Had to pick between cheap ground beef and a whole chicken last week

Was standing in the grocery aisle with about $12 left for the week. I could get a big tube of ground beef or one whole chicken. I went with the chicken because it stretched further. Roasted it on Sunday with some potatoes I already had. Made soup from the bones that lasted me until Wednesday. Then I used the leftover meat for sandwiches and tacos. The ground beef would have been gone in two meals. The chicken gave me five different meals for the same price. Anyone else found whole chickens way more worth it than ground meat?

2 comments

2 Comments

thompson.tyler28d ago

Oh wow, did you save the bones for stock after roasting it? Because that's the real game changer right there. Once you learn how to get every drop of flavor out of those bones, you'll never look at ground beef the same way again. I've even started saving veggie scraps in a bag in the freezer to throw in with the chicken bones when I make stock. It makes the soup so much richer and you don't have to buy any extra bouillon or anything. Plus that homemade stock freezes perfectly for later meals like risotto or bean soups. Honestly a whole chicken is like the budget hero nobody talks about enough.

parkerrodriguez28d ago

Whole chicken is the smarter move every time, especially when you're stretching a budget. @thompson.tyler is right about saving veggie scraps too, I freeze onion skins and carrot ends right along with the bones. Ground beef disappears fast but a chicken just keeps giving.