Get inspired with this menu plan that includes lots of frugal meals for families. Perfect for anyone looking for easy, inexpensive meal ideas!
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Sharing my meal plans has gotten a lot of people curious about exactly how I manage to get the groceries that we need for just $225 a month. There are lots of things that I do to save money on food (and I talk a bit more about some of that below).
But using money-saving grocery apps is one of my favorite ways to save at the grocery store. And it’s also super easy too! Here are the ones I use and recommend:
- Ibotta
- Fetch Rewards
– This one is the absolute easiest to use…you just scan your receipt and that’s it.
If you looking for some frugal meals to add to your weekly meal plan ideas but are new to my menu plan posts, it’s probably helpful to know a couple of things first:
- Our family of six consists of two adults with fairly big appetites, a 9-year-old boy, a 5 ½-year-old girl, a 3 ½-year-old girl and a 1-year-old boy.
- I have a stockpile. My cupboards are full from previous shopping and here’s why. When I can get pasta for free with coupons, I buy as much as I have coupons for. If I’m able to get flour for $0.50/bag like I did last fall, I’ll buy half a dozen and put them in the freezer to use as needed. I do this as much as my budget allows, on as many items as I can and as a result save lots of money. Then when I go to plan menus, I simply plan our meals around what I already have in my cupboards and freezer, as much as possible. Obviously, I still might have to buy a few things at regular price here and there, but by stocking up when the price is at rock bottom I save a lot.
- I cook almost totally from scratch. That means when I make a cake, I almost always make them from scratch. I make my own bread totally from scratch. I rarely use pre-packaged sauces. I make my own cream soups and pie crusts. Making your own food is typically less expensive and healthier too.
- We rarely snack. By eating “heavy” food like granola at breakfast we don’t get hungry until lunchtime. And the same goes for the afternoon. Our lunches are big enough that we usually are fine until dinner time. When we do need a snack, I try to keep it mostly healthy by offering fruit, nuts or maybe No Bake Energy Bites. We don’t always do it perfectly though and sometimes end up having chips or cookies instead.
- Our breakfasts consist of Homemade Granola or Baked Oatmeal, the occasional bought cereal that I was able to get for $0.50/box and sometimes some fruit too. I know that might seem awfully boring to some of you, but we actually all really enjoy it and prefer it over other breakfast food. I also have a homemade iced latte, homemade frappe or some other fun beverage every morning. It’s just one of the little things that I do to help me have a productive day!
Get my FREE $50 Aldi Meal Plan here! It has 7 easy dinners for a family of 5.
Menu Plan with Frugal Meals for Families
WEEK 1
Sunday
- Herb Roasted Chicken and Potatoes; Green Beans; Homemade Applesauce; Favorite Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Homemade Grilled Tuna Salad Sandwiches; Easy Frozen Fruit Smoothie
Monday
- Meat & Cheese Sandwiches on 100% Whole Wheat Bread; Potato Chips; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Apples; Home Canned Peaches
- Creamy Italian Sausage and Pasta Soup; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Chocolate Cobbler; Turkey Hill All Natural Ice Cream
Tuesday
- Annie’s Mac & Cheese; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Apples; Frozen Raspberries
- 1-2-3-4 Casserole; Homemade Applesauce; Turkey Hill All Natural Ice Cream
– The casserole is a super easy recipe that makes a tasty one-dish dinner. You put raw ground beef, raw potatoes, carrots and onions in a baking dish and then make a simple gravy-like mixture that goes over the top. It ends up being kind of like meatloaf and veggies all in the same dish. So good!
Wednesday
- Refried Bean & Cheese Quesadillas (made with my easy Homemade Refried Beans); Easy Homemade Yogurt; Apples; Frozen Blueberries
- Crockpot White Bean French Onion Soup; Garlic Butter Swim Biscuits; Peas; Cheese Sticks (I got these super cheap recently with coupons); Spiced Pumpkin Scones
Thursday
- Meat & Cheese Sandwiches on 100% Whole Wheat Bread; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Grapes; Fresh Pears
- Various Leftovers; Leftover Peas and Green Beans; No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecakes
Friday
- Eggs; Toast; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Fresh Pears; Grapes
- Leftover Creamy Italian Sausage & Pasta Soup; Leftover Crockpot White Bean French Onion Soup; Leftover Garlic Butter Swim Biscuits; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Pear Tart
Saturday
- Home Canned Vegetable Soup; Cheese; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Fresh Pears; Grapes
- Homemade Chicken Alfredo Pizza (used homemade healthier Alfredo sauce and homemade pizza crust and topped with chicken, and caramelized onions); Lettuce Salad; Leftover No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecakes
– This homemade pizza crust recipe is awesome! Not only does it need no time to rise, but you can also have it ready to go in the oven in 30 minutes! And it’s really tasty too. The only thing I do differently is pre-bake the crust a bit before putting on the toppings.
Week 2
Sunday
- Curry Chicken & Rice Soup; Homemade Applesauce
– We had a carry-in lunch at our church and this is what I took. - Homemade Grilled Tuna Salad Sandwiches; Easy Frozen Fruit Smoothie
Monday
- Various Leftovers; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Grapes; Home Canned Peaches
- Sausage Brats in Rolls; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Homemade Applesauce; Pepperidge Farm Cake (got free with coupons recently)
Tuesday
- Meat & Cheese Sandwiches on 100% Whole Wheat Bread; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Frozen Blueberries
- Cheesy Chicken Chowder; Lettuce Salad; Leftover Desserts
Wednesday
- Various Leftovers; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Frozen Blueberries
- Instant Pot Chicken and Rice; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Leftover Pear Tart
Thursday
- Meat & Cheese Sandwiches on 100% Whole Wheat Bread; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Apples
- Chicken Nuggets; French Fries; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Turkey Hill All Natural Ice Cream
Friday
- Various Leftovers; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Apples
- Chipotle Casserole; Peas; Homemade Applesauce; Turkey Hill All Natural Ice Cream
– The casserole is chicken, black beans and rice mixed together with lots of herbs and spices, sour cream and cheese. Basically, it tastes like something you’d get at the restaurant Chipotle. So good!
Saturday
- Meat & Cheese Sandwiches on 100% Whole Wheat Bread; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Frozen Raspberries; Apples
- Homemade Chicken Pot Pie; Cheese Sticks; Homemade Applesauce; Jelly Pies (used the leftover pie crust from the pot pie and made little “moon pie” type pastries filled with strawberry jelly and apple butter)
Monica
I’m impressed that your children would eat the onion soup! I used to make French onion soup during the winter when it was just the two of us. Although my son is not a picky eater by a long shot, I think the onion soup might be pushing my luck. It’s always fun to browse your menus and come across new ideas or even old recipes I haven’t made in a while. Thanks for taking the time to make these posts that help keep me motivated to live frugally.
ThriftyFrugalMom
To be honest, I was a little unsure if they’d like it too. But I had made French Onion Soup (which I LOVE) a while back and they ate that down no problem, probably mostly thanks the the French Bread and cheese that I added to each bowl, so I decided I’d give it a try. And they all liked it! The one wasn’t crazy about it, but she didn’t stall too much, so I consider that a win. 🙂 They actually struggle with cooked carrots in soup more quickly than onions, go figure. They eat them, but depending on the soup I hear a few sighs occasionally.
And so glad that these posts help motivate you and give new ideas! Thanks for the feedback and encouragement. It’s always helpful!
Rachel
I am just getting into menu planning and found this site. Thanks for the inspiration! We are a family of 5 and I desperately need to cut back on our bill, sometimes 800/month! I’m aiming to half this.
ThriftyFrugalMom
You are so welcome, Rachel! Menu planning is a great way to be intentional about creating good meals and also reducing your grocery spending. I hope the cutting back goes well!
michelle
I’m right there with you. My family is getting smaller all the time, kids are leaving the nest. But with diet issues, even some serious texture issues, and my severe chronic pain, I can’t seem to dwindle the monthly bill down.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Wow, yes, those things certainly make it a lot more challenging!
Jill Conyers
I’m an avid weekly menu planner. 52 weeks a year. I can’t imagine starting a week without a menu for the family.
ThriftyFrugalMom
That’s some serious commitment! I’d love to hear some of your menu planning tips.
sarah camille
It is so interesting to see how you make money for food go so far. I am not sure I could do this well with our grocery budget, but it is great inspiration nonetheless.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Thanks, Sarah! Glad it was inspiring….that’s always my goal! 🙂
Gloria Gordon
I loved reading this! I’ve been following your blog for awhile and this post did not disappoint! I really want to try to lower our food bill. There’s just the four of us but our grocery bill is easily 500 plus a month. We love frozen food too much and we’re all picky eaters. I’ll have to try some of these ideas though! Can’t wait to read more!
ThriftyFrugalMom
Grocery budgets are such a difficult thing and I definitely don’t think everyone should have a $225 one! But yeah, frozen food and picky eaters will obviously make it more of a challenge. I hope you can figure out a way to reduce your budget without frustrating your family! This post on 6 ways to save money on groceries without using coupons and this one on 4 tips to begin reducing your grocery spending might give you some ideas that you’ll find helpful.
Emily
I am in awe that you can create your monthly menu for $225 and that you make everything from scratch. That’s so much more healthy and I think it’s so cool. Also, that whole couponing thing is something I’ve got to learn at some point. Nice work!
ThriftyFrugalMom
Aw, thanks, Emily! It is healthier, no doubt, and it helps that I enjoy cooking for the most part. I also am blessed to have a grandma and mom who both cooked a lot from scratch. I learned so much from them! Yes, couponing is definitely a big help and I highly recommend it if you think it’s something you’d enjoy or find time to do. If you want to learn a little more about couponing and the other ways that I save when I grocery shop you might enjoy these posts.