A Low-Budget Dinner for Two: Corn Crisped Chicken
A Low-Budget Dinner for Two: Corn Crisped Chicken
posted by Olivia Mistelle Maxell April 16, 2010
Kids like food that tastes good. Period. It’s easy to satisfy their cravings with cheap, easy meals that have very little nutritional value. Its tough to afford healthier food when money's tight let alone have your kiddos willingly eat what's good for them. Being a single parent I struggle to give my son the healthier foods on a very low-budget, BUT it can be done!
Fortunately, I only have one child to feed and I know it’s tough for parents out there with 2-4 bellies to fill, including their own. I am here to offer the best recipes I can to help alleviate those nights of deciding to either:
- Eat out (not good to do regularly)
- Eat cheap and greasy or out of a box.
- Eat leftovers from 3 nights ago. (no fun)
Most parents get that urge to eat out more than 2-3 times a week and not only is it hurting you and your family’s health but it’s putting a dent in your wallet.
I suggest, if you can afford it, eat out once every two weeks. In this economy we got to tighten our belts and save our children from diabetes and obesity.
I’m going to share with you all last night’s dinner I cooked for me and my son. I will provide instructions and ingredients. I’m not much for preparation and the end result is just getting the food on the plate so my child will stop trying to kill me with the whining about starving to death.
Kids (or should I say, boys) don’t care about presentation and I don’t have the time.
Here we go:
You will need these ingredients:
- 2 cups of Kellogg’s Corn Flake Crumbs (I recommend just putting some generic corn flakes in a baggie and crushing them with a meat tenderizer).
- 1 egg
- 1 cup of milk
- butter or oil
- 2-3 chicken breast sliced in half (will double in amount and make nearly 6 servings)
- Optional: Fresh mushrooms and green onions
- Optional: One lemon or lemon juice
Put on a frying pan with some butter and oil and seat heat to medium until melted then turn it down the flame just a notch.
After you crush the corn flakes, you can either put them in a bowl, on a plate, or leave them in the baggie until you’re ready to batter the chicken. I recommend putting whatever seasonings you wish and mixing it in with the crumbs. Go ahead and crack the egg into a bowl, slightly beat it with a fork, and pour the milk in with it and stir.
After you’ve cut the chicken, place it in the egg/milk mixture—get it nice and slimy, then roll it or shake it around in the corn flake crumbs until the serving is completely covered in flakes. Place the breaded piece of chicken in the frying pan with the melted butter or oil and fry 6-12 minutes on each side, depending on how thin the portions are. You can also bake the chicken at 375 for 30-40 minutes for those trying to eat healthier.
If you have the money to buy the mushrooms and onions, then slice them up and sauté both on medium heat until tender.
After everything is cooked, squeeze the lemon over the chicken as you eat. If you made the mushrooms and onions then pile them on top of the chicken portions and then eat!
The best thing about this recipe is you save what’s left and make it a sandwich for lunch the next day! Another favorite thing I like to do with the leftovers is cut the chicken up in small bite size pieces and mix it in with a salad. I've been known to make this recipe for dinner in cubed portions for a crispy chicken salad.
For sides I made Lipton’s red beans and rice (in a package) which cost $1 at Wal-mart, a can of spinach with butter, and a salad of tomatoes, lettuces and cucumber. Now, Levi is required to eat at 1-2 servings of greens with dinner, but I didn’t make him eat the spinach last night. He’s getting over a wicked stomach bug and the last time I made him eat spinach he threw up all over his plate. I didn’t want to deal with any more throw-up this week.
He ate two servings of the rice and chicken and kept it all down! Yeah!
I spent a total of $10 for this dinner and had left-over’s for lunch today.
TIP: Wal-Mart is starting to charge nearly the same price for their generic food brand (Great Value) as compared to the name brands (and you get less). Make sure to compare prices and quantity before you choose.
Posted by Olivia Mistelle Mistelle at Friday, April 16, 2010 3:37 PM 
Categories: recipes, Parenting, Life, cooking
Tags: eggs milk olivia mistelle maxell corn crisped chicken chicken recipe recipes parenthood low budget meals kellogg's corn flakes dinner for two chicken dinner
Categories: recipes, Parenting, Life, cooking
Tags: eggs milk olivia mistelle maxell corn crisped chicken chicken recipe recipes parenthood low budget meals kellogg's corn flakes dinner for two chicken dinner
I will try this! Thanks for adding in the side dishes. That's where I get stuck and we end up having salad with everything. I hope Levi is better.
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Sides are tough.
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