Mark Luigi Dacumos
Affordable Keto Dinner Ideas
Will you be eating three square meals per day on keto? Perhaps in the beginning. But since keto reduces appetite over time by keeping your blood sugar levels stable, you’ll probably start skipping meals.
Breakfast is the most commonly skipped meal on keto. Dinner, on the other hand, is often consumed after a hard day at work or taking care of your kids. Can you make a delicious keto dinner that’s filling, nourishing, and fat-burning without breaking the bank? Absolutely, and here are some ways to do it.
1. Make dinner as simple as possible.
We sometimes get caught up with trying to make sure dinners are elaborate, fancy, and full of tons of ingredients. While that’s okay for special occasions, try to make your keto dinners as simple as possible. Why? So you can make meals with ease when you’re short on time or too tired to cook something complicated.
In doing so, you’ll avoid the temptation to hit the non-keto drive-thru. You’ll also keep yourself from hitting the grocery store and making expensive impulse purchases, plus avoid eating out or buying pre-cooked food that’s costly and may sabotage your keto goals.
2. Use this formula to make quick and affordable keto dinners.
All it takes to make a keto-friendly diner in a matter of minutes is using this simple formula:
1 protein + 1 base + 1 fat = dinner
Combine those three elements, and you’ll have a balanced dinner without even needing a recipe. Here are some examples:
Proteins:
- Chicken
- Canned tuna
- Sausage
- Smoked salmon
Bases:
- Bone broth
- Sauteed cabbage
- Cauliflower rice
- Chopped Romaine lettuce
Fats:
- ½ avocado
- ¼ cup shredded cheese
- Hardboiled egg
- 2 tbsp sour cream/heavy cream
As you can see, none of those ingredients are too expensive or hard to find. And the combinations you can make into a healthy, fat-melting meal are endless.
To make your ingredients as affordable as possible, don’t feel like you have to buy anything organic. While organic foods are more ideal, buy what you can afford. Also, in terms of veggies, buy them frozen as they’re usually cheaper and last longer than their fresh counterparts.
What about cheese? You could buy it shredded and pay a premium or buy it in cheaper blocks and shred it yourself.
3. Eat breakfast for dinner.
Are you the type who loves breakfast foods more than anything? Many people do, and there’s no reason you can’t eat breakfast for dinner (especially if you skip breakfast while fasting).
There are several benefits to making breakfast foods for dinner. First, they’re usually much easier and less complicated than dinner recipes. Second, they’re healthy and easily fit the keto-friendly mold. Third, using inexpensive eggs as the star of your dinner versus more expensive meats will save you tons of money.
4. Make an omelet for dinner.
Throw in some bacon or sausage, plenty of veggies for digestion-boosting and stomach-filling fiber, and some cheese on top for added protein. You can even add a bit of sour cream or butter for healthy fats. In doing so, you’ll have a delicious dinner that’s easy to make and costs a fraction of what steak or fish would.
5. Make casseroles.
It’s hard to beat the flavor of a casserole. Beyond that, casseroles are usually inexpensive and something your whole family will love. Look for keto casserole recipes online, and you’ll enjoy tasty dinners that are budget-friendly.
6. Use leftovers.
Here’s where creating your own custom keto meal plan comes in handy once again. As you meal prep early in the week and make food in batches, you can always have leftovers on hand.
Heat up something you made in the microwave, and you can enjoy a healthy keto dinner with almost no cooking or cleanup involved.
