Savvy Dinner Plan: Michelle Southan’s secrets for reducing the cost of chicken dinner recipes

As part of our Savvy Dinner Plan initiative, Taste.com.au’s Michelle Southan reveals her secret for reducing the cost of one of her go-to chicken dinner recipes.

Michelle Southan

3 min read

March 7, 2024 - 5:00AM

Talk about a winner-winner chicken dinner!

If there’s one thing you must know about me… I love chicken. It’s super versatile, protein-packed and the one meat I can get my whole family to eat.

It’s clear that many of you also love chicken! From roast chooks to chicken stir-fries, chicken schnitzel to chicken soup, chicken recipes are some of our most popular recipes (fun fact: chicken is the most searched-for protein on taste.com.au!).

But the one chicken recipe that’s rapidly increasing in popularity is the humble chicken tray bake. This midweek meal is a staple in my (and many other) households for a reason – it’s flavour-packed and super convenient due to its usual ‘chuck it all in a pan and bake away’ method.

A favourite: Creamy chicken tray bake

One of my favourite midweek dinner tray bakes has to be our creamy Dijon chicken tray bake. Crispy chicken, potatoes, bacon, cream, mustard and Dijon mustard come together to create an indulgent yet oh-so-easy dinner that gets the thumbs-up from my whole family.

As part of our taste + Coles Savvy Dinner Plan, which includes new, budget-friendly versions of our most searched-for recipes, I challenged myself to make this winning chicken dinner for less. And, with a few ingredient swaps and shortcuts, I was really pleased with the result.

When I recently made the original version of the dinner, it cost me almost $7 a serve which can add up when you’re cooking for a growing family (and I always like to stick to a maximum $5 a serve budget). That’s where my new version of this chicken tray bake comes in.

When I recently made the original version of the creamy chicken tray bake it cost me almost $7 a serve.

Budget-friendly chicken dinner

My new take on my fave chicken dinner is one you’ll want to put in your dinner repertoire. Firstly, unlike the original dinner that takes 1 hour and 15 mins to make, I’ve managed to shave 15 minutes off the cook time because time = money.

The trick to making this meal kinder on the wallet was using a few savvy ingredient hacks that can be used for in recipes for years to come. For example, in this recipe, I replaced the chicken thigh cutlets with small chicken breasts to reduce the time needed to get dinner on the table and keep the budget in check.

To bulk out a meal in a budget-friendly way, I always use plenty of vegies. In this case, I bulked out this tray bake with potatoes, which are super filling.

Finally, to combat the need for multiple spices and herbs to flavour a dish, using a soup powder mix, in this case French onion soup mix, is great for creating a flavour-packed meal without needing to buy too much. By browning chicken with a little Coles Simply butter and oil, you can add a richness and extra depth of flavour to your chicken.

The kick of Dijon mustard and thyme round out the flavours well to give you a really tasty result, without having to add the bacon the original recipe called for. (Tip: if you have access to a herb garden or grow your own, you can make a little extra saving by harvesting thyme yourself).

The creamy chicken tray bake cost was reduced to that cost around $6.80 less than the original version for a family of four.

How does my new dinner stack up?

I did the maths on my ingredient costs based on the amount I used and I managed to save over a third.

Old dinner total cost for 4 people: $26.60

New dinner total cost for 4 people: $19.80

So, there you have it: a truly tasty chicken dinner that cost me around $6.80* less than the original version for a family of four. Restaurant-worthy flavours at a fraction of the price!

Get the full recipe for my Creamy French chicken tray bake recipe.

Creamy french chicken tray bake cost comparison