Hosting friends and want your potluck to go off without a hitch? Invited to bring a dish to share, but strapped for cash? We’ve got all the tricks and recipes you need, including cheap potluck ideas that taste great!
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Most of us enjoy getting together with family and friends to share a meal and some good times. My mom excelled at this when I was a kid. It seems we often had a houseful of people for the holidays, and she always served up a sumptuous feast.
It wasn’t until I was married and well into motherhood that I realized that those get-togethers were expensive! How Mom pulled it off while on a budget, I do not know. But she never complained. And she always made it work.
Finances shouldn’t get in the way of enjoying time with friends.
One way to offset the cost of a big party is the potluck. It’s a win-win for everyone since each person carries a little bit of the weight, in terms of preparations as well as costs.
Over the years I’ve found my own tricks and go-to recipes to keep potlucks fun, social, and under budget.
Ways to Potluck
A potluck can be approached in a number of different ways, including these:
- Provide a main dish and invite friends and family to supply the side dishes and desserts. This works particularly well if the main dish is a hearty protein, like rotisserie chickens or grilled meats.
- Invite your guests to bring a one-dish dinner like a casserole or dinner salad. This feels very classic, a lot like what you might have at a church potluck.
- Host a BBQ where everyone brings his own meat as well as a dish to share. Yes, the internet came unglued when I first suggested this back in 2011. See the comments! Depending on your friend group and the location of the party, I still think it can fly as a fun option, especially if there are options for everyone to get a taste of the other proteins being cooked.
- Coordinate the meal around a central theme, like taco bar or pasta salad bar and ask everyone to bring a favorite topping. Make sure that you’ve covered the bases and some basic toppings.
- Leave it very open ended and ask everyone to bring something to share. If you end up with 6 kinds of dessert? Cool!
- Plan a picnic at your community’s summer events and invite your friends to bring a favorite appetizer to share. You provide the plates and cutlery. Enjoy the fireworks, football game, concert, or movie in the park with some easy treats.
Once you’ve decided to host — or attend — a potluck, it can still be tricky to make it fit your budget. You want to make enough, you want to make it easy, and you want to make it tasty.
Budget Tips for Potlucks
To make your potluck budget-friendly, follow the Good Cheap Eats System, the PLAN – SHOP – COOK framework.
Plan Budget Recipes.
Generally meat and cheese are the more expensive ingredients in a dish. Consider a variety of salads, bean dishes, or even pasta or rice casseroles that focus more on vegetables and legumes instead of meat or cheese.
You can still include those pricier ingredients, just make them supporting ingredients rather than the stars.
Check out our Budget Grocery List for more ideas.
Plan for Leftovers
Sometimes a potluck can get unwieldy, especially if your friends bring several different dishes. There can sometimes be too much food!
Since everyone’s on a budget these days, you certainly don’t want it to go to waste. Consider stopping at the dollar store for some meal prep containers and encourage your guests to package up leftovers to take home. Have a cooler of ice ready so that everything stays fresh until the final goodbyes.
Shop the Kitchen
The pantry challenge has taught me well to build our meals around what we already have. Reverse meal planning is an age-old strategy with a funky new name.
What do you already have in the cupboard that can form the basis of a great dish to share? Got potatoes? Make an easy potato salad. Lots of eggs? Deviled eggs are always a hit.
Shop the Best Store
Not all stores compare when it comes to prices. Do a grocery store showdown so that you’re informed about the best store for the things you buy.
ALDI, Walmart, and Winco will likely give you best pricing for your potluck recipes, but your mileage may vary.
Shop the Sales & Clearance
Keep your eye on sales and clearance items at your local store. Loads of party and potluck supplies get marked down on a regular basis, so shop the sales.
The same goes for meats. While meat is hyper-expensive right now, finding a good sale may give you some cheap potluck ideas for meals to make.
Cook Food You Love
Thankfully the Great Depression is over. You don’t have to relegate yourself to food you don’t enjoy, especially when you’re cooking for a potluck. You can eat well on a budget!
A general rule of thumb is to take your favorite item to a potluck.
Baked goods are usually economical and they typically can be prepared in bulk. Spend an afternoon baking up cookies, cakes, pies or breads. These items will be a hit without hitting you too hard in the pocketbook.
Cook Extra to Freeze
If life is busy, but you still want to attend regular potlucks at church or other community events, stash your freezer with your favorite cheap potluck meals. That way, you always have something you can take that you know you love.
Scroll down for some of our favorite potluck recipes.
Easy Potluck Recipes
Main Dish Recipes for Potlucks
If you’re asked to bring a main dish to a potluck — I see you, last names that start with A through J — consider some of these easy main dishes that can be shopped affordably.
Spaghetti Squash Jambalaya just may be one of my favorite low carb recipes. Hot and spicy with a touch of sweetness from the squash, it’s the perfect veggie-rich supper.
Take the French classic Nicoise Salade and tweak it with this Tuna Pasta Salad. Filled with tuna, egg, and vegetables but served in a pasta salad, the traditional salad feels new again.
This simple Slow Cooker Chili Mac Recipe is very make-ahead and super good. It’s good old fashioned comfort food that gives you the night off cooking.
Pulled chicken with a homemade seasoning blend makes for perfect party food or an easy dinner of Pulled Chicken Sliders. These Chicken and Cheese Sliders are the perfect dinner for busy nights – made in about 30 minutes if you use the pressure cooker!
Moo Shu Chicken is an easy and delicious meal that you can make ahead to freeze. A riff on traditional Moo Shu Pork, chicken lightens the dish, while flour tortillas make things easy.
This easy Chihuahua Chili comes together quickly on the stove or in a slow cooker. Flavorful from enchilada sauce, beer, and spices, it is the perfect bowl of red.
These Swedish Meatballs are so easy to make from scratch. They are absolutely delicious!
Loaded with tender chicken breast, lots of veggies, taco spices, and a rich chicken stock, this simple recipe for Chicken Taco Soup is one you will love to serve both for easy weeknight suppers or fancier Cinco de Mayo celebrations. It’s ready in less than half an hour!
Enjoy fresh fruits, spicy scallions, crunchy almonds, and tender chicken in this delicious and refreshing Orchard Chicken Salad. Perfect for sandwiches, salads, or lettuce wraps.
Casseroles for Potlucks
I think casseroles were made for potlucks! They can be so comforting and easy to serve. If you’ve got a casserole crock-pot, you can bake in the oven and keep it warm in the slow cooker.
This delicious one-dish version of Chicken Florentine features a creamy Mornay sauce, chopped spinach, campanelle noodles, and tender chicken. It’s a delicious pasta bake that deserves a spot in your regular rotation.
This classic tuna noodle casserole is a breeze to make. The homemade white sauce elevates it to something special without being fussy.
This quick and easy ravioli casserole is super delicious, a great recipe for a potluck, easy dinner, or freezer meal. With just five ingredients, it comes together in less than 10 minutes plus a 20-minute bake.
Enjoy the classic French dish in a Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole with layers of red potatoes, chicken, ham, white sauce, Swiss cheese, and panko bread crumbs.
Spice up your evening with this hot and cheesy Chicken Enchilada Casserole. You can whip it up in a flash — and make an extra to freeze.
Enjoy a flavorful breakfast or brunch with this Sausage Egg Hash Brown Casserole. It’s very make-ahead, making it a great way to start the day.
Lawnmower Taco Casserole is super easy, freezer-friendly, and totally delicious. Rich in flavor, it contains ground beef or turkey, shredded cheese, tortilla chips, and taco spices layered in a savory gravy that comes together in minutes.
Overnight Casserole is one of the easiest you can assemble. No need to boil the noodles, just stir together all the ingredients and chill overnight. Top with bread crumbs and bake.
Side Dish Recipes for Potlucks
Side dishes are nice for the budget potluck cook! You can focus on a carb staple, like rice, pasta, or potatoes which are generally cheap and jazz it up with some great flavors.
Eat good and cheap with this easy, make ahead Black Bean and Rice Salad, packed full of fiber, protein, and great taste. It comes together in minutes in just one bowl!
Also known as Church Potatoes, this Cheesy Potatoes Casserole is ultimate comfort food. It’s easy to prep, freezer-friendly, and absolutely addicting.
This is the easiest mac and cheese you’ll ever make with just three ingredients – plus salt and pepper!
Enjoy an easy supper or side dish with this make-ahead Pesto Pasta Salad with Cranberries & Feta Cheese. It’s packed with flavor and makes a colorful addition to your buffet.
Cooking pinto beans from scratch is a great way to enjoy beans as a side dish or as a meatless main dish. They are so much cheaper than canned beans.
Fruit salad doesn’t need to be complicated. Here’s an easy combination of strawberries, mangoes, and pineapple.
Couscous is an easy grain to prep quickly AND it makes a fantastic base to all kinds of cold salads. Make this super simple Couscous Salad this week!
Best Desserts for Potlucks
You know that the dessert table is always the best table at a potluck. We’ve got a huge catalog of dessert recipes; here are just a few.
This easy to prepare slab apple pie takes just minutes. It’s delicious and simple, and a huge hit for fall.
Enjoy melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness with these Chocolate Mint Cookies, a peppermint-infused chocolate crinkle cookie topped with a chocolate kiss.
Scented with vanilla and orange, these glazed orange scones are like a creamsicle in the very best way. They are perfect for breakfast, elevensies, snacks, or dessert!
This copycat of Jello 123 is easy to make with just three ingredients. It comes together easily and tastes delicious. Customize it to suit whatever color and flavor gelatin you prefer.
Enjoy a super easy dessert with these Peppermint Brownie Bites. Lots of crunchy edges and a gooey center with just the right amount of mint, these brownie bites will be the hit of the party!
Oslo Kringle is a delicious Norwegian dessert, with the flavor and texture of a cream puff, but with a simpler preparation and fjords of almond icing.
Want to make it even easier? Check out these 30+ Crockpot Potluck Ideas where you can set it and forget it. You can prep the food and know it will stay hot for your potluck!
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This post was originally published on July 19, 2011. It has been updated for content and clarity.
