Economical Mexican Recipes: Eat Well Without Spending Much

Mexican cooking has its roots in subsistence cuisine: ingenious dishes that transform humble ingredients into extraordinary meals. Corn, beans and chillies are the foundation of a gastronomy declared World Heritage that proves eating well does not have to cost much. Living in Spain, these dishes are even more relevant: cheap ingredients, spectacular results and recipes that go a long way for the whole family.

The 8 Most Economical Recipes

1. Enfrijoladas: Less than 2€/person

Enfrijoladas are tortillas bathed in black bean salsa. It is the most economical dish in Mexican cooking and one of the most comforting.

Approximate cost for 4 people: 6€ in total (tortillas 2€ + tinned beans 0.90€ + queso fresco 1.50€ + crema 1€ + onion and coriander 0.60€).

How to make them: Blend a tin of black beans with a little of their liquid, onion and garlic. Heat the salsa in a pan, pass the tortillas through it (so they soak up but do not break), fold into quarters and douse with more salsa. Add crumbled cheese, crema and onion slices on top.

Money-saving tip: Cook a big pot of dried beans on Sundays (500g for 1.50€ is enough for 10+ portions). They last all week in the fridge and serve for enfrijoladas, molletes, tacos and soup. A kilo of dried beans in Mercadona costs about 2.50€ and is enough for an army.

Variation: Fill the tortillas with shredded chicken or scrambled egg before folding them for a more substantial version.

2. Entomatadas: Less than 2€/person

Entomatadas are the tomato-salsa version of enfrijoladas. Tomatoes, onion, garlic and a touch of chilli (optional): ingredients that cost pennies.

Approximate cost for 4 people: 7€ in total (tortillas 2€ + 1kg tomatoes 1.50€ + cheese 1.50€ + crema 1€ + onion/garlic/spices 1€).

The salsa: Char 4-5 tomatoes in a dry pan or under the oven grill until they are soft and have black spots. Blend with a quarter of an onion, 1 clove of garlic and salt. Fry the salsa in a little oil for 5 minutes. This step of frying the salsa is what makes the difference between a homemade entomatada and a run-of-the-mill one.

Fill them: With cheese for a vegetarian version (the cheapest) or with shredded chicken for more protein. Chicken breast in Mercadona costs about 7€/kg - with 250g you have enough to fill 8 entomatadas.

3. Chilaquiles Rojos: Less than 3€/person

Chilaquiles rojos are the quintessential anti-waste recipe. They were born as a way of using up tortillas from the day before. The salsa is made with dried chillies (which last for months in the pantry) and tomato.

Approximate cost for 4 people: 10€ in total including fried eggs and queso fresco.

Master money-saving tip: Buy corn tortillas that are about to expire at a discount (many Latin shops reduce them). For chilaquiles, dry, hard tortillas are BETTER than fresh ones because they absorb less oil when fried and keep more texture in the salsa.

Yield: This dish is incredibly filling. With 2-3 chilaquiles per person + egg + beans on the side, nobody goes hungry. It is a complete brunch for less than 3€.

4. Molletes: Less than 2€/person

Molletes are bread, beans and cheese. Three basic ingredients you can always have at home. The quickest and cheapest dinner that tastes glorious.

Cost for 4 people: 6€ in total (baguette 0.60€ + tinned beans 0.90€ + cheese 1.50€ + tomato for pico de gallo 1€ + coriander/onion/lime 1€).

Trick: Use day-old bread (cheaper and it toasts better). Mercadona tinned beans (Hacendado brand) cost 0.90€ and are enough for 4 large molletes. The complete recipe is on the table in less than 15 minutes.

5. Mexican Picadillo: Less than 4€/person

Mexican picadillo is minced meat with potato, carrot and tomato. It goes a long way, freezes well and serves as a filling for tacos, empanadas or stuffed chillies.

Cost for 4 people: 14€ in total.

Money-saving tip: Mix the meat with coarsely grated potato so it goes further without losing flavour. A 50/50 meat-potato ratio is practically indistinguishable and halves the cost. Minced pork is cheaper than beef (3-4€/kg in Lidl) and works just as well.

Goes a long way: Make a big batch (1kg of meat) and use it throughout the week: Monday in tacos, Wednesday as an empanada filling, Friday with rice. A kilo of picadillo is enough for 8-10 portions.

6. Tortilla Soup: Less than 2€/person

Tortilla soup is another anti-waste dish: it was born to use up old tortillas. A tomato broth with strips of fried tortilla, avocado, crema and cheese.

Cost for 4 people: 8€ (the most expensive ingredient is the avocado).

The base: Blend charred tomatoes with onion and garlic, fry in oil, add chicken broth (a Mercadona stock cube, 0.30€). Fry tortilla strips in oil until crispy. Serve the hot broth with the strips, diced avocado, crema and cheese.

Without avocado: If avocado is expensive (it sometimes rises to 2€+ a piece), leave it out. The soup is still delicious with just the tortilla strips, crema, cheese and a few drops of lime.

7. Rice with Beans: The Invincible Combo

Red rice with refried beans is the universal Mexican side, but it also works as an economical main dish. Together, rice and beans form a complete protein (complementary amino acids).

Cost for 4 people: 4€ in total (rice 0.80€ + tomato 0.50€ + broth 0.30€ + beans 1.50€ + oil/onion/garlic 0.90€).

Premium version without spending more: Add a fried egg on top of each plate of rice and beans (4 eggs = 1€). With slices of fried plantain (if you find it in Latin shops) it becomes a complete dish that in Mexico is called "plato económico" and feeds workers all day.

8. Egg Tacos: The Cheapest Breakfast

Scrambled egg with salsa in a corn tortilla. Probably the most common breakfast in millions of Mexican homes.

Cost per person: Less than 1€ (2 eggs 0.30€ + 2 tortillas 0.40€ + salsa 0.20€).

Variations: Eggs with tomato (a la mexicana), eggs with ham, eggs with nopales, eggs with beans. They all cost pennies and are genuinely filling.

Basic Low-Cost Mexican Pantry

Always keep these ingredients at home so you can improvise economical Mexican food at any time:

• Dried beans (black or pinto): ~2.50€/kg in Mercadona, enough for 10+ portions. The ingredient with the best price/yield ratio in all of Mexican cooking.
• Rice: ~1€/kg. The most versatile side base.
• Corn tortillas: ~2€/packet of 20. If you make them at home with Maseca (3€/kg), they work out even cheaper.
• Dried chillies (guajillo, ancho): ~3-5€/packet in a Latin shop, they last months. They are the base of salsas and adobos.
• Tomatoes: The base of almost every Mexican salsa. In summer, tomatoes from the municipal market are cheap and tasty.
• Onion, garlic, lime: The three musketeers of Mexican flavour. Together they cost less than 2€ and last for weeks.
• Eggs: The cheapest protein. A dozen (2-3€) is enough for multiple Mexican meals.
• Cumin and oregano: Two spices that last months and transform any dish. 1-2€ each in Mercadona.

Weekly Mexican Menu for Less than 25€

For 2 people, the whole week, with variety:

• Monday: Enfrijoladas (3€)
• Tuesday: Egg tacos a la mexicana (2€)
• Wednesday: Red rice with beans and egg (2.50€)
• Thursday: Molletes (3€)
• Friday: Cheese entomatadas (3.50€)
• Saturday: Chilaquiles rojos (5€)
• Sunday: Picadillo with rice (7€)

Weekly total: ~26€ for 2 people = 1.85€ per person per meal. All the meals are filling, nutritious and delicious.

Where to Buy Cheaply

• Mercadona: Tinned beans (Hacendado), rice, tomatoes, eggs, wheat tortillas. Good prices and constant availability.
• Lidl: Avocados on offer, cheap fresh vegetables, economical minced meat.
• Latin shops: Authentic corn tortillas, dried chillies, Maseca, Mexican spices. The prices are generally lower than supermarkets for specific Mexican products. Find the nearest one in our shop guide.
• Municipal markets: Tomatoes, onions and vegetables loose, often cheaper and fresher than in the supermarket. In Madrid, the Mercado de Maravillas has excellent prices.

Mexican cooking was born of the need to feed large families with humble ingredients. That ancestral wisdom is still useful today, especially for those of us living in Spain who want to eat well without spending too much. With beans, corn, tomato and a little creativity, the possibilities are infinite.

Weekly Planning: An Economical Mexican Menu

With a little organisation, you can prepare delicious Mexican food for a whole week spending less than 30 euros. The key lies in making the most of base ingredients that are used in multiple recipes.

The smart shopping list

Buy these base ingredients once a week: 2 kg of tortillas, 1 kg of dried beans, rice, tomatoes, onions, coriander, dried chillies and limes. With this basic kit and an economical protein (a whole chicken, pork for stewing or eggs) you have material for 5-7 different meals. Dried beans go three times as far as tinned ones and cost a fraction of the price.

Example weekly menu (less than 30€)

Monday: Cheese enfrijoladas. Tuesday: Rice with chicken in red salsa. Wednesday: Refried bean tacos with pico de gallo. Thursday: Tortilla soup with leftover chicken. Friday: Quesadillas with whatever is left in the fridge. Each meal costs between 3 and 5 euros for two people.

Discover all our economical step-by-step recipes and find ingredients at the best price in the Mexican shops in your area.