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Here’s week 4 of my Money Saving Meals series, where we’re bringing you a month of detailed budget meal plans so you don’t have to do the thinking of ‘what’s for dinner’ every evening.

You will find everything you need to follow for an easy, flavour-packed and healthy ease into the New Year – including a full FREE shopping list, additional notes and a breakdown of cost.

On these cold days of January, there’s one thing we need, and that’s hearty and delicious home cooked food that doesn’t break the bank – right?!

We are here for you, my friends!

This is the FOURTH and final budget meal plan in our Money Saving Meals series, where we bring 4 weeks of family friendly midweek dinners that tick all the boxes. Here are the others: week 1, week 2 and week 3.


About this budget meal plan

We have concentrated here on bringing you a collection of recipes that strike a balance of prioritising price and value, while also making sure you get: 

⭐️ A full meal for 4 people

⭐️ A balanced plate of carbs, protein and vegetables

⭐️ A variety of ingredients and dishes


Things to note

➡️ You may want to add some side dishes to some of these recipes, which we will outline in the notes below

➡️ Please be aware that any suggested sides have been added to the shopping list but are NOT included in the costings breakdown

➡️ I’ll be sharing this meal plan on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, so watch out for the videos so you can cook along.

For reference, I shopped for this Meal Plan in December 2023 at Aldi and it cost £29.30

Why use a budget meal plan?

⭐️ Knowing exactly what food to buy for avoids food waste, saving you money

⭐️ Having a plan for dinner avoids the mental load of “what’s for dinner?” question every night

The printable shopping list can be found here.

You can find more Meal Plans here:

Meal Plan 26 – Slow Cooker Saviours

Meal Plan 25 – Easy Midweek Winners

Meal Plan 24 – 5 Brand New Recipes


Some tips for using a budget meal plan:

➡️ Check for any items on the shopping list that you already have in your cupboard

➡️ Maybe think about doubling up and freezing a recipe or two where the recipes are suitable, so save cooking another day or for the weekend

➡️ Remove ingredients for any meals that you don’t want to cook

➡️ The shopping list includes the cheapest version of each ingredient. Obviously if you want to buy lower fat mince or free range etc, that’s personal choice

➡️ All of the recipes are to serve 4, so if you’re cooking for 2, simply halve the ingredients


The recipes

Dinner 1

⭐️ Cost: £.98p per portion

⭐️ Serving suggestion: We’ve added salad to serve on the side to the shopping list.

⭐️ We’ve bought a bag of red onions for all of the week’s recipes, so use these instead of white

Delicious and easy naan bread pizzas topped with cheese and pepperoni.
5 from 17 votes

Naan Bread Pizza

A quick and easy prep followed by 10 minutes in the oven, you'll be turning to this delicious cheat's homemade Naan Bread Pizza recipe time and time again.
View Recipe

Dinner 2

⭐️ Cost: £1.32 per portion

⭐️ Brand new recipe!

⭐️ We’ve added rice to the shopping list to serve with this dish

Easy slow cooker vegan and vegetarian curry recipe
5 from 23 votes

Slow Cooker Vegetable Curry {SO Easy!}

This super easy, nutrient rich and flavour packed Slow Cooker Vegetable Curry takes just a few minutes to prepare and you have a delicious vegan dish a few hours later that’s perfect for the whole family.
View Recipe

Dinner 3

⭐️ Cost: £1.26 per portion

⭐️ Complete meal in 10 minutes – no need for sides

A mixture of spaghetti, peas and bacon for the recipe Bacon Pasta.
5 from 48 votes

Creamy Bacon Pasta {10 Minute Meal}

When we need a quick dinner that everyone will love and we don’t want to use loads of ingredients, this Creamy Bacon Pasta recipe is here to save you. Full of flavour, hearty and satisfying, and on your plate in 10 minutes.
View Recipe

Dinner 4

⭐️ Cost: £.99p per portion

⭐️ Serving suggestion: We have included rice on the shopping list to serve with this.

Sticky Mince Beef Stir Fry with green beans in a bowl with rice.
5 from 237 votes

Sticky Beef Mince Stir Fry

With low cost ingredients, a delicious sticky sauce and a cooking time of 15 minutes, this Beef Mince Stir Fry is an ideal midweek beef mince recipe.
View Recipe

Dinner 5

⭐️ Cost: 90p per portion

⭐️ We’ve added baking potatoes to the shopping list, so you could use these for slow cooker jacket potatoes or homemade chips depending on what you fancy!

Recipe for Crustless Quiche with vegetables and cheesy filling.

Crustless Quiche

This Vegetarian Crustless Quiche is healthy, delicious and so easy to make. Perfect for a light dinner, sliced for a packed lunch or picnic, or even as a brunch dish.
View Recipe

Quick reminder, the printable shopping list can be found here.

If you’ve found this useful, let’s be friends on Instagram @tamingtwins

Please remember, all prices included in this meal plan are correct at the time of writing, but are subject to change.

new cookbook!

Featuring 100 delicious recipes that can be cooked in one pot, you can open any page in this book and find something that will give you not only a meal that the whole family will eat and enjoy, but also one that makes your life a little simpler in the process.

More Recipes

Sarah Rossi founder of TamingTwins.com and author of 'What's for Dinner?' books.

Welcome!

Hi, I'm Sarah. I help busy people decide 'What's for Dinner?' Find hundreds of recipes here, and also in my bestselling recipe book. Hope my recipes make your life easier ❤️

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