Mom of 10 Feeds Her Family for $1-2 Per Plate

Since the COVID pandemic, inflation has been rising. This morning, I read that economists say the three areas that will see the biggest price increases are restaurant meals, streaming services, and utility bills (electricity and gas). Is it just me, or does it seem like streaming services used to be around $4 a month and have been slowly rising, like about $2 more each year? I love eating out with family and friends. That won't ever go away. But to afford eating out, we have to stretch our dollars in other ways, like at the grocery store. Enter Jane Brousseau, who is championing the idea of eight meals, on repeat, by design.

Jane Brousseau feeds ten kids on a grocery budget most families would find impossible to imagine, let alone stick to. Her secret isn't complicated. She rotates through roughly eight meals every two weeks, sticking to what she knows her kids will actually eat and what stays cheap to make.

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That repetition does double duty. Buying the same core ingredients week after week keeps her budget predictable and kills the guesswork that usually drives grocery bills up—no impulse buys, no experimental recipes nobody finishes. One family favorite: a four-ingredient crockpot meal built around spaghetti, sausage, peppers, and sauce, coming in at around $2 per person even with two of her kids away at college needing their share accounted for.

Skip the Trendy Cuts

Protein tends to eat up the biggest chunk of any grocery bill, but Jane sidesteps that by leaning on what she calls "underrated" cuts. Chicken drumsticks are her go-to — she can find a family-size pack for around $5. Toss those on a sheet pan with broccoli and potatoes, and dinner for the whole family runs about $15 total, roughly $1.50 a plate.

It's proof that feeding a crowd doesn't require chasing whatever protein happens to be trending that week.

Fast Food, the DIY Way

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The Brosseaus also lean on theme nights — breakfast for dinner, appetizer night, homemade fast food — partly for fun, partly because eating out with ten kids simply isn't realistic anymore. Restaurant-style fries and onion rings made at home let her kids feel like they're getting the treat without blowing a week's grocery budget on a single dinner out.

For families across the Wenatchee Valley feeling the same squeeze at the checkout line, Jane's approach isn't about extreme couponing or hours of meal prep. It's repetition, smarter protein choices, and turning budget constraints into something the kids actually look forward to. Simple shifts, real savings — the kind of math that adds up fast with a big family at the table.