper recipes here too.
Get the Classic Stuffed Peppers recipe.
Cheesy Broccoli Cheddar Chickpea Skillet
If you're that person that steals the cheesy broccoli out of broccoli cheddar soup, this broccoli cheddar chickpea skillet will be your dream dinner. Steamed broccoli and chickpeas are tossed together in a light cheesy sauce for a protein-filled one-pan meal that’s primed to become a new family favorite.
French Onion Pot Roast
Cold-weather comfort food is all we want on a lazy, long winter weekend, and this French onion pot roast is the perfect cross between slow-roasted chuck and classic cheesy French onion soup. Taking inspo from our onion soup rib roast, the beef is seasoned with onion soup mix to add depth and an extra umami boost.
Get the French Onion Pot Roast recipe.
Sloppy Joes
If you're craving a reliable, nostalgic, easy (and cheap) weeknight dinner, then there’s no debate: A sloppy Joes’ night is in order. The perfect answer to, “How far can I stretch this package of ground beef?” these only require a handful of simple ingredients (that you might already have!) to create a classic family dinner.
Get the Sloppy Joes recipe.
Spinach & Artichoke White Bean Skillet
It's no secret that we can't get enough of beans, and our newest obsession features iconic spinach and artichoke dip reimagined as a glossy white bean skillet. We love this pantry-friendly recipe because it’s an easy vegetarian dinner with complex flavor and it’s incredibly affordable—the perfect addition to your weeknight rotation!
Chili-Stuffed Cornbread
Cheesy chili-stuffed cornbread is what happens when cornbread gets tired of being a sidekick and decides to break into a leading role. It’s hearty, a little messy, and unapologetically extra, the kind of dish that makes you wonder why you ever settled for plain cornbread in the first place.
Get the Chili-Stuffed Cornbread recipe.
Sweet & Sour Tofu
Sweet & sour sauce is a staple across Chinese-American restaurant menus—and for good reason. The combination of savory, tangy, and sweet flavors pairs well with virtually every protein, and especially tofu—because it’s mild in flavor, the sweet and sour sauce truly shines (even the tofu haters in your household will ask for seconds).
Get the Sweet & Sour Tofu recipe.
Miso Mushroom Crispy Rice
Punchy flavor and interesting texture are like the Thelma & Louise of excellent food—you just need both, and this crispy rice and miso mushroom skillet delivers. This dish is inspired by Momofuku’s Miso Mushroom Rice, but takes cues from Persian tahdig and Spanish paella, so you know it's good.
Get the Miso Mushroom Crispy Rice recipe.
Chicken Stir-Fry
A stir fry is our go-to weeknight dinner when we just don’t have the energy to spend a long time in the kitchen or hit the grocery store—this recipe is no exception. Make it as is for our best-ever version, then use it as a jumping-off point to create your perfect chicken stir-fry.
Get the Chicken Stir-Fry recipe.
Baked Spaghetti
While we could never get tired of classic spaghetti with homemade meat sauce, sometimes we're looking for the easiest route possible to a weeknight dinner. Enter: baked spaghetti. This casserole is what comfort food is all about—cheesy, hearty, and completely adaptable to whatever you have on hand.
Get the Baked Spaghetti recipe.
Sheet-Pan Crispy Ramen
Sheet-pan crispy ramen takes your favorite comforting noodle dish and gives it a genius, textural twist—all with minimal effort. This recipe utilizes the broiler and the sheet pan, a true kitchen MVP, to create a hands-off meal packed with flavor and texture.
Get the Sheet-Pan Crispy Ramen recipe.
Mediterranean White Beans & Greens
A one-skillet recipe like this, made of hearty escarole stewed in a rich tomato sauce with lots of cannellini beans, is exactly what you’re surfing the web for. This can be eaten solo with grated Parmigiano Reggiano on top, mixed into ditalini, or sopped up with a hunk of crusty bread.
Cheesy Bacon Ranch Chicken
We’ll say it: Bacon and ranch is an absolute match made in heaven. If you’re as obsessed with this flavor combination as we are (how could you not be?), then this chicken dinner should be your new weeknight staple.
Get the Cheesy Bacon Ranch Chicken recipe.
One-Pan Chicken Bacon Gnocchi
Our one-pan chicken & gnocchi is so beloved, it was an easy choice to upgrade it with another of our favorite ingredients: crispy bacon! The chicken here is cooked in the rendered bacon fat, making it tender and juicy, and the luxuriously rich and creamy sauce comes together almost effortlessly by combining broth, cream, and Parmigiano Reggiano.
Get the One-Pan Chicken Bacon Gnocchi recipe.
Marry Me Shrimp Pasta
Marry me shrimp pasta features a rich sun-dried tomato cream sauce loaded with shrimp, tender spinach, and fragrant herbs, all tossed with perfectly al dente pasta. Taking inspiration from our beloved marry me chicken, this is a new spin on a classic that’s both indulgent and easy to make.
Get the Marry Me Shrimp Pasta recipe.
Taco Lasagna
This hearty Tex-Mex taco lasagna hits so many of the classic casserole notes: Cheesy? ✔️ Perfect for a crowd? ✔️ Flavor for days? ✔️ Great (greatest?) way to stretch a pound of ground beef? ✔️ The list goes on and on.
Get the Taco Lasagna recipe.
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