Braised chicken recipe 2 ways for 4 people under $20

Cooking can be a great, cost-effective way to enjoy delicious meals at home. One top chef has a recipe that can affordably feed four people without sacrificing flavor.

Chef Antonia Lofaso joined "Good Morning America" for the Dollar Dinner Challenge to create two meals for four people, all for under 20 bucks.

The chef, TV personality, owner and executive chef of Scopa Italian Roots in Marina del Ray, California, used boneless, skinless chicken thighs as the base protein for both meals.

"I'll throw the cabbage in as well and I chose cabbage because it's such a versatile vegetable," Lofaso said. "It's great nutritionally, it's got a great amount of fiber. But more importantly, I'm going to be using it in two dishes. I'll braise it here and it'll get nice and beautifully soft, but then in the tostada, I will use it almost like a salad."

Check out the full recipes below.

Braised Chicken with Cabbage and Cilantro Rice

Chef Lofaso shared a hot tip for the braising process in this recipe to keep things cooking quickly.

"Heat up your tea kettle so that you throw hot water right over the top of your braise so you're not waiting for it to come to a boil with cold water," she suggested. "I like to have hot water boiling in the background so it goes faster."

Serves: 4

Ingredients10 boneless skinless chicken thighs
Half head white cabbage chopped 1 inch thick
1/2 onion white chopped 1/2 inch thick
1 carrot chopped 1/2 inch thick
1 celery stalk chopped half inch thick
2 russet potatoes peeled and chopped inch inch thick
1/4 bunch cilantro and stem rough chopped
2 tablespoons cumin
Salt
4 tablespoons cooking oil
Boullion cube chicken
1 1/2 cups rice

Directions
In a large pot heat cooking oil on high. Season chicken thighs with cumin and salt and sear on both sides till golden brown about 4 minutes on each side.
Add all veggies and potato and sweat for another 5 minutes. Add cilantro and Boullion cube. Cover with water and simmer for about 20 minutes until chicken is tender.
Cook rice to the specifics on the package. Add 1/4 bunch cilantro roughly chopped and salt.

Braised Chicken Tostadas

To make this into a second meal, chef Lofaso suggests creating a tostada.

Serves: 4

Ingredients
4 corn tostada
1 avocado peeled and sliced and separated into 4 even quarters
Salt
2 cups leftover chicken with leftover rice heat and reserve
1 1/2 cups shaved white cabbage
Half white onion shaved
Leftover cilantro chopped
Juice of a lime

Directions
Mix cabbage, onion and cilantro with salt and lime juice.
Lay tostada on platter, add avocado, add chicken rice mix. Too with cabbage salad and serve.

Recipe reprinted courtesy of Antonia Lofaso.