These "Struggle Meals" Are So Delicious, You'll Find Yourself Cooking Them Even When You're Not Broke

I recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to share some of their favorite dependable "struggle meals" they would eat anytime, whether they were keeping funds tight or not. Mainly because my own pantry is looking sparse, but also to remind everyone that there are so many creative ways to nourish yourself!

Here are some of the best responses:

1."Canned chili with shredded cheddar/jack over spaghetti or roasted potatoes *drools like Homer Simpson*"

2."Tofu don. Tofu cooked in a mixture of soy sauce, mirin, sake, and sugar with onions that were sauteed with ginger and garlic on rice. Super easy."

3."My mom's struggle meal: her unnamed soup. (it literally has no name) It has cooked hamburger meat, canned green beans, tomato sauce, beef broth, and water."

"It's perfect for cold winter night and a great struggle meal."

–a4868cbd7d

4."White rice and an over-easy egg on top. I’ll add some furikake and sriracha to jazz it up, but just that is my forever go-to."

5."Pita pizzas! They are fast, easy and can be a healthy choice depending on what you put on them. I make them all the time."

6."The Knorr pasta sides. Alfredo and creamy garlic shells; just cook pasta according to directions and throw in some fresh or frozen greens with three mins left."

7."I've become a little obsessed with Buldak ramen. I always add two soft-boiled eggs, green onions, maybe some torn seaweed sheets, and sesame seeds. Easy and delicious."

Some people gave the full recipe. Write that down, write that down! ✍️

8."HAMBURGER STEW"

And it turns out, tuna is a big fan fave! (Mine too.)

9."Barilla spaghetti and a can of sweet chilli tuna. It’s perfection!"

10."Tuna mac and cheese. Growing up 20 or so years ago, a can of tuna and a box of Kraft was like $1-2. Now it's more like $4-5, so still pretty reasonable, but it's definitely a go-to for me."

"I always keep some cans of tuna, and even if I don't have a box of Kraft, I always have some sort of pasta, milk, and cheese to make it from scratch. No matter how much money I have, it's just always been a comfort food for me."

–cocothegroomer

11."Tuna mac and cheese with peas."

12."I came down to say classic tuna noodle casserole! My mom always made it from scratch, but it was still super cheap. I make it every now and then, and it always brings me back to my childhood with the first bite!"

–travelcat147

13."I was taught to use everything bc money was so tight. So if we roasted a chicken we also made soup. I especially love homemade bone broth."

14."Basically getting very inventive with the few staple ingredients I had in the pantry, which was usually a packet of deli ham, half a dozen eggs, instant noodles, and packs of microwave rice."

"I'd make ham and eggs in different ways, Ham and egg 'fried' rice, ham omelets, ham and egg hash, ham and egg sandwich, ham and eggs noodles, Ghibli ham and noodles, etc. Same ingredients but in different forms. I still make these meals because they've become a kind of comfort food for me."

–ravenbard

15."It's five ingredients, comes together in about half an hour, and it's tasty comfort food."

16."Ground beef, spaghetti noodles, fried onions, soy sauce and ketchup."

17."Rice and beans, specifically basmati rice, maple flavor brown beans topped with shredded cheese and ranch."

18."Those frozen Banquet Salisbury steaks, instant mashed potatoes, and a can of some kind of bean or pea, like greens beans, field peas, etc. I actually just made it last night, and it never fails to hit the spot."

19.And finally, "Frozen stuffed crust pepperoni pizza."