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This budget-friendly slow cooker meal plan covers a week's worth of dinners for four adults, with all the ingredients coming in at under £28. It’s designed to be economical on energy use and help reduce waste.

All the recipes have been developed specifically to be made in a slow cooker, although there's the occasional (and often optional) use of a microwave and hob, too.

More budget meal inspiration

• Budget meal plan for six
• Budget vegetarian meal plan for four
• Budget recipes and advice

How we costed our recipes

We have stuck to a strict ingredient budget of £7 per person for the week, which averages out at just under £1 per portion.

We’ve based most of our costs on the smallest available pack size, meaning even if you don’t use a whole jar or packet, the entire cost is still included in the budget.

Meanwhile, store cupboard items like oil, salt, pasta and rice are costed according to the quantity you use, as they tend to have long shelf lives or be purchased regularly as part of a standard family shop.

The recipes

Day 1: Mulligatawny soup

This hearty Indian-spiced soup makes for an easy dinner, needing just 10 minutes of hands-on time. Frozen veg mixes are perfect for using in slow cookers as there’s no need to defrost first and no early morning chopping as it’s already been done for you. Leftovers would be great for lunch the next day.

Day 2: Smoky Spanish beans

A smoky chorizo, bean and tomato stew that’s generously portioned and packed with summer holiday flavours. Finishing the dish with kale adds colour, texture and an iron boost.

You can soak and boil your entire 500g bag of cannellini beans today, and refrigerate the leftovers for tomorrow's sticky sausage recipe. You'll end up with roughly double the weight after soaking and boiling: use 600g for this recipe and 400g tomorrow.

Day 3: Sticky sausages with marmalade

If you like a honey-mustard flavour combo, you’ll love this fruity marmalade-laced twist on the classic. And with just six ingredients, it’s sure to become a regular in your house. Browning the sausages first is more about appearance than flavour, so feel free to skip this step if you don’t mind what the finished bangers look like.

Day 4: All-in-one spaghetti Genovese

Pasta in a slow cooker? Yes! Thin shapes like spaghetti and linguine, cooked on the highest setting, work nicely. This classic Italian dish is usually made with green beans, but frozen peas sub in for a spring-like twist and it's kept fresh with the addition of lemon zest and juice.

Day 5: Black bean beef and rice

This moreish beef dish uses a ready-made sauce and takes it up a notch with extra garlic and soy sauce. There’s no time-consuming browning of the beef either – just throw it all in the pot in the morning and let it cook to a smooth, ragu-like sauce.

Day 6: Satay chicken wraps with pickled onions

If you like fajitas, you’ll love this satay-style chicken version with crunchy salads and pickles. And if you’ve only ever used your slow cooker for saucy stews, you’ll be impressed by how easy it is to cook something like pulled chicken. If you have any, then extra lime wedges and sweet chilli sauce make great additions.

Day 7: Roast beef stew

This simple crowd-pleasing stew has a gravy-like sauce that benefits from browning the beef first, but if you’d prefer to just throw everything in the slow cooker without any prep, it will still taste great. Plate up with peas and wait for everyone to ask if you can make it again next week.

Shopping list

Fruit and vegetables
□ 2–3 medium onions
□ 3 medium red onions
□ 4 garlic cloves
□ 30g/1oz coriander
□ 1 bag sliced kale (minimum weight 150g)
□ 220g/8oz green beans
□ 1 cucumber
□ 1kg/2lb 4oz carrots
□ 775g large floury potatoes (or similar)
□ 1 lemon
□ 1 lime

Meat and fish
□ 70g/2½oz chorizo slices (or diced chorizo)
□ 8 pork sausages
□ 250g beef mince
□ 4 chicken legs (about 1kg/2lb 4oz), or use thighs
□ 400–500g/14oz–1lb 2oz beef skirt, braising steaks or brisket

Tins, packets and jars
□ 250g sachet microwave pilau rice
□ 400g tin plum tomatoes
□ 500g/1lb 2oz dried cannellini beans (alternatively, if your budget allows, you can swap for 4 x 400g tins cannellini beans)
□ 150g/5½oz marmalade
□ 225g/8oz wholegrain mustard
□ 190g jar basil pesto
□ 300g/10½oz spaghetti
□ 170g sachet black bean cooking sauce
□ 400g tin black beans
□ 350g/12oz long grain rice
□ 4 tbsp gravy granules

Cooking ingredients
□ 3½ tbsp mild curry powder
□ 2 chicken stock cubes
□ 1 beef stock cube
□ 2 tsp paprika (preferably smoked)
□ 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
□ 4 tsp soy sauce

Frozen
□ 1kg pack casserole or stewing vegetable mix
□ 525g/1lb 3oz frozen peas
□ 12 Yorkshire puddings (optional)

Other
□ 6 slices wholemeal bread
□ 8 soft white or wholemeal wraps
□ 200g/7oz salted, roasted peanuts

Originally published April 2023