10 Cheap and Easy Dinner Ideas – 5 Ingredients or Less!
You probably already know that making home-cooked meals is better for your health and your wallet.
But finding the time to make a meal plan and stick to it isn’t always that
Between rushing to get everyone out the door for work and school then dashing home to get the kids to soccer practice on time, it’s easy to forget about or just give up on dinner.
If you’re tired of being too tired to cook, give these 10 cheap and easy dinner ideas a try.
With only 5 ingredients, these recipes are not only super
PRO TIP
Make your own go-to guide of quick and easy family favorite recipes and keep your kitchen stocked with the ingredients. That way you’ll always have something to fall back on when you’re too tired to think up something new for dinner.
Chipotle BBQ Chicken Skewers Recipe
Even though it usually tops 100 degrees in the summer here, I love to grill most nights. But on the 110+ days, this recipe also offers the option to bake in the oven.
Quick Chicken Tortilla Bake
I love a good casserole. Mostly because it means less clean-up, but also because they tend to have that comfort food feel. This Quick Chicken Tortilla Bake definitely fits the bill.
Breaded Lemon Chicken
Being allergic to eggs, I’m always experimenting with new ways to make breading stick to chicken.
I’ve tried a lot (milk, butter, mayo), but I’d never thought of lemon juice before reading this recipe. Genius!
I’m betting this would work really well with fish too.
Easy Crockpot Shredded Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches
Slow cooker recipes are my absolute favorite!
Living in the desert, I tend to use “it’s too hot to cook” as an excuse more often than not for at least 9 months out of the year.
Not only does crockpot cooking keep me cool, but it’s also set-it and forget-it. The best way to cook in my book.
Easy Hamburger Casserole Recipe
This casserole is not only quick and easy, it’s also perfect if you’ve got picky eaters. With
Bacon Asparagus Pasta
My family loves grilled asparagus, but there’s only so much I can grill at a time. This recipe is perfect for using up the extra. And sauteeing it with bacon…well that might be our new favorite.
Chicken Rice Casserole
I’m from the South originally, and growing up every casserole had to have loads of cheese in it.
But, much to my horror, my boys are not fans of cheese. So when I found this chicken and rice casserole I was thrilled.
It’s just as easy as the ones I grew up with, but healthier and more flavorful.
Slow Cooker Root Beer Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Being from the South, I do enjoy a good BBQ sandwich every so often, but they’re not exactly easy to come by in the desert. This recipe helps me feed our cravings without a lot of effort.
PRO TIP
Use a mixer to shred your meat! I absolutely hate shredding meat by hand and would have avoided a recipe like this for that reason alone. But since I discovered the mixer hack I make shredded chicken almost weekly.
Baked Crispy Ranch Chicken
Here’s another eggless chicken coating that I absolutely love…ranch dressing!
Our family practically drinks Ranch dressing so we always have the ingredients on hand for this quick and easy dinner.
Chicken Enchilada Bake
My absolute favorite food is nachos so I make a taco-seasoned shredded chicken almost weekly.
But there’s only so much nachos and quesadillas the rest of my family will eat. This recipe is the perfect way to mix things up a bit.
Final Thoughts
These recipes are perfect for those rushed nights when you don’t have time to figure out what’s for dinner.
Just make sure to have the ingredients for a few of your favorites on hand and you’ll never have to worry about stressing over supper again.
PRO TIP
Plan ahead a bit by making extras that you can freeze. There’s nothing easier than pulling dinner out of the freezer and popping it straight into the oven.
Meal planning can save you loads of time and money. Add these items to your wishlist to help you master meal planning in the future.
