My Chicken Strips Experiment Begins
Alright, so today I really wanted to make a cheap dinner using these frozen chicken strips sitting in my freezer. Money’s kinda tight this week, you know? Needed sides that cost next to nothing but still fill us up.
First thing I did: raided the pantry and fridge. Found some sad-looking potatoes sprouting eyes, a half bag of basic rice, and a head of broccoli that was starting to get wobbly. Okay, challenge accepted.
Operation Cheap Sides
Started chopping those potatoes. Didn’t even peel them – way too lazy for that. Just cubed them up kinda chunky. Threw them on a baking sheet with the chicken strips. Drizzled maybe a teaspoon of the cheapest vegetable oil I had over the potatoes only, sprinkled some salt and this old garlic powder container I found. Into the oven they went at 400°F.
While that cooked, tackled the rice. Nothing special here. Boiled water, dumped in a cup of plain white rice, turned down the heat, covered it. Set a timer. Easy.
Then the broccoli. Chopped it up, stems and all. Put maybe half an inch of water in a pot, dumped the broccoli in, slapped a lid on it. Steamed it for like 5 minutes until it was bright green but still a tiny bit crunchy. Didn’t waste butter melting it – just squeezed half a lemon I had rolling around over the top and added a pinch of salt.
Heard the timer ping for the potatoes and strips. Flipped everything over halfway like the bag said, just so it wouldn’t be burnt on one side. Honestly, the strips smelled fake and greasy, but hey, protein’s protein.
The Grand (Cheap) Reveal
Took everything out. Plated it up. Looked… beige. But functional.
- Chicken Strips: Cooked. Fine. Not fancy.
- Potatoes: Bit dry honestly, but the crispy edges were good. Definitely needed that salt.
- Rice: Just plain rice. Zero excitement. Zero cost.
- Broccoli: Actually tasted fresh and lemony! The surprise winner.
Total cost? I actually calculated it later, shocked myself.
- Chicken Strips: 89 cents (Got them on clearance last week)
- Potatoes: Maybe 15 cents? It was two small spuds.
- Rice: Dirt cheap, like 5 cents? Used a cup.
- Broccoli: Used half a head, maybe 35 cents.
- Lemon, Oil, Salt: Literal pennies.
For about $1.50? Yeah. We ate. It filled us up. Was it restaurant quality? Oh hell no. Was it cheap and easy and done in under 30 minutes? You bet.
Lessons Learned (The Cheap Way)
My hands smelled like fake chicken grease afterward. Worth it? For $1.50? Sure. Sinks piled up with one pot, one baking sheet, one plate. Minimal effort. The rice was boring, but I forgot I had some packets of soy sauce from takeout last month. Dumped that on next time. Instant flavor boost!
This whole “cheap chicken strip dinner” thing? It’s not glamorous. But when the fridge is looking empty and the wallet’s feeling lighter, just grabbing whatever you have, throwing it together with some basic cooking? That’s survival. Anyone telling you cheap food has to look like Instagram is lying or selling something. Like those pretentious chefs on TV saying “just add a drizzle of truffle oil” – yeah, right. Where do I find that for pennies? Sourdough starter? Ha! Dry packets work fine.
