Love Mexican food? Looking for some easy Mexican recipes that are affordable? Check out these easy Mexican dinner ideas and tips for making great Mexican food for a weeknight dinner or a special Cinco de Mayo celebration.
Whether you favor savory, filled enchiladas or crispy, crunchy taquitos, plump and tender tamales or loaded tacos, we’ve got you covered with budget-friendly Mexican food recipes you’ll want to make on repeat.
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Nowadays, you can find a decent taco almost anywhere. Almost.
But this wasn’t always the case. When we lived in Kansas City back in the early 2000s, it was pretty hard to find great Mexican dishes at a restaurant. Since we were working hard to get out of debt and didn’t have much money to dine out anyway, I worked to perfect our favorite Mexican recipes at home.
This turned out to be perfect for us, especially with six kids to feed. Prepping chicken enchiladas in bulk and freezing them for later or loading the slow cooker with a pork shoulder for delicious Carnitas turned into a major game changer.
Why Make Mexican Food at Home
If you want to enjoy great Mexican food on a budget, make it at home!
Not only are ingredients such as cilantro, chiles, and masa easily available, but they haven’t met the fate of inflated prices that happens with some cuisines. Couple that with the fact that Mexican food is prepared with more affordable whole foods and you’ll find that it’s a very frugal fare.
How to Save Money
One of the things I love about Mexican food is that many grocery stores offer great deals on ingredients you might want to use to prepare Mexican dinners. Real ingredients. Look for these ingredients on sale:
- tri-tip, top sirloin steak, or flap meat (for carne asada)
- pork shoulder
- boneless, skinless chicken breast
- ground beef or turkey
- avocados
- strawberries
- mangoes
- roma tomatoes or white onions
- jalapeno peppers
- tortillas or tortilla chips
- limes or bottled lime juice
- sour cream
- canned refried beans or sauces
- shredded cheese or cotija
- rice
- corn on the cob
- commercial sauces and salsas (though I think you should scroll down and make homemade!)
Keep an eye out for the ingredients you see on sale and stock up to prepare a Mexican dinner on the cheap. As the budget allows, buy more than you’ll need. Mexican food belongs in your weekly meal-planning rotation!
FAQs
Without Mexican grandmothers to show us the ropes, Bryan and I have taught ourselves some things along the way, too, like how to make tamales or homemade tortillas or enchilada sauce.
One of my favorite resources for Mexican dinner ideas has been this book: the Sunset Mexican Cookbook. It is long since out of print, but you can find used copies for cheap. Snag one because this is the portal to some good cheap eats!
Aside from trial and error and cooking through a vintage cookbook, we’ve also been known to peek into taqueria kitchens and ask endless questions of Mexican restaurant owners and friends in our quest to make great Mexican food at home.
To choose the best Mexican dinner idea is probably impossible. It really depends on your experience: who prepared it, where did you eat it, how happy were you in that season of life. Food, as we know, is subjective.
But, generally speaking, some popular Mexican dinner ideas include: chilaquiles, pozole, enchiladas, guacamole, tostadas, tamales, quesadillas, salsa, carne asada, tacos, and ceviche. Tres leches cake is always a winner!
The best is defined by what you like. What are your favorites when you go out to eat? Chances are you can make them just as good and more cheaply at home.
Looking for Budget Party Food Ideas?
Be sure to check out our archives of party food recipes and tips for saving money on those important celebrations.
Recommended Recipes
I grew up in Southern California, eating at some of the best Mexican food, or Cal-Mex, to be had — from friends’ kitchens to taquerias from Santa Barbara to San Diego. These are all recipes I’ve developed based on great meals — with a few Americanized favorites thrown in for good measure.
Salsas, Sauces, and Seasonings
So often the secret is in the sauce! Homemade salsas, sauces, and seasonings can really make a difference to your favorite tacos recipe. These Mexican food recipes are super easy to prep and take very little time.
Snacks
While chips and salsa is a common snack or appetizer, there are other great dips to explore. While some of these dips might not be authentic Mexican recipes, they are inspired by their great flavors.
Sides
Homemade Mexican food sides are easy to prep and super gentle on the budget. Cook up a pot of this Spanish rice recipe or a batch of Mexican street corn in just minutes.
Main Dishes
From Mexican-American ground beef tacos to more traditional Carne Asada, these main dishes are guaranteed to please. They are budget-friendly and easy to prep.
Tell us what you think!
We love to hear your experiences with Good Cheap Eats. Click the STARS on the recipe card or leave a STARRED comment to let us know what you think of the recipe.
This post was originally published April 30, 2019. It has been updated for content and clarity.
Pat
What an awesome list! I bookmarked it too so it will be easy to find for Mexican night 🙂 !
I’m making taco meat in the crockpot right now with some ground beef I scored for 5lbs for $8.45 with your taco seasoning. Next week could be a very Mexican week with the meal plan.
Thanks
Jessica Fisher
Great score!
Michelle K
I need some help w/ the refried beans. Mine tend to get very dry if they aren’t consummed immediately. Should more water be left in the pot when mashing them?
Jessica Fisher
You can add water if it gets dry, either cooking liquid, or just plain water. That helps, especially on reheat.
Amber
Thanks for all the mexican recipes!! I was wondering if you ever make your own flour tortillas. My family loves them, but when I look at the package ingredient list, I think, “I can’t buy these anymore!” They are filled with preservatives and bad fats! Every single brand of them. My attempts to make my own have not gone over too well with my family. I can find corn tortillas with only three ingredients and I saw you posted a recipe, but my family doesn’t like them as well. What are your thoughts on flour tortillas? Have you ever attempted to make them?
Jessica Fisher
I have tried and not been satisfied with the results. We much prefer corn tortillas homemade, though.
Trader Joe’s has an ingredient list that I like much better than others I’ve found.
Kristi
Now I’m in the mood for Mexican! Good thing we have leftovers from last night’s tacos for lunch. We LOVE your Mexican rice! It’s a regular thing on our menu rotation. I am inspired to try the poblano chili enchiladas this week. I noticed the sales on the Mexican food ingredients when I ran to the store yesterday. I think I’ll bookmark this page so I have a handy reference of these recipes. Thanks!
Jessica Fisher
You don’t know how hard it was to write this list. I was so hungry. We had tostadas when I was done. 🙂
Vanessa B
Wow, this is an extensive collection of Mexican style dishes! I have tried several of your recipes and my husband loved every one. I am inspired to try a few new ones.
We have chicken fajitas about every 2 weeks. That is by far our favorite with all the fixins; guacamole, creamy salsa verde or black bean salsa. We also like taco pizza with a mix of refried beans and enchilada sauce as the base layer. We like a number of copycat recipes from an unmentionable fast food chain. 😉 NACHOS! ‘nough said lol!
Jessica Fisher
All sounds yummy!
Cherie
You know as I sat in bed last night looking at pinterest recipes after an evening of being ‘challenged’ by my 14yo son LOL, I was hit with the complete assurance that I must make a mexican feast for Mother’s Day [I host our families]. I won’t say that came from the place of ‘I don’t make enough mexican food because 14yo son doesn’t care for it’ but whatever it is – that’s what I’m going to do – thanks for the immediate inspiration today!
Jessica Fisher
This cracks me up. Retribution via meal planning. 🙂