If you're struggling for midweek meal inspiration and think you don't have enough time to cook fresh and quick meals, one woman is on a mission to prove you wrong10:20, 22 Jul 2026Updated 10:33, 22 Jul 2026It can be a struggle to plan and cook delicious meals for the whole family which don't break the bank, but one woman has proved it could be possible. She shared her quick, cheap and easy carbonara recipe which sounds seriously tasty.‌Charlie Louise said at one point she set herself a challenge to do her whole weekly shop for just £11, while many others across Britain are well into spending hundreds. While she may not do that anymore, she is dedicated to show others they can spend less but still eat well. Charlie, who posts on TikTok as @charlie_louise_cc, said carbonara was a meal she used to have on a weekly rotation when she was really keeping costs down.‌What ingredients do you need to make the carbonara?While the recipe Charlie used may not be strictly traditional, it is incredibly cheap, coming in at just 96p per portion, so it's well worth a try.‌Charlie got a packet of 28p spaghetti from Tesco and used the entire thing. The onion cost 32p, and she used a "big one" to add a lot of flavour.Content cannot be displayed without consentNext she grabbed three eggs, which cost about 50p. She noted you could probably get away with two but wants to pack as much protein into the meal as possible.‌Now she noted you need bacon bits, which you can use lardons. She said they're quite expensive, so decided to cut up a pack of bacon, which cost her £1.49.She also grated half a block of Parmesan cheese, which set her back around £1.25.How do you make the meal?She boiled the pasta for around 11 minutes, fried an onion and the bacon in a pan. Next she added the Parmesan cheese to the three cracked eggs in a bowl, and mixed it all together until it' was "nice and smooth".‌Then she took the pasta off the heat and mixed everything together in the pan."You want to make sure you take the pan off the heat when you add the eggs in, because you don't want the eggs to scramble too much," Charlie said.She then explained the "total cook time is around 15 to 20 minutes" which serves four people, so if you "add up the total cost of the ingredients to serve it's £3.84, divided by four makes 96p.‌Charlie could then be seen tucking into the big, hearty bowl of carbonara.In the comments, someone wrote: "There is no onion in carbonara, and only use 2 egg yolks per person. Use smoked bacon or pancetta, but really should be guanciale"."And while everyone has their own twist on carbonara, it's great that Charlie is sharing affordable meals for the whole family.Article continues belowJust like another commenter shared: "I like this recipe. It doesn't matter what you call it, it's a good value for money for the family of 4."Would you try this recipe? Let us know in the comments...