After the long, carefree days of summer, getting back to a routine means organizing every aspect of life—including mealtimes! It’s also a great time to reign in your spending, with budget menu planning that satisfies. A simple step that takes the stress out of weekday cooking—especially as schedules fill up—planning affordable meals is a smart way to control your budget and avoid food waste.

If you worry that making inexpensive family meals will mean a string of boring menus lacking in charm, you’ll be thrilled to learn the truth! Eating well, without going beyond your means, doesn’t have to be repetitive or dull. Focus on stretching ingredients throughout the week, relying on versatile pantry staples, like RiceSelect® grains, and balancing comfort and convenience with flavor that wows. Suddenly, you’ll be eating so well, you’ll wonder why you didn’t adopt this strategy sooner!

As the season’s change and life’s demands ramp up, do yourself a favor with easy family meals that you’ll look forward to cooking, serving and eating every day of the week. The best defense against rising grocery prices and fall’s jam-packed agendas, they’ll keep your budget and meal plan in check—and keep you sane! Prep for a season of deliciousness, with a variety of RiceSelect® grains playing a vital role in a host of welcome family meals.

How to Build a Budget-Friendly Meal Plan That Actually Works

If the words “meal plan” make you groan, you’ve probably been approaching this simple task all wrong! Instead of dreading it, make the most of meal planning by keeping the following tips and strategies in mind.

Start with Versatile Pantry Staples

When creating a budget-friendly meal plan, it’s best to start with a list of your favorite pantry staples. From breakfast until dinner, these can be used in an endless number of delicious meals and snacks.

  • Rice – From fragrant RiceSelect® Jasmine Rice to nutty RiceSelect® Texmati® Brown, there’s a RiceSelect® rice for every snack, dinner and dessert you can imagine! An ingredient that’s versatile, quick-cooking and flavorful, rice is a must-have in any successful meal plan.
  • Quinoa – Whether you opt for RiceSelect® Tri-Color or white quinoa, you’ll have a tasty, protein-packed base for your meal. Ideal for vegan and vegetarian dishes, quinoa can also be cooked as a side for meat or fish, baked into scrumptious snacks, or served as an alternative to oatmeal at breakfast.
  • Couscous – For delectable texture and delicate flavor in salads, soups, sides and more, reach for RiceSelect® Pearl Couscous, couscous or your favorite variety. An ingredient that really stretches ingredients to feed more mouths, it can also be cooked ahead of time and enjoyed throughout the week.
  • Canned beans – Packed with nutrients, including fiber and protein, beans are a satisfying addition to almost any meal. Have unexpected guests? Kids going through a growth spurt? Add a can of white, black, garbanzo, pinto, or kidney beans to your dish and make everyone happy.
  • Frozen vegetables –Ingredients that you can stock up on when you find them on sale, frozen vegetables are more economical than fresh. They’re also the easiest option when fresh vegetables look lackluster or are hard to find. Add them to soups, stews, stir-fries or bowls for extra color, nutrients and flavor in every mouthful.


Repurpose Ingredients Across Multiple Meals 

One of the best budget-friendly strategies when meal planning is to schedule various meals that use the same ingredients. For example, turn today’s leftover couscous or quinoa into tomorrow’s grain bowl or salad; blend roasted veggies into tomato sauce to accompany pasta; use leftover rice to make fried rice or arancini; or toss vegetable odds and ends (think carrots, cucumber, bell pepper or green beans) with RiceSelect® Orzo for a fresh take on pasta salad.

Prioritize Easy, Family-Friendly Recipes

The best meal plans are the ones you stick with! Choose dishes that you can make in minutes, even when there’s a meeting at 4 p.m. and soccer at 6 p.m. Opt for quick-cooking ingredients that your family enjoys and switch things up daily to avoid boredom.

Batch Cook Grains for Faster Weeknight Dinners

If you have time on a weekend or in the evening, do yourself a favor by batch-cooking grains to eat all week. Simply double or quadruple a recipe (e.g., make 2 or 4 cups of rice or quinoa, instead of 1), cool the grains down and store them in the fridge until you’re ready to use them. Easily reheated and served anyway you like—with curry, in soup, taco bowls or salad—they ensure that you’re only ever minutes away from a satisfying meal!

(Double Recipes and) Turn Leftovers into Lunches

Meal planning doesn’t just mean organizing dinners for the week. It can also extend to lunch. Knowing what everyone will take to school or work makes mornings quicker and eases the stress of last-minute prep. When making dinners, think of dishes that reheat well (e.g., fried rice, pilaf, classic risotto, etc.) or that can be combined with other ingredients to make something new. When you find the ones that your family craves, double the recipe so that there’s always enough to go around!

A Week of Family Meals on a Budget Menu

Ready to get started? With this family meals on a budget menu, you can stretch your planning muscle and learn just how simple it is to create a food program that you’ll stick with.

A Week of Family Meals on a Budget Menu

Ready to get started? With this family meals on a budget menu, you can stretch your planning muscle and learn just how simple it is to create a food program that you’ll stick with.

Make-Ahead Breakfast That Stretches the Budget – Cranberry Quinoa Muffins

  • RiceSelect® White Quinoa makes this grab-and-go breakfast option hearty, fluffy and incredibly delicious. Far better for your wallet than grabbing breakfast on the run, these muffins are great first thing or as a mid-morning snack.
  • With 18 citrusy, soft muffins per recipe, this recipe can feed a crowd. If you have leftovers, pop them into the freezer to enjoy at a later date.
  • You don’t have to be an experienced baker to make these tempting treats! Made from a blend of pantry staples (including flour, coconut oil, milk and eggs), they’re easy to whip up whenever the mood strikes, and are ready in just 25 minutes.

Monday: Easy Meal Prep Start – Ginger Chicken with Broccoli

  • A 25-minute stir-fry style dinner, this dish pairs tender chicken with crisp broccoli, savory sauce and fluffy RiceSelect® Jasmati Rice.
  • Made with affordable pantry staples, this recipe is a hearty go-to you can make any night of the week. For something new, swap out the protein and vegetable, but keep the zesty sauce.
  • As good the first day as it is leftover, this dish is ideal to pack up for lunches or for a second dinner.

Tuesday: One-Pan Comfort Food – Taco Rice Casserole

  • Turn a variety of flavorful ingredients into this crowd-pleasing complete meal. Ready in under an hour, this easy recipe can be customized to use what you have on hand. For example, make it with ground turkey instead of beef, or omit the meat altogether for a vegetarian crowd.
  • Paired with punchy, creamy Tex-Mex toppings, budget-friendly canned pantry staples turn into this showstopping meal.
  • Eaten as is, or tucked into tortilla shells for taco night, the leftovers from this tasty supper won’t go to waste!

Wednesday: Cozy Midweek Dinner – Broccoli & Rice Casserole

  • Cheesy, creamy, warming and rich, this casserole is a comfort food classic that always delivers.
  • A vegetarian dish that sates, thanks to RiceSelect® Texmati® White Rice, tender broccoli and plenty of gooey cheese, this dish is affordable and filling, without meat.
  • With the classic pairing of cheese and broccoli, this dish appeals to diners of all ages!

Thursday: Globally Inspired on a Budget – Simple Chicken Biryani

  • Spice things up any night of the week with this restaurant-worthy dish—a 35-minute meal that feels fancy but is anything but! Made from a handful of simple ingredients, this one-dish dinner will encourage everyone to pause and enjoy a delicious meal.
  • For big flavors without big bills, make friends with your pantry spices. In this fragrant dish, we season chicken, caramelized onions and RiceSelect® Basmati Rice with garam masala, cumin, coriander, paprika and cayenne for a bold punch of flavor in every mouthful.

Friday: Flexible Comfort Meal – Mushroom Risotto

  • Craving restaurant-inspired dishes without restaurant prices? Look no further than this rustic, mushroom-filled risotto. Rich and creamy, thanks to RiceSelect® Arborio Rice, white wine, cheese and a smattering of herbs, this is the exact dish you want to sit down to on a Friday night.
  • Shallots, garlic, celery and mixed mushrooms give this dish incredible depth of flavor. It’s hard to think of a better way to turn affordable vegetables into something so refined!

Saturday: Leftovers – Harissa Roasted Vegetables & Chickpeas with Brown Rice

  • Make this dish as written—with cauliflower, eggplant, sweet potatoes and zucchini—or use leftover vegetables. A great way to ensure that nothing goes to waste, this dish is a delicious way to use up bits of broccoli, potatoes, bell pepper, carrots and more.
  • With chickpeas, piquant veggies, crisp chickpeas and RiceSelect® Royal Blend® Rice, this dish is nutty, savory and satisfying—without a morsel of meat!

Sunday: Viral Rice Recipe – Pico de Gallo Rice Bowl

  • A trendy Tex-Mex bowl, this blend of RiceSelect® Texmati® White Rice, rotisserie chicken and zesty pico de gallo is also wallet-friendly and ready in minutes.
  • All out of chicken? Try this dish with grilled shrimp, leftover pulled pork or a mountain of roasted vegetables. The fluffy rice and bright pico make a tempting base for any combination of toppings.