How to make a Pot Roast dinner with the fixings for $1.80 per person!

Every Sunday, my husband and I host a big family dinner for our family.  This is a tradition from my youth and one that I enjoy continuing with my children and grandparents.  When I tell our friends that we have 7-10 people for dinner each Sunday, they ask how we can afford such a large grocery bill, which is understandable since we used to spend around $100 - $150 on our weekly Sunday meal. 

Nowadays, I’ve learned to set a budget of $20 - $30 for these same meals.  Today was no exception and since many of you have asked how to do this, here’s a breakdown. 

After looking thru the grocery sales ads, I decided to make a Pot Roast with all of the fixings for dinner. HyVee has Chuck Roast on sale for $2.69/lb (regularly price $4.98/lb) so I price matched and stocked up on a bit extra for another dinner this month, which is why the picture shows more than I will be using today. 

Currently, simmering in the crock pot is a 3.45 chuck roast, celery, onion, and 2 bags of carrots, plus I have two packages of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls ready to pop in the oven.  My total for this meal was $12.61 or $1.80 per person!  You can’t even eat at McDonald’s for that price!  (I was able to save $1-$2 today since we have lots of leftover desserts from our holiday party.)

So, how much was all of the food in the picture?  The total for today’s grocery run would have been $51.75, but thanks to price matching and coupons, my out of pocket cost was $21.07, saving us $30.68 or 60% and it is more than enough for another meal later this month.