Thank you so much, Rebecca. You have literally changed my life with these videos. I used to look at cooking as such a boring, daunting, task. I'm an empty nester...so I did not feel inspired to make meals for myself at the end of a long work day. I was also discouraged by the rising prices of groceries. You have helped me. I'm cooking now, eating healthier and saving money on groceries while sticking to my budget (less food waste, too) so...thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are an angel. Creative and resourceful! I'm so grateful.
I love cooking but as empty nester hate it bc I don’t want to eat same item 5 times to use it up. I love your make it ingredients like noodles/dumplings or gnocchi means not having tons to use up. I don’t have much freezer space so I can’t freeze for later. Thank you for interesting and innovative meals with flavor and repurposing ingredients and showing it to us. Sometimes you just can’t think in the moment!
I'm Filipina on my mother's side, and a common easy fried rice we do is simply oil, garlic, salt, pepper, leftover rice, and egg - no soy sauce involved! So, no worries about not having soy sauce; it's just as authentic without as it is with.😊
I've been watching for a while now and I just love you ! My husband passed away 2 yrs ago and he was the cook of our family, he could take close to nothing and make a meal, I have struggled but you have given me so many ideas, thank you. I'm 62 and I have downsized and moved and learning to cook for 1 has been a new challenge, my daughter eats way different than I do, so things are different now. I can never think of anything to cook , then I watch your videos. Love you precious girl. I'm from Northeast Tn. who would've thought a southern girl couldn't cook,lol !
I can really relate to your message here. Setting up to retire soon, God willing.When my daughter comes home from college, she eats differently than me. These meals are a happy medium for both of us. I'm in the Northeast, too. Will downsize and move in the near future, too. Blessings to you! We are stronger than we think!
I am in the same boat too. My husband passed away 12 yrs ago, it's such a challenge to cook for yourself. Thanks to Rebecca, i have found numerous tips on making better choices at the Dollar Tree stores.
My wife passed away last January 30th after being married for 30 years. I'm on SSI disability and I'm always looking for ways to eat cheaper but smarter
I too lost my beloved hubby of 47 yrs married two yrs ago , I hardly cook just have can soups , salads , half sandwich anything since he passed I can't even eat half the time , I forget to at times , I'm going through a hard time missing him so much , n nothing is important anymore to me , I use to cook ,I've always been a good cook too , So I came across this channel n I'm leaning to cook for one now ... Ty fs ur ideas n tips ...❤
How you manage to take the simplest ingredients and make them come out delicious is mind boggling! And you make sure there are vegetables,proteins,fats and carbs. What a help you are for people on a budget!
I found myself smiling a lot with these videos. They seemed more real to what my life is like. IE... Makeup, no makeup, silent sandwich making in the morning, Different areas of the house while you enjoyed your meals, talking out what to make. .. Now one thing I really enjoy is mashed potatoes and soft, salty beans over them like a gravy. Have fun finding things to do with the beans. You just might learn to enjoy them 🙂
Beans over potatoes is definitely one I never would have thought of but I absolutely would try it! I'm so glad you are enjoying these videos! I like the vlog format, it's so nice to just be myself and not feel like it has to be too formal
Just a quick comment about fried rice: when I don’t have soy sauce to add in, I use lemon pepper!! Sometimes I add Worcestershire or steak sauce for that little extra kick.
This may sound a little weird, but hear me out. You can make Shepherd's Pie with the beans instead of ground beef. If you season it well, it's very tasty!
I would love a "If you have some extra cash, these are the pantry staples to get" kind of video. Your version/opinion of which spices/herbs/condiments/staples are best to keep on hand for budget cooking.
You come up with filling meals that are simple to make. Your ingenuity is off the charts. I always keep a box of the Lipton noodle soup mix in my pantry. For a quick meal I will stir in an egg and add a bit of soy sauce. Scramble the egg up in a bowl then add slowly to the soup while gently stirring.
I am 1/3 Polish and my husband is from Poland, immigrated when he was pre-teen. I was so giddy when I saw you pull out a Polish cookbook and make pierogi! We have some amazing food and I love when it gets showcased.
I really love your content altogether. I'm a retired call center operator and the first thing i do when I start my day is have my cup of coffee and your channel on right away. i get a lot of enjoyment out of watching you cook so many meals on a low budget.
These videos always give me a bit of nostalgia. I don't struggle with tight budgets or food scarcity now as much as I did in my childhood but sometimes nothing beats a simple, quick and low cost meal! These sort of recipes will stick with you for life ❤
the bolagna and egg would be good in a tortilla too. you can also put a cup of water beside the rice in the microwave. (in a microwave safe glass of course). Eye make up looks great when made the perogis day!
Thanks Rebecca!! Its now Lenten (until Easter Sunday), and I decided to give up meat for an additional day. So that's 3 days instead of Meatless Mondays & 1 other during the typical week. You just gave me another meal idea that I never thought of before: Veggie Noodle Soup. I always made Vegetable Soup with Beef or Chicken, but now you made it & it looks good!! However I think I'll throw some kinda of bean (Black, Pinto, etc) in it for the protein instead of the meat I'm used to. Or perhaps have a PB sandwich with it. Anyways, I just wanted to say Thanks for the great idea!! ☺️ ❤
Greetings Rebecca, Mike and my fellow Dinner-Clubbers, whenever I'm going to both boil and then fry a dumpling, gyoza, pierogi ravioli, tortellini etc I use the Chinese-Japanese method which is my standby. Put the seasoned liquid (half a cup) and the oil and/or butter in a FryingPan\skillet.That's just enough liquid to boil away in the 5 or 10 minute you need to cook the dumpling. when the liquid is boiling add the dumplings (and any veggie you want around it, in the pierogi dish it would be onions) Let the water boil away. taste to see if they are cooked enough if not a bit more liquid and then when all the liquid is gone fry the dumplings (and any veg) in the oil til browned to your liking. There's no liquid to drain away it's a one pot less to clean. Your pierogies looked great. Today is Hungarian Gulyas (Goulash) day at the old homestead. I can smell the process. as I type. hugs to all Jim Oaxaca Mexico.
Roadside Potato Bread Makes 3 loaves From the Kitchen of: Esther Alderson Ingredients: 3 1/2 cup milk 6 Tbls. sugar 2 tsp. salt 6 Tbls. shortening 1/4 cup instant mash potatoes Ingredients: 1/2 cup warm water 2 pkg. dry yeast 10 to 11 cups flour 3 Tbls. corn meal Recipe instructions: Scald milk, pour into large bowl. Stir in sugar, salt, shortening and potatoes. Let cool.. To luke warm water sprinkle yeast, stir to dissolve, add yeast & 4 cups flour to milk mixture. Beat 2 minutes with electric mixer on medium speed. Mix enough of the flour in with spoon & hands to make a dough that leaves the side of the bowl. Turn onto floured board & let rest 10 to 15 minutes. Then knead smooth, about 10 minutes. Place in a greased bowl & turn to grease top. Let rise in warm place till doubled. Punch down dough, cover & let rise again till double about 45 minutes. divide into 3 balls& let rest 10 minutes. Sprinkle corn meal on each loaf of bread. Place in three greased pans & let rise. Bake 50 to 60 minutes in 375 degree oven. POTATO DUMPLINGS: use Instant potatoes to make 2 cups of potatoes cook enough potatoes (about 3 medium) that when put through a Ricer to make 2 cups. 1 egg 1/2 tsp. salt & 1/4 tsp. white pepper, 1/4 tsp. MSG 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs, not toasted Flour, Herb croûtons, 1/8 tsp. onion salt POTATO DUMPLINGS: After potatoes boiled, peeled and put through a ricer or course sieve. Add egg, bread crumbs, onion salt, pepper, MSG and garlic salt, mixing well. Add 3 to 4 Tbsp. flour to potato mixture until consistency is that of dough but not too sticky. Roll into 1 1/2 inch balls, putting an Herb Croûton in center of each. Gently drop into rapidly boiling; salted water. Cook 8 minutes or until dumplings change in appearance and begin to look fluffy. I want to try it with a cube of cheese instead of the crouton in the middle!
Rebecca, you are BY FAR my favorite UA-camr. Your recipes are easy to follow, you use ingredients that most of us have, you explain the process, and your creativity blows my mind!! THANK YOU for posting such great content!
All great meals but the classic bolona and chip sandwich brought back memories!!!! 65 yrs old and didn’t think anyone still enjoyed them Great inspiration thank you
I hope you do a day 8. I love how adventurous you are and how you can so clearly see the components of meals, like that gnocchi dough is just pasta dough, or that granola is just oatmeal plus some additional flavouring.
You're so amazing. I don't know if this is too old school but I think it would be crazy if the Food Network didn't notice you and approach you for a show about cooking on a budget.
Great video! I like to make a double batch of pierogies and freeze half of them. They freeze great on a cookie sheet and then pop into a bag or container. ❤
Like your shows. Eating like this is how many people on tight budgets actually eat regularly. I congratulate your cooking abilities. Not too many young people know how to cook like you do. You are doing a real service teaching people to cook economical meals like this. Many of our parents cooked like this. Lots of soups, homemade dumpling and noodles, and vegetables that stretched the meat.
Hi Rebecca, first of all you did great with your first go at Pierogi prep and they looked fine to me i.e. tasty :). Secondy your egg and Bologna sausage is a simple but effective breakfast idea. Love it. I would like to share few remarks re Pierogi preparation to improve them when you make them in the future: a. filling: there are many variations i.e. with meat, meatless, sweet (p.i.e. with berries and whatnot) but the most traditional ones are with dry cottage cheese (in PL we call it "twaróg" or "biały ser" (white cheese)) and potatoes, onions and spices. The proper name for this style is Potato and Cheese Pierogi (i.e "Pierogi Ruskie"). b. sealing the filling: you did great and it was done efficiently. The more traditional way to seal a Pieróg (singular noun) is to pinch the edges and fold them so they will reasemble a frill. Here is a short video that presents the technique: ua-cam.com/video/IUNjD12c-Ys/v-deo.html c. you can make a type of bagel (i.e. obwarzanek) from the dough scraps. Just form it and cook it with other Pierogi. d. and lastly the finishing touches. It is a good idea to pan fry them (or grill) as you did if you like a little crunch. But it is not mandatory. You can garish them with sour cream, caramelized onions on butter, pan fried beacon cut in to cubes, chives or anyway you feel it will taste good 😄. Great work. 👍 Warm regards (Pozdrawiam serdecznie).
I just wanted to share. If you have a Walmart, an inexpensive meal I like to serve is stove top tuna and macaroni casserole. Following the directions, make up a package of the Great Value brand thick and creamy Macaroni and Cheese, but add an extra three quarter cup uncooked macaroni when you cook your macaroni. ( You can just buy an extra GV Mac and Cheese and use half now and half another time.) Add one can GV Cream of Mushroom soup, and one can drained tuna, pepper and a very light sprinkle of Season Salt. That's it. Serve along side a veggie of your choice. About $3.00 for the casserole and serves 5-6. You will have the extra cheese packet that you can add is you want it cheesier, or save it and use in a broccoli or cauliflower soup. Love your ideas. Hope you can use this recipe in a future video if you like it.
Wow, just found your channel! Thanks for the simple and affordable meals ideas! There is a quote by Morgan Harper Nichols that says" I hope you meet a least a few people on this path whom you can share the experience of making one another feel seen" You are doing this and helping people with these meals ideas! Diane in Denmark on her UA-cam channel for her videos on Fridays is providing 4 self-care assignments one can choose from and for her video from last week, one was to try a new ingredient or recipe. Also another self-care assignment was be creative and I also saw on Mariane Cresp boost your mood video about being creative. So these gives such wonderful and affordable ideas! Simple ideas like fried tortillas and a fried bologna sandwich!
I started frugal cooking with you. you're one of my fav channels along with Lisa Dawn for saving on food. Wished I discovered yall earlier, could have been saving money all these years!
If anyone wants to reeeeally strech their rice you can make ramen noodle fried rice. It became pretty popular on tiktok. It's just smashed ramen noodles cooked like you normally do and then mixed up when you're making your fried rice. It's pretty good and I recommend you use a spicy type of noodle.
LOVE that ice trick! I HATE using the microwave and avoid it at all costs for most things because it dries food out so much. That ice trick could help me use it more THANKS!!!
since Dollar Tree has those small jars of peanut butter & chicken broth in several kinds. this would be great: Peanut Soup North American Indian Serves: 4 From my cookbook: Spirit of the Harvest: North American Indian cooking Ingredients: 2 cups dry-roasted peanuts finely chopped, or 1 cup chunky-style peanut butter Ingredients: 2 cups chicken broth 2 cups milk or cream 2 tsp. snipped fresh chives Salt and ground pepper Recipe instructions: In a heavy saucepan, combine peanuts, broth and milk, Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring. Simmer for 10 minutes longer, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with chives and season to taste with salt & pepper. Peanut soup (China) Serves: 4 From the Kitchen of: Foreign Foods cookbook Ingredients: 1 cup chunky peanut butter Ingredients: 1 cup water 2 cup milk Recipe instructions: Heat peanut butter in saucepan. Add water slowly, stirring frequently, until blended. Add milk; heat through. Do not boil.
Seeing the fried rice without soy sauce broke my heart, but I've never tried it with bouillon and am inspired to try it! Soy sauce can be expensive, but I always have packets laying around. If we only eat out rarely, I still make sure to ask for extra sauce packets. Maybe not ranch or bbq, because places charge for that...but ketchup for fries and panda express gives sooo many packets of mandarin or soy sauce, jack in the box or taco bell will load you up with hot sauces....anyway, just an idea for that extra pantry fill for when you're in a pinch.
If you shopped at a regular grocery store, I think roasted chickens are a big bang for the money they cost. Both Sam's Club and Costco roasted chickens are large, and only cost $4.95. Those stores lose money on their roasted chickens, but they bring in shoppers, who wouldn't normally shop there, and I guarantee that 99% of those who go in to buy a roasted chicken, leave with other items; hence the term "loss leader"! One roasted chicken can make at least 2-3 meals, with leftovers, for two people. I always get 2 chickens and pull all the meat off, and put in sever cup portions, in ziplock freezer bags, for future meals, LIKE YOUR CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP. I use the legs to serve to my husband, with a couple of sides. You can even cook the bones and skin in a slow cooker, coveted with water for at least 24 hours, drain the chicken stop and use it to make gravy or a base to soups. I season to taste. You can also freeze stock in ice cube trays, and place frozen cubes in freezer bag, to use 1 or 2, to help flavor potatoes, soup, and even cook rice, adding several chicken stock cube, as part of the water, to flavor bland rice. I melt the cubes in a measuring cup, to see how much water is needed for the rice. I even can the chicken stock, but you need a pressure canner for that, and a lot of time. Freezing cubes of stock is easy, convenient, and takes none of your valuable time.Cold chicken meat is great to add to salads too. I make a chicken salad with 5 cups of chicken meat, cooked rice, just 2 T OJ, a can of mandarin orange slices, sliced grapes, oil, mayo (I like miracle whip the most), and seasonings, and sliced almonds, or another lightly flavored nut. I put it out, to be put on small croissants and/or crackers, for each of my 4 young adult's graduation open house! It's so refreshing and it makes a TON! (For just two people, I would use 3 cups of chicken)! Maybe do as many recipes as possible, from one or two roasted chickens!
The pierogis look good. I might give it a try. When i was a child i ate poultry and bologna. Now, i don't like them any more. Ha! But, I do love vegetables which i wasn't fond of as a child. Life is weird. Anyhow, I think I might try making your pierogis and noodles. I am already able to make flour tortillas.
I make veggies and dumplings ALL THE TIME! I think a lot of people never think to do it because chicken and dumplings is so popular. I love that your meals aren’t the same ones you see everyone e else doing.
I enjoy your videos so much! These meals are not only frugal but thoughtfully comprised to offer the best use of ingredients. Then your honest comments just take it over the top! I want you to create a cookbook! Please?😊
Parchment paper might be better than the wax but I’m totally doing this tomorrow as we had burrito night planned already and at 4.50 a pack of tortillas….this is hella cheaper
@@DollarTreeDinners My 15 year old made tikka masala for us last night..no jarred sauce just from scratch and I swear food prices going insane really has all of us even teenagers cooking more and that’s why I love your videos.We don’t have dollar trees with food here in Canada but these tips really give me recipe ideas because frankly the idea of what to make for dinner for four hungry teens is a daily chore I used to hate…but with UA-cam at my finger tips it’s not as bad anymore but man did that egg and bean tortilla look so good! Hope you get to 250,000 subs pretty soon!
Homemade tortillas also freeze really ,really well! Cook them up a bit before cooling and storing in the freezer (in a stack, pieces of parchment or wax paper separating them).
These all look great! I added two (beef) ramen noodle seasoning packets to my fried rice when I was out of soy sauce and it was delicious but even without its good.
My grandma's pierogi are famous. Literally. She sold the recipe and they're in just about every grocery store now days. Anyway one of her secrets was to put a bit of cream cheese in the potato version. She also did plain cream cheese but those were more or less dessert pierogi. I know you didn't have cream cheese but this is just a suggestion to those who want to make them and do have cream cheese.
I've been on a super tight budget recently and I used to watch your videos just cuz I thought they were interesting but now they're really coming in clutch. Also last night I spooked myself and watching you helped me calm down enough to go back to bed.
Mrs Rebecca, I have to tell that so much appreciate your videos. I wish that u would come out with a dollar tree cookbook or any cookbook for the matter. I watch all ur videos and like them also. I just recently found out that I diabetic and I have to tweek them a little bit but I love them anyway 😊❤❤
It all looked so amazing. I would be glad for an extra day! My breakfasts tend to be lighter though I would certainly enjoy yours as lunch or dinner. Thank you for the video!
I have never boiled my perogies, I have always fried them in a little butter & oil, browning them a bit, then adding a little water to the pan, and covering them, bring it to a quick boil, then remove from the heat, I add shredded cheese at this point and let the cheese melt, then serve with a veggie. I really enjoy your videos, thank you for sharing!❤
I haven't tried it yet, but I did see a video in which a vegan made a black bean burger using just black beans and instant potato flakes. I keep meaning to try that one since it's such a simple idea.
Scrambled eggs with hot dogs (huevos con salchicas) and a side of refried beans used to be one of my late husband's favorite breakfasts. He first had it at deer camp, prepared by the older Mexican gentleman that acted as camp cook.
Yay fried rice! I think a way to get more flavor in the rice would be to cook it in stock from the bouillon then use it for fried rice. Also, browning the hotdogs like you said. And given the flavors of it with no dou sauce hot sauce was a top-notch idea. Love it!
I really like buying perogies at the store I make them so many ways. Green and red peppers with marinara sauce. Cream of mushroom soup with just a bit of hamburger meat. Sweet Italian sausage and grilled onions
Your fried rice recipe reminded me a great recipe for your channel would be a Ramen burger! You use top ramen noodles and egg to make buns and use the seasoning packet to season the meat and veggie toppings. You could probably withhold the seasoning from the noodles and use noodle disks for many other recipes! The burgers taste similar to fried rice and a burger.
Again these are great ideas for a variety of filling meals. I don't mean this as a criticism at all because you are so great at offering ideas for very limited budgets, but I do hope that anyone struggling has access to food pantries where they can get some veggies, fruit and dairy for a more balanced diet. Thank you for all your hard work researching a coming up with such great filling meals.
I love that you create great meals on a very tight budget. Agreed that you need to cook a lot but you can save a ton of money. I love your videos and appreciate your hard work especially when you want us to follow along with the week of meals. 😊
You did great with your perogies for the first time! My trick is to stretch the sides over the filling, and I like using a wide mouth mason jar lid to cut them out. I find that's the perfect size for us. Again, awesome job!
Your gnochi looked amazing. I would have added just a spoonful of potato flakes to the chicken noodle soup for flavor and thickening, and probably cooked the veg in the microwave so I could use less broth to cook the noodles.
i'm loving this series. i was trying to figure out what to do with some leftover mashed potatoes i had and i saw on pinterest, potato tacos. i used up some corn tortillas i had on hand and added some mashed black beans i had leftover as well. they were so yummy! so much so i've had them 3 times now. you could try making them with your homemade tortillas. i want to buy some masa to try making my own corn tortillas.
Good job, Rebecca! I always smile when you fry bologna, because it ends up looking like a cute little Pac Man, lol! Really great options and I appreciate your candor when sharing what you might have done differently. I too, recall those packets of Lipton chicken noodle soup. I haven't had those since I was a teen. Great ideas you are sharing. It's very encouraging when we are struggling and I work really hard to make the best with what we can buy or grow. Sometimes I have to get very creative. Take care and looking forward to the next video.
Is there another way to do the acid? I don’t like hot spice but the acid makes sense. Could you use something like a touch of Apple cider vinegar or lemon juice instead of something that is hot and spicy?
Pro tip: If you need seasoning/sauce for your rice, take some of your bouillon, add it to water in a sauce pot and on medium heat, bring it to a boil to reduce and thicken up the stock. The flavor of the bouillon will be rich and savory and a little really goes a long way. You could even use some of your instant potatoes to aid in the thickening process, but a simple reduction with perhaps a hint of margarine will serve you well. Fantastic series! Frugal life for the win!
I grew up eating chop up hot dogs or bologna with a splash of cooking oil fry for a few minutes, then add scrambled eggs.Cook together until eggs are done.This is a very inexpensive meal.
Your pierogies look great!! I buy mine at the store, blue bag or box I can't recall the brand name. But I get the cheddar and potato ones and I eat them with sour cream and sometimes applesauce too as is traditional. I air fry mine, and as directed on the package, I liberally spray mine with PAM butter cooking spray on both sides and flip halfway through.
Thank you so much, Rebecca. You have literally changed my life with these videos. I used to look at cooking as such a boring, daunting, task. I'm an empty nester...so I did not feel inspired to make meals for myself at the end of a long work day. I was also discouraged by the rising prices of groceries. You have helped me. I'm cooking now, eating healthier and saving money on groceries while sticking to my budget (less food waste, too) so...thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are an angel. Creative and resourceful! I'm so grateful.
So am I
I take leftover mashed potatoes add a hotdog fry together and add an egg on top Great Breakfast 😊
awww I love this comment! You are doing great!
I love cooking but as empty nester hate it bc I don’t want to eat same item 5 times to use it up. I love your make it ingredients like noodles/dumplings or gnocchi means not having tons to use up. I don’t have much freezer space so I can’t freeze for later. Thank you for interesting and innovative meals with flavor and repurposing ingredients and showing it to us. Sometimes you just can’t think in the moment!
❤
I'm Filipina on my mother's side, and a common easy fried rice we do is simply oil, garlic, salt, pepper, leftover rice, and egg - no soy sauce involved! So, no worries about not having soy sauce; it's just as authentic without as it is with.😊
Don’t eat second day rice it gives you good poisoning
Old rice causes food poisoning
@@datingandlifeadvicechannel7534
What a weird thing to say. Leftover rice can last up to 4 days in the fridge, just like most leftovers.
Thanks
I've been watching for a while now and I just love you ! My husband passed away 2 yrs ago and he was the cook of our family, he could take close to nothing and make a meal, I have struggled but you have given me so many ideas, thank you. I'm 62 and I have downsized and moved and learning to cook for 1 has been a new challenge, my daughter eats way different than I do, so things are different now. I can never think of anything to cook , then I watch your videos. Love you precious girl. I'm from Northeast Tn. who would've thought a southern girl couldn't cook,lol !
I'm sorry for your loss 😞💔
I can really relate to your message here. Setting up to retire soon, God willing.When my daughter comes home from college, she eats differently than me. These meals are a happy medium for both of us. I'm in the Northeast, too. Will downsize and move in the near future, too. Blessings to you! We are stronger than we think!
I am in the same boat too. My husband passed away 12 yrs ago, it's such a challenge to cook for yourself. Thanks to Rebecca, i have found numerous tips on making better choices at the Dollar Tree stores.
My wife passed away last January 30th after being married for 30 years. I'm on SSI disability and I'm always looking for ways to eat cheaper but smarter
I too lost my beloved hubby of 47 yrs married two yrs ago , I hardly cook just have can soups , salads , half sandwich anything since he passed I can't even eat half the time , I forget to at times , I'm going through a hard time missing him so much , n nothing is important anymore to me , I use to cook ,I've always been a good cook too , So I came across this channel n I'm leaning to cook for one now ... Ty fs ur ideas n tips ...❤
How you manage to take the simplest ingredients and make them come out delicious is mind boggling! And you make sure there are vegetables,proteins,fats and carbs. What a help you are for people on a budget!
I found myself smiling a lot with these videos. They seemed more real to what my life is like. IE... Makeup, no makeup, silent sandwich making in the morning, Different areas of the house while you enjoyed your meals, talking out what to make. .. Now one thing I really enjoy is mashed potatoes and soft, salty beans over them like a gravy. Have fun finding things to do with the beans. You just might learn to enjoy them 🙂
Beans over potatoes is definitely one I never would have thought of but I absolutely would try it! I'm so glad you are enjoying these videos! I like the vlog format, it's so nice to just be myself and not feel like it has to be too formal
Just a quick comment about fried rice: when I don’t have soy sauce to add in, I use lemon pepper!! Sometimes I add Worcestershire or steak sauce for that little extra kick.
This may sound a little weird, but hear me out. You can make Shepherd's Pie with the beans instead of ground beef. If you season it well, it's very tasty!
Good idea
Not weird to me!
I would love a "If you have some extra cash, these are the pantry staples to get" kind of video. Your version/opinion of which spices/herbs/condiments/staples are best to keep on hand for budget cooking.
True. I was thinking, if only she had peanut butter. Or a can of tuna.
You come up with filling meals that are simple to make. Your ingenuity is off the charts. I always keep a box of the Lipton noodle soup mix in my pantry. For a quick meal I will stir in an egg and add a bit of soy sauce. Scramble the egg up in a bowl then add slowly to the soup while gently stirring.
Great idea!
You can do this with ramen, too. And maybe even able to find a soy flavor ramen.
Soy ramen is great, anytime I find it I buy some.
@@jerrieanderson2245 it is a bit more difficult to find over some of the other flavors.
You are certainly right about finding the soy ramen.
You should do make-up tutorials....your eye treatment is simply gorgeous ❤
I am 1/3 Polish and my husband is from Poland, immigrated when he was pre-teen. I was so giddy when I saw you pull out a Polish cookbook and make pierogi! We have some amazing food and I love when it gets showcased.
I really love your content altogether. I'm a retired call center operator and the first thing i do when I start my day is have my cup of coffee and your channel on right away. i get a lot of enjoyment out of watching you cook so many meals on a low budget.
These videos always give me a bit of nostalgia. I don't struggle with tight budgets or food scarcity now as much as I did in my childhood but sometimes nothing beats a simple, quick and low cost meal! These sort of recipes will stick with you for life ❤
I agree. It doesn't matter how much money you have or don't have. Making a cheap meal is just comforting.
Hats off to you helping those who don't have much I remember spending 10 bucks a week 8 cans of beef stew and one loaf of bread to survive
the bolagna and egg would be good in a tortilla too.
you can also put a cup of water beside the rice in the microwave. (in a microwave safe glass of course).
Eye make up looks great when made the perogis day!
To thicken up your chicken noodle soup, add some instant potato flakes.
I make potato salad from leftover instant potatoes. Add onion, pickle relish, mayo, mustard, boiled egg, just whatever you have on hand.
True she’s mentioned that in the earlier videos. It really helps!
"I don't need 40 pierogies..."
But, but, 40 pierogies.
Dip you fingertip in water to wet the edge, should help for a better seal.
Haha that’s fair, I didn’t need 40, but I certainly can eat 40
Thanks Rebecca!! Its now Lenten (until Easter Sunday), and I decided to give up meat for an additional day. So that's 3 days instead of Meatless Mondays & 1 other during the typical week. You just gave me another meal idea that I never thought of before: Veggie Noodle Soup. I always made Vegetable Soup with Beef or Chicken, but now you made it & it looks good!! However I think I'll throw some kinda of bean (Black, Pinto, etc) in it for the protein instead of the meat I'm used to. Or perhaps have a PB sandwich with it. Anyways, I just wanted to say Thanks for the great idea!! ☺️ ❤
Greetings Rebecca, Mike and my fellow Dinner-Clubbers, whenever I'm going to both boil and then fry a dumpling, gyoza, pierogi ravioli, tortellini etc I use the Chinese-Japanese method which is my standby. Put the seasoned liquid (half a cup) and the oil and/or butter in a FryingPan\skillet.That's just enough liquid to boil away in the 5 or 10 minute you need to cook the dumpling. when the liquid is boiling add the dumplings (and any veggie you want around it, in the pierogi dish it would be onions) Let the water boil away. taste to see if they are cooked enough if not a bit more liquid and then when all the liquid is gone fry the dumplings (and any veg) in the oil til browned to your liking. There's no liquid to drain away it's a one pot less to clean.
Your pierogies looked great.
Today is Hungarian Gulyas (Goulash) day at the old homestead. I can smell the process. as I type. hugs to all Jim Oaxaca Mexico.
I’d never thought about making perigees but after watching you. I know I can do it too. thank you for always being “real”
It is always worth trying at least once! :)
With the Pierogies I bet the instant cheese/bacon potatoes would have been awesome
Yum!
The ice sublimates directly from a solid to a vapor, hence the rice is steamed without getting soggy.
Roadside Potato Bread Makes 3 loaves
From the Kitchen of: Esther Alderson
Ingredients: 3 1/2 cup milk
6 Tbls. sugar
2 tsp. salt
6 Tbls. shortening
1/4 cup instant mash potatoes
Ingredients:
1/2 cup warm water
2 pkg. dry yeast
10 to 11 cups flour
3 Tbls. corn meal
Recipe instructions: Scald milk, pour into large bowl. Stir in sugar, salt, shortening and potatoes. Let cool.. To luke warm water sprinkle yeast, stir to dissolve, add yeast & 4 cups flour to milk mixture. Beat 2 minutes with electric mixer on medium speed. Mix enough of the flour in with spoon & hands to make a dough that leaves the side of the bowl. Turn onto floured board & let rest 10 to 15 minutes. Then knead smooth, about 10 minutes. Place in a greased bowl & turn to grease top. Let rise in warm place till doubled. Punch down dough, cover & let rise again till double about 45 minutes. divide into 3 balls& let rest 10 minutes. Sprinkle corn meal on each loaf of bread. Place in three greased pans & let rise. Bake 50 to 60 minutes in 375 degree oven.
POTATO DUMPLINGS: use Instant potatoes to make 2 cups of potatoes
cook enough potatoes (about 3 medium) that when put through a Ricer to make 2 cups.
1 egg
1/2 tsp. salt & 1/4 tsp. white pepper, 1/4 tsp. MSG
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs, not toasted
Flour, Herb croûtons, 1/8 tsp. onion salt
POTATO DUMPLINGS: After potatoes boiled, peeled and put through a ricer or course sieve. Add egg, bread crumbs, onion salt, pepper, MSG and garlic salt, mixing well. Add 3 to 4 Tbsp. flour to potato mixture until consistency is that of dough but not too sticky. Roll into 1 1/2 inch balls, putting an Herb Croûton in center of each. Gently drop into rapidly boiling; salted water. Cook 8 minutes or until dumplings change in appearance and begin to look fluffy.
I want to try it with a cube of cheese instead of the crouton in the middle!
Rebecca, you are BY FAR my favorite UA-camr. Your recipes are easy to follow, you use ingredients that most of us have, you explain the process, and your creativity blows my mind!! THANK YOU for posting such great content!
All great meals but the classic bolona and chip sandwich brought back memories!!!! 65 yrs old and didn’t think anyone still enjoyed them Great inspiration thank you
When I was on a mission trip to Mexico. We were served black beans, tortillas and eggs at every breakfast ❤
It’s so good!
pinto beans and eggs are pretty common in south TX. Sausage or bacon and bread or torillias are the choices you get
Oh, never heard of putting the ice cubes in the rice to reheat in the microwave. a great idea
Definitely try it!
You should try making Puerto Rican style beans very good flavorful and good with white rice and a fried egg or fried spam
I hope you do a day 8. I love how adventurous you are and how you can so clearly see the components of meals, like that gnocchi dough is just pasta dough, or that granola is just oatmeal plus some additional flavouring.
You're so amazing. I don't know if this is too old school but I think it would be crazy if the Food Network didn't notice you and approach you for a show about cooking on a budget.
I would watch that on a loop, much like I do this channel. Rebecca is so underrated :(
I’d definitely watch it
Great video! I like to make a double batch of pierogies and freeze half of them. They freeze great on a cookie sheet and then pop into a bag or container. ❤
I do the same with ravioli. 😊
Like your shows. Eating like this is how many people on tight budgets actually eat regularly. I congratulate your cooking abilities. Not too many young people know how to cook like you do. You are doing a real service teaching people to cook economical meals like this. Many of our parents cooked like this. Lots of soups, homemade dumpling and noodles, and vegetables that stretched the meat.
Hi Rebecca,
first of all you did great with your first go at Pierogi prep and they looked fine to me i.e. tasty :). Secondy your egg and Bologna sausage is a simple but effective breakfast idea. Love it.
I would like to share few remarks re Pierogi preparation to improve them when you make them in the future:
a. filling: there are many variations i.e. with meat, meatless, sweet (p.i.e. with berries and whatnot) but the most traditional ones are with dry cottage cheese (in PL we call it "twaróg" or "biały ser" (white cheese)) and potatoes, onions and spices. The proper name for this style is Potato and Cheese Pierogi (i.e "Pierogi Ruskie").
b. sealing the filling: you did great and it was done efficiently. The more traditional way to seal a Pieróg (singular noun) is to pinch the edges and fold them so they will reasemble a frill. Here is a short video that presents the technique: ua-cam.com/video/IUNjD12c-Ys/v-deo.html
c. you can make a type of bagel (i.e. obwarzanek) from the dough scraps. Just form it and cook it with other Pierogi.
d. and lastly the finishing touches. It is a good idea to pan fry them (or grill) as you did if you like a little crunch. But it is not mandatory. You can garish them with sour cream, caramelized onions on butter, pan fried beacon cut in to cubes, chives or anyway you feel it will taste good 😄.
Great work. 👍
Warm regards (Pozdrawiam serdecznie).
I just wanted to share. If you have a Walmart, an inexpensive meal I like to serve is stove top tuna and macaroni casserole. Following the directions, make up a package of the Great Value brand thick and creamy Macaroni and Cheese, but add an extra three quarter cup uncooked macaroni when you cook your macaroni. ( You can just buy an extra GV Mac and Cheese and use half now and half another time.) Add one can GV Cream of Mushroom soup, and one can drained tuna, pepper and a very light sprinkle of Season Salt. That's it. Serve along side a veggie of your choice. About $3.00 for the casserole and serves 5-6. You will have the extra cheese packet that you can add is you want it cheesier, or save it and use in a broccoli or cauliflower soup. Love your ideas. Hope you can use this recipe in a future video if you like it.
Wow, just found your channel! Thanks for the simple and affordable meals ideas! There is a quote by Morgan Harper Nichols that says" I hope you meet a least a few people on this path whom you can share the experience of making one another feel seen" You are doing this and helping people with these meals ideas! Diane in Denmark on her UA-cam channel for her videos on Fridays is providing 4 self-care assignments one can choose from and for her video from last week, one was to try a new ingredient or recipe. Also another self-care assignment was be creative and I also saw on Mariane Cresp boost your mood video about being creative. So these gives such wonderful and affordable ideas! Simple ideas like fried tortillas and a fried bologna sandwich!
These videos are so great! Thanks, Rebecca! Also, we make homemade pierogies and bc they are a labor of love, we make extra to freeze. 😊
Might freeze some when I get better at making them haha
OMG…we used to put chips on our sandwiches, too. Love seeing this
and ketchup
I started frugal cooking with you. you're one of my fav channels along with Lisa Dawn for saving on food. Wished I discovered yall earlier, could have been saving money all these years!
I love her channel too!
@@DollarTreeDinnersyay! Perhaps maybe one day you can do a collab together? I would love that!
Have you seen Ardent Michelle? Her low cost cooking channel is excellent as well.
@@sonyavincent7450 I will check the channel out, thank you!
If anyone wants to reeeeally strech their rice you can make ramen noodle fried rice. It became pretty popular on tiktok. It's just smashed ramen noodles cooked like you normally do and then mixed up when you're making your fried rice. It's pretty good and I recommend you use a spicy type of noodle.
LOVE that ice trick! I HATE using the microwave and avoid it at all costs for most things because it dries food out so much. That ice trick could help me use it more THANKS!!!
I am in my 50s and this is the first time even hearing that!
since Dollar Tree has those small jars of peanut butter & chicken broth in several kinds. this would be great: Peanut Soup North American Indian Serves: 4
From my cookbook: Spirit of the Harvest: North American Indian cooking
Ingredients:
2 cups dry-roasted peanuts finely chopped, or 1 cup chunky-style peanut butter
Ingredients: 2 cups chicken broth
2 cups milk or cream
2 tsp. snipped fresh chives
Salt and ground pepper
Recipe instructions: In a heavy saucepan, combine peanuts, broth and milk, Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring. Simmer for 10 minutes longer, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with chives and season to taste with salt & pepper.
Peanut soup (China) Serves: 4
From the Kitchen of: Foreign Foods cookbook
Ingredients: 1 cup chunky peanut butter
Ingredients: 1 cup water
2 cup milk
Recipe instructions: Heat peanut butter in saucepan. Add water slowly, stirring frequently, until blended. Add milk; heat through. Do not boil.
I'm always amazed at the great recipes that you create out of simple inexpensive items. And I love your upbeat personality and "can do" mentality 😊
Seeing the fried rice without soy sauce broke my heart, but I've never tried it with bouillon and am inspired to try it! Soy sauce can be expensive, but I always have packets laying around. If we only eat out rarely, I still make sure to ask for extra sauce packets. Maybe not ranch or bbq, because places charge for that...but ketchup for fries and panda express gives sooo many packets of mandarin or soy sauce, jack in the box or taco bell will load you up with hot sauces....anyway, just an idea for that extra pantry fill for when you're in a pinch.
❤💐 love all the things that you cook. you have helped me to cook with little ingredients
If you shopped at a regular grocery store, I think roasted chickens are a big bang for the money they cost. Both Sam's Club and Costco roasted chickens are large, and only cost $4.95. Those stores lose money on their roasted chickens, but they bring in shoppers, who wouldn't normally shop there, and I guarantee that 99% of those who go in to buy a roasted chicken, leave with other items; hence the term "loss leader"! One roasted chicken can make at least 2-3 meals, with leftovers, for two people. I always get 2 chickens and pull all the meat off, and put in sever cup portions, in ziplock freezer bags, for future meals, LIKE YOUR CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP. I use the legs to serve to my husband, with a couple of sides. You can even cook the bones and skin in a slow cooker, coveted with water for at least 24 hours, drain the chicken stop and use it to make gravy or a base to soups. I season to taste. You can also freeze stock in ice cube trays, and place frozen cubes in freezer bag, to use 1 or 2, to help flavor potatoes, soup, and even cook rice, adding several chicken stock cube, as part of the water, to flavor bland rice. I melt the cubes in a measuring cup, to see how much water is needed for the rice. I even can the chicken stock, but you need a pressure canner for that, and a lot of time. Freezing cubes of stock is easy, convenient, and takes none of your valuable time.Cold chicken meat is great to add to salads too. I make a chicken salad with 5 cups of chicken meat, cooked rice, just 2 T OJ, a can of mandarin orange slices, sliced grapes, oil, mayo (I like miracle whip the most), and seasonings, and sliced almonds, or another lightly flavored nut. I put it out, to be put on small croissants and/or crackers, for each of my 4 young adult's graduation open house! It's so refreshing and it makes a TON! (For just two people, I would use 3 cups of chicken)!
Maybe do as many recipes as possible, from one or two roasted chickens!
I’m polish and make pierogi all the time! You did great! Use a fork to seal them!
The pierogis look good. I might give it a try. When i was a child i ate poultry and bologna. Now, i don't like them any more. Ha! But, I do love vegetables which i wasn't fond of as a child. Life is weird. Anyhow, I think I might try making your pierogis and noodles. I am already able to make flour tortillas.
I make veggies and dumplings ALL THE TIME! I think a lot of people never think to do it because chicken and dumplings is so popular.
I love that your meals aren’t the same ones you see everyone e else doing.
Thank you! I try to be unique but realistically unique haha glad veggies and dumplings are a real thing!
I was thinking potato flakes could have thickened the noodle soup up a bit, but it still looked yummy.
The Pierogis you made look delicious!
I enjoy your videos so much! These meals are not only frugal but thoughtfully comprised to offer the best use of ingredients. Then your honest comments just take it over the top! I want you to create a cookbook! Please?😊
Parchment paper might be better than the wax but I’m totally doing this tomorrow as we had burrito night planned already and at 4.50 a pack of tortillas….this is hella cheaper
I agree! I will still buy tortillas, but in a pinch I love knowing how I can make them at home with a few simple ingredients
@@DollarTreeDinners My 15 year old made tikka masala for us last night..no jarred sauce just from scratch and I swear food prices going insane really has all of us even teenagers cooking more and that’s why I love your videos.We don’t have dollar trees with food here in Canada but these tips really give me recipe ideas because frankly the idea of what to make for dinner for four hungry teens is a daily chore I used to hate…but with UA-cam at my finger tips it’s not as bad anymore but man did that egg and bean tortilla look so good! Hope you get to 250,000 subs pretty soon!
🥰@@MamaStyles
Homemade tortillas also freeze really ,really well! Cook them up a bit before cooling and storing in the freezer (in a stack, pieces of parchment or wax paper separating them).
I love your black eye liner . the pigment is so beautiful
These all look great! I added two (beef) ramen noodle seasoning packets to my fried rice when I was out of soy sauce and it was delicious but even without its good.
Thanks for inspiring us with your ideas.
My grandma's pierogi are famous. Literally. She sold the recipe and they're in just about every grocery store now days. Anyway one of her secrets was to put a bit of cream cheese in the potato version. She also did plain cream cheese but those were more or less dessert pierogi. I know you didn't have cream cheese but this is just a suggestion to those who want to make them and do have cream cheese.
Just LOVE your videos……and your makeup! ❤
I've been on a super tight budget recently and I used to watch your videos just cuz I thought they were interesting but now they're really coming in clutch. Also last night I spooked myself and watching you helped me calm down enough to go back to bed.
Mrs Rebecca, I have to tell that so much appreciate your videos. I wish that u would come out with a dollar tree cookbook or any cookbook for the matter. I watch all ur videos and like them also. I just recently found out that I diabetic and I have to tweek them a little bit but I love them anyway 😊❤❤
It all looked so amazing. I would be glad for an extra day! My breakfasts tend to be lighter though I would certainly enjoy yours as lunch or dinner. Thank you for the video!
You’ve inspired me to make my own pasta this weekend. I got a pasta maker that I have just stared at. Time to put that thing to work!
Definitely worth trying! I’m glad I did!
You are my favorite budget food UA-camr! Keep going, you are helping many of us out there.
Rebecca❤ thank you! You have helped so many people with your videos! What a blessing!!!! ❤
I have never boiled my perogies, I have always fried them in a little butter & oil, browning them a bit, then adding a little water to the pan, and covering them, bring it to a quick boil, then remove from the heat, I add shredded cheese at this point and let the cheese melt, then serve with a veggie. I really enjoy your videos, thank you for sharing!❤
I haven't tried it yet, but I did see a video in which a vegan made a black bean burger using just black beans and instant potato flakes. I keep meaning to try that one since it's such a simple idea.
I literally cried out ‘oh nooo!’ When your beautiful egg broke open and leaked on the stove! I felt the heartbreak. Lol
Everything looks so delicious especially being made with limited ingredients 💜 a lot of great ideas
Scrambled eggs with hot dogs (huevos con salchicas) and a side of refried beans used to be one of my late husband's favorite breakfasts. He first had it at deer camp, prepared by the older Mexican gentleman that acted as camp cook.
My favorite way to eat pierogi is with (on the side) pan fried hot dogs, caramelized onions, sour cream, and a fried egg!
The salt fat acid heat book is so good. It’s a great series as well, I think Netflix or Hulu
Refried beans with mashed potatoes and a fried egg or scrambled would be a hearty supper. Or with mixed veg.
Yay fried rice! I think a way to get more flavor in the rice would be to cook it in stock from the bouillon then use it for fried rice. Also, browning the hotdogs like you said. And given the flavors of it with no dou sauce hot sauce was a top-notch idea. Love it!
I have never made perigees, but I think you did an awesome job on your home made perigees!
Thank you so much!
I really like buying perogies at the store I make them so many ways. Green and red peppers with marinara sauce. Cream of mushroom soup with just a bit of hamburger meat. Sweet Italian sausage and grilled onions
Your fried rice recipe reminded me a great recipe for your channel would be a Ramen burger! You use top ramen noodles and egg to make buns and use the seasoning packet to season the meat and veggie toppings. You could probably withhold the seasoning from the noodles and use noodle disks for many other recipes! The burgers taste similar to fried rice and a burger.
Cubed fried Spam also pairs well with fried rice. It is salty, so you probably don't need to add salt when cooking.
I started watching because the video is actually fun and interesting. Totally off the subject you have the most beautiful red hair I have ever seen.
Yay top 233 comments. Love this channel. Best to you and your family. Thanks for making this video. Happy holidays.
You are so gorgeous and articulate, Rebecca! Your ideas for eating on a budget are incredible. I love this channel. 😍
Again these are great ideas for a variety of filling meals. I don't mean this as a criticism at all because you are so great at offering ideas for very limited budgets, but I do hope that anyone struggling has access to food pantries where they can get some veggies, fruit and dairy for a more balanced diet. Thank you for all your hard work researching a coming up with such great filling meals.
Definitely a good suggestion 🥰
I love that you create great meals on a very tight budget. Agreed that you need to cook a lot but you can save a ton of money. I love your videos and appreciate your hard work especially when you want us to follow along with the week of meals. 😊
You did great with your perogies for the first time! My trick is to stretch the sides over the filling, and I like using a wide mouth mason jar lid to cut them out. I find that's the perfect size for us. Again, awesome job!
I could personally do fried rice without meat and be totally happy
Love your content and I just have to say your makeup in this video is 🔥🔥🔥
I’ve been using that ice cube trick with the rice and it’s brilliant. I wish I knew about it years ago. That was a great tip.
Thanks for the great idea, to freeze left over rice it seem like I always make to much and no idea what to do with it except feed the birds outside.
Your gnochi looked amazing. I would have added just a spoonful of potato flakes to the chicken noodle soup for flavor and thickening, and probably cooked the veg in the microwave so I could use less broth to cook the noodles.
i'm loving this series. i was trying to figure out what to do with some leftover mashed potatoes i had and i saw on pinterest, potato tacos. i used up some corn tortillas i had on hand and added some mashed black beans i had leftover as well. they were so yummy! so much so i've had them 3 times now. you could try making them with your homemade tortillas. i want to buy some masa to try making my own corn tortillas.
Good job, Rebecca! I always smile when you fry bologna, because it ends up looking like a cute little Pac Man, lol! Really great options and I appreciate your candor when sharing what you might have done differently. I too, recall those packets of Lipton chicken noodle soup. I haven't had those since I was a teen. Great ideas you are sharing. It's very encouraging when we are struggling and I work really hard to make the best with what we can buy or grow. Sometimes I have to get very creative. Take care and looking forward to the next video.
Is there another way to do the acid? I don’t like hot spice but the acid makes sense. Could you use something like a touch of Apple cider vinegar or lemon juice instead of something that is hot and spicy?
Definitely a splash of vinegar or lemon juice would work!
The ice cubes for rice is a new one for me! I usually cover a bowl with a moist paper towel when reheating. I will gave to give this a try! 🤔
That was so fascinating that the ice did not melt. Thanks for the tip to add ice when reheating rice!
Pro tip: If you need seasoning/sauce for your rice, take some of your bouillon, add it to water in a sauce pot and on medium heat, bring it to a boil to reduce and thicken up the stock. The flavor of the bouillon will be rich and savory and a little really goes a long way. You could even use some of your instant potatoes to aid in the thickening process, but a simple reduction with perhaps a hint of margarine will serve you well. Fantastic series! Frugal life for the win!
Definitely some unconventional ideas I wouldn't have thought of making or putting together but all in all a great video. Thank you.
where did you get the brush for the olive oil ?
This lady is my life blood, thank you Rebecca
Fascinating that the ice cube doesn’t melt yet adds moisture. I learn so much from your page. Keep up the good work.
Will be trying some of these. Live these series. And love that you don’t have a nose ring.
I grew up eating chop up hot dogs or bologna with a splash of cooking oil fry for a few minutes, then add scrambled eggs.Cook together until eggs are done.This is a very inexpensive meal.
Your pierogies look great!! I buy mine at the store, blue bag or box I can't recall the brand name. But I get the cheddar and potato ones and I eat them with sour cream and sometimes applesauce too as is traditional. I air fry mine, and as directed on the package, I liberally spray mine with PAM butter cooking spray on both sides and flip halfway through.
I only ever tried them for the first time very recently. (Frozen.) I've been missing out all my life! They are SO GOOD!