Most of us are looking for ways to cut down on our food budgets.  Have you been successful in reducing your food costs?  One way that you can cut back on your food costs is to keep some basic staples in your pantry that will help you cut down on your meal costs overall.

These pantry staples that will cut your food bill down:

Dried beans.  Dried beans are one of the most budget friendly foods that you can buy.  For typically less than $2 and you can stretch one bag out into several meals.  You can cook them in your slow cooker with a little bit of spices and you have a meal in itself.  Add meat and sauce and you’ve got chili.  There are so many options here.

Canned beans.  Canned beans are great for adding substance to your meals.  Last night I added a can of black beans into turkey burger and made turkey burgers for my family of 5 for a grand total of less than $5!

Lentils.  Lentils are similar to beans but can be mixed with a variety of foods to create meals.  You can create a soup with them or serve them with eggs.  You can even serve them as a stand alone.  

Potatoes.  Potatoes are a very inexpensive item.  Think about it.  10 pounds of potatoes often costs just a couple of bucks and potatoes can be served in every single meal.
What are your favorite budget friendly pantry staples that help you and your family keep your meal costs down? And if you have any awesome cheap recipes, please share!!