5 Frugal Ideas for Cooking Black Beans

by Nicole Dean

If you have a family budget worked out, you know how hard it is to stick to it without having some real concrete plans and strategies to stretch your money as far as it will go. Usually, the first area we can squeeze a few extra dollars out of our wallets is on groceries. I’d like to introduce you to your new partner in your frugal endeavor, the black bean.

If you find yourself wandering aimlessly through the aisles of your grocery store, looking for something to make for dinner that won’t break your budget, take a detour over to the black bean display and check out the price. Considering that black beans are loaded with nutrients like protein, iron, calcium, and potassium, and they are high in fiber, and low in fat and sugar, they really offer a lot of bang for your buck. It’s obvious that black beans should be a staple in every household, frugal or not. So, let’s think up a few simple meals to create with your new best friend… the black bean.

1) Quick and Easy Beany Soup

You’ll need 1 can each of black beans, garbanzo beans, butter beans, and navy beans (although you really can use any kinds of beans). In a large pot, pour 2 tablespoons olive oil, add 1 cup chopped celery and 1 cup chopped onion. Cook until celery is a little tender. Now add 1 clove garlic, minced or crushed and cook for just a minute. Open and drain, but do not rinse, all four bean cans and pour into pot. Add 1 small can diced tomatoes and 1 small can chicken broth. Simmer slowly for about 20 minutes. It’s ready to eat.

2) Bountiful Bean Salad

You’ll be choosing your favorite canned beans for this salad, keeping in mind color and texture; favorites like black beans, butter beans, navy beans, kidney beans, waxed beans, and whatever else you like. Drain and rinse all the beans and put them in a large serving bowl. To the beans, add some sweet onion, or green onion including the tops, chopped celery, freshly chopped parsley, maybe some fresh rosemary, or whatever herb you like, and top it all with a little shake or two of a very good vinaigrette salad dressing, I use Paul Newman’s Own Balsamic Vinaigrette. You’ve got yourself a kid-friendly and nutritious salad.

3) Simple Black Beans and Taco Sauce

Alright, this one may appear a little strange at first, but my daughter actually sold me on its merits. Drain and rinse your black beans, making sure they’re drained well. Put your black beans into a bowl and top them with any favorite taco sauce, even those little leftover packets from take-out. Mix gently and enjoy! You just have to trust me on this one. Of course, you may also use any taco sauce you have in your refrigerator, or even a nice hot salsa will do. But, just a touch, not too much sauce. You want to just flavor your black beans. (Of course you can sprinkle some shredded cheese on top, too.)

4) Black Bean Cottage Cheese Salad

Quick and simple salads are sometimes the best. In a serving bowl, put about 1 cup of cottage cheese, sprinkle some salt over the top and add a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper. Now, drain and rinse a can of black beans, and spoon about 1/2 cup of the black beans over the cottage cheese. Chop up some celery and sprinkle over the top. You now have a snack or side salad that delicious and nutritious, loaded with protein, iron, calcium and fiber.

5) Quick Black Bean Burrito

If you have a few staples in your pantry you can whip up this simple burrito. You’ll need a flour or corn tortilla, either heated or not, that’s up to you. Drain and rinse your black beans, then start building your burrito however you want. I add black beans, some diced tomatoes, a little onion, lots of shredded cheddar cheese, a little sour cream, leftover rice, some chopped up pieces of chicken from last night, and whatever else I have to use up. Depending on how I feel that day, I go a little heavier on the black beans and lighter on the other stuff. Get your salsa or taco sauce ready and enjoy.

These recipes are just a few ways to use the wonderful, and versatile black bean. All five of these simple black bean dishes can be tweaked easily by you to show off your individual style and to become your own family favorites.

Nicole Dean is the mostly-sane mom and owner of ShowMomtheMoney.com – a fun and informative site to help moms achieve success working from home. She welcomes you to learn more ways to save money in her Frugal Moms section. Be sure to sign up for her free tutorial for work at home moms.

Stretch That Chicken to Make It Go Further

Chicken is routinely eaten at evening mealtime in American households. We each have our favorite ways of preparing it. When cooking a whole chicken, you can do wonders with what you don’t eat for dinner. Here are some ways to make that roasted chicken appealing to the family.

Learn to slice a whole chicken. Slicing one properly makes it easier to remove the rest of the meat from the bone. The skeleton can be used to create broth. Boil it in some water until the rest of the meat falls off.

You can season the broth with herbs and spices. After it cools, pour it into jars for storage. You’ll be able to keep the broth for a few weeks. Use it to flavor soups and casseroles.

Do your kids carry their lunches to school? Instead of buying lunch meat, slice leftover chicken breast for sandwiches. It will be a nice change from the usual lunch fare.

On the weekends, instead of ordering a pizza or going to McDonald’s, use that chicken. Cube a few pieces to toss on top of a salad with some cheese and croutons. Combine with peppers and onions in a skillet to make filling for fajitas or soft tacos.

Does your family like chicken pot pie? Add some of that chicken, along with vegetables (canned or frozen) and a can of creamed soup to a pie crust and you’ve got an instant dinner that takes less than an hour to prepare. It is a quick meal idea perfect for busy families. A salad on the side will make a complete and healthy dinner.

Chicken based casseroles can be made and frozen for future meals. The family may be all “chickened out” for the week, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make the most of the chicken you have left for future weeks.

Do you still have more chicken? Well let’s keep going with more ideas. Hey, our mothers and grandmothers learned to use chicken in many ways and so can we. What tastes the best when you have a cold and are feeling under the weather? Why, chicken noodle soup of course.

Don’t settle for canned soup with small noodles. Make your own soup with juicy chicken pieces and wide egg noodles. That broth you jarred up will serve as a nice base and best of all it is already seasoned.

Add wide egg noodles and sliced vegetables like carrots, celery, and onions to your soup. When the noodles are tender, add the chicken. Since it is already cooked it just needs to warn up. Ladle up a bowl for the sick and the healthy as a light weekend lunch.

What are you doing with your chicken after dinner tonight? Try some of these ideas to make that chicken do double and triple duty to save on your family’s grocery bill. The best part is that the new meals are just as tasty as the original dish.