Budget meals
Cheap, filling recipes built on beans, lentils, samp, maize meal, eggs, tinned fish and chicken pieces, with practical ways to keep your food bill down.
Plan the week, lean on beans and cheaper cuts, and use up what is left over. The tips below show how, and the 26 recipes after them show what to cook, each with clear steps and everyday ingredients.
How to keep the weekly food bill down
Plan the week before you shop, then shop from a list. The meal planner combines the ingredients for seven dinners into one shopping list, so you buy each thing once and use it up.
Build meals around beans, lentils, split peas and samp. They add protein and bulk and usually cost less per serving than meat. A can of lentils or beans stirred into mince, chilli or a stew serves more people from the same pot.
Dried beans usually cost less per serving than canned ones, but they need soaking and long cooking. Canned beans save time and electricity. Dried red kidney beans must be soaked for at least 5 hours and boiled hard for at least 10 minutes; a slow cooker alone does not get hot enough.
Choose cheaper cuts. Chicken pieces on the bone, thighs and livers usually cost less per kilogram than breast fillets, and they suit stews and curries.
Cook once, eat twice. Put leftovers in the fridge within 2 hours and use them within 3 to 4 days. Cooked rice is the exception: cool it within about an hour, keep it in the fridge and eat it within 24 hours.
Beans, lentils and samp
Pulses are the backbone of a cheap week. These are filling enough to be dinner on their own.
Umngqusho (Samp and Beans)
Creamy umngqusho, the classic Xhosa samp and beans, slow-cooked with onion and tomato. Serves 6; soak overnight.
Chakalaka Bean Stew
South African chakalaka made into a hearty bean stew with peppers, carrots and curry spices. A 35-minute vegetarian dinner for 4.
Bean Bunny Chow
Durban-style bunny chow with a thick sugar bean and potato curry served in hollowed-out bread. A 40-minute vegetarian dinner for 4.
Lentil Tomato Curry
Lentil Tomato Curry recipe with lentils, tomatoes, and onion. A simple 35-minute dinner with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Red Lentil Tomato Soup
Hearty red lentil and tomato soup with smoked paprika and cumin. A cheap, filling 35-minute vegetarian lunch for 4.
Lentil Bolognese
Meat-free lentil bolognese with mushrooms, carrot and tomatoes, tossed with spaghetti. A budget-friendly 40-minute vegetarian dinner for 4.
Tomato White Bean Soup
Tomato White Bean Soup recipe with white beans, tomatoes, and onion. A simple 30-minute lunch with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Black Bean Chilli
Black Bean Chilli recipe with black beans, tomatoes, and red pepper. A simple 35-minute dinner with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Split Pea Soup
Thick, warming split pea soup with optional smoked ham. Serves 6; about 1½ hours.
Sousboontjies (Sweet and Sour Beans)
Sousboontjies: dried sugar beans soaked overnight (soaking not included in the time), cooked soft and finished in a sweet-sour sauce. A cheap South African side for braais and Sunday lunch. Serves 8.
Eggs, tinned fish and chicken pieces
Affordable protein: a few eggs, a tin of pilchards or tuna, or a pack of chicken pieces.
Shakshuka
Shakshuka recipe with tomatoes, onion, and red pepper. A simple 30-minute breakfast with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Egg Fried Rice
Egg Fried Rice recipe with rice, eggs, and peas. A simple 15-minute lunch with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Pilchard Fish Cakes
Budget-friendly pilchard fish cakes with potato and parsley. Makes 8 in 30 minutes.
Tuna Tomato Pasta
Tuna Tomato Pasta recipe with pasta, tuna, and tomatoes. A simple 20-minute lunch with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Chicken Stew
One-pot South African chicken stew with potatoes, carrots and a thick tomato-onion gravy. Serves 4 to 6.
Scrambled Eggs on Toast
Scrambled Eggs on Toast recipe with eggs, bread, and butter. A simple 10-minute breakfast with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Pilchard Curry
Quick pilchard curry made with a tin of pilchards in tomato sauce, onion and curry spices. A cheap, filling dinner in 30 minutes. Serves 4.
Egg Curry
South African egg curry: hard-boiled eggs simmered in a spiced tomato and onion gravy. A cheap vegetarian dinner. Serves 4.
Staples that fill you up
Maize meal, flour, noodles and pasta, made into meals with what is in the fridge.
Maize Meal Porridge
Smooth South African maize meal porridge (soft porridge) with milk and sugar. A cheap, warming 15-minute breakfast for 4.
Morogo with Tomato and Onion
Morogo (African spinach) cooked with onion and tomato, a simple side dish for pap. Use spinach or Swiss chard if you cannot find morogo. Serves 4.
Vetkoek
Fluffy South African vetkoek: golden fried bread rolls to fill with mince, cheese or jam. Makes 12.
Roosterkoek
South African roosterkoek: braai bread rolls cooked over the coals. Makes 12; about 90 minutes including rising.
Vegetable Fried Noodles
Vegetable Fried Noodles recipe with noodles, carrot, and red pepper. A simple 20-minute dinner with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Tomato Basil Pasta
Tomato Basil Pasta recipe with pasta, tomatoes, and garlic. A simple 25-minute dinner with clear, step-by-step instructions.
Dombolo (Steamed Bread)
Dombolo, or ujeqe: soft South African steamed bread cooked in a bowl inside a pot of simmering water, or as dumplings on a stew. Includes an hour of rising. Makes 1 loaf.
Phuthu Pap (Krummelpap)
Phuthu pap, or krummelpap: crumbly South African maize meal porridge, served with tomato smoor, amasi or braai meat. Serves 6.
A note on prices
We don’t list rand prices: they change every week and differ between shops and towns. The recipes are grouped by the ingredients that usually keep costs down. When you shop, compare the price per kilogram where the shelf label shows it, rather than the pack price.
Sources: Health Canada: lectins in dry legumes · University of Illinois Extension: leftovers · Food Standards Scotland: rice
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