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I hope y’all are enjoying the long holiday weekend! I thought it would be a good opportunity to round up my Top 20 Recipes for Eating Healthy on a Budget. You see, it’s about this time every year that I start getting serious about eating healthy and working out. No, not because bikinis are rapidly approaching (okay, maybe a little), but because the sudden sunshine and warm air begin to energize and awaken me from the inside out. As soon as the sun starts to come out from behind those winter clouds, I spring to action like a little energizer bunny.
I went through my archives and pulled these 20 recipes (10 meat and 10 vegetarian) that you might find useful if you suddenly become a health monster every spring, like me. “Healthy” is obviously a very subjective term, so take the list with a grain of salt.
My criteria for healthy means: plenty of vegetables and/or fiber, low or no added sugar, and reasonable fat content (lower animal based fats). And of course, what do all of these recipes have in common? They’re satisfying and budget friendly. Enjoy! :)
This chipotle chicken chili has smoky chipotle peppers, shredded chicken, and hearty beans for a meal that will fill you up and satisfy your taste buds.
These Sweet n' Spicy Chicken Bowls assemble quickly and provide a lot of flavor, color, and texture. Low sugar, high fiber, and loaded with deliciousness!
This easy hot and sour soup is light on the stomach, but big on flavor! The spicy and tangy broth is full of colorful vegetables and tender cubes of tofu.
Want to share your favorites? Feel free to share your favorite recipes for eating healthy on a budget (from anywhere around the web!) in the comments below.
Beth MoncelI’m a food lover, number cruncher, and meticulous budgeter. I love science and art, and the way they come together when I cook. I love to create, problem solve, and learn new things. Making great food is my passion, my purpose, and my favorite thing to share with others.More About Beth
Eat More. Spend Less.
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I’ve made the chicken ropa vieja plenty of times and my boyfriend loves it as well. Love any crockpot recipe really but this one is extra special because it reminds me of something similar my mother would make :) http://www.lacasabloga.com
I never comment on blogs… I just lurk around creepily. BUT I think I have made more recipes from your blog than any other, so I feel I must contribute my thoughts to this post. I’ve only just made your recipe for creole beans and chicken over rice. OMG. I am just a little bit, lot bit, obsessed!! I loaded it up with even more veggies, and it turned out so great! My boyfriend and I have been devouring it all week. Normally, I tap out after eating the same thing more than twice. But me thinks this will be going into the regular rotation (which says a lot because I rarely make anything on a regular basis).
As for the healthiness of it, I think it’s pretty top notch. You can load it up with veggies, fresh or frozen. You could even get away with less chicken (although my boyfriend got mad when I suggested that lol). And if you want to beef it up, serve it over brown rice or barley. Boom. Deeeee-li-cious!
I love the list, but see a lot of soups and stews – do you think a Spring/Summer highlights list might be forthcoming? I for one am a huge baby about the heat and can’t stand to add more of it to my life when it’s hot out!
I made some spicy tuna guac bowls today because of this post. I had forgotten about them! I did a few little tweaks (quinoa instead of rice and I seasoned my edamame and added some toasted nuts to the quinoa and added cilantro paste and red onions to the tuna) but that is budgetbytes style. All my tweaks were affordable and took little work. These bowls are VERY versatile! I was very pleased to get my guacamole 50% off. Now I have lunch for the next four days:). I had more than enough tuna so I made a tuna melt for lunch.
These recipes sound awesome. If I ever get to live alone again I am going to try them. However I have to stick to the meat and potatoes cooking because I have challenged brothers that only ate my mothers cooking and they won’t try new things. The kids might eat them but I would have to cook something else for my brothers. Might be worth doing. Thanks for sharing all these awesome recipes.
I really appreciate your definition of ‘healthy’–so often on the internet I feel like anything with cheese or gluten is considered unhealthy, and your site is a good reminder that everything in moderation + lots of vegetables is the key to enjoying your favorite foods in a healthy way. Thanks!
I made the vegan red lentil stew with Jasmin rice a few days ago and we all loved it. Where we are now into autumn and the temperatures are fortunately a bit lower, I will be trying out more of your hearty dishes.
I’ve only been following your blog for a couple of months but I’ve really been enjoying it, and have tried several of your recipes with great success. I just wanted to post here because I’m wildly curious about your “astronomical flop”; would love to read about a few of the ones that just didn’t work out.
But now I think I’ll go shopping for some lentils!
Hahah, it was supposed to be a pasta primavera, but I didn’t like the combo of vegetables that I chose and the cream sauce didn’t work out the way I wanted it to. ;)
I’m glad to know that even very experienced cooks like you can strike out sometimes. Makes me feel better about my own occasional kitchen catastrophes! My sister introduced me to your website a few years ago and I love it! Thank you for sharing your talents with us. My husband’s favorite recipe from your site is a skillet sausage meal with pasta. He even loves it as leftovers packed for lunch. I love that it has spinach and tomatoes so even my picky husband is getting some veggies!
Believe me, I strike out often. ;) But that’s how you learn and get better!
Looking at these recipes gives me an inspiration, since my sister wants to eat healthy and I’m determined to help her. Thank you, Beth!! :-)
I’ve made the chicken ropa vieja plenty of times and my boyfriend loves it as well. Love any crockpot recipe really but this one is extra special because it reminds me of something similar my mother would make :)
http://www.lacasabloga.com
I never comment on blogs… I just lurk around creepily. BUT I think I have made more recipes from your blog than any other, so I feel I must contribute my thoughts to this post. I’ve only just made your recipe for creole beans and chicken over rice. OMG. I am just a little bit, lot bit, obsessed!! I loaded it up with even more veggies, and it turned out so great! My boyfriend and I have been devouring it all week. Normally, I tap out after eating the same thing more than twice. But me thinks this will be going into the regular rotation (which says a lot because I rarely make anything on a regular basis).
As for the healthiness of it, I think it’s pretty top notch. You can load it up with veggies, fresh or frozen. You could even get away with less chicken (although my boyfriend got mad when I suggested that lol). And if you want to beef it up, serve it over brown rice or barley. Boom. Deeeee-li-cious!
Thanks for posting! It’s nice to hear feedback from a frequent flyer! ;)
I love the list, but see a lot of soups and stews – do you think a Spring/Summer highlights list might be forthcoming? I for one am a huge baby about the heat and can’t stand to add more of it to my life when it’s hot out!
Thanks for all you do!!
Answered my own question! For anyone else looking: https://www.budgetbytes.com/2014/06/hot-weather-recipe-roundup/
I made some spicy tuna guac bowls today because of this post. I had forgotten about them! I did a few little tweaks (quinoa instead of rice and I seasoned my edamame and added some toasted nuts to the quinoa and added cilantro paste and red onions to the tuna) but that is budgetbytes style. All my tweaks were affordable and took little work. These bowls are VERY versatile! I was very pleased to get my guacamole 50% off. Now I have lunch for the next four days:). I had more than enough tuna so I made a tuna melt for lunch.
Ooh thanks for sharing…been trying to eat a little healthier to gear up for a spring break trip to Mexico– so these look delicious!
These recipes sound awesome. If I ever get to live alone again I am going to try them. However I have to stick to the meat and potatoes cooking because I have challenged brothers that only ate my mothers cooking and they won’t try new things. The kids might eat them but I would have to cook something else for my brothers. Might be worth doing. Thanks for sharing all these awesome recipes.
Oh, I was happy to see some of my favorites on here. Thank you for making this post, and making a meatless section!
I really appreciate your definition of ‘healthy’–so often on the internet I feel like anything with cheese or gluten is considered unhealthy, and your site is a good reminder that everything in moderation + lots of vegetables is the key to enjoying your favorite foods in a healthy way. Thanks!
This is very helpful, thank you! <3
Kinkx
You left out one of my favorite recipes found on your blog: Stuffed Poblano Peppers
https://www.budgetbytes.com/2010/02/stuffed-poblano-peppers/https://www.budgetbytes.com/2010/02/stuffed-poblano-peppers/
I made the vegan red lentil stew with Jasmin rice a few days ago and we all loved it. Where we are now into autumn and the temperatures are fortunately a bit lower, I will be trying out more of your hearty dishes.
Hurrah for the Farro and Chickpea Salad! I think that’s just about my favorite of the recipes I’ve made from here.
I’ve only been following your blog for a couple of months but I’ve really been enjoying it, and have tried several of your recipes with great success. I just wanted to post here because I’m wildly curious about your “astronomical flop”; would love to read about a few of the ones that just didn’t work out.
But now I think I’ll go shopping for some lentils!
Hahah, it was supposed to be a pasta primavera, but I didn’t like the combo of vegetables that I chose and the cream sauce didn’t work out the way I wanted it to. ;)
I’m glad to know that even very experienced cooks like you can strike out sometimes. Makes me feel better about my own occasional kitchen catastrophes! My sister introduced me to your website a few years ago and I love it! Thank you for sharing your talents with us. My husband’s favorite recipe from your site is a skillet sausage meal with pasta. He even loves it as leftovers packed for lunch. I love that it has spinach and tomatoes so even my picky husband is getting some veggies!
Believe me, I strike out often. ;) But that’s how you learn and get better!
Looking at these recipes gives me an inspiration, since my sister wants to eat healthy and I’m determined to help her. Thank you, Beth!! :-)
your food look attractive. many dishes. I’ll try to do all. The first will be the spanish chickpeas and rice :)) because I like to eat white rice. :))