Stressed about the price of meat these days?

You’re not alone.

Meat has gotten so expensive, I hardly ever buy big pieces of beef any more. When I buy beef these days it’s usually ground beef, so I needed more ideas for budget friendly meals using ground beef.

I got a little tired of my usual ground beef dinner recipes, and I suspect you probably do too.

So I did my new favorite thing - I reached out to my followers on Threads and asked for their favorite ground beef recipes. My friends did not disappoint with suggestions for ways to use ground beef, I got so many suggestions for budget friendly ground beef dinner recipes.

Are you following me on social media? Click on over to follow me and join the conversations.

What follows below is the list of all the ground beef ideas my crowdsourcing came up with. This list includes so many favorites, quick and simple ground beef recipes, comfort food ground beef recipes, one pot ground beef recipes, and so many more family friend ground beef dinner ideas.

I’m linking recipes where I have them, and keep checking back to see if there’s more.

Ground beef dinner ideas:

• Chili: chili with ground beef is actually my favorite kind. It’s somehow just more comforting. I have a recipe here on the blog that we love. I’ve made this for years so this one isn’t new to me, but it’s at the top of my list to recommend to you. This is a family friendly chili that my kids, and anyone else I have ever made it for, absolutely love. It’s full of flavor but not spicy. Try serving it in bread bowls, or with hot dogs. I’m on team no beans in chili, but feel free to add beans if you like them.

• Stuffed eggplant: This recipe with spiced beef and pine nuts sounds amazing. Based on Yotam Ottolenghi’s lamb-stuffed eggplants.

• Meatloaf: so many amazing recipes out there! Here is a great recipe from Natasha’s Kitchen. You can also take any favorite meatballs recipe and cook it as a loaf as well. I’ve done that many times when I wanted the flavor of my favorite meatball recipe but didn’t feel like taking the time to make the balls.

• Meatballs: another one with practically limitless options. Our family favorite meatball recipe is from an old Moroccan cookbook that I’ve had for years. It’s no longer in print but you can find used copies of it. I highly recommend this book anyway, it’s got so many amazing recipes. I also have another favorite meatball recipe here on the blog, it’s a very basic recipe that’s super easy to adapt. You can also generally take any favorite meatloaf recipe and make it into meatballs instead.

• Meat sauce / Bolognese / Ragu: these sauces are another favorite of ours and they are so versatile. I usually make a huge batch of it and we will have it one night on pasta and then later in the week I will make lasagna with it. A lot of recipes call for a variety of ground meats, but you can use just ground beef and it will still be delicious. My favorite bolognese recipe is in another of my favorite cookbooks - How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman

• Hamburgers - need no explanation! There are so many options, I don’t think my kids could ever get tired of them. You can get creative with toppings to keep it interesting.

• Picadillo - this is a new one to me, so I am looking forward to trying it. It’s a Latin dish with ground beef and spices and olives, some versions have potato too. In my brief searching, it seems like Cuban versions don’t have potatoes, while the Mexican style includes potatoes. Here’s one that looks delicious without potatoes, and here’s another that has potatoes. We’re going to have to try it both ways I think.

• Shepherds pie: always a favorite. I think a lot of families have their own recipes for this, I’ve made it a lot and don’t usually follow a recipe. But if you’ve never had it, or never made it - you must give it a try. It’s basically a savory mixture of ground beef, veggies, and gravy - like a thick stew - topped with seasoned mashed potatoes and baked. Classic comfort food. Some will say that with beef it’s technically cottage pie, and shepherds pie is lamb. I say call it whatever you like. Here’s a great recipe from The Wholesome Dish.

• Stuffed peppers: ground beef, rice, spices, cheese - what’s not to love? You can find a million recipes if you do a quick search, here’s one that looks great to me, from WellPlated.com.

• Homemade crunch wrap supremes: Ok this was a new one to me. It’s a Taco Bell thing and I don’t eat at Taco Bell, but a homemade version sounds amazing. A loaded ground beef taco in a crispy taco shell, then wrapped in a flour tortilla and fried. Sounds too good to be true! Here’s a recipe that sounds amazing, from Spend With Pennies.

• Tacos: obviously, the possibilities are endless. You can season up your ground beef really well, or you can keep it super simple. I do it all ways - sometimes with lots of chili powder and cumin and garlic, but sometimes with just a little salt and pepper and I let the toppings and salsa add the extra flavor. You can of course use packaged taco seasoning, but I stopped buying that years ago when I realized it was just as easy to season it myself.

• Nachos with seasoned ground beef topping: anything you can put in a taco, you can put on top of nachos instead. It’s a fun way to mix it up.

• Tamale pie: believe or not, I’ve actually never made this! But I’ve had it and it’s delish. Kinda like a tex-mix Shepards pie - a spiced ground beef and veggie mixture, with corn bread on top. Here’s a recipe that sounds fun.

• Goulash (the American kind): I had to specify this because Hungarian goulash is a whole other kind of thing. But American goulash is a more eastern US regional thing, so I’ve actually never had it but it sounds amazing. It’s like a spiced tomatoey ground beef sauce with elbow macaroni pasta and it sounds like the kind of thing my family would love. Here’s a one pot version from Rachel Cooks, where the pasta cooks in the sauce, and you know that’s right up my alley.

• Lasagna: the ground beef lasagna I grew up with was very American, which I didn’t realize until well into adulthood. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t delicious. I mentioned above that I make a lasagna sometimes with bolognese, and it is amazing. But you can also do the more classic American style with browned ground beef layered in between the layers of pasta, sauce and cheese. Or you can make a simple ground beef tomato sauce. Here’s a great simple recipe for a ground beef lasagna from Jo Cooks.

• Unstuffed peppers: all the goodness of the stuffed versions, but maybe a bit easier cooked together in one pot. Here’s a recipe that sounds simple and easy.

• Stuffed cabbage rolls: I love these but I haven’t made them in years, I really need to do it again. Here’s a recipe that sounds very easy and budget friendly from Spend with Pennies. There are also “unstuffed” versions of recipes like this, a quick google search will bring you several options.

• Lettuce wraps: lettuce wraps of all kinds are among my favorite things. I love all the flavors in these, and how versatile they can be. You can search and find dozens of recipes, but here’s one that sounds particularly delicious.

• Japanese curry: My kids love the flavors of Japanese curry. You can buy the sauce in cubes that you melt into a sauce. It’s so versatile, you can use the sauce with any combination of protein and veggies that you like. We buy the mild version, my grocery store usually carries it, but you can order it online if you can’t find it. This is a staple that I always keep in my kitchen because it’s such an easy weeknight dinner. The recipe is on the box - you just brown your meat and veggies, and add the sauce and liquid. I love to also add coconut milk to give it an extra creamy flavor.

• Bibimbap / Korean beef bowl: oh another favorite. Spiced ground beef served with a variety of sides and toppings, on a bowl of rice. Another that is really flexible and great for weeknights, you can cook it up very fast or make ahead. Here’s just one recipe, but there are so many more if you search.

• Stroganoff: a family classic. Typically this is made with strips of beef but I think it’s just as good with ground beef. I used to make this all the time while camping, it’s an easy one pot camping meal that everyone loves.

• Salisbury steak: I have fond memories of having this in TV dinners as a kid (I’ve just dated myself), but I’ve never tried making it, and why not? A seasoned beef patty, browned and served with mushroom gravy and probably some mashed potatoes. This is going on my list for a winter comfort food meal. Here’s a great recipe from Recipe Tin Eats.

• Sloppy joes: an old school school cafeteria classic that can be made so much better at home. Ground beef in a hearty tomato sauce served on a toasted hamburger bun. Natasha’s Kitchen is one of my favorite food blogs and I’m sure her version is amazing.

• Loco moco: I may have accidentally saved the best for last. If you’ve never had loco moco, you’re in for a treat. This is a Hawaiian classic comfort food - a ground beef patty, served over a scoop of rice, with a mushroom gravy and a fried egg. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Here’s a simple classic version that you need to try.

  
  
  

  I hope this has given you lots of great ideas for your weeknight budget meal planning.

  Happy cooking!