Three Meals for Five Dollars

If you've been reading along you know that I've taken a liking to canned tomatoes with garlic and basil. It's pretty cheap, low fat, low calorie and high fiber. Not bad for a cheap and convenient food. While a bit watery out of the can you can simmer it for a while to develop more of a stew consistency.

Anyway, as I'm single, a serving equates to a meal. With that out of the way, here was the evening meal for tonight:

• 1 can of garlic and basil diced tomatoes, large
  
• 1 can of kidney beans, large
  
• 1 can of romano beans, large
  
• 2 chicken breasts, or other meat
  

Throw the tomatoes in a pot and start simmering. Drain the beans, lentils, or whatever else you choose to add to your stew-like base. Add it all together and stir it from time to time on low heat. If you are a bachelor and don't know how to cook, be sure to keep the heat low or you may burn your dinner at the bottom of the pan.

In a no-stick pan, simply fry up the chicken. I put some pepper on mine, but it doesn't matter much, season to taste if you like. Once the chicken is cooked, chop it into strips and dump it into the simmering tomato and bean stew. Simmer until you have a consistency you like and serve.

If you aren't too much of a pig you should be able to package up a couple of extra servings for the freezer. Personally, I have those cheap plastic dishes that are freezer and microwave safe, so if I don't plan ahead well enough to thaw this out, I can just nuke it until it is hot enough to eat. How convenient and cheap is that?

Tags: Stew, Inexpensive Meal, Simple Recipe