Practical, flexible, and budget-conscious cooking for real life.
Pantry Staples We Assume You Have
To keep costs low and instructions simple, Forkonomics recipes assume the following staples are already in your kitchen:
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Garlic powder
- Butter or margarine
These are used frequently for seasoning, sautéing, and flavor balance. If a recipe calls for more specialized spices or condiments, they’ll be listed in the shopping guide.
Frozen Ingredients Are Welcome
We often use frozen vegetables and pre-cooked proteins to reduce prep time and stretch your budget. Frozen options are:
- Affordable
- Easy to portion
- Shelf-stable
- Just as nutritious as fresh in most cases
Feel free to swap in fresh produce or leftovers when available — Forkonomics is all about flexibility.
Ingredient Swaps & Substitutions
| If You Don’t Have… | Try This Instead |
|---|---|
| American cheese slices | Shredded cheddar or mozzarella |
| Mirepoix mix | Diced onion, celery & carrot |
| Italian bread | Sandwich bread, buns, or tortillas |
| Ground beef | Ground turkey, sausage, or lentils |
| Rotini pasta | Penne, elbow macaroni, or spaghetti |
These swaps won’t compromise the spirit of the recipe — they’re just alternate paths to the same delicious destination.
Portion Planning & Scaling
Each Forkonomics recipe is designed to serve at least 4 people, with clear instructions for scaling up to 6 or more. We include:
- Ingredient quantities for batch cooking
- Cost breakdowns per meal and per serving
- Notes on leftovers and reheating
This helps you plan meals that fit your household size, budget, and time constraints.
Shopping Guide Alignment
Every recipe in our “5 Meals for $50” series is built from a single shopping trip. We cross-reference:
- Ingredient lists
- Portion sizes
- Cost estimates
- Pantry assumptions
This ensures consistency across all posts and helps you shop once, cook all week.
Cook Smart. Spend Less. Eat Well.
Forkonomics is built for real life — where time is short, budgets matter, and every meal is a chance to care for yourself and others. We believe in practical cooking, transparent pricing, and flexible ingredients that meet you where you are.
Whether you’re feeding a family, planning ahead, or just trying to make dinner work, we’re here to help you cook smart, spend less, and eat well.
Forkonomics 