If you want easy, cheap meals for large families that you can go to any time of year, here’s the perfect solution.
Let’s face it; cooking for a big family can be a chore.
But if you have the right tricks up your sleeve, you don’t have to dread the 5:00 hour anymore.
These recipes for cheap meals for large families are exactly what you’ve been looking for!
Tried, true, affordable, simple…they are just perfect for busy moms like us.
So be sure to pin this list. You’ll want to come back to it over and over again!
The Best Cheap Meals For A Crowd
Breakfast
Generally my breakfasts are things I make ahead of time. I’m not a morning person, so you won’t often catch me getting up with the sun to make bacon and eggs.
So I either make these recipes ahead of time, or I at least have them made and in the fridge. All I need to do the next morning is pop them in the oven. No reading before coffee required!
Breakfast Casseroles & Recipes They’ll Beg For
Overnight French Toast Casserole
Cranberry Apple Casserole
Cranberry Apple Casserole Yummy tart and sweet combination. This makes a great breakfast casserole! (I like to grab cranberries on the cheap at Thanksgiving and throw them in the freezer for later.)
Apple Cinnamon French Toast Casserole
Oatmeal
Scrappy Baked Oatmeal This is a favorite way to use up leftover fruit that’s past the eating stage but not yet bad.
Oatmeal Breakfast Bars Just the recipe for that child who can barely grab breakfast on his way out the door.
Whole Wheat Pumpkin Scones with Cinnamon Icing I adore this recipe! Both for taste and for another grab and go option.
Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake
Banana Bread
Lunch Recipes For Large Families
I love putting together a giant batch of muffins. You can grab them and go for an easy lunch (or breakfast!). Here are some recipes we love.
I like to whip up a batch of Money Saving Mom’s cornbread. Then I put it in muffin tins and drop a piece of cut up hot dog into each tin. We call them corn dog muffins. I hate hot dogs, but I love these little treats!
Apple Muffins (So good, makes a nice big batch!)
Hard boiled eggs
Quesadillas For days at home, I bought a quesadilla maker. Even my first grader can use this to make her own cheese quesadilla with some training and guidance!
Great Dinner Ideas for Big Families
We love having a freezer filled with meat. It’s cheaper to buy in bulk, and it usually tastes better, too.
Casseroles
Casseroles and soups will give you the most bang for your buck. The best recipes let you dump the ingredients and get on with your life. If a recipe requires extra steps for cooking on the stove top, it’s got to be easy and taste good enough for the extra effort.
Hamburger Noodle Bake Think lasagna without all the fuss.
Black Bean Enchilada Casserole
Bean Burrito Casserole This recipe from The Gracious Wife is one even my adult children still request!
Sour Cream Chicken Enchilada Casserole All the flavor of enchiladas, minus the messy wrapping work.
Chili (My Hubby makes it. You probably have your own favorite recipe.)
Lazy Lasagna (Just 3 ingredients!) (I get ravioli from Aldi, which makes this dish super affordable, too!)
Dump and Bake Chicken Parmesan From Kara Creates, this recipe is just pure delish!
Be sure to grab your free monthly meal planner (plus tons more recipe suggestions)!
Simple Stove Top/One Pot Meals
Spaghetti (You always make enough to feed 20 people anyway, right?)
Chili Mac Always a hit! (I double this recipe.)
Tacos. We eat tacos every single week, and we aren’t picky about the filling. Use burger and beans, fish, chicken, or pork. If you like the traditional ground beef with a packet of taco seasoning (or use your own seasonings), you can dump beans right in with the browned beef to get all the flavor at a much smaller price.
Crock Pot Cheap Meals For Large Families
Chicken Slop: You might want to use a different title, but that’s what I call it! Put chicken breasts in the crock pot. Top with a couple packs of stuffing. Then pour on two cans of cream of chicken soup with a small carton of sour cream (however much you like). Easy and filling on a busy day. (No, we don’t eat like this every day.)
Pork Roast: Add potatoes and carrots with plenty of your favorite spices and herbs. Pour in an inch of water before you cook on low all day.
7 Can Taco Soup One of my absolute favorite “go to” meals!
Meat
My hubby likes to grill meat whenever possible. And I love to let him! Less dishes and mess in the kitchen is always great. Otherwise, here are some cheap meals for large groups.
Baked Tilapia with Lots of Spice I find tilapia one of the more affordable fish options.
Roast Beef This recipe would make even cheaper cuts of beef taste tender and delicious.
Pork Tenderloin Mine is never done in the 45 minutes they suggest, so plan to at least double that cooking time. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t dry out. Or just throw this recipe into the crock pot!
Pleasant Pork Chops Another tasty way to turn cheap meat into a tender, delicious meal.
Ranch Chicken Yum!
Favorite Ways to Use Up Leftovers
One of my top tips for saving money on groceries is to start with what you already have. What’s hanging out in the fridge? Catch it before it turns into a science experiment! Aside from the above mentioned soups and casseroles, our favorite ways to use up leftovers include:
Salad bar Use leftover meats and cheeses as toppings.
Pulled pork Delicious way to use up leftover pork roast.
Baked potato bar Top with chili, salsa, or (if you’re boring like my kids) just butter and sour cream.
Leftover Mashed Potato Puffs The perfect way to use up leftover mashed potatoes!
Easy Homemade Pizza Dough This pizza dough recipe is delicious, and ready to go in 10 minutes. We even love homemade pizza on weeknights! Top with sauce (I make my own from cheap cans of tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, and a little oil). Sprinkle on your cheese and top with whatever meats or veggies you have in the fridge or freezer.
Desserts
Easy Bread Pudding This recipe is basically the main reason to skip the carnivore diet.
Lemon Bars Perfect on a hot day, though I usually just sprinkle powdered sugar over the top.
Monkey Bread Looks so elegant! Then you see how simple it is, and wonder why you don’t make it more often??
Pumpkin Dump Cake (Super easy dessert!)
Our Large Family’s Absolute Favorite Cheap Meal Ideas In One Spot
I’m positive they will become your family’s favorites, too!
Do you already have enough cheap meals for large family ideas? Of COURSE not!! Here’s some more…
Budget Friendly Family Meal Ideas
Cheap Large Family Favorite Dinners
I'm Jamie, and I want to help you afford a beautiful life with your family. 
