In the foreground you have microwave burritos. Cost per person $5 at the Family Dollar General Tree.
In the background you have canning chickpeas and black beans. The chickpeas have already exited the canner. The black beans are about to go in. A pound of dried chickpeas or black bean is about $1.50. You will get 7 pints out of both. The current price for generic canned beans is about 90¢. Cost to can 7 cans of the beans: 22¢ per jar.
My back hurt too much to do the dinner I planned. But I had enough in me to can some stuff for the future.
My guess is prep time. These are essentially ready to eat now, so it’s easier to add them to a dish without having to soak them first.