Cheap Keto Meals: Budget-Friendly Ideas and Recipes
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When getting started on the keto diet, some people worry it’s going to be too expensive and their grocery budget is going to skyrocket-I was one of those people. But honestly, you can eat great cheap keto meals that are high quality and taste so good.
Today I’m going to show you the best cheap keto meals and give you shopping and meal prep tips that will help you do keto on a budget. You’ll be able to eat high quality keto foods, reach your keto goals and not go broke.
Is It Expensive to Eat Keto?
Before I started dieting, I used to be an extreme couponer-and I was used to getting my groceries cheap (or even free LOL). But, it was a lot of junk that was filled with sugar. When I switched over to keto, I started buying more whole and fresh foods. And yes, my grocery budget did go up a bit-BUT, it was still affordable. I was eating better, taking care of myself and I was not spending a fortune.
The key to doing keto on a budget is knowing how to get the most nutritious keto foods for the lowest price.
Cheap Keto Meal Tips and Tricks
Here are some quick steps towards cheap keto meals:
- Set a budget. Decide how much you want to spend and stick to that. You don’t have to go broke or overspend to enjoy high quality ketogenic meals!
- Cook at home. And stop eating out or getting meals to go. Not only will your wallet thank you, but you’ll be in complete control over what is in your food. Which will help you keep your carb count low and be more successful on your diet.
- Don’t buy expensive cuts of meat. Check out my guide to the 5 cheapest cuts of meat for keto dieters.
- Do it yourself. Don’t buy pre-packaged or convenience meat and veggies. When you do, you are basically paying the store to do the work for you. iI doesn’t take long to do the prep work yourself and you’ll save a ton of money
- Stock up on discounted prices-check out what is on sale at your grocery store this week or check out reduced meat and produce. Then plan your cheap keto meals around those items. If ground beef is on a great sale price, stock up. Eat meals this week that are based around ground beef. And then, freeze the rest. That way you’ll have inexpensive meat in your freezer when you need it!
- Buy in bulk-it’s usually cheaper to buy larger quantities. Plus you can freeze any extras.
- Make a meal plan-don’t waste time buying high quality keto foods at great prices and then not use them. Make a meal plan and stick to it. If something comes up throughout the week, freeze any unused ingredients and make cheap keto meals with them at a later date
Affordable Keto Breakfast Ideas
Keto breakfasts are some of the most affordable keto meals. Mostly because eggs are do darn cheap. If you think about it, you can get a dozen eggs most of the time for less than $2. Plus eggs are packed with protein and naturally low carb/high fat.
Other affordable keto breakfast ideas are fatty keto coffees and make ahead keto pancakes or waffles.
Keto Egg Breakfast
I rely heavy on eggs for my keto breakfasts (and a lot of cheap keto meals). Another great way to cut down your keto grocery budget is to have keto brinner (breakfast for dinner).
You can try a keto frittata, a breakfast casserole or even portable keto breakfast cups.
Keto Coffee Breakfasts
Change up your usual keto breakfast and try bulletproof coffee. This delicious keto breakfast alternative is filled with fat and caffeine to help you get a great start to the day.
Check out my bulletproof coffee 3 ways breakdown. It offers a budget friendly option and two other delicious keto bulletproof coffee recipes
Keto Pancake and Waffle Breakfasts
These are a great way to break up boring breakfasts and enjoy a low carb keto treat while starting your day off right!
The cheapest keto pancake recipe is probably the keto cream cheese pancake. It is simple, uses everyday ingredients and tastes delicious.
If you’re looking for a amped up keto pancake recipes, check this one out. You will need some extra ingredients like coconut and almond flour, but this is another excellent option.
Since the waffle is a sturdier breakfast item, it lends itself well to batch cooking. Make this waffle recipe once and enjoy this delicious keto waffle breakfast all week.
If you want to amp up your keto waffle game, try this dark chocolate collagen waffle recipe. Again, this does call for some extra ingredients, but tastes so good and offers great health benefits, you can’t go wrong.
Cheap Keto Lunch Options
For me, there are three staple cheap keto lunch options.
First, leftovers! When cooking your dinner the night before, make a little extra, pop it in a meal prep container and boom, you have lunch for the next day. Having leftovers also helps make sure you are not wasting food.
Second, salads. There are so many great keto salad options out there, you will have endless cheap keto lunch possibilities.
Chicken Salad-eat it plain, with low carb crackers, over a bed of lettuce. Check out this easy chicken salad recipe
Egg Salad-this is one of the cheapest and most budget friendly keto lunch options out there. It uses cheap ingredients (eggs/mayo) and it’s quick to prepare. You can make a huge batch at the beginning of the week and you are all set. You can also try making a traditional “sandwich” by using a low carb bread.
Cesar salad-this is a favorite of mine. Check out this recipe
Third option for cheap keto lunches-wraps. Lettuce wraps, low carb tortillas, meat and cheese wraps.
I love this BLT lettuce wrap recipe
You could also try these pinwheels. You can always substitute the salami for your favorite meat as well.
Other Cheap Keto lunch options:
Broccoli Ham Mushroom Keto Bake
Affordable Budget-Friendly Keto Dinners
If you want cheap keto dinners, stick to inexpensive cuts of meat-like ground beef, pork chops and chicken thighs. Then you can pair that with a low carb vegetable topped with butter or a simple side salad. That to me, is the easiest and best way to do keto on a budget. Keep it simple, low carb, high fat and delicious.
Egg Roll in a Bowl is high on my cheap keto dinner list.
It uses budget friendly ground beef or pork and cabbage-which is a super cheap low carb vegetable
Chicken thighs make such good cheap keto meals. They are flavorful and moist and very inexpensive. Check out this Pickle Braised Chicken Thighs with Cauliflower Rice recipe.
Casseroles are another great way to eat yummy keto dinners on a budget. They take inexpensive everyday ingredients and turn them into hearty keto meals. Plus, you can make a big batch and freeze the leftovers or enjoy for a cheap keto lunch!
Check out this One Pan Cheesy Broccoli Chicken Casserole
You could also enjoy this Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole
Cheap Keto Side Dishes
Keep it simple. The easiest and cheapest keto side dishes are usually just vegetables topped with salt, pepper and butter. Or a salad side with a yummy fatty dressing.
There are of course places for more complex side dishes and you can still enjoy those while doing keto on a budget. Just don’t over complicate or over spend.
Here are some great keto side dish options:
Cauli-Mash-the perfect low carb mashed potato substitute
Balsamic Roasted Turnips-check out the recipe here.
Zoodles with Pesto
Cheap Keto Meals on a Budget
Using these tips and cheap keto meals will absolutely help you be successful on the keto diet. If you don’t have a big grocery budget, don’t worry, you can still eat low carb, high fat without spending an arm and a leg.
Remember, investing in yourself, your health and your diet will save you money in the long run throughout your life.
Comment below and let us know what your favorite cheap keto meal is. And don’t forget to share this article!