Just like the fall makes me feel like casseroles, the summer makes me feel like grilling and eating fresh fruits and vegetables. I’ve put together a list of my Top 10 absolute favorite cheap dinners for summer. Eating well on a budget is completely possible at all times of the year! I’ve even included steak and a vegetarian option. Check out the list below and go watch me make all 10 on Youtube!
London Broil With Dill Potatoes and Tomato Salad
This marinated steak, potatoes, and tomato salad was a staple in my house growing up. It feels like we ate it every weekend (which we may have). It evokes an entire feeling. My parents would always marinade the London broil on Friday to eat on Saturday night. Each Saturday, weather dependent, we’d get up early and head to the beach with a packed lunch. We lived about 45 minutes from the NH coast. After and afternoon of playing in the waves, looking for crabs, and building sand castles, we’d head home. We’d all shower (a shower after the beach is the best shower, in my opinion) and my parents would water the garden and start dinner.
Marinated London Broil
My parents chose London broil because, it felt like a treat, but was very inexpensive. You can see in my video, even today, I was able to purchase the entire steak for less than $5. The marinade itself is super pantry friendly and it takes less than 10 minutes on the grill. You can get the full printable recipe here!
Mom’s Best Tomato Salad
My mom would always whip up her famous tomato salad with fresh tomatoes from the garden (if they were ready). While I’m not growing a garden right now, I always look forward to the first juicy tomatoes from the farm stand to make up one of these delicious salads. To make this even better, the vinaigrette that is formed from the dressing and the tomato juices is especially delicious when you dip bread in it. We simply call it “dip” and it’s a family tradition! You can get the full recipe for my mom’s tomato salad here!
Dill Roasted Potatoes
These potatoes are another family classic. While they are fabulous with this dinner, they are actually a year round winner. Growing up, my mom would make these with baby red potatoes. These tri-colored creamer potatoes weren’t available like they are now. Any color works with this recipe and I always recommend going with what’s on sale. It’s a simple recipe with butter, salt, and fresh dill (if you have it). The result is incredible and you will make them over and over again! You can get the full recipe here!
Marinated Chicken Thighs and Bagged Salad
This is a cheap go-to dinner for any busy summer night.
I always try to grab boneless, skinless, chicken thighs when they are on sale and I love to use any leftover dressing to marinade the chicken in. If you do it the morning of the flavor is better, but even if you just throw it on 15 minutes before you cook, it’s still delicious. If you don’t have any dressing, you can always throw together a quick vinaigrette with oil, vinegar, salt, and sugar. Whatever you favorite vinegar based dressing is, will make your chicken taste amazing.
Simply grab a bagged salad at the store, I love to find them on clearance. Or, if you have salad stuff on hand, throw one together. If you area using a store bought salad mix, I recommend adding extras like bacon bits, cheese, croutons, or extra veggies you have on hand. This makes the bagged mix even better.
Grill the chicken thighs over high heat for 4 minutes on each side until the juices run clear and the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. It doesn’t get much easier than that!
Greek Chicken Kebabs
I love to grill up come chicken kebabs with veggies. My trick is to separate the veggies and chicken so that I get an even cook on both. I find that sometimes the veggies need to cook longer and sometimes the chicken. This depends on the size of the chunks of meat.
I make kebabs multiple different ways, if I have greek vinaigrette dressing on hand, I’ll just use that as a quick marinade. I cut my chicken into chunks and marinade them up to 24 hours in the dressing. If you don’t have the store bought dressing, I have a super easy recipe to marinade them on your own right here.
Depending on what is on sale, I’ll buy boneless skinless thighs or chicken breast. Either is great! You’ll want to soak your wooden skewers in water before grilling so they don’t catch on fire. Grill the kebabs over high heat for about 5 minutes on each side but you’ll definitely want to check that your juices run clear and the internal temp of the chicken reaches 165 degrees.
Even though, in my video, I served sourdough bread as a side, I also recommend this garlic butter rice. It is a simple, budget friendly dish, that gets requested year after year on our family trips. My in-laws absolutely rave about this rice and, rightfully so! You slice up garlic to make these crispy little garlic chips and cook the rice in, you guessed it, butter and garlic. Top it off with the garlic crisps and some sliced scallions, if you have them. This recipe is a hit again and again!
Chicken Tenders with Marinated Sweet Potatoes
For this cheap dinner is perfect for when chicken tenders go on sale. Both the tenders and the chicken require a pantry friendly marinade that really hits the spot. Sweet potatoes tend to be inexpensive year round and are extremely nutritious. They are drenched in a cilantro vinaigrette that is absolutely a game changer. It’s pretty hard to stop eating these once you stop! You can get the entire printable recipe for the sweet potatoes here and the chicken tenders here!
Bruschetta Grilled Chicken
This bruschetta grilled chicken is absolutely heavenly. Using in season tomatoes and basil with fresh grilled chicken, fresh mozzarella, and balsamic glace this dish is stunning. You may think a meal like this would be complicated to put together but it’s not. Simple seasonings on the bruschetta and chicken combined with store bought balsamic glace make this dish super approachable for any weeknight. You can get the full recipe here!
BBQ Chicken Salad
This is a weight watchers recipe I found a few years ago and it’s so beautiful and delicious. This is one of my favorite cheap dinners because I can make it my own. If I don’t have an ingredient or two, it’s not a big deal. And some of what makes this salad so great are canned items such as corn and black beans. You don’t need more than 1lb of chicken to feed at least 4 when making this salad and it’s filling and healthy. You can get the full Weight Watchers Recipe here!
Grilled Chicken Sandwich Recipe
This recipe gets requested time after time and never disappoints. It’s a simple marinade for the chicken and you only need about a half a breast per sandwich. Because the chicken is thin sliced, it cooks extremely fast and gets dinner on the table in a jiffy. I’ve made these with store bought rolls, homemade sourdough rolls, and even focaccia and it never disappoints. Top these with your favorite toppings and a side salad or chips and enjoy a fabulous summer meal! Get the full printable recipe here!
Grilled BBQ Chicken Thighs or Drumsticks
This is one of those “no recipe” recipes. It’s so simple anyone can do it. I buy chicken thighs or drumsticks on sale and slather them in my favorite BBQ sauce (I really like Sweet Baby Ray’s) . When I grill, I use this silicone brush for grilling. I used to use the real ones from Dollar Tree but got a few too many pieces of the brush in my food and made the switch. I’ve had this one for 5 years now and it’s good as the day I purchased it.
I grill my thighs on medium low heat for 30 minutes until they are cooked through (165 degrees, juices running clear). Then I crank up the heat to high and sear the skins. I’ve seen many recipes that do the opposite but I find it easier to get the grill hotter than to get it cooler and I have more control over burning my thighs this way. I like to serve these with anything I have on hand.. Leftover side dishes are great to just add to a plate of this delicious bbq chicken!
The Best Tomato Sandwich with Homemade Aoli
What makes this tomato sandwich special is not expensive additions. The classic tomato sandwich remains with fresh sliced tomatoes, toasted bread from Walmart and chips on the side. The elevation comes in turning your regular mayo into an aoli using oil and spices you likely already have on hand. This is a simple yet cravable dinner I always want to have in the summer, especially on those hot days!
To make this sandwich, slice and salt your tomatoes. To make the aioli place 2-3 tbs of mayo in a bowl with 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp dried or fresh basil. Sprinkle in a bit of garlic powder and red pepper flakes, if you like. An aioli can really be anything based on what you have on hand.
I recommend toasting the bread, placing on the aioli and the tomatoes, slicing in half and enjoying!
More of the Best Cheap Dinners!
To see me make all of the best summer cheap dinners and provide some extra cooking tips, go ahead and watch my Youtube Video here! And now that you have a great start cooking for less this summer check out these inexpensive and low calories summer meals to add to your recipes list. And, if you’re really just short on time and money, it’s ok because I’ve made a list of 15 recipes that can be made for just $5 in less than 10 minutes!
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