3 Meals to Feed a Family of (4) Each For Under $10. This Time The Protein is Beef

You’ll see each ingredient listed along with the cost for just the amount used in the meal, calculated from the price of the whole item.

Cheesy Cottage Pie ($9.13 for 6 servings)

Ingredients

Cheesy Mashed Potatoes

2.5 lbs. russet potatoes ($1.50)

1 tsp salt, divided ($0.05)

2 Tbsp butter ($0.25)

1/2 cup milk ($0.16)

4 oz. shredded cheddar ($0.85)

Cottage Pie Filling

2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.23)

1 yellow onion ($0.96)

2 cloves garlic ($0.16)

1/2 lb. lean ground beef ($2.73*)

2 Tbsp all-purpose flour ($0.01)

1 cup beef broth ($0.40)

1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce ($0.03)

1 tsp dried rosemary ($0.10)

1/2 tsp dried thyme ($0.05)

2 cups frozen peas and carrots ($1.20)

1 cup frozen corn ($0.50)

1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)

Instructions 

1. Peel and chop the potatoes into 1-inch cubes. Rinse them in a colander with cool water, then place them in a pot and add enough fresh water to cover them completely. Add 1/2 tsp salt, place a lid on the pot, and bring it up to a boil over high heat. Boil the potatoes until very tender, about 7-10 minutes.

2. Drain the potatoes in a colander and rinse them again briefly with hot water. This removes excess starch and helps give the mashed potatoes a light and fluffy texture.

3. While the potatoes are draining, add the butter and milk to the pot used to boil the potatoes. Heat the butter and milk over low until the butter is melted and the milk is hot. Add the drained potatoes back to the pot, then mash until smooth. Taste and add salt to taste (about 1/2 tsp). Stir in the shredded cheddar. Set the potatoes aside until you’re ready to assemble the casserole.

4. While the potatoes are cooking, begin to preheat the oven to 350ºF and begin the filling for the cottage pie. Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add the onion and garlic to a large skillet along with the olive oil and sauté over medium until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.

5. Add the beef to the skillet and continue to sauté until the beef is fully cooked. Add the all-purpose flour and continue to stir and cook for about 2 minutes more, or until the flour coats the bottom of the skillet. 

6. Add the beef broth and stir to dissolve the flour from the bottom of the skillet. The broth will come up to a simmer fairly quickly, at which point it will thicken into a gravy.

7. Add the Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, thyme, frozen peas and carrots, and frozen corn to the skillet. Heat through, then taste and add salt if needed (I added 1/2 tsp).

8. Finally, assemble the cottage pie by transferring the beef and vegetable mixture to the bottom of a 2 quart casserole dish (We use a deep sided 9″x11″). Top with dollops of the warm cheesy mashed potatoes, spreading it out smooth to cover the surface.

9. Bake the Cheesy Cottage Pie for 30 minutes in the preheated 350ºF oven. If you want extra browning on top, switch the oven to broil after baking and allow it to broil for a few minutes or until the desired browning has been achieved. Let the casserole rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Beef Stroganoff ($9.86 for 4 Servings)

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic ($0.16)

2 Tbsp butter ($0.25)

1 lb. ground beef ($5.46*)

8 oz. mushrooms ($1.65)

1/4 tsp black pepper ($0.01)

2 cups beef broth ($0.75)

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce ($0.10)

1/2 tsp Dijon mustard ($0.10)

8 oz. wide egg noodles ($0.99)

1/2 cup sour cream ($0.49)

Instructions 

1. Mince the garlic. Add the garlic and butter to a large pot or skillet and sauté over medium heat for about one minute, or until the garlic is soft and fragrant.

2. Add the ground beef and continue to sauté until it is fully browned.

3. While the beef is browning, slice the mushrooms. Add the sliced mushrooms and some black pepper (to taste) to the pot with the beef. Continue to sauté until the mushrooms are soft (about five minutes).

4. Add the uncooked egg noodles to the pot along with the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, and Dijon mustard. Stir to combine. The liquid will not fully cover the noodles, but that's okay.

5. Place a lid on the pot and allow the liquid to come up to a boil over medium-high heat. As soon as it reaches a boil, give the pot a stir, replace the lid, and reduce the heat to low. Allow the pot to simmer on low heat for about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally and replacing the lid every couple of minutes. After 8-10 minutes the pasta should be tender and most of the liquid absorbed.

6. Once the noodles are tender, add the sour cream and fold it into the noodles until everything is rich and creamy. Give the noodles a taste and add extra salt or pepper, if needed. Serve hot.

Bibimbap - Korean Beef Bowl ($9.39 for 4 Servings)

Ingredients

4 cups cooked rice ($0.75)

3/4 lb lean ground beef ($4.09*)

2 Tbsp chili garlic sauce ($0.13)

1 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.09)

1 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.10)

1 carrot ($0.30)

1 cucumber ($0.79)

2 green onions ($0.25)

4 large eggs ($0.67)

1/2 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.02)

8 oz bag fresh spinach ($1.99)

1 tsp toasted sesame oil ($0.11)

Pinch of salt ($0.02)

1 Tbsp sesame seeds ($0.08)

Instructions 

1. If your rice is not already cooked, begin that first and prepare the rest of the bowl ingredients as the rice cooks.

2. Prepare the sautéed spinach next. Heat a large skillet over medium flame and add the cooking oil. Swirl to coat the skillet, then add the fresh spinach. Sauté the spinach for a few minutes, or just until it is wilted. Drizzle the sesame oil over top and season lightly with a pinch of salt. Remove the spinach from the skillet to a clean bowl.

3. Add the ground beef to the skillet used to cook the spinach. Cook the beef until fully browned, then add the chili garlic sauce, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Stir and cook for about one minute, or until everything is evenly mixed and the beef is coated in sauce. Turn the heat off.

4. Prepare the fresh vegetables. Peel and grate the carrot using a large holed cheese grater. Thinly slice the cucumber, and slice the green onions.

5. Fry or soft boil 4 large eggs

6. Build the bowls by first adding 1 cup cooked rice to the bowl, followed by 1/4 of the cooked spinach, 1/4 of the ground beef, some sliced cucumber, shredded carrots, a cooked egg. Sprinkle sliced green onions and sesame seeds over top. There are no hard measurements needed for each ingredient per bowl, just divide the ingredients evenly or as you see fit.

One Last Friendly Reminder

Before you close this tab and head back to real life, I just want to gently remind you of something important: none of these meals need to be perfect. Truly. Cooking for a family isn’t a performance, and dinner doesn’t need to look like it came from a magazine to count as a win.

Feel free to swap out vegetables, skip an ingredient you don’t have, or season everything exactly the way your family actually likes it, not the way a recipe tells you it should be. Use what’s in your fridge, lean on what’s affordable that week, and trust yourself a little more than the instructions.

Some nights will be a hit, some nights will be “fine,” and a few nights might be a little messy and all of that is completely okay. If dinner makes it to the table and your family eats, you did it right. If people are full, cared for, and gathered together for even a few minutes, that’s success. Give yourself credit for showing up and feeding the people you love. That matters more than anything else.

*I buy the 10lb package of ground 90/10 ground beef at Sam's Club and portion and freeze amounts I may need. The price works out to be $5.46 per pound