I have recently done a lot of shopping at Aldi's, they have comparable food to many of the major store's "store brands", for less. Not sure where you are or whether you have them near you.
I like to get more than one meal from a "big meat" item. For example, if I make a turkey breast, that should be good for 2-3 meals plus some lunches. One "off-shoot" meal would be hot turkey sandwiches with a can of turkey gravy, another might be turkey tetrazzini or turkey pot pie.
If I make a pot roast, then that is a meal one day with the veggies and potatoes I throw in, then I can make a Mexican beef dish with some of the meat for another meal.
For both of the above, thinly sliced meat can be a sandwich item for one of our lunches
I can't always get to the grocery store for fresh veggies, and TIME magazine's cover this week is all about foods......per Dr Oz, frozen veggies are actually as good as fresh, and much cheaper. Kroger often has 10 bags of frozen veggies for $10, so these are always a good side dish, plus they have mixed veggie bags for the pot-pie or rice & stir fry dishes. I also buy frozen bags of chopped mixed peppers and onions and add them to things like pasta sauces, chopped further for omelets or other dishes. Real time saver and tastes like fresh. I waste a lot less fresh veggies this way.
My hubby is "meat and potatoes or rice" guy, so I always have fresh potatoes on hand, red skins or Idaho for baking, or cut up and baked with some olive oil, garlic and rosemary. I do use a lot of Rice a Roni styled side dish packets, but prefer Zatarain's.
Rachel Ray has a lot of recipes that can be cooked once and re-used in different recipes, large roasts and such.