Boy, do I need help. My husband was just layed off ( after 9 years with the company!!!) and because of his health condition and his age (he's 48) he is going to have a difficult time finding another one. I am disabled, so I can't work. So I need some very inexpensive dinner ideas for my family of 5. They all like to eat meat at dinner. I figure if I only serve meat once a day they would probably be ok with that. And her's the kicker, my hubby HATES chicken, unless it's fried, and then only once in a while. so, if you have any ideas on feeding a family on next to nothing, give me a shout!! Thank you for reading. Love, Julie, aka cookingJewel

I am so sorry to hear about your husband. I was "jobless" for about 4 monthes last year, and let me tell you I figured out how to make everything stretch.... My honey doesn't like chicken either unless it is deep fried and served with gravy.

 Some "meat" ideas that I made quite often are:

Nachos- you spread the chips and cook meat with seasoning, while cooking the meat, spread beans and other toppings of your choice on the chips. Top with meat and cheese and pop in the oven for like 5 on 350. Very easy too! I usually make extra hamburger meat and use it for Burritos or soft tacos, later in the week.

Also homemade pizza is a very inexpensive and feeling dinner!! Leftovers make good lunch for the next day too!

I make roast in the crock pot- and use leftovers for soup or shredded up for bbq sandwichs.

Meatloaf is very yummy too~ and you can make in to sandwichs. I have my mothers recipe if you are interested.

Other recipes I have if you want are for- tamale pie, and shepherd's pie. Let me know if these sound good.

All of these can feed many and are very inexpensive~ hope they are helpful! And GOOD LUCK!!

Wow so sorry.
I hope that you live in an area that has discount stores.  I live in the mid-west and we have a great inexpensive store here called Aldi's.  Very inexpensive compared to regular grocery stores.  Look for stores like that. 
I have also had great luck in finding meats that are reduced at the store because they are close on the sell by date.  Look for these at your store and ask if they will reduce the price.  Remember if you find a package of 10 pounds of ground beef you can freeze it cooked as well as frozen, for use in sauces, tacos, casseroles. Frozen 1 pound takes up less room than raw 1 pound so you save room.
Try the stores that sell items in bulk and add a little of the meatless soy protein in with your meat, it will taste the same but stretch your meat dollars.
If you find turkey on sale get 1 or 2 have your butcher cut it in half on his band saw.  You now have  something you can toss on the grill and have some leftovers.
I hope some of these ideas help.
By the way think of the kids and DO NOT hesitate to find out if you qualify for help either through WIC of food stamp program.  You and he have been working and paying taxes so this is something that you have a right to.  It is for the kids to make sure they are healthy.  There are also programs for medical care. Please do not hesitate to check into this as well.

Yes please. Any recipes you have would be great. I will be "incomunicado" for about 5 or 6 days. A friend invited us to go to his cabin on the mountain. My hubby and I are so excited, we really needed this break!!! So anyone wanting to share recipes with me I will greatly appreciate. We are avid hunters, so I have a freezer full of deer and fish, so those recipes would be great too. Especially if you can make the meat not taste the same as the night before. Love to all, Thank you, Julie aka cookingjewel

Hi cooking jewel. I to am sorry to hear of your husbands lay off. I know that is hard, prayfully he'll find work,. I remember one year that my D.H. was layed off just before Christmas, will had 2 teens st home, and he went back to work in Jan. and never drew a full weeks pay untill May,.  We ate a "LOT" of biscuits & gravy, beans, chili, & pasta dishes. We did get a deer and I used it just like ground beef. I love deer stew, made with a beef stew seasoning packet.YUM! When I cook a roast, I save the broth and veg. and make veg. soup or beef & noodles. I froze all left over veg., no matter how few, mixed together and when I had enough I made veg. soup. My mom uses left over mashed potatos to make potato soup. Beside the goverment helps that was mentioned, there are also "food pantry's" that you can go to. Here is what I tell people when I sugest that," If you get grocery's there, that's money that you can use on a bill or other expenses. Lots of luck,

Thank you all for all of the great suggestions. I really appreciate all of you. But this lay off is a blessing in disguise. We have the oppertunity to spend a little time together, alone. We have already applied for unemployment, we hope that we get a check soon, its been 3 weeks already. If we get a check this week hubby and I are goin fishin next weekend!!! FUN!!! My girls are going to be away visiting their dad in Calif, so we will be alone for a month or so. We will be ating a lot of deer roast and bbq, but thats ok, we love deer. We are going to have to grind up a couple of roasts, we have already used up all our deer burger. If we catch enough fish we'll freeze some. We do have a grocery warehouse down the road and I spent one third of his severence pay on groceries, so we are set for about a month. So thanx again for all of your help, you all are wonderful, and yes please pray for us, as we did lose our health insurence. But God IS good, all the time, and we have faith He will see us through.             Lotsa love, Julie, aka cookingjewel

Julie,

I'm glad to hear that some things have worked out...it's amazing how God provides when we get in a situation where we don't know what comes next. 

I was eight when my dad was laid off, in the same situation your husband is in.  He worked in computers in the early 80s when PCs were barely normal in the offices and no degree was required, by the time the company went under, college degrees were necessary to keep up with the computer technicalities.  It took him the next 8 years to get back into a position of similar pay and type, and those 8 years were rough.  There were four kids, and neither parent had college education that could secure a salary.  He went through a lot of temp jobs, we survived on food stamps, and my mom did amazing things with food. 

 We survived on tuna, mac'n'cheese, ramen noodles and various other pasta.  My mom could stretch a can of tuna for all four of us for lunch.  We had to sacrifice a lot of flavor, but my love for casseroles still continues today.  So your meat lovers might have to deal with a break from some meat.

 Stretch hamburger with beans, veggies or sauce..."beef" up meatloaf with onions, bread crumbs, peppers, even sauces (ketchup, sloppy joe sauce).  Maybe less per serving.

Five dollar meal...egg noodles, can of cream soup, can of chicken/tuna and bag of frozen peas and carrots.  Cook noodles, mix all together, top with crackers or bread crumbs and bake until bubbly. Can of chicken will be a little more expensive.

Pasta always fills out a meal and fills up a belly.  Frozen veggies mixed in or served with a little basil on the side can help to fill out the food pyramid, beans can fill in for meat in the protein department.

Breakfast for dinner can be pretty inexpensive.  Jiffy mixes make okay pancakes, eggs, sausage, even mixed together in an omelette (everything in one pan, all your food groups).  I've had a "cowboy breakfast" before, where you cook the sausage, peppers, onions, set it aside.  Cook hashbrowns, put sausage mix back on top of hashbrowns, pour over scrambled eggs, top with cheese, all in a skillet, place in the oven until eggs are cooked.  Probably need a cast iron skillet.

And you've got the right idea buying in bulk, especially with meats.  Get the ground beef or turkey in the frozen rolls, sometimes you can buy a big pack of those rolls for a lot less than you'd pay for fresh meat.

Should you have to deal with this circumstance through the winter, soups are pretty inexpensive and can be eaten as leftovers for a day or two.  My mom made corn chowder on a regular basis that had some cheap ingredients thrown into a pot.  I love it to this day.

 I pray that your time of "scraping by" will be short and that work will be found quickly.