Healthy dinner ideas

“What’s for dinner?” If you’re often on the receiving end of this question, you know it’s a question that’s never fully answered.

Even if you have a plan for dinner today, someone is likely to ask the same question tomorrow, the day after that — and the day after that.

If you’re running out of dinner ideas, or if you’re simply looking for inspiration for healthy evening meals, then you’ve come to the right place.

We like to think all of our meals are healthy and delicious, so let’s focus on quick, easy, and inexpensive dinner ideas for a variety of tastes and preferences. You’re sure to find something to answer the age-old question: “Hey! What’s for dinner?”

What makes a dinner healthy?

While the word “healthy” may be difficult to universally define, we believe healthy meals begin with protein, vegetables, and beneficial fats. In general, avoiding ultra-processed and highly refined foods that are full of refined carbohydrates, makes a meal healthy.

Although the level of carbohydrate restriction we recommend varies by individual, eating a variety of meats, vegetables, dairy, and other sources of protein such as eggs are typically your best options.

People often cite one of the biggest obstacles to eating low carb or keto is preparing the food. There’s a common misconception that cooking meats and vegetables takes more time and is more expensive than eating a standard American diet.

That isn’t necessarily true once you get into the habit of cooking at home. You can also save money by avoiding dining out frequently. And most drive-thru window menus feature anything but healthy fare.

Let us show you how to create healthy, easy, and inexpensive low carb and keto dinners in a variety of efficient and delicious ways.

Cheap, easy, fast, healthy dinner ideas

When you plan for dinner, you often need a fast and easy solution, but you also want it to be healthy and delicious. If you’re making dinner low carb or keto, then you’re already on the path to making dinner healthy and delicious.

For healthy dinners in a hurry, we suggest adding casseroles, slow cooker or instant pot meals, hardy salads, filling soups, easy egg recipes, and versatile ground beef recipes to the menu.

All of these can be made quickly, are ideal for preparing in advance, and can incorporate leftovers that save you time and money.

Low carb and keto casseroles

Making large-batch foods like casseroles are ideal for easy and inexpensive meals, especially if you have freezer space and enjoy pulling meals from a freezer stash when you need it.

Use our freezer guide for more information, but in general casseroles without a lot of dairy like our spicy keto chicken casserole freeze really well. Enjoy a couple of servings now and a couple of servings later.

Depending on the recipe, you can often take food from the freezer to the microwave or stovetop to the table — without waiting for the items to thaw first.

Healthy egg recipes

The incredible edible egg provides a great source of nutrition and, as an added bonus, eggs are generally pretty inexpensive, especially if you raise your own chickens. Protein-packed eggs aren’t just for breakfast.

Enjoy dishes made with eggs that cook quickly. You can have them scrambled, fried, or boiled. Use them in an omelet with whatever fillings you have on hand, even leftovers!

Like a good casserole, a frittata can be made with a variety of ingredients and they typically freeze well. Make a large frittata or crustless quiche, and portion it out as you need it. Pop any leftovers in the freezer, and your future self will thank you.

Slow cooker and instant pot meals

Since larger cuts of meat like whole chickens or roasts are often less expensive, you can use these cuts to create healthy, affordable dinners.

Using an appliance such as an instant pot or slow cooker allows for passive cooking, so after you prepare the ingredients, you can leave the dish without constant supervision.

Toss in some vegetables and these meals can become one-pot wonders that create a tasty meal with leftovers for lunches or the freezer. Our creamy venison stew can also be made with beef or pork and makes a complete meal without a lot of hands-on cooking time.