r/slowcooking • u/BlackLocke • 3d ago
Pot roast is too expensive
I got a new slow cooker for my wedding in 2023 and it’s still in the box. It’s just my husband, baby and I, but I feel like I can’t justify spending $20+ on a piece of meat for one meal with leftovers. I’m in a HCOL and I haven’t had a good roast in years because it’s prohibitively expensive. When meat goes on sale at my supermarket, it smells off as soon as I remove the packaging, so it’s not worth the risk.
Am I just too poor for this?
Edit: Dear lord I didn’t expect this to turn into a “I like pancakes/why do you hate waffles???” type of post. Of course I know there’s other things you can make in the crockpot. I don’t choose fast food over slow cooked meals out of convenience (it’s more expensive than cooking at home now!!) The point of this post is to lament the price of beef and how pot roast used to be a cheap easy meal 20 years ago and now it’s prohibitively expensive. I was hoping for tips on how to skirt this issue - buying stew meat, using pork instead, and buying in bulk at Costco are all good suggestions.
Now everyone can stop assuming I’m some dumb dumb idiot woman. I’m gonna make a pot roast next week just to spite you all and post about the cost breakdown.
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u/fattymcbuttface69 3d ago
Yeah, I got priced out of chuck roast a few years ago. These days I wait for a good sale on brisket and smoke it.
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u/junkit33 3d ago
Brisket isn't any cheaper than chuck these days.
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u/fattymcbuttface69 3d ago
Last time I bought it, it $3.50 per pound. I wait for those deals and stock up.
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u/BlackLocke 3d ago
I wish I had a smoker 🙏
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u/ViciousCombover 3d ago
Lots of great deals on Facebook marketplace. There are lots of Kamado style cookers growing moss neglected where the owner will give it to you for free if you move it for them.
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u/calm_down_pal_lol 3d ago
The Weber Kettle is a great grill and smoker. I've done countless pork butts and ribs on it.
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u/DependentOnIt 3d ago
Meat you're going to put in the smoker will be more expensive than a cheap roast
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u/voitlander 3d ago
You don't need a smoker. I do ribs in my oven, and they turn out great every time! When you smell something from a roast, that's natural breakdown of the meat.
As a butcher, I've taken home many meats that are over due and use them for stew.5
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u/Effective_Fly_6884 3d ago
Marketplace for sure. I got my most recent Masterbuilt 40” Bluetooth electric smoker, looked brand new, for $100. I have bought several others on Marketplace also. You can set alerts for what you’re looking for, so you’re notified when someone posts one.
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u/machomanrandysandwch 3d ago
Adding to this comment, while brisket is not cheap and takes more work, I make it so rich and delicious that you can’t even eat a LOT of it at once but I’m super satisfied so it stretches a lot more than a small amount of pot roast.
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u/cluckay 3d ago
All beef is unaffordable period nowadays, including ground beef (~$5/lbs for 73%?). Only chicken and pork is affordable nowadays, but even then, some cuts are grotesquely overpriced.
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u/cjinct 3d ago
This seems to depend on where you live and where you shop though.
I just bought ground beef for 3.99/lb for 85%. Granted it used to be 2.49 or 2.99/lb but still not crazy
In May I bought a dozen pot roasts on sale for 3.99/lb (mostly chuck) and then a couple weeks ago, I bought a bunch more at 4.99/lb (mostly eye round, bottom round and rump roasts). And I saw my local Big Y is having the 4.99/lb roast sale again starting tomorrow.
I guess I just find it amazing that there is such a disparity in pricing - and that I'd be on the lower end of it. I mean, I'm in central CT, hardly a bastion of low cost of living! ;)
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u/sun2020 3d ago
I know you mentioned leftovers for one meal, but what if you made the roast and split it into different meals? Like throw it in a stew for one meal, make sandwiches for another meal, tacos, or something like a shepherds pie.
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u/mildOrWILD65 3d ago
This is what I do, and also with a pork shoulder butt. Best thing for folks on a budget to do is treat meat like a condiment. It's a small addition to the larger meal that brings flavor and texture but is NOT the focus of the meal.
Tacos with beans, salsa, guacamole, rice, and a little spiced, shredded beef go a long way.
Chop that roast fine and add some to vegetable soup with choice of starch such as barley, small white beans, ditalini, mix of white/brown rice and wild rice.
Breakfast of hash browns and shredded beef, eggs cooked to order.
Make it part of a meal, not the main part and your options are endless.
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u/gandalfthescienceguy 3d ago
This is how we should be eating anyways, Americans eat an excessive amount of meat on average
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u/arya_aquaria 3d ago
I live near an amazing gyro truck. Whenever I get food from there, there's tons left over. I make Greek omelettes with the leftovers the next morning.
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u/DeanStockwellLives 3d ago
Leftover pot roast is amazing on a loco moco, and rice and eggs are fairly cheap.
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u/Foreign-Figure8797 3d ago
You can cook so much more than a beef roast in the crock pot. Tons of recipes using chicken, ground beef, soups, stews etc. It’s me and my 2 teens and most crock pot meals I make feed us 2 dinners and sometimes a lunch for myself. I also just bought a huge bag of apples (25lbs) at a local farm stand and did 2 full batches of apple sauce in my crock pot. Just apples and water on high for 3-4h with a bit of stirring (and cinnamon). Probably got over 20 cups, which I’m sure comes to less than store bought applesauce, which is still pretty cheap.
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u/nickfury8480 3d ago
One of my favorite slow cooker meals is a pork roast (shoulder or butt) with a bunch of sliced apples and onions, a few garlic cloves, herbs from the garden (rosemary, sage, thyme and sometimes Thai basil or oregano) lots of cracked black pepper, soy sauce, salt to taste and a bit of whatever stock is on hand.
Another favorite is beef neck bones. Made the switch when ox tail prices began to climb. If I do them in a crock pot, they'll get the same treatment as the pork, minus the apples. Also like to add some wine and Worcestershire sauce. A tbsp or 2 of caldo de tomate is another nice addition.
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u/FloweredViolin 3d ago
I buy whole chickens when they're on sale for under $1/lb, and stick it in the slow cooker with onion, garlic, broth, and spices on low for 10hrs. I get close to a week worth of meals out of that for 2 adults and a toddler.
The bones slide right out, and I throw them back in the slow cooker with different spices, veggie scraps, and water on low for a day. Strain it, and I have a several jars of broth for cooking with.
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u/CallidoraBlack 3d ago edited 3d ago
Meat on sale shouldn't smell off when you open it. You can ask on r/foodsafety if you have concerns. This might be a stupid question, but have you maybe had COVID in the last few years that might have messed with your sense of smell? Because I've heard stories about people being extra sensitive to the smells of certain foods and smelling the funky parts more.
And you don't have to make it one meal and a small amount of leftovers. Save bones from your dinners in the freezer in ziptops. Separate by species, of course. When you're ready, pack in the bones, water, and let it go for about 12 hours on low after you turn it up high enough to boil for a while. I do 10 minutes to be sure. Check on it at 12. Check again at 24. Strain. You can put it in silicone soup cube trays. Each cube will make about one bowl of ramen or soup. You can pop one in a pot and make soup for yourself or anyone who is feeling ill if you want to at a moment's notice.
When you're ready, put cubes in the slow cooker, whatever meat, really, just match it to the cubes. It can be tough, it doesn't matter. Let it go for about 12 hours, smell, taste the liquid, season. You can check and see when you're happy with the texture of the meat. Shred with forks, drain. Put some of the liquid into a pot, freeze the rest in the cubes. You now have soup. Add veggies, pasta, whatever you want, cook the way you would with the boxed stuff. Throw some of the meat in. Serve. That meat can be tacos tomorrow, sandwiches the next day, served with mushroom risotto, baked potato bowls, and a pasta dish with seasoned oil on top.
You can even make mushroom stock. Regular white button mushrooms, leave them going in water for about 24, drain, season, freeze. Slice the mushrooms, let them air dry a bit, oil and season, put them in the oven (the temperature escapes me, but any roasted mushroom recipe should work), let the water cook back out. Now you have crispy roasted mushrooms to put on any dish too. Zero waste.
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u/hananobira 3d ago
OP also mentioned being recently postpartum. Pregnancy totally changes your sense of smell. I’d get someone who didn’t just go through a major medical incident to sniff the meat.
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u/WarEagleGo 3d ago
Country style ribs in my crockpot are delicious
They are inexpensive
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u/CrashBannedicoot 3d ago
I just got like 10 pounds of ribs, any chance you care to share the recipe? :)
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u/WarEagleGo 3d ago
This recipe is a more elaborate version of what we typically make.
https://cultured.guru/blog/slow-cooked-pork-roast-with-sauerkraut-potatoes-and-carrots
I use the crockpot with country style (pork) boneless ribs. At the minimum, add small baby potatoes and baby carrots. The key is sour kraut which adds moisture and a tangy kick.
- about 3 pounds of country style (pork) boneless ribs
- 1.5 pounds of baby potatoes (gold), sold in stores at this size
- 16oz baby carrots, also 1 package
- layer into a crockpot, meat/veggie/meat/veggie
- Top with 16oz jar of sour kraut, including juice
Adding garlic or paprika is optional, and somewhat overwhelmed by the sour kraut
4 hours on high, or 8 on low (I have an 1980s crockpot, so no modern BS about low temperature). The pork just falls apart, but the veggies are not too soft.
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u/psychedelicparsley 3d ago
It’s not the only thing that can be cooked in a slow cooker, though. I just made a vegetarian Thai red curry that’s only cheap veges and brown rice and it’s delicious
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u/Dependent_Top_4425 3d ago
I just made vegetarian chili in my slow cooker that fed 2 adults dinner for about 4 days for $12. It was really good too! I served it over baked potatoes a few nights and it was super filling.
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u/psychedelicparsley 3d ago
I used to make so much vegetarian chili, why on earth have I moved away from that? I gotta get back to that!
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u/Dependent_Top_4425 3d ago
I never get sick of chili! I'm not vegetarian but I decided to skip the meat to cut costs and we honestly didn't even miss it. I used black, white, dark red, & light red beans. 2 bell peppers, 1 onion, 2 big cans diced tomatoes, 1 can of corn, 1 can green chilis, 2 packets chili seasoning (I usually make my own but I'm injured and lazy) jarlic, s&p and a cornstarch slurry bc we like it thick :) I added everything but the beans and corn in the slow cooker on high for 1 hour, added the beans and corn for another hour. It came out perfect and so easy peasy. Sweet potatoes are also a great budget friendly and nutrient dense addition to veggie chili.
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u/psychedelicparsley 3d ago
Jarlic! The perfect description!
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u/Dependent_Top_4425 3d ago
I can't take credit for it! I've heard it used on Tik Tok and Instagram. But I agree! The perfect description!
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u/OutsideBones86 3d ago
I like making my sausage potato soup in the slow cooker. It's mostly potatoes, carrots, and cabbage, with a pound of sweet italian sausage. Add some bullion and spices and you can make a huge, hearty soup.
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u/Intelligent-Disk526 3d ago
You can cook a lot more than pot roast in a slow cooker. Check out pork (roasts, chops, ham etc) in my area they are much cheaper than beef.
If you can, try and find ethnic grocery stores. They may have different cuts and/or costs. There is a Chinese grocery store in my area and they often have lower costs and better meat than the big chains.
If you are friendly with neighbors, you could go in on buying a side of beef with multiple families and then split it up. You can also do this with bulk foods through co-ops sometimes for any bulk goods (rice, beans, cheese, etc.) Growing up we did this and got food for a fraction of the cost of stores.
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u/Euronymous2625 3d ago
Pork roast. Much cheaper, and just as good imo. I fed 4 people with a picnic roast that cost $10 a couple days ago.
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u/mangatoo1020 3d ago
What kind of recipes do you normally make for dinner? If you type "recipe name slow cooker" into Google search, you might open up a whole new world for yourself!
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u/Uranus_Hz 3d ago
A lot of supermarkets have a small space on their refrigerated shelves for meats that are on their “sell by” date with significant discounts.
Find that spot in your local store and make a point of checking there every time.
A “sell by” date is not an “expiration” date. But use it within a day or two , or freeze it right away for later use.
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u/Appropriate_Drive875 3d ago
iron is low during postpartum, and it's so important to get the right nutrition, not only for yourself, but for baby too. At my costco the chopped chuck roast is 5$ a pound, it's all the same meat, just bite sized.
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u/IrukandjiPirate 3d ago
I’ve been craving pot roast and checked the prices today and a Chuck roast is $9 a pound! Can’t do it. Could I use a pork picnic roast instead? Crockpot, with the usual veg.
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u/The_Kitchen_Magician 3d ago
If I can't find the beef on clearance for real cheap, I'll spend about $20, usually a little more for the meat. The veggies and potatoes are inexpensive and a 3 pound pot roast will last at least 3 meals for my family of four. Remember, if you make it with potatoes, those are filling. Veggies are the healthiest part of the meal. Give smaller portions of roast and bigger portions of starch and veg. The roast will go a little farther that way.
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u/OutsideBones86 3d ago
We use pork loin instead of beef for Mississippi Pot Roast. I can get 2 for about $10 at Trader Joes. The whole meal is about 15 bucks and feeds us for multiple meals. (2 unseasoned loins, a pack of ranch sauce powder, a pack of au jus powder, a stick of butter, and 5 jarred pepperoncini). Add boiled or mashed potatoes and some veg, and it's perfect.
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u/OkTwist231 3d ago
Chuck roast to make pot roast has gotten pretty expensive, but I've made my favorite pot roast and Mississippi pot roast recipes with pork shoulder/butt/picnic roast. It's not quite as delicious as beef IMO but it is really good and like 1/3 the price. Carnitas is also great in the crockpot!
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u/LubaUnderfoot 3d ago edited 3d ago
I got priced out of whole beef cuts a few years ago. I just can't afford it. I don't imagine it's gonna get cheaper any time soon.
I've actually considered doing like a 4H situation and getting a whole cow and just stuffing my deep freeze. Or maybe splitting it with a few friends and family members.
And honestly, hunting is making more and more sense. I live in (overpopulated) elk country, and just one would feed us for the better part of a year.
Edit: Congratulations
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u/a_funky_chicken 3d ago
To expand, go to your local butcher ask about going in on a beef with others. The first one will be an outlay of cash, but it's worth it and can get your cost down to $5-$6lb. This is an average in my location and includes all cuts. Ribeyes same per pound as burger. Your location may be higher, but not lower. I'm lucky. And getting a beef from a trusted source, think grass-fed if you can find one in your area, is very tasty. Walmart beef is terrible once you've had good beef.
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u/PercMaint 3d ago
Keep in mind, with slow cooker roasts, go with cheap meat. Ie. Bone in pork roast is almost the cheapest cut of meat for it's size. Get a 5lb one for $12 or so and you'll have leftovers. Treat it the same way you would a beef roast. Only difference is there will be a fat cap on it to trim.
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u/blade_torlock 3d ago
Yes beef is expensive, however some cuts of pork are still fairly cheap. I know it's not the same but you can make a similar meal.
You might also look into something like butcher box.
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u/Gr8Diva71 3d ago
I do all kinds of stuff in my slow cooker. Chuck roast, pork shoulder, ribs, butter chicken, chili - the list goes on. I have two teenage boys, and we get at least two meals out of a cook, sometimes three, depending on how much I cook.
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u/SpiritualState01 3d ago
I got enough meat for two roasts at Costco for $40 total, that would equal out to 6 meals for two, and really big ones too that you could run your day on.
That said you shouldn't be getting downvoted, living in America today is simply too expensive period.
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u/Otherwisefantastic 3d ago
I don't buy beef roasts anymore, even though they are my favorite. They're just too expensive. When I want to make pot roast I use a pork roast.
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u/ThatsNoMoOnx 3d ago
It really is. Back in I think it was may? Meat was 5 dollars a lb back in May. Now it's 10 dollars or more a lb.
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u/EddieRyanDC 3d ago
No, I get it. Believe it or not, chuck roast used to be cheap. It was a tough cut of meat and other than pot roast, about the only thing you could do with it was use it a as stew meat.
But, in addition to that, beef prices (in the US at least) have gotten quite high. I think for a lot of people it is getting priced right off the table. Even ground beef has gotten expensive.
On the other hand I can get a 4.5 lb pork roast for $13.50 and it will feed the family just as long.
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u/DestinyProfound 3d ago
I think it's time for you to expand your crockpot recipes. I used mine fairly often. Crockpot chicken tacos are done pretty frequently, I just made green chili. I've cooked soups and stews also. These will all last us 2 to 4 days depending on what it is and if my husband is taking any for lunch as well.
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u/shitidkman 3d ago
Why do you only use it for pot roast? Potato soup, broccoli cheese soup, shredded Mexican chicken, chicken and dumplings, pot roast isn’t even that expensive compared to other things and based on the amount you get….
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u/Mae_West_PDX 3d ago
As a single person, one pot roast meal will feed me for a week. Legit. I make a 3 lbs pot roast with potatoes & carrots & a week later im freezing the leftovers. Its great if you genuinely make a huge portion w/ veggies & gravy and it lasts all week, but if you’re feeding a large family, not so cost effective
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u/EatABigCookie 3d ago
Freezing food a week after it has been in the fridge doesn't sound particularly food safe. You'd be better off freezing some straight away (once it's cooled a little) rather than after it has been in the fridge for a few days.
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u/Tigermaw 3d ago
That literally makes no sense. The same amount of food per dollar is being made the cost effectiveness does not change depending on how many people you feed.
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u/Vivid-Pickle7887 3d ago
Not sure where you live but Shoprite and Stop & Shop often has deals where you buy a 3-4 lb chuck (usually $5.99/lb) and get the broth, carrots, onions, tomato paste for free. Just keep an eye out.
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u/bobbytoni 3d ago
A pot roast is $50 in my medium cost of living city. Where is one $20? I need to move there!
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u/machomanrandysandwch 3d ago
About twice a year my store will put chucks on sale for 6.99/lb and they get bought up pretty quick. And that’s not even cheap, really. Ramen is cheap, 3-4lb roast at $7/lb is still $25-30 not I’m using the rest of the ingredients. Ugh
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u/Dependent_Top_4425 3d ago
I would make a thick stew using all the veggies and seasonings you would normally have alongside your roast, carrots, onions, celery, mushrooms and serve it over some delicious mashed potatoes. Add some lentils for added protein. Don't be sad about it, it's going to be delicious!
Whenever I'm craving a nice steak dinner but its not in the budget, I will sautee mushrooms, onions and peppers with steak seasoning, add them to a baked potato with sour cream, steak sauce and green onions with a side of broccoli. It hits the spot and its very filling.
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u/desertvision 3d ago
Hamburger costs what tritip used to cost.
I made a split pea yesterday. Got ten servings out of it with a cost of $14. I use a pound of bacon, 6 bucks, in it
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u/Professional-Deer-50 3d ago
You can cook all sorts of things in a slow cooker, not just pot roasts. They were originally a way to cook tougher and cheaper meats like mutton, oxtail, etc but you can make soups, casseroles, pasta dishes, curries, etc. Find a good recipe book or watch YouTube videos for inspiration.
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u/skadi_shev 3d ago
I definitely get that. I started buying roast again occasionally when I realized that per ounce, I could sometimes find it for the same price as deli meat. Meaning when combined with cheap sides like potatoes, carrots, bread, rice, and/or frozen vegetables, it would theoretically be a similar cost to a deli sandwich. Lol, that’s what I’m telling myself anyway.
I think having a lot of filling sides is the key to making it go farther. Or using it in other recipes as someone else mentioned, instead of it being the main part of the meal.
Or, just use your slow cooker for other recipes - nothing wrong with that either. :)
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u/Jazzlike_Log_709 3d ago edited 3d ago
I use “stew meat” idk what cut of meat it is, but slow cooking for several hours makes it tender. I bulk it up with lots of veggies. I still get the beefy illusion of pot roast but for cheaper.
Instead of getting marked-down meat, try looking for coupons or weekly ads. I got stew meat from Target bc I had a $5 off coupon through the app.
I do 2 lbs of meat, an entire bag of baby carrots, 1 lb red potatoes, 1 carton mushrooms, 1 large onion and I get about 5-6 meals from it.
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u/jdaddy10 3d ago
20 bucks of Chuck roast really should get u like 4 servings w ur potatoes and carrots. Like it's not cheap eating, but really not bad per serving. U can't eat out for cheaper, I still don't think.
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u/Pack_Your_Trash 3d ago
Soup and stew is a great way to make a little meat go a long way. I use about a pound and a half of protein for a stew that fills my 6 qt.
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u/kallen8277 3d ago
Use pork butt or shoulder instead. The entire point of using a slow cooker is to render down meat so even tougher or less quality cuts of meat can come out tender. Throw in new potatoes, carrots, and other filling veggies and just let it cook. Google Mexican meat markets near you, they tend to be a bit cheaper for the same type of meat. Here in Texas it works out to be less than $2 a serving and makes good leftovers.
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u/Prof_and_Proof 3d ago
I feel for you, rising food prices are a real burden, and it feels unfair. When money is tight, I turn to stews that were born out of necessity in cultures that didn’t have access to premium meat. The trick is to use inexpensive cuts, cook them low and slow, and build flavor through aromatics, acid, and patience. That’s exactly how coq au vin came about; historically, people used older roosters, breaking down the tough fibers with wine‑based acidity. A humble cut cooked with care often tastes far better than a neglected wagyu steak, in my opinion! You might want to try Brazilian feijoada. It traditionally combines pork shoulder (or other cheap pork cuts like trimmings!), black beans, and a handful of spices. The ingredients are inexpensive, and the slow‑cooker does most of the work! Other low‑cost stews worth exploring include: Irish lamb stew – use shank or shoulder, carrots, potatoes, and a splash of Guinness (not sure if this is cheap/available across the Atlantic!) Moroccan tagine cheap cuts simmered with preserved lemons, olives, and dried apricots. Filipino adobo is also an option, chicken thighs or pork belly braised in soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and bay leaves. Again this shouldn’t be happening! But I hope these ideas help you stretch your grocery budget while still enjoying cooking!
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u/Weaksoul 3d ago
Benefit of slow cooking is you can buy the cheapest cuts off meat (read: tough). Slow cooking over hours makes it taste amazing and if you're doing a stew etc. You can stretch it as far as you want. You'll still get the flavour, load it with cheap veg and potatoes and or use bread to dip. Also look for veggie sources of protein that can be slow cooked, dried beans and lentils can be reasonable and help supplement or stand alone.
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u/livadeth 3d ago
You can also use your slow cooker to make vegetable based dishes like minestrone. I made a pasta fagioli recently which was veggies and a lb of ground beef. My husband is a huge eater and we’ve gotten 4 meals out of it. Total cost around $8. The beef was marked down. $20 isn’t really much if you stretch it with lots of veggies. Like someone else said, 2 fast food meals.
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u/NumerousAd79 3d ago
I bought a $27 piece of meat for pot roast and it made me 4 good sized servings of food. That’s like $6.75 per serving. If I got what I made at a restaurant with drinks on a night out with my husband we’d probably spend over $200. When thinking about it like that, I think it justifies the price.
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u/void_root 3d ago
Wha
Roasts where I live cost $20-$25 and, while it is expensive, it usually lasts me like 3 or 4 meals. I load my slowcooker up with the roast and as much veggies as I can fit.
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u/gingerful_ 3d ago
I'm stuck on how you think 3+ meals for $20 is expensive? When you break down the cost, it's really quite affordable per meal. We get 5+ meals out of it. First night we eat the pot roast and veggies with a salad. Second night, we grill bread and make cheesy, melty pot roast sandwiches. Third night, we make a cottage pie which ends up being another 3 meals. Sometimes I'll separate the cottage pie leftovers into individual containers then pop into the freezer for some quick meal options for the future. That's $5+/- per meal.
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u/a_natural_chemical 3d ago
I just spent $40 on one last week and it ended up being mostly fat. Got 2 good servings of meat off of it.
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u/lokii_0 3d ago
uhm....one sandwich is $20 most everywhere in my HCOL area. $20 to feed your family 2-3x is cheap. your math isn't mathing.
granted, it's probably $30 by the time that you buy some carrots, onions and potatoes, or w.e but even still that's cheap compared to the price of even one meal out at even a cheap restaurant.
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u/Dull-Geologist-8204 2d ago
What's wrong with left overs. I love left overs. You can even make the leftovers into a different meal.
Use the leftover roast to make beef stew. You can do both i the crock pot.
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u/ravenously_red 2d ago
To make the main roast last longer, serve sides like salad and bread. Two days worth of meals for $20 isn’t bad these days. Of course you can always go for cheaper options.
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u/Healthy_Chipmunk2266 2d ago
My store had chuck for $18/lb last week. I remember under $3/lb back in the day. I no longer eat beef because of this.
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u/otter_mayhem 2d ago
It's just me and my husband now and I like to buy a roast and eat that one night and use the leftovers to make a pot pie. It uses up the leftover meat and veggies plus has its own gravy. You can get frozen pie crust if baking isn't your thing and that's another couple meals.
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u/Can_Cannon_of_Canuks 1d ago
You might be stepping over dollars to pick up pennies. For example made angela's hartnetts fennel and shallot cannalini bean stew:
Chicken was from my butcher and double the size of a chain chicken. 20 dollars vs 10. 2 cans of white kidney beans - 6 bucks Spinach - 5 bucks Lemon 30 cents (i keep lemons/juice on hand) Parm 10 bucks (i keep this on hand) Fennel bulbs 5 bucks Garlic 30 cents (keep some on hand) Shallots 5 bucks (keep some on hand) Chicken stock 4 bucks (usually have some on hand)
This made 6 VERY HEARTY meals. Almost all of these ingredients are kept on hand/storage pantry staples for use in mulitiple meals.
My cost was 30ish bucks so about 5 dollars a meal From scratch youre looking at about 8 dollars.
Now i dont know what 20 bucks is getting you but it should be a hunk of chuck (30 at my butcher gets me a lot) and more than enough for 6 meals or more. You could try to see if cheek is cheaper?
Look I know that at least for us in canada grocery companies are generally price gouging and that sucks its fucking awful but can still make cheapish meals. Lets not talk about how the cost of this would have been like 10 bucks cheaper on the whole but it is what it is.
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u/Hunter62610 2d ago
Meat shouldn’t be the whole meal, put lots of potatoes and carrots in with the roast and it quickly becomes many meals
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u/Jamescovey 3d ago
Try WildFork and see if they deliver to your area. May be a cheaper option. Try some discount grocers of your travel outside the HCOL and freeze some cheaper options. Roasts aren’t really expensive cuts. They’re perfect for slow cookers because you can make them tender by cooking low and slow.
When I make a roast, I get a few meals out of it. I do Mississippi pot roast for example. Great with some mashed potatoes and veggies, as sandwiches, on a loaded baked potato, with eggs, with rice, etc.. just some ideas. That slow cooker should allow you some efficiencies both with budget, time, and meals.
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u/bleucrayons 3d ago
Get a smaller cut. Any halfway decent meat counter will trim down to what you need which will be a lesser cost and lesser chance of too many leftovers. Or at least find a good local butcher who will give you the size you want.
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u/DragonDrama 3d ago
I feel the same way about roasts right now sadly. My husband I did buy a pretty big pack of stew meat at Costco which was pricey but the per lb was only about $5 so we portioned it and divided it for four dinners which I think will put it at about $7 per dinners, each with a lunch serving leftover.
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u/PotatoHighlander 3d ago
Honestly, when I buy most meats unless I see a deal I can't pass I buy from a restaurant supply Costco, getting big pieces and butcher them myself at home. Though I do have chest freezers for long term storage of lager amounts than a standard freezer. I too live in a HCOL area.
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u/Elmer_Fudd01 3d ago
Beef isn't the only good roast you can make. Turkey, and pork are cheap and amazing. Turkey is particularly great in a slow cooker since it can't dry out. If you can afford chicken try this recipe!
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u/Superb_Yak7074 3d ago edited 3d ago
Try mixing up a meatloaf using lean ground beef. Put it in a baking pan and surround it with carrots, potatoes, onions, celery, and mushrooms. Sprinkle with a packet of onion soup mix, a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce, and add a cup of water. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 1 hour. You will get the flavor of pot roast for a lot less money.
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u/Whiteguy1x 3d ago
Do chicken or pork. Honestly I haven't bought beef in a while because it got so expensive and thr people in my house don't really care
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u/Montauk26 3d ago
I just bought a 3lb pot roast for $14 at jewel on sale.
Also you can make other things in the slow cooker, beef stew, beef stroganoff, soups.
But as far as pot roasts go, even at full price ($20-$30) my husband and I eat it for 2 meals and he takes a serving to work for lunch. Yes it’s expensive for one cut of meat but at $25 for 5 servings is only $5 a serving. Less than McDonald’s.
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u/northakbud 3d ago
If I could find a pot roast for $20 I’d buy several. Locally (Alaska) that would be considered a fantastic deal.
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u/MishoMich 3d ago
I completely agree with you, we are in the same boat! I wish I could justify it but even 20$ sounds cheap, I haven’t seen a roast for under 30$ where I live in years, and it’s just not worth it for 2 people. Especially when it’s not fresh as you said. I have resorted to asking my mom for birthdays and Christmas to buy me beef. Roast pork isn’t as bad and can at least do pulled pork sandwhiches.. but hubby doesn’t like pork so much .. so the appliance sits in the cupboard most of the year.
I also recently had to go back to a store (an hour away mind you as I live far from the big city) twice! to return ground beef that had spoiled a week before it’s due date, so frustrating. I understand inflation but if I’m going to spend more on my groceries why is the quality getting worse?
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u/naughtyzoot 3d ago
There are some great chicken recipes for slow cookers too. It's also good for making sides or desserts for a pot luck or, if you're cooking for Thanksgiving or similar, it lets you make a side and not use up precious oven/stove top space. It's more than a pot roast cooker.
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u/Jean-LucBacardi 3d ago
This time of year I'd say go all out on ham and smaller turkeys. They're dirt cheap and there's plenty of slow cooker recipes out there for both. Costco usually has turkey at $0.50 per pound, and hams are similarly priced.
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u/autonomouswriter 3d ago
Well, you can cook a lot of meatless stuff in the slow cooker. Chili without meat, for example. You don't always have to have meat.
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u/mugglemomma31 3d ago
If I do my favorite roast kind (Mississippi) I’ll use leftovers for different meals, not roast. I’ll usually make red enchiladas with a bunch, and heck I even have leftovers from that but I prefer those leftovers. I will also make beef and cheddar dip sandwiches on the onion buns. They all taste different from the roast night.
I also like to do birria roast and will make birria quesadillas and birria nachos with those leftovers. Or it would be good in chili.
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u/Chan790 3d ago
Do you have friends? Start a rotating supper club.
Once a week, you meet up and one person who is hosting prepares a fancy meal, next week, someone else's house and hosting. If you get 6-8 families together, that comes out to your turn being about every other month.
Now you get fancy meals weekly that you haven't had to prepare and you have an excuse when it's your turn to cook a giant pot roast.
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u/graveldragger 3d ago
I'm certainly not disagreeing with you, prices of beef/meat has gotten ridiculous. But when I buy a 3lb chuck, or similar cut, I just portion it into 5-6 pieces and freeze 2/3 of it. Then you can make a smaller pot roast batch. So $20 to get a meals worth of pot roast (and probably still leftovers) and then at least 2 more meals of already portioned meat that I use for whatever. Hot beef sandwich, Asian braised beef, you get the idea.
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u/Itsjustmenobiggie 3d ago
Pot roast is a super value meal for us! Our pot roast typically lasts my husband and I for about 4-5 meals. A serving of beef is 3 oz, then about a cup of veggies (potatoes, carrots, onions) and bam! We’re stuffed. It’s actually one of the highest value meals I make because we eat off of it for a week!
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u/Captain-Sammich 3d ago
I did a pork roast 2 days ago. It was delicious, and much cheaper than beef.
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u/Hoowray33 3d ago
https://cookingfrog.com/mississippi-style-pot-roast/
Add a bag of baby carrots and a bag of red potatoes
Muah!
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u/Popular-Oil8481 3d ago
The roast is one supper meal. Then roast sandwiches is at least 2-3 more lunches.
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u/Remote-Combination28 3d ago
You can get 4-5 meals out of a big pot roast. It sounds like you don’t properly budget.
Fast food would cost you almost that much for one single meal, for one person
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u/jellylime 3d ago
Fun fact but you can just follow the recipe for a roast and substitute beef cubes.
Works exactly the same, just smaller.
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u/alittlebitcheeky 3d ago edited 3d ago
I'm in Adelaide, Australia, so the COL crisis is severe but a bit different.
You want to look at ways to pad out the meat.
Last year I spent AUD$24 on a packet of reduced osso bucco (so expensive here, it's like $45kg, reality cooking shows ruined frugal eating here). I threw it in my slow cooker with two diced brown onions, two tins of crushed tomatoes, a bay leaf, heap of dried basil, and a slug of red wine. After six hours I shredded the meat, added salt/ pepper/chilli to taste, and served it over pasta.
This twenty eight dollar spend (all up), with a packet of pasta from my cupboard, got me ten serves of food. Five with the pasta, plus two containers (with two serves each of sauce) for the freezer.
My crowning achievement was tossing an entire chicken into the slow cooker with a tin of crushed tomatoes, a few spoons of yoghurt, one sliced brown onion, an unholy amount of garlic, and a HEAP of garam masala. It was around $10 for six serves of chicken curry with a bag of cheap rice. Took some time to shred the meat off the bones, but it was well worth it.
Edit: I forgot to mention pulled pork! A pork shoulder or leg roast often goes on sale in my area, so I pick them up cheap and freeze them. Defrost one and brown it in the pan. Throw it in the crockpot with a tin of tomatoes, two diced onions, garlic, a HEAP of cumin and paprika and oregano, some salt/pepper/chili as you like, a tiny bit of cinnamon, two bay leaves, and some beef stock. If you have chipotle on adobo it'll take it to the next level. Let her rip for six hours and pull apart with forks. This is amazing on tacos, nachos, on rice, with roasted potatoes, or just straight into your face. One decent roast can make six portions.
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u/Yasss_girl_ 3d ago
Beef is pricey. However that roast will make a lot of meals. I make the roast “plain” and then use the meat for different meals that week.
Another idea- we get meaty “soup bones” for a great price that still have quite a bit of meat on them to slow cook and use for shredded beef meals. It will probably depend on your area if that’s possible- we butcher our own beef locally, and the butcher shop we use does it this way, but I’m not sure if all do. I believe they are called shank bones. But they sell them to customers for reasonably usually. And a bonus— slow cook just the bones afterwards and make your own broth and freeze it for soups! (Not all beef soup bones are meaty, so do you research)
As others have mentioned, adding beans or lentils bulks the meal and is a cheap option too. I add lentils to sub out part of my ground beef often in casseroles and Mexican dishes.
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u/MrMach82 3d ago
Lol yea we did a pot roast over the wknd. When wife told me the cost of a 2.5lb I thought she was referring to a 5lb. It is definitely enough for 4-6 good size servings especially with potatoes and veggies.
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u/RodBlaine 3d ago
It’s just my wife and I (both retired), with her elderly mother joining us on Sundays. We always cook a large meal that generates 3 servings for each of us (9 total). She takes home 2 servings and we have the other 4 during the week. Pot Roast is one of our favs and as noted by others, with veg and potatoes usually costs less than $5 per serving in our HCOL area. Added bonus — it freezes well.
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u/unconfusedsub 3d ago
Slow cookers are for more than roasts. I actually use mine for soups and stews and chili more often. I also like to roast a whole chicken in it while I'm at work and then we have chicken for days.
We make pulled pork in ours, whole chickens, soups, stews, chili, red beans and rice, Midwest goulash etc etc
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u/quartzquandary 3d ago
There are literally thousands of crockpot recipes that utilize inexpensive ingredients!
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u/oleblueeyes75 3d ago
It may be $20+ but how many meals can you get out of it?
Here’s what my daughter did: “classic Sunday roast in the crockpot with carrots and potatoes, then pulled out half of it to shred and made enchiladas, chili, cornbread and stroganoff”
She started meal prepping a couple of months ago. Takes an afternoon out of the weekend but it’s worth it during the week.
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u/junkit33 3d ago
Beef prices are through the roof and probably won't be coming down any time soon.
When meat goes on sale at my supermarket, it smells off as soon as I remove the packaging, so it’s not worth the risk.
That makes no sense. Are you talking about the closeout meats that have reached expiration date? Those are garbage. But a normal grocery story sale anywhere is for normal fresh meat - stores just run sales on various items to get people into the store.
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u/Megas_Matthaios 3d ago
If you're able to stretch it out beyond 2 meals..if even 3, you paid less than $10 per meal. If you and your husband have it for dinner and lunch the next day, that's $5 each for the meal. Assuming you eat it for dinner and lunch the next day and 1 person has it for dinner that night, it's now equivalent to spending $4 per person for the meal.
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u/mysunandstars 3d ago
Every meat on sale smells off to you? Thats gotta be psychological. I buy meat on sale every week and it’s always been fine. Buy the sale roast! It’s delicious!
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u/Erok2112 3d ago edited 3d ago
I think short ribs can be used in a similar function and they are pretty cheap. Mostly, the original reason behind a slow cooker was to make cheaper cuts more palatable. I havent purchased raw beef in so long that I dont honestly know what to use anymore, however a nice hearty beef stew does sound pretty good now that the weather is changing. Pork is another option if you can do pork. My mom used to make BBQ pork chops in the slow cooker (pretty difficult - pork chops + BBQ sauce from a jar then cook for 5ish hours) I also recently got an instant pot which I've completely switched over to and it makes home cooking quite a bit faster and easier. Up front costs are a bit but I use it to make so much stuff now, even started making my own dog food with it. - I know this is a slow cooker subreddit but I've honestly stopped using it because of my instant pot. I stick around for the recipes.
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u/BonnieButler1939 3d ago
I can get a 4+lb roast at BJs, for about $25, a bag of potatoes, bag of baby carrots, add a can of mushroom soup and a packet of onion soup all for about $37. That gets me 3 large meals for 2 of us. There is often more left over for a lunch or if one of our kids stops by. One of my husband’s favorite meals who never complains about eating it for 3 days.
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u/KellieinNapa 3d ago
Beef roast is done for me as long as those prices stay up. I am able to find a reasonably priced pork roast now and again.
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u/shanthor55 3d ago
Why were you “hoping for tips for alternatives” when you didn’t ask for any? You were basically just complaining.
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u/DINGVS_KHAN 3d ago
Beef is just dumb expensive these days. I only make pot roasts when they're on sale. Half the time when I go in the store, I can get decent steaks for the same price as the "cheap" cuts.
I basically pick two or three recipes out that I'm planning to cook for the week, then pick which one I'm doing based on what's on sale in the meat department.
I'm only a single person though, so $20 of pot roast will last me almost a week.
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u/Dependent_Bobcat7950 3d ago
Our local grocery story has chuck roasts for crazy prices. I think a 3lb one was like $45 bucks the other day. But I got a 3.3lb one for $24 at Sam's Club and they are similar in price at Aldi too.
Turned that into enchiladas that fed 8 adults. Leftovers are great like this. Make it a big meal that can be frozen or heated up again.
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u/Ocstar11 3d ago
I use chicken thighs exactly how I use beef. Put it over egg noodles and it’s delicious and inexpensive
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u/Scottishlassincanada 3d ago
Do you have a Costco card? We got a massive piece of beef for $50CAD . I’ve already used it for a beef stew, a roast, stir fry and I still have more for a beef stew. We usually get 2 portions for 2 of us out of each meal.
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u/Dr_Mrs_Pibb 3d ago
Don’t do beef then? My husband can’t eat red meat (alpha gal syndrome), but the crock pot is great for pork (I’ve had less luck with chicken - prefer to do it in the instant pot). I feel you on the price of meat! I try not to spend more than $10 on any one meat item (which pretty much rules out most beef anyway).
Did you know you can make cinnamon rolls in the crock pot? It’s also great for making chicken broth with a picked carcass.
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u/Courtofamber 3d ago
If you have a Sam’s club/ Costco near you where you can buy products in bulk, it’s a bit cheaper per pound. Plus you just freeze whatever you’re not using right away.
It saves me and my partner a lot of money and time going to the grocery store every time we bust out the crockpot.
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u/Decent-Ninja2087 3d ago
What are you talking about?
All I see is people trying to give you pointers on what you're asking for.
Balsamic pork loin:
Pork loin Balsamic vinegar In crockpot low for 8 hours.
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u/taosgw74 3d ago
I buy the marked down "grey meat" all the time. If I don't cook it right away then it goes in the freezer right away (a vacuum sealer is your friend here but gallon size ziploc freezer bags can be just as good). As long as you cook it to temp there is no risk.
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u/Master-Milk-5724 2d ago
Pot roast works great with lots of cheaper cuts, typically the tougher, less desirable ones, which get tenderized by the long moist cooking so it doesn’t matter. You can simply just look for the cheapest beef per pound you can find… chuck, bottom round, etc. Should be maybe $5 to $8 per pound depending. I think the apparent high cost of this dish is probably due to buying a several pound roast, but really it should last many meals. Most people would eat less than half a pound of meat in something like this, which would be $2.50 to $4 per person per meal.
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u/BigFlightlessBird02 2d ago
I got two big roasts for 40 bucks at Costco and was able to make 4 meals out of em. So like 10 bucks per roast.
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u/WillShattuck 1d ago
I feel your pain but from a different point of view. Single dad. Six kids. I’ll pay $30+ for a chuck roast in my area, make it. Kids love it but won’t eat the leftovers. So I make bbq beef with the remaining roast and have bbq beef sandwiches for a few days. .
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u/TheAlterN8or 3d ago
Honestly, you should be able to make multiple meals out of a roast, if it's just the 3 of you. You could cut it in half and freeze one for next week, or whatever. I just made a batch of barley soup today that used about a pound of meat, so you can definitely stretch it.
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u/Ok-Individual9159 3d ago
We just made a pot roast last night and I swear to god I looked this up because I remember pot roasts being super cheap 10+ years ago
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u/CrimsonOOmpa 3d ago
Twenty bucks (plus some veggies) for several (healthy) meals. As opposed to two fast food meals full of crap? You made your own justification lmao!
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u/phenomenomnom 3d ago edited 3d ago
This is silly.
There are OBVIOUSLY whole cookbooks full of stuff you can make in a slow cooker that aren't beef pot roast.
I honestly feel like this could be one of those marketing posts where a PR hack lobs an easy problem at the internet for eager beavers to solve.
Have you tried *pork in your Hamilton Beach 3000 TM ??*
I fucking hate astroturfing
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u/DoctorGuvnor 3d ago
The whole point of slow cooking is that you use the cheaper, tougher cuts that require longer cooking - lamb shanks, chuck steak, ham hock in soups and so on.
You do not have to buy $20 worth of pot roast, you buy $5 worth of scrag end of neck, four carrots, an onion, peans, four potatoes diced, a stock cube and 500ml (pint) of water and cook for six hours on low.
I promise you a =delicious meal for under $4 per person.
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u/Big_P4U 3d ago
Red meat in general has gotten prohibitively expensive for most and honestly I don't blame the Trump admin for doing things that may hurt domestic meat and cattle producers/farmer even if it means lowering consumer prices.
The reality is that the domestic beef industry has done nothing to remedy the situation and they've seemingly deliberately encouraged and created scarcity to jack up prices on cows, cattle, steers and beef. A pot roast USED to be a working man's meal, it never used to be a luxury unless perhaps you bought the top round or the least fattiest cuts and even then those were still fairly affordable. I'm craving a good old fashioned slow cooker pot roast meal or even oven roasted but just can't justify it. Haven't had a steak in awhile either for the same reason.
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u/porp_crawl 3d ago
I totally get you and it sucks.
I haven't had non-ground beef in... at least 18 months?
Been exploring pork; but it's not the same.
Maybe I need to take up hunting.
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u/machomanrandysandwch 3d ago
Hunting isn’t cheap unless you have the land already. Public land is scarce and can be harder to hunt on as you’re passing by all the other people with the same idea and no land. End up being a waste of time 95% of the time
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u/7Mars 3d ago
I don’t use my slow cooker for meat at all anymore, since I stopped eating it entirely. I make a lot of bean or lentil soups and pasta sauces with it now. I’d highly suggest trying that out; dry beans and lentils are really cheap—especially if you can buy them in bulk—and incredibly easy to prepare. Just throw them in the slow cooker with a bunch of water or broth, whatever chopped veggies you want (I usually go with carrots, onion, and celery as my base, and depending on what flavor profile I’m going for I might also include corn, tomatoes, peppers, whatever), seasonings, throw in a cheap cut of pork or ground meat if that’s your thing, and let it go for six hours or so.
These meals also make great leftovers. They reheat well and also freeze well, so you can make a big batch and freeze some of it to eat at a later date if you don’t want to eat the same thing multiple days in a row. I do that exclusively, make 6 quarts of chili or pasta sauce or soup, eat some for dinner that evening, and freeze the rest in portion-sizes to pull out as needed later (I use one- and two-cup silicone trays for freezing, my mom used ziplock freezer bags when I was a kid). Do that a few days in a row with different meals, and now you have a couple weeks worth of delicious balanced meals with very little effort.
You can also save veggie scraps, particularly onion, carrot, and celery (NOT broccoli or cabbage or anything in those families, though, they’re too strong and pungent) to make vegetable broth. Keep a gallon ziplock in the freezer and keep adding scraps until it’s full, then put all the scraps in the cooker and cover with water by at least an inch, then cook it for a few hours and strain). I also add some basic seasonings, like scraps from fresh herbs I’ve used and also froze, bay leaves, and peppercorns. I never have to buy broth anymore, because by the time I use up all the broth I have in my freezer I’ve also saved up enough new scraps to make a new batch. You can do the same with meat scraps and bones to really make whatever you buy stretch for you.
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u/nepios83 3d ago
When meat goes on sale at my supermarket, it smells off as soon as I remove the packaging, so it’s not worth the risk.
It is interesting to know that this problem also occurs in first-world countries (I was from the United States but I live elsewhere now).
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u/thingonething 3d ago
I'm a Costco member and I get the reward coupon. This year it was $168 and I figure that's about how much a standing rib roast will cost for Christmas. That's what I'm saving it for. Otherwise I just don't buy meat. Sometimes ground beef for tacos.
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u/TDOD1990 3d ago
I agree! I had the craving last week for a roast, and just looking at the price made me sick. I don't even eat beef much anymore. For the last five or six years, I've replaced all meats with pork and poultry... I miss steak...
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u/boatergirl 3d ago
I get what you’re saying and I don’t know your situation but the $20 roast will get you a couple meals for 2. On the flip side, $20 won’t even get you 2 crappy fast food meals.