10 Ways to Feed Your Family Dinner for $10 or Less

updated Jun 26, 2023
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Credit: Joe Lingeman

My family of four has started using a cash food budget and it has completely changed the way I think about grocery shopping, meal planning, and meal prep. Dinners that come in under $10 are a must! Luckily we don’t have to subsist on ramen noodles and

canned beans

these 10 family-friendly dinners are all under $10 a meal.

A note on pricing: Our costs were calculated based on grocery prices sourced from Instacart, so your local prices may vary. (We also assumed you had a few staple ingredients — like olive oil, salt, and spices — on hand already.)

Family Dinners Under $10

1 / 10
Quick and Easy Sloppy Joes
A family dinner classic, these easy sloppy Joes are ideal for any night of the week.
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2 / 10
Philly Cheesesteak Pasta Skillet
Meet your new dinner favorite — a one-pot pasta riff on a Philly cheesesteak sandwich.
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3 / 10
5-Ingredient Baked Potato Soup
Spoiler: No baked potatoes are required for this soup. Just one freezer shortcut will get you from done to devoured in less than 30 minutes!
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4 / 10
French Onion Frittata
This frittata is loaded with all the best parts of a great bowl of French onion soup: velvety caramelized onions, melted Gruyere, even cubes of toast
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5 / 10
Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala
Spooned over some steamed rice, this easy slow cooker tikka masala is about to make your busy days very happy indeed.
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6 / 10
Slow Cooker Chicken Parm Meatballs
Slow cooker chicken meatballs loaded with Parmesan cheese cooked right in marinara sauce.
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7 / 10
One-Pot BBQ Chicken Burrito Bowls
Burrito bowls filled with tender spiced rice, beans, corn, and tangy barbecue chicken.
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8 / 10
Tomato Tortellini Soup
This creamy, tangy tomato soup is studded with tender tortellini and comes together in just 20 minutes.
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9 / 10
Chickpea and Cheddar Quesadillas
To make these quesadillas desk-lunch-friendly, we ditched the wedge cut for a technique that keeps the chickpeas and cheese nestled in a closed tortilla.
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10 / 10
One-Pot Creamy Chicken and Rice Casserole

A classic budget dinner, I’d wager most of us grew up with some version of this casserole. I usually use about half as much chicken called for here and double up on the vegetables instead.

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