Poor Man Meals When Money is Tight || Easy & Delicious Cheap Dinners
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- čas přidán 16. 05. 2023
- #poormanscooking #cheapmeals #budgetfriendlyfood #frugalliving #tightbudget #familymeals #budget #brokebudget
Hey y’all! Love you guys so much!
Love Brooke
Poorman Beef and Broccoli:
1lb ground beef
1 lb broccoli
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 TBS Minced Garlic
1ts ginger
1 TBS cornstarch
1TBS brown sugar
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Brooke, no need to boil noodles or pay more for "no boil" noodles....I'm 100% Italian & adapted this when I was a young wife....layer UNCOOKED noodles as usual but use a bit extra sauce bc noodles will absorb sauce when cooking....comes out great & a time saver....but don't tell my grandmother bc I'd be disowned 🤣🤣
I’ve done this for years! I especially always did this with stuffed manicotti, I just found out a lot of people boil the noodles before hand and I was shocked. I just thought of how much more of a pain it would be to fill soft manicotti noodles lol. It always come out delicious and cooked well when I just use it uncooked. I’m Italian too and my Nonna would slap my hands for it. 😂 Saves time and still comes out delicious.
I would say if you have any kind of macaroni product, you could parboil it and then layer it
100%agree.. pretty much any pasta dish can be made with uncooked pasta if its going to be baked or made in a crockpot but precooked pasta does cook faster like the cooked and dehydrates noodles in instant macncheese
Brooke,these meals all look delish!! I Always make a no boil lasagna! It comes great!! I Love Beef and Broccoli!! It's Amazing how cheap food is easy,but yet No one knows it's cheap!! Great video!! Love you!!❤😊
I do it too, makes it creamier without boiling and I add mater not more sauce.
As an Asian I’m telling you lovely lady that your poor man’s beef and broccoli is very authentic to home cooked for me. Props for using a rice cooker. You bring honour to your family 😂 ❤❤❤
Very nice 🙂
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Good because I am making it tonight and I am so excited to try it
I’m 58. In hindsight, I now realize my mom made a lot of “poor man” meals when we were growing up. At the time, it was just good home cooking.
Hamburger gravy over toast is what my Mom fixed a lot of and we loved it at the time and thought nothing of it, but looking back I can see that was because we were poor.
@@koreyb Sounds good, though! 👍
@@jesusislord7488 we liked it.
@@koreybburger gravy is so delicious. Today rice is cheaper than bread so we eat it over rice. It is a nostalgia meal for my 84 year old dad.
Right? We were so broke when I was growing up. But Mom made everything so awesome. We were always happy for Spaghetti night, that lasted 2 days because there was so much food. We didn't realize, until we grew up, those were the nights she had the least amount of money to feed us on.
My mom taught me to always add a little water to a jar/can and make sure you used all of the sauce. Still do it today.💚🙏🏻
I was thinking the same thing when watching, water or broth for more added flavor.
Me, too!
Absolutely! I do that too.
Im glad to know it’s not me, but I think this so often on so many videos. Not an insult… im just being honest. I was taught you get every bit out of thst jar or can or cake batter now or anything!
I do that also 😊
Tip: add 2 eggs and parmesan cheese to your cottage cheese. Poor mans rocotta.
Or use some butter, flour and milk. Make a béchamel sauce.
That's what I always do. Really adds a lot!🙂
Thanks but do u cook eggs or mix everything raw? Thx u!
Brooke I'm really enjoying your Family, Recipes & you're channel! I have cut my food cost ($700 + monthly) family of 4 adults) in more of half ($200) & now have a decent stock pantry following your suggestions. I have never had a pantry before! My family also tell me (and I agree) my dishes have been more flavorful with less ingredients! For the first time we now have money in our savings! Thank-You For Sharing your Lifestyle & Family!
Way to go!!! Brava!! That’s so great!
Great job!!!!🎉
That’s awesome, God bless ❤
Wow!! Awesome!!
@@tenthousanddaysofgratitude Thanks
I always use cottage cheese in my lasagna (so much cheaper than ricotta) - to really make it seem like ricotta I put the cottage cheese into my blender and blend it smooth. I also skip added salt since the cottage cheese is saltier than ricotta. I can't tell the difference other than the $3.50 I save when I make lasagna.
I'm glad I found your videos! Not only is my income very low, but I also have a lot of anxiety around cooking, and I never really learned how to do it. You make it look easy and not stressful at all. Whenever I'm in the kitchen, I obsess over measuring everything perfectly, and I get so obsessed over following recipes, but seeing you make delicious-looking meals without fussing over recipes and just improvising with what you have is a breath of fresh air and really inspirational.
Love this. Brought back memories.
Six kids. When Mama started working nights, it became one's responsibility to make dinner and have a plate covered with foil in a warm oven.
And god help you if you did something "wrong."
Can you feed six people on a pound of ground round?
If you know what you're doing, you can.
Great video, now need to catch up!!
The problem today is a lot of people don't know how to cook!! 😢
Heck yes you can feed a family of six on a pound of hamburger meat. I have come to believe that people just eat too much. I was at Safeway the other day and this lady had 3 cart's of food all the way to the brim a lady behind me asked her why she was getting so much food her answer was they have 2 adults and 2 children she said that she spends a thousand dollars every two weeks on food one of her baskets was full of junk food candy, cookies, potato chips ect the only veggies was 6 tomatoes and 3 onions 4 loaf's of bread and the rest was frozen dinner's frozen veggies and frozen pizza it was crazy she had lunch meat cheese and that kind of stuff but if she had just bought the food fresh she would have saved so much money she really needs to watch your channel.
"poor man meals" are the best! I've been out of prison for 15 years and I still make prison spreads once or twice a month. they're delicious
QUISAGNA.......we didn't have lasagna noodles and they were too expensive, so we made lasagna with cooked bow tie pasta that
we had on hand. Liked it so much, we named it 'quisagna' because it was quicker than regular lasagna, and when baked, very tasty!!
It isn't layered, just all mixed up and put into a olive-oiled large glass baking pan, top with cheese and bake.
I'm single this is the way I fix it all right in the skillet on top of the stove
You basically made baked ziti but with bowtie pasta instead of ziti pasta.
Hi Brooke I just recently found your channel and I have to say I'm 55 years old and I've never seen anybody come up with as many cool healthy and nutritious dinners like you do thank you for doing this channel ❤
You are giving me so many ideas that I never had before🎉
You are a blessing 💕
Your children are very nice. It warms the heart to see that! 😊
Brooke.... I was poor for so long that to this day I have never used canned soup to make a casserole. Not to mention any other short cuts. I am not poor now. I was a CPA and an Auditor for the State for nearly 20 years. I became disabled in 2013. However, I could not change. I cook everything from scratch and I love to cook. I love your channel because you are helping so many people. God bless you and your beautiful family!
Brooke, I am also an Italian by birth. We never precooked regular noodles. Don’t waste money on no boil noodles. Just add a little water to your sauce or more sauce. Use regular noodles. The noodles cook while baking and absorb the sauce better. And ricotta wasn’t easy to find when I was a child so mom always used cottage cheese and mushed it up if the curds were too big. I also prepare lasagna in advance and freeze before baking. The regular noodles are good for this. You can also layer frozen spinach in the layers. Just thaw and press out the excess water. I actually prefer meatless lasagna. I’m not a big meat eater. I also get the large bags of shredded mozzarella and keep it in the freezer for this. I pick up ricotta on sale and freeze it. Just thaw and drain the liquid from the top.
Thank you! Great advice👍👍
When I first tried using uncooked lasagna noodles, the finished lasagna was too dry. The noodles soaked up too much liquid from the sauce. So now I soak the uncooked noodles in hot water for 5-10 minutes before putting all the layers together. Perfect!
Brooke, I buy beef stew meat or roast when it's on clearance (use or freeze right away!) And cut it in bite sized pieces for beef stirfry or with broccoli. It works fine and so much cheaper than steak.
I always make vaguely Asian stir fries with cheap veggies, ground beef and different concentrations of soy sauce, ginger, hoisin, etc. My kids' favorite is with my homemade orange marmalade to make an orange beef sort of situation
That sounds yummy!!
Mix in a packet or two of duck sauce and a half teaspoon of ginger with your marmalade. It is so good!
You could make chicken a la 'orange but I call it orange marmalade chicken.😅
I finally got my hands on the frozen cheese ravioli at Dollar Tree and I made your lazy lasagna!!! It was absolutely delicious!!!!! I just love that ravioli!! I got my sauce at Dollar tree too. I added some onion, green pepper and mushrooms, cuz I already had all of it. And I added a .25 carton of diced tomatoes with basil and garlic that I got on sale !!!! It was fabulous!!!!!
Love the beef and broccoli recipe, and it really lends itself to be adapted with what you have. You can stretch it by adding cut onions and maybe some carrots, as well. Definitely trying this one in the next couple of days; if I don't have ground meat, there's shredded chicken from the $5 rotisserie in the freezer!
Brooke, I don't boil my lasagna noodles anymore. I just use the cheapest brand and layer as usual, and it works great! I also found that the grated parm helps thicken your lasagna.
When I make lasagna, I mix together my sauce, meat, and ricotta or cottage cheese mixture and then spread it over each layer of noodles. It seems easier to spread evenly that way.
I like your idea of mixing the sauce, meat, and ricotta for layering between lasagna. I'll try that the next time I make one.
Great idea @sweet.
I did the same, @sweet...mom, but I had apiece of condone(no sugar added) leftover, so I crumbled up the white part over the final cheese layer. It's in the oven now.
I meant to write corn pone.😮
A hint for the Beef Broccoli if you will. Some stores will sell a "bottom round" either already thin sliced or the meat department will slice it for you. It's kind of a tough cut, but if you marinate it 1/2 hour in your sauce with 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of baking soda it will be tender. The bottom round will be fairly large so you'd need to budget for it but if you have a freezer it will give you many beefy meals. The baking soda is key to tender meat and works on chicken as well.
One way I like to use the bottom round slices is to cut them into 2-3" wide strips. I marinate them in a mix of teriyaki sauce (or soy), baking soda, lots of ginger, olive oil, crushed garlic, and chopped onion or powder. Marinate a few hours or overnight. Then I thread each strip accordian style on a skewer that's been soaked in water. Drop them on a BBQ grill or under your broiler (on a rack over foil) for a few minutes and serve. So many other ways to use those slices it's worth looking for on sale!
When you held up the bag of broccoli and said it’s frozen solid and picked up a pan, I thought you were going to tell us that you were going to smash the bag with the pan to break up the broccoli 😂
I thought the same 😂
I love your attitude and your videos if more people were like you it would be a happier place
Brooke. I live in the Tri-state area of WV, KY, And OH. I have grown up in Appalachia all my life. I know you are helping so many people. You are such a great momma. What a blessing you are to others. Keep it up.
I do the same thing with the water in the jar❤ As mom n Dad always said "waste not want not"❤ Amen!
Me too! Always!
👍
Brooke absolutely ADORE your channel, your enthusiasm, your amazing creativity but most of all, girl, you keep it real! Love, love your channel and your family! ♥ ♥ ♥ God Bless!
Thank you!!!❤❤❤
I got lucky and found a 5lb tub of ricotta cheese at the discount store for 99 cents, so I bought 2 and put them in the freezer. Almost done with the first tub.
Never thought of using ground beef for beef and broccoli, I will have to give it a try. We eat a lot of stir fry meals in the summer because they are quick to cook and don’t heat up my kitchen as much.
In the summer I carry my pressure cooker out back. Lol looks odd but works beautifully. I also carry the toaster oven out. Works best if you have a fenced in shady area. When I visited friends in Long Island many of the homes built at the turn of the prey century had kitchens in the basement so ladies could cook where it's cooler. This seems good for summer but can't imagine doing it in winter.
I had no idea you could freeze ricotta! I always end up throwing some out. So much of my food goes to waste! I bought a vacuum sealer - great value!
@@rebo2610 vacuum sealer’s are a great way to save food.
@@happycook6737 LOL! I do the same thing! Nobody likes to be in a hot kitchen during summer ...
I just discovered you . I’m enjoying your poor man meals you make it look so easy, I’m on a budget I’m a widow 83 yrs old so have to watch my Pennies! I really enjoy you Brooke and your sons what nice kids , keep recipes coming. Thank you!
You inspire my to think outside the box. My dad loves pepper steak and I use burger instead of steak because it is more tender. When I first made it I wasn't sure he would like it because he doesn't like anything out of the ordinary, but he loved it.
Just a heads up, when I make lasagna, I never boil the noodles even if they aren't the Oven ready... The sauce cooks the noodles
I came here to say the same
This is witchcraft.
My mama taught me this when I was first married! No need to cook your noodles. The sauce will cook 👨🍳 them! Feeding my hubby for over 30 + years! ❤️❤️
Hi Brooke , Dusty and boys
I have used used vegetables from my garden like squash and egg plant to sub for meat dishes I have took pintos and rice mixed them together for a meat substitute in dishes when I couldn't afford meat . Thank you Brooke for all your hard work putting these videos together for us it help us grow . I have took bread slices grated up a can of spam and grated up some cheese spread a thin coat of mustard on one slice of bread sprinkled spam shredded on it another piece of bread lightly spread mayonnaise on it sprinkle mozzarella cheese on it put you over on broil put it in the oven watch it when the cheese is melted pull it out put together with the cheese piece of bread on top of spam side put back in the oven still on broil let it toast lightly pull it out flip it with the spam side of the bread let it toast lightly and it's done just bread , a little bit of mozzarella cheese and a can of spam goes a long way you can get 2 meals out of it easily . Just wanted to share a cheap meal we made when I was growing up when my parents be at work and I had to cook supper for us it would feed 5 people two meals or 8 people one meal and they would be some left . Sending lots of love and prayers 🙏❤
Ot always looks so hard to make lasagna when you eat it. You make it look so easy.
I'm 71 and I've never eaten so good in my life since I've been researching the poorer versions of the food recipes. I actually like the recipes better than restaurant meals. Thanks!
I always add cottage cheese to my lasagne but I mix some italian seasoning or garlic in it before I layer it in. Its a pretty easy way to add more flavor. ( although ive never had a bad lasagne😊)
Brooke. When there is a bit more cash around for folks starting out I always use Philadelphia Cream Cheese in my Lasagna as well as ricotta as well as mozzarella as well as cottage cheese. Supreme vegetarian lasagna. I cut up the cream cheese into chunks and throw it in. Yummy.
😋 Sounds very good!
I watched this video this afternoon,with nothing in mind for dinner. I had ground turkey, broccoli, rice and the rest of ingredients to make beef and Broccoli. I made it as you said with the addition of bamboo shoots,water chestnuts and bean sprouts. GIRL let me tell you,this is going in for dinner rotation. It's just my hubby and I and we both liked it very much!!! Thank you for ALL of your recipes!!
I used to buy & bake expensive lasagna, but realized I could make a big pan & freeze leftovers. Actually saved $$ in the long run. I'd use any red meat I had on hand.
"Is it as good as regular beef and broccoli?" Hell no... but I get it. The poor man's lasagna truly opened my eyes though. Not once growing up did I have home cooked lasagna; my mom always made it out to be a brain explodingly complicated procedure. Looks ridiculously easy to make. I really want to try it now.
In all fairness to your Mom, more than likely the jar sauces we use were not available like they are now. I do not recall seeing them in the grocery store at all. The Betty Crocker cookbook has a recipe for lasagna, but it is very involved. This must have been what she meant.
Shhhhhh! My son still thinks it takes all day to make.😅😂
Love your program. Keep up the good shows.❤❤
Brooke I just made the beef and broccoli except I substitute chicken for the beef and I had a little leftover corn that I added with the broccoli and OMGosh it was awesome! Thank you for the easy and budget friendly AND delicious dinner, 2 thumbs way up 👍👍
You do such a great job of making super inexpensive, filling meals. I love that you incorporate whatever kind of veggies when possible.👏🏽❤️
Aww my mom made something called “food” when I was younger. I didn’t even realize we were poor and loved it; it was literally just cooked noodles with some butter and canned tomatoes with salt. It was a struggle meal but every time she made it I loved it and was excited. Not very nutritious but it was good and I always looked forward to food :)
If it fills your tummy when your hungry it’s s good for you. My mom used to make me macaroni and milk. All it was was macaroni, milk, butter, and salt. I loved it
My grandma would fry tomatoes in bacon grease. She called it "garbage". Lol.
@@thelargens6169// I call that good southern food. Especially if you have green tomatoes. Yum
Noodles and milk! Dash of salt and it’s delicious
My mother called that dish “beat up spaghetti.” oh, the memories!
Quick tip about the frozen 🥦. If you have a microwave safe piece of Tupperware or glass just pre cook it in the microwave covered with a paper plate or piece of parchment/ wax paper. Add a little bit of water and voila! It's steamable!
My hubby does NOT like cottage cheese!!! he will gag just looking at it on my plate. :) But I use cottage cheese in my Lasagna. and He can't get enough of it. He's so funny we love both of your meals today. thanks for sharing
Don’t know about anyone else but my hours have been cut lucky to get 25 hrs a week so every one of our meals are poor man’s meals, getting real creative ! And tripled the size of my garden! Can’t eat grass!
You can eat dandelion and purslane tho! I’m looking at my weeds in a whole new way these days!
You can actually eat a lot things out of most yards.
Hello Danielle. Its Sept, I hope your hours are back to normal. I garden, but also there are 3 food pantrys in my area. My husband is embarrased, but we need to eat. Last week he applied for food stamps.
God bless you, the elderly, students and singles and everyone who is trying to get back on their feet. ✝️
Wonderful ideas and looked so good. I make a “beef bulgogi” style korean rice bowl with ground beef cooked with ginger garlic and soy sauce served over white rice with matchstick raw carrots and cucumbers. Some “chow chow” on top would be perfect.
You can use Egg Plant in place of the Meat. Slice it Length Wise or Cube it into small chunks. Egg Plant is a Cheap, but Good and Healthy Alternative.
Times are gettin' tough So more poor man's meals sounds great! I'll be making your beef broccoli rice dish soon. Thanks
actually, on your lasagna, if you have cream cheese, and parmesan, you can make a 3 cheese lasagna by cubing the cream cheese and adding to the cottage cheese and then putting parmesan over the top of both cheeses--yum! dts/usa
What a beautiful family you have.
That beef and broccoli did look really tasty. I will have to try that one for sure.
I love meals like this because, not only are they inexpensive but quick. After a long day at work, I really don't want to be standing over a hot stove half the night LOL. I appreciate you sharing.
Thanks for sharing your recipes that save you money! You help so many! Thanks again for a wonderful video!
Thank you for all you do to help people survive. You are awesome
You inspire me to think outside the box to feed my family delicious food on a tight budget. Thank you! You’ve given us some great meal ideas on the cheap. 🎉
I just used the dark soy sauce and water it down to make it less salty, you get more for less. I'm gonna have to give the beef and broccoli one a try, it looks bomb.
As soon as I see you have posted a new video I stop what I’m doing and watch it. Brooke you never disappoint! Love the meals and I love you and your family!❤
These quick and easy meals are great. And they looked delicious. Keep them coming, Brooke. And thank you for all the great ideas.
Great meals. I'm trying them both. I was raised on poor man's (leftover) meals. I had alot of ww2 meals from my mom. I loved potatoes & 🌭, pasta with peas or corn, tomatoes with just oil, salt & pepper along with onion sandwiches. Really, just bread and onion. Thanks for the vid.
Another idea you could substitute the cottage cheese for tofu mixed with Italian herbs crumbled or you can make it smooth in the blender.
Looks great!
That’s an awesome idea! I can get tofu for $1.85 where as cottage cheese is $2.75. I can’t wait to try it with tofu.
This IS an awesome suggestion! Thankyou
@tasha Yes! Excellent!!! We don’t eat meat and I’ve gotten a little lazy about thinking outside the box so I thank you! 💕
I like the poor man's version of beef and broccoli because the meat stretches further and is in every bite.
Hey Mama, this is Paula here. This is my first time watching your videos and I must say that I am so so impressed, and you are the most down to earth frugal mama I have ever yet to meet. Scrumptious meals on a tight budget. I live alone here in Connecticut, retired on a fixed income and its very hard on one check per month. I shop at Aldi and Walmart; can't afford to go anywhere else. Keep on cookin' Mama!!
Thanks so much for these recipes. As we get older and budgets get tighter these come just in time!
I had no idea that I grew up on the poor man's version! I've had fancier version but I still love this for comfort food. I can't make it very often, however, because I can't stay out of it! Lol
Brooke. Please do some more of these. My son loves stirfry but it can get pricey. Going to try the ground beef recipe. You cracked me up with the cream cheese comment😀
You could make stir fried with chicken or pork. Once in awhile I get pork pieces it come out real tender
Yes Stir fry pls
We always did hamburger stew I still love it. And chipped beef on toast yummy. My daughter prefers cheese lasagne and it's good..
What is hamburger stew?
Sounds good!
(I shouldn't watch these whilst hungry! ;). )
This looks absolutely delicious. Thank you for showing me this simple lovely recipe.🥰
I LOVE your channel. You are FANTASTIC!!!!! PLEASE do a budget series of poormans meals. DELICIOUS😊
That beef and broccoli looks delicious! I love when I can find ground beef on clearance and either use it or freeze it right away.
I love all your videos , I've gotten so many great ideas for meals . It truly makes me want to cook more
I love watching you, i just recently came across the videos. Im certainly not the best cook, but grew up with this type of meals and they were very good. My husband and i were young with children so it came in handy. One of the things i like best in your vedios is you envolve the whole family. I see well rounded polite children. Good job, i rather my children understand vaule and manners then complain about a meal in their stomach. I hope i said that right. It was ment to be a good job showing family values.
A no-meat recipe! Yay! Many thanks.
If it fits in your budget you could add some spinach
Hi Brooke, you’re a real inspiration to this 77 yo grandma! I love to cook and love your new perspective on saving money. Thanks and keep up the good work ❤️😋
i'm always on the lookout for a good struggle meal and that lasagna looks delish! also a good take on beef and broccoli just going with ground beef. thanks so much for sharing, these are great family meals.
edit: made lasagna today with cream cheese that was about to expire, mixed with an egg. had half a can of spaghetti sauce in the fridge and some lasagna noodles in the pantry. it was so frickin good and i would never have guessed i had all the makings of this meal in the house. will definitely make again!
PM Lasagna- my mom mixed in an egg or two to the cottage cheese to up the protein. No one could tell.
PM Beef Broccoli- to lower the price of beef, she would have the butcher grind up pork roast on sale much cheaper than beef and go Half and Half. Example beef rarely goes below $3.49 in my area. Pork loin is frequently $1.99 and less. So $3.49 (beef)+$1.99(pork)=$5.48 for 2lb of burger or $2.74lb. Many meat loaf recipes mix pork and beef. 52 weeks a year x $0.75=$39 a yr. savings. Every little bit helps and adds up. PS my states doesn’t allow sale of hamburger past expiration dates.
Love this video! Looking forward to more!
I was looking at videos on intercropping my beans and saw your video come up. Beans can wait. Poor man’s beef and broccoli it is. I already make vegetarian lasagne with cottage cheese. I mix it with spinach or kale to help me eat up my kale. It’s a great way to use summer squash from my garden. I’ve even put pumpkin in mine. Almost any veg you have kicking around can go in. I recommend cutting green beans to bite size pieces if you’re going to put them in (spoken from experience 😂) Anything going slightly wilty? Throw it in a layer with cottage cheese! No waste and: Yum.💖
Spinach is great in lasagna
I have done poormans lasagna and added a cheap can of carrots and a can of mushrooms to bulk it up. I keep my pantry stocked with canned vegetables when I find them on sale. I have also made homemade noodle instead of buying pasta. I just roll it thin and cut it in wide strips.
I add zucchini and squash to mine
Really EXCELLENT for a budget. THANKS BROOK.
I made a 23 pound lasagna once and my husband was shocked it feed us for a while but was super expensive like $73 expensive 😬
My mom would have added Italian seasoning in the cottage cheese. That's what I grew up eating. When money got better ground beef added to it. I'm 65 now and I love it still.
I haven't precooked my noodles for years, just add extra sauce so it won't be dry. Thank you for your recipes, have a wonderful week.
When I was young, my friend’s mother used to make her lasagna with scrambled eggs crumbled in it instead of meat and I thought it was the best thing ever.
Love the poor man’s meals!! Thanks bestie!! 💜
Hi Brooke this is Sue, that looks delish,, and most likely tastes better than store bought,
Yes, please show more poor man's meals. This was great! Thank you!
The lasagna and the Beef broccoli looks so good. I am allergic to tomatoes When I make lasagna. I use cream of chicken soup for the sauce. I have always use cottage cheese along with cooked ground chicken & the lasagna noodles. Have a wonderful day!.😊
Ooooo this is interesting. I am going to try it! It sounds so yummy!
May I suggest you use pesto or spinach cream? We sometimes do that in Italy with lasagna when someone can't eat tomatoes
@@Misslithium26
Ohhh!
Yum!
Thank you! 💗
@@Misslithium26 May I ask how do you make spinach cream? I would honestly like to know how👍
I have never thought about leaving the meat out of the lasagna, love the idea! What a great money saver and you get plenty of protein from the cottage cheese. That's going on the menu!
Great video❤! Keep the cheap ideas coming! We need them.
Everything looks delicious 😋 thanks ❤
I just discovered you! We all need poor man meals right now and probably forever! Thank you!!
I makes lasagna the same way but i add an egg to the cottage cheese to bind and stretch it plus add more protein. I like to add Italian seasoning and sometimes garlic especially if we don't have bread to go with it.
Brooke, you did it again! Love your videos. Excited to see what's next in this series. Thanks for sharing
Another definition of a poor man’s meal is what my mama described that back in the 1930s when beef and broccoli wasn’t even invented, poor man’s meals were good nutritious meals using very simple pantry, inexpensive ingredients.
I am 76 years old and that’s what my mama said.
Amen. 💗
(But, pretty sure the Chinese have been eating beef & broccoli, since well before the 1930's. 😉)
Brooke I used to make this when my husband and I were in our first year of marriage my kids love it I used cottage cheese because it was cheaper
That broccoli and beef dish looks great. I'm going to make that Sunday for lunch after church. Thank you.
Additional pro-tips for Poor Man Lasagna:
Meat is expensive as was pointed out. However, an extra tip to make the meal more filling is to replace the meat with lentils -- the green ones. Just cook 'em as normal, but make sure that you salt them good. If you have some MSG add that to the boiling liquid to make them extra savory (making them an even better meat replacement). If you have some really cheap bullion cubes, especially if they are beef flavored, you can ditch the salt and add those to the liquid in stead. You can use the left over broth for another dish, such as a soup if you use bullion in it. Rinse those lentils after cooking and toss them in there as you would normally do for meat. You might can use other types of beans, but I think lentils work best.
An additional way that you can cut the cost of the recipe slightly is to make your own sauce. Just buy yourself a big can of tomatoes and a can of tomato paste. You don't use the whole can of paste, and you can freeze the rest for later use. I usually buy whole tomatoes in tomato juice -- the cheapest that they have on the shelf. Whole tomatoes are better because you have control over how chunky you like your sauce. Buying cheap tomatoes isn't as great as the more expensive kind, but the real key to making them taste good is adding a couple tablespoons of sugar. Here is my standard tomato sauce for spaghetti or lasagna:
28oz can of whole tomatoes
3 Tablespoons Tomato Paste (roughly speaking -- adjust it to your desired thickness)
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar (Regular is also fine -- adjust to your desired sweetness)
1 Tablespoon Dried Basil
1 Tablespoon Dried Oregano
1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
1 Tablespoon Onion Powder
1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar (adjust to preference to balance sweetness and saltiness)
2 Teaspoons Diamond Kosher Salt
2 Teaspoons MSG
1 Teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes (adjust to your preference -- a little heat is good)
I really can't emphasize enough how important having spices is in the kitchen. Especially when making cheap meals. Folks will think you are an amazing cook, when all you really did was give the food some flavor. It might seem like it will cost more, but it really doesn't because you have so much more money by not having to buy the jarred sauces. You can just keep cans of tomatoes on hand to make whatever type of sauce that you want. The sauce also freezes really well. The same sauce above is what I also use for pizza sauce, I just lower the amount of Basil, Oregano, Garlic and Onion Powder to 1 to 2 teaspoons instead of a full tablespoon.
The above sauce also freezes really well and can be reheated as needed in the microwave and keeps in the fridge for about a week before getting any mold -- especially if you are using the vinegar. So you can even make the sauce ahead if you need too, or just want the convenience of having something on hand. If you want can you can also pre-make the sauce and can it as well, which works great if you have a garden and grow your own tomatoes. You can even use fresh versions of the spices instead of the dried versions. You just have to make sure you are adjusting things properly to taste -- so always taste as you go and adjust to your families pallet.
This sounds really good and yeah having on hand spices is great ..I get most of the vital ones from Dollar Tree , so much better then the big box stores which continue to grow in price seemingly every week .. I too buy the big can of cheapest tomatoes in store .. sometimes I like just a potatoe with stewed tomatoes. I had lived for long time in poverty so its a blessing in many ways in the times we are now experiencing.
God be with you and all .May we together lift one another up thru even helping thru such videos to be able to provide for ourselves and family and still have enough to give to God and do thrive still
And it is "palates."
What is msg?
Thank you for sharing your tomato sauce recipe.
Poor man stroganoff ground meat, cream of mushroom soup, pasta. Can add onions if you have it.
I did this on my last Poorman video. It’s one of our favorite meals!
@@SouthernFrugalMomma missed that one
Just found your channel and am enjoying it 🤗. I love watching your son's taste test your food, it's quite enjoyable.☺️
I grew up dirt poor. My cousins and I used to make what we called "Jam Sandwiches" - basically just slather mustard onto two pieces of bread. Take a 3rd piece of bread and put it between the other two. The key here is to pretend that the middle piece of bread is meat or some other delicacy we couldn't afford.
Hubby and me used to pick dandelions from our yard and make veggie lasagna! Hey these were great but that beef broccoli one I have to try. It is so hard to get that yummy taste without all the effort but you have inspired me!
I made that like that before. But one thing I did put in it opened up a can of spinach make sure all the juice is strained out sprinkle spinach all over my lasagna that way I know my grandkids had some veggies
I use green lentils in the tomato sauce and it is heavenly, cheap, healthy and filling. I had never thought of using cottage cheese like that and am grateful for the suggestion as I have had to cut down drastically on cheese since my heart attack and this way I can still enjoy the creaminess. Many thanks. Oh, I have also used tortilla wraps instead of lasagne sheets when i have no pasta but an opened packet of wraps. V tasty.
You don’t need to pre cook frozen veggies! Chuck them in the pan, the steam of the other food cooking will soften & cook them. It also helps retain more of the nutritional value 😁
Really enjoyed this video, thanks for the ideas 😊