The Cheapest Way to Shop for Dinner

When Home-Made Meals Are Cheaper

One of the most obvious dinners that’s cheaper to make at home than eat out is a basic steak.

Cost to make it at home: Even filet mignon can cost just $9.99 a pound, according to Safeway pricing.

Pre-made price: At a steakhouse, needless to say, a good steak can easily cost upwards of $20. For instance, a 10-ounce filet mignon might cost you about $36 at Smith & Wollensky (Stock Quote: SWRG).

Pizza

We’re not talking about cheap chain pizzas like those from Pizza Hut (Stock Quote: YUM). We mean fresh pizzas made exactly to your liking with natural ingredients.

Cost to make it at home: Pizza from your very own kitchen can cost just $2 per person or less, as MainStreet previously noted. If you make the dough yourself, you might spend about $3 on flour and yeast, $1 for sauce, and $4 on cheese for pizza for four.

Pre-made price: For a single slice, you could easily pay more than $2, and if you order a BBQ chicken pizza at California Pizza Kitchen (Stock Quote: CPKI) for example, you’ll generally pay $12.99.

Real Burgers

Here, we’re talking about burgers made with freshly ground beef, as opposed to the patties you might find at fast food chains like McDonald’s (Stock Quote: MCD) or Burger King (Stock Quote: BKC).