The Absolute Cheapest Meal I Know

So I have received some reasonable criticism from some of my midwestern readers. Yes, my meals are a great deal per person for good old Boston, but sometimes we need to eat CHEAP. Cheap for everywhere, cheap, cheap cheap. But it needs some nutritional value, and it needs to not taste like cardboard.

This is my staple: rice and beans. Make it with brown rice, and it is a high fiber, high protein, low fat, and delicious meal. There are many variations, and I doubt mine is even close to the most authentic, but it is healthy, quick, and CHEAP.

Jen's Rice and Beans

1 cup brown rice

1 can organic dark red kidney beans

1 can plus a little of water (refill the empty bean can)

cumin

red chili powder

nonstick pan spray.

Spray a saucepan or wok. Heat on high until the pan is hot, then put in rice. Add LOTS of red chili powder and cumin (enough so that the rice begins to take on a reddish brown hue). Toss or stir so that the spice disperses evenly, then add 1 can of red kidney beans, including the liquid that is in the can. Refill the can with water, and add that water plus a little more into the pan. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and cook until the water is absorbed. Using white rice, this will be about 15 minutes. If it is brown rice, it's closer to 25.

Serve immediately, and enjoy!

Now, how much does this cost? 1 cup of rice is maybe .25 cents if you buy it in bulk, a can of beans is .99 even not on sale, (you can buy organic too! for about the same price if you watch sales), and even though I use a lot of spice, it's no more than .50 cents of spice. You can definitely use less spice than I do if you like it mild.

The recipe makes 3 very filling lunch servings for a total of 1.75. About .60 cents per serving.

Now that's responsible on a budget. You're eating a vegetarian meal, with a pretty light environmental impact...just make sure to recycle the bean can!

You can also add toppings if you like: a little shredded cheese, or salsa, plus some tortilla chips. However, this also raises the cost.

ENJOY!