I really enjoy the Korean Barbecue Chicken at one of our local restaurants and occasionally find an excuse to stop in. However a while back I realized that for less than the cost of one meal at the restaurant, I could make enough at home to feed my whole family and the neighbors. Seriously! And it isn’t that it is that expensive for the meal – just $5.99 per person, but for that price I can cook a whole meal for 6 – 8 people.

How do I do it? I stock up on boneless, skinless chicken thighs when they are on sale. I buy sesame seeds from the bulk bins instead of on the spice aisle. I buy fresh ginger and then freeze it, so none goes to waste. Finally, I buy specialty ingredients from the Asian market where they cost much less than they do at the local grocery store.

I think my Korean Barbecue Chicken tastes very much like the chicken at our local restaurant, but I make no claims to it being authentic. I created it by taste and modify the recipe based on the ingredients I have on hand. Which brings me to another way I save money on recipes: be flexible on the ingredients! Once when I didn’t have any apple juice, I used lemonade in this recipe instead and nobody could tell the difference. Even though apple juice isn’t that expensive, the time and gas involved in going to the store for a single ingredient adds up.