How far can YOUR $35 go? Make 20 ALDI meat meals on a budget!
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Even if we were given a variety of options, the majority of us would probably go for whatever will save us the most money, right? Unless you’re a part of the tiny percentage made of the richest people on the planet, then chances are you went through blood, sweat, and tears just to earn everything you’ve needed and wanted in life.
So whether or not it’s for clothes, furniture, or in this case, food and groceries, discovering new ways to be more economical will always be of great benefit to most of us.
Luckily, we stumbled upon a YouTuber named Frugal Aussie, who just might be the master of being frugal with a very limited amount of resources. Specifically, she shared a video on how to create 20 ALDI meat meals for only $35! Sounds too good to be true, eh?
Well, of course, this is based on the assumption that you’re stocked up on basic food items such as oil, herbs, and spices at home – but other than that, these meal plans are definitely feasible!
She started off the video with a fair warning: “This is not going to be pretty or gourmet. This is going to get some food in my belly.”
“I wanted to eat as much fruit and vegetables as possible, have some protein in my diet and fill up on carbs. I wanted to cook in bulk to save time.” she wrote.
So if you don’t really mind food aesthetics, then let’s proceed with the recipes!
1. Bacon and Corn Chowder
Perfect for chilly days! This one’s quick and easy. To begin, gather the following ingredients: a bunch of celery ($3.29), 2 kilograms of potatoes ($3.49), 750 grams of cooking bacon ($5.99), a kilogram of corn kernels (2.49), and a kilogram of brown onions ($1.99).
Easy peasy Bacon and Corn Chowder Image Credit: Frugal Aussie
Next, place 400 grams of frozen corn, half a tablespoon of butter, a bulb of finely chopped brown onion, two peeled and finely chopped potatoes, three finely chopped bacon slices, and two diced celery stalks in a medium heated pot. Stir the contents until the onion is cooked through.
Add the flour as a thickening agent, followed by stock. Bring the mixture to a boil. After a couple of minutes, reduce the heat and stir occasionally until the soup thickens and the potatoes are tender. Sprinkle salt and pepper if desired!
This recipe can serve up to 7 bowls of chowder!
2. Wonky Cups
If you’re keen on trying these out, stock up on the following during your next grocery run: 1 kilogram of puff pastry ($2.29), 1 kilogram of carrots (1.79), a dozen of eggs ($3.29), and 250 grams of spinach (89 cents).
Now to get to cooking, start by defrosting three puff pastry sheets. While it defrosts, fry up 2 diced bacon slices and remove it from the pan when it’s cooked. In the empty pan with leftover bacon fat, add one bulb of diced onion, two grated carrots, and 125 grams of frozen spinach. Mix it all together until it’s cooked and add the bacon back in. Once it’s all done, set the dish aside to cool.
12 pieces of Wonky Cups! Image Credit: Frugal Aussie
Proceed by laying out and shaping the defrosted pastry into a 12 cup tray. Beat half a dozen eggs and pour them equally into each pastry cup. Top off the middle with the bacon and vegetable mix that you previously made and pop it in the oven at 220 degrees celsius.
This recipe can provide you with up to six meals! They are scrumptious, healthy, and can easily be packed for work or school.
3. Spaghetti Bolognese
Who doesn’t love a good ol’ plate of spaghetti? It’s a classic dish that we all grew up eating! To make Frugal Aussie’s version of spaghetti bolognese, list down the following ingredients: 500 grams of spaghetti (79 cents), 500 grams of pork and beef mince ($5.49), 700 grams of Passata ($1.49), and 400 grams of basil and oregano flavoured diced tomatoes (99 cents).
Begin the cooking process by dicing 3 celery sticks, 2 carrots, and 2 onion bulbs (the leftover veggies from your chowder). In a hot pan with oil, fry up the pork and beef mince, to be followed by adding the diced vegetables. Sprinkle a bit of garlic powder, salt, pepper, and your preferred herbs. Add in the canned diced tomatoes along with the passata and leave to cook.
In a separate pot, cook the spaghetti. Once the pasta is ready, drop it into the pot of sauce.
Note: Remove some sauce to save for later before combining the pasta with the sauce.
Tasty plates of spaghetti! Image Credit: Frugal Aussie
And just like that, you’ve got yourself up to 5 plates of spaghetti bolognese! (chefs kiss)
4. Bacon and Vegetable Parcels
At this point, you’re probably wondering what to do with the leftover ingredients you bought from the previous recipes. Take for example, we asked you to buy 750 grams of bacon for the first recipe but we really only used a handful of slices so far. Thou shall not fret! We’ll be using most of the remaining ingredients for this last recipe.
Delicious Bacon and Vegetable Parcels. Image Credit: Frugal Aussie
Start by taking the remaining bacon and dicing it all up. While you’re at it, dice up two to three sticks of celery, two potatoes, and a bulb of onion. Grate two carrots and prepare 200 grams of corn in a bowl.
Saute the diced bacon in a pan on high heat and remove it from the pot once it’s cooked. Toss in all the other ingredients you prepared to cook in the pan with bacon fat. Mix in a tad bit of garlic powder, salt, pepper and your preferred herbs to add a kick of flavour. Toss the cooked bacon back in the pan and add the remaining passata sauce. Remove the mixture from the heat once everything is cooked through.
Take your last 3 pastry sheets and play around with the sizing to make a total of 4 equal squares. When the vegetable and bacon mix is cooled, scoop equal amounts onto the 4 pastry sheets and fold neatly into parcels. Finally, pop it in the oven for 200 celsius and leave to bake for up to 25 minutes. We told you, nothing to waste! This recipe provides 4 servings.
There you have it, folks! Budget-friendly, easy, and delicious meals… What more could you ask for? Shout out to Frugal Aussie for providing us with these brilliant recipes.
Feel free to give these a shot and let us know how it goes in the comments!
Unfortunately Frugal Aussie has since removed the exact video we have spoken about in this article, however she has also released this incredible video of an Aldi $15 Grocery Budget Challenge! Where she went to Aldi and bought 15 meals for 15 dollars. Watch it below!
Video Credit: Frugal Aussie
So whether or not it’s for clothes, furniture, or in this case, food and groceries, discovering new ways to be more economical will always be of great benefit to most of us.
Luckily, we stumbled upon a YouTuber named Frugal Aussie, who just might be the master of being frugal with a very limited amount of resources. Specifically, she shared a video on how to create 20 ALDI meat meals for only $35! Sounds too good to be true, eh?
Well, of course, this is based on the assumption that you’re stocked up on basic food items such as oil, herbs, and spices at home – but other than that, these meal plans are definitely feasible!
She started off the video with a fair warning: “This is not going to be pretty or gourmet. This is going to get some food in my belly.”
“I wanted to eat as much fruit and vegetables as possible, have some protein in my diet and fill up on carbs. I wanted to cook in bulk to save time.” she wrote.
So if you don’t really mind food aesthetics, then let’s proceed with the recipes!
1. Bacon and Corn Chowder
Perfect for chilly days! This one’s quick and easy. To begin, gather the following ingredients: a bunch of celery ($3.29), 2 kilograms of potatoes ($3.49), 750 grams of cooking bacon ($5.99), a kilogram of corn kernels (2.49), and a kilogram of brown onions ($1.99).
Easy peasy Bacon and Corn Chowder Image Credit: Frugal Aussie
Next, place 400 grams of frozen corn, half a tablespoon of butter, a bulb of finely chopped brown onion, two peeled and finely chopped potatoes, three finely chopped bacon slices, and two diced celery stalks in a medium heated pot. Stir the contents until the onion is cooked through.
Add the flour as a thickening agent, followed by stock. Bring the mixture to a boil. After a couple of minutes, reduce the heat and stir occasionally until the soup thickens and the potatoes are tender. Sprinkle salt and pepper if desired!
This recipe can serve up to 7 bowls of chowder!
2. Wonky Cups
If you’re keen on trying these out, stock up on the following during your next grocery run: 1 kilogram of puff pastry ($2.29), 1 kilogram of carrots (1.79), a dozen of eggs ($3.29), and 250 grams of spinach (89 cents).
Now to get to cooking, start by defrosting three puff pastry sheets. While it defrosts, fry up 2 diced bacon slices and remove it from the pan when it’s cooked. In the empty pan with leftover bacon fat, add one bulb of diced onion, two grated carrots, and 125 grams of frozen spinach. Mix it all together until it’s cooked and add the bacon back in. Once it’s all done, set the dish aside to cool.
12 pieces of Wonky Cups! Image Credit: Frugal Aussie
Proceed by laying out and shaping the defrosted pastry into a 12 cup tray. Beat half a dozen eggs and pour them equally into each pastry cup. Top off the middle with the bacon and vegetable mix that you previously made and pop it in the oven at 220 degrees celsius.
This recipe can provide you with up to six meals! They are scrumptious, healthy, and can easily be packed for work or school.
3. Spaghetti Bolognese
Who doesn’t love a good ol’ plate of spaghetti? It’s a classic dish that we all grew up eating! To make Frugal Aussie’s version of spaghetti bolognese, list down the following ingredients: 500 grams of spaghetti (79 cents), 500 grams of pork and beef mince ($5.49), 700 grams of Passata ($1.49), and 400 grams of basil and oregano flavoured diced tomatoes (99 cents).
Begin the cooking process by dicing 3 celery sticks, 2 carrots, and 2 onion bulbs (the leftover veggies from your chowder). In a hot pan with oil, fry up the pork and beef mince, to be followed by adding the diced vegetables. Sprinkle a bit of garlic powder, salt, pepper, and your preferred herbs. Add in the canned diced tomatoes along with the passata and leave to cook.
In a separate pot, cook the spaghetti. Once the pasta is ready, drop it into the pot of sauce.
Note: Remove some sauce to save for later before combining the pasta with the sauce.
Tasty plates of spaghetti! Image Credit: Frugal Aussie
And just like that, you’ve got yourself up to 5 plates of spaghetti bolognese! (chefs kiss)
4. Bacon and Vegetable Parcels
At this point, you’re probably wondering what to do with the leftover ingredients you bought from the previous recipes. Take for example, we asked you to buy 750 grams of bacon for the first recipe but we really only used a handful of slices so far. Thou shall not fret! We’ll be using most of the remaining ingredients for this last recipe.
Delicious Bacon and Vegetable Parcels. Image Credit: Frugal Aussie
Saute the diced bacon in a pan on high heat and remove it from the pot once it’s cooked. Toss in all the other ingredients you prepared to cook in the pan with bacon fat. Mix in a tad bit of garlic powder, salt, pepper and your preferred herbs to add a kick of flavour. Toss the cooked bacon back in the pan and add the remaining passata sauce. Remove the mixture from the heat once everything is cooked through.
Take your last 3 pastry sheets and play around with the sizing to make a total of 4 equal squares. When the vegetable and bacon mix is cooled, scoop equal amounts onto the 4 pastry sheets and fold neatly into parcels. Finally, pop it in the oven for 200 celsius and leave to bake for up to 25 minutes. We told you, nothing to waste! This recipe provides 4 servings.
There you have it, folks! Budget-friendly, easy, and delicious meals… What more could you ask for? Shout out to Frugal Aussie for providing us with these brilliant recipes.
Feel free to give these a shot and let us know how it goes in the comments!
Unfortunately Frugal Aussie has since removed the exact video we have spoken about in this article, however she has also released this incredible video of an Aldi $15 Grocery Budget Challenge! Where she went to Aldi and bought 15 meals for 15 dollars. Watch it below!
Video Credit: Frugal Aussie
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