This was another nice meal for four since my son demanded to eat a banana. We used ALDI’s frozen salmon, some white rice with some of our frozen mirepoix, and about 1/2 a bag of the frozen mixed vegetables I got on sale. To jazz up the salmon, I reached for my little canister of Old Bay Blackened seasoning. For those who are not from the south, “blackened” seasoning is a cajun type seasoning that is used mostly on fish or chicken. It contains a number of herbs and of course some cayenne pepper. All of the various Old Bay seasonings use celery seed or celery salt along with red pepper. The salmon was baked and the Old Bay is all I used on it. The oven is a good place to cook the salmon to avoid using a lot of oils in a skillet. I season the rice a little with some salt and pepper and garlic powder. This is a very simple meal. The salmon is Aldi’s private label brand and from the freezer section. It doesn’t even have to be thawed prior to baking. White rice is a very inexpensive thing to add to a meal for a small portion of starch. Frozen vegetables are always a great choice for a fresh tasting side dish.

4 frozen Aldi private label salmon filets ($4.76) 

1/2 cup white rice ($0.10)

1/2 bag store brand mixed vegetables ($0.66)

2 tablespoons Old Bay Blackened seasoning ($0.40)

1 teaspoon garlic powder ($0.10)

1/2 cup frozen mirepoix (mix of diced onions, carrots, celery) ($0.20)

1 teaspoon kosher salt ($0.05)

1/2 teaspoon black pepper ($0.05)

TOTAL: $6.32

Recipe: Bake the salmon in the oven on 400 degrees according to the instructions on the package. Boil 1 cup of water with the mirepoix and season with salt and pepper and garlic powder, cook rice covered on low after bringing to a boil. Heat mixed vegetables in pan with a small amount of water. I do not season the vegetables since it seems that the kids like to eat them with the rice or the fish.

NOTES: I do not use sales tax because many states do not charge it on food or groceries. This meal fed two adults and 12 year old twin girls. All prices are estimated for fractional use. Almost everything we buy is private label branded. Sometimes the prices fluctuate because my latest purchase is at a lower or higher price. We cook approximately 25-30 dinner or lunch meals at home per month. I have to keep things interesting and that is why I experiment with new seasonings or uncommon ingredients.