healthy cooking on a budget
- Thread starter mrs h
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You can bulk spag bol out with extra tinned tomatos or passata. So its more sauce than meat and will go further.
I also use a northern Italian recipe where I add grated swede and carrot to the spag bol ingredients and let them cook a while. Very tasty.
You can make a veggie broth also, or a sausage coddle. Like a stew but use chopped sauages and lots of veggies.
Macaroni cheese is always a simple thing to make, can again be bulked out with veggies.
Home made scone based pizza is really cheap to make.
I tend to veer away from meat if I want to reduce my budget.
Cauliflower cheese is good. I also add broccoli to it. Yummy.
Jacket potatoes with most toppings you like are cheap and cheerful
Carrot and ginger soup. Costs hardly anything to make but can feed 4-6 people with a bit of bread also.
Drop me a PM if you want the recipes to any of these (and a few more I have)
I also use a northern Italian recipe where I add grated swede and carrot to the spag bol ingredients and let them cook a while. Very tasty.
You can make a veggie broth also, or a sausage coddle. Like a stew but use chopped sauages and lots of veggies.
Macaroni cheese is always a simple thing to make, can again be bulked out with veggies.
Home made scone based pizza is really cheap to make.
I tend to veer away from meat if I want to reduce my budget.
Cauliflower cheese is good. I also add broccoli to it. Yummy.
Jacket potatoes with most toppings you like are cheap and cheerful
Carrot and ginger soup. Costs hardly anything to make but can feed 4-6 people with a bit of bread also.
Drop me a PM if you want the recipes to any of these (and a few more I have)
my favourite recipe is for tomato sauce and it goes a long way; you can make a batch and get a spag bol or lasagne and some pizza's out of it.
Cook one onion in some olive oil until clear, add three tins chopped toms. 1tsp sugar, some dried chili flakes and a tbsp balsamic vinegar. Cook for 30 - 40 minutes add a big handfull of chopped fresh basil and add to whatever your recipe is.
If you haven't got the extra ingredients, they're worth buying in as they last a long time and they really add a proper zing to this sauce - it won't taste you're eating on a shoestring at all so you'll make it loads and will work out more economical than buying ready made sauces
Cook one onion in some olive oil until clear, add three tins chopped toms. 1tsp sugar, some dried chili flakes and a tbsp balsamic vinegar. Cook for 30 - 40 minutes add a big handfull of chopped fresh basil and add to whatever your recipe is.
If you haven't got the extra ingredients, they're worth buying in as they last a long time and they really add a proper zing to this sauce - it won't taste you're eating on a shoestring at all so you'll make it loads and will work out more economical than buying ready made sauces
Cheesy mash- mash with cheese (obviously) and melt it on top under grill.
Butternut squash, cut in half, roasted in foil, then scoop out middle, mix with butter & black pepper, sprinkle cheese on top and pop back in the oven. You can do this with any type of squash or pumpkin.
Subsitute beef/lamb mince with quorn mince. (add a teaspoon of marmite for 'meaty' taste if you like).
make your own fishcakes with tinned tuna/salmon, mash & some egg. Nice with a bit of chopped chili & lime.
Risotto with lots of veg
banana & custard for dessert.
mmmm - I'm hungry now!!
Butternut squash, cut in half, roasted in foil, then scoop out middle, mix with butter & black pepper, sprinkle cheese on top and pop back in the oven. You can do this with any type of squash or pumpkin.
Subsitute beef/lamb mince with quorn mince. (add a teaspoon of marmite for 'meaty' taste if you like).
make your own fishcakes with tinned tuna/salmon, mash & some egg. Nice with a bit of chopped chili & lime.
Risotto with lots of veg
banana & custard for dessert.
mmmm - I'm hungry now!!
mrs_tommo22
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Oooh I love risotto!
I put in corgettes, carrots, peppers, onions, mushrooms, butter, cheese are the ingrediants I use and obviously rice.
I chuck them them all in a pan and cook them up a bit with butter and pepper to give flsvour and add some garlic.
I then add a 1/2 pint of water to starty off and add more if needed add some rice and keep stirring it in and keep stirring till its all cooked.
I put in corgettes, carrots, peppers, onions, mushrooms, butter, cheese are the ingrediants I use and obviously rice.
I chuck them them all in a pan and cook them up a bit with butter and pepper to give flsvour and add some garlic.
I then add a 1/2 pint of water to starty off and add more if needed add some rice and keep stirring it in and keep stirring till its all cooked.
mrs h said:
I expect others will have better recipes - and usually OH does this as I'm a bit hit & miss with rice but
gently stir fry veggies, add risotto rice and fry for a few mins then gradually add stock simmering down till it is all absorbed. the good thing about this is you can add ANYTHING. You can chuck in all sorts of herbs and stuff and it is nice with some white wine as well. It's the sort of thing I do when I am using up all the 'bits' left before I go shopping again.
And the squash thing is gorgeous. I sometimes add a bit of philedelphia as weel. (I'm a bit of a cheese freak).
If you make risotto and have some chicken stock (from the boiled carcass of a roast chicken) it really adds to the flavour of the risotto. I also use a bit of white wine and then add some pieces of cooked off chicken, peas and at the end sprinkle some parmesan over it. Meal in itself
Risotto rice can be found in with other rice in the store, and recipes on usually on the box. Just takes a bit of time to cook and stand and stir, but well worth it.
Risotto rice can be found in with other rice in the store, and recipes on usually on the box. Just takes a bit of time to cook and stand and stir, but well worth it.
Gemma & Jake
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Omelette is cheap and tasty. I usually put cheese, ham and courgette in mine but you can put lots of different things in an omelette and then you can serve it with salad. Another cheap and tasty meal is jacket potato with prawns(if on offer), egg mayo, tuna mayo, beans, cheese etc.
Suzie and Faith
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banana and custard, yum, whoever mentioned that is a sweetie, mmm, im off to make some
I do burgers and meatballs., very healthy if grilled.
Just need mince, grated onion and a couple of whisked eggs to bind it. I also add mixed herbs, garlic and pepper to the mix too. Roll it into balls and freeze or make burger patties out of them, can also be frozen.
Also the tomato sauce, chopped tinned tomatoes (about 9p or something!) some mixed herbs, onion and I add a bit of tomato puree and some gravy powder (makes it thicker and tones down the tomato flavour)
Just need mince, grated onion and a couple of whisked eggs to bind it. I also add mixed herbs, garlic and pepper to the mix too. Roll it into balls and freeze or make burger patties out of them, can also be frozen.
Also the tomato sauce, chopped tinned tomatoes (about 9p or something!) some mixed herbs, onion and I add a bit of tomato puree and some gravy powder (makes it thicker and tones down the tomato flavour)
leckershell
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Cottage pie on a budget, I made one last week as we're a bit poor at the moment... get a tin of minced beef+onion (about 99p) and then use any tinned or frozen veg you have in your cupboard/freezer. I used half tins of carrots, peas and green beans. Make a couple of cubes of stock, about a mug full and pour it over the top and mush it round a bit (it's ok if it's runny, it will condense). Make some mash potato, take the meat mix out, put the mash on top and put it back in the oven for enough time to "brown" the potato so it looks crispy.
I made 4 dinners out of that! Just freeze whatever is left over.
Also, pasta and anything. Get passata/tinned toms and add basil (or just get a tomato and basil sauce from the shop) and chop up some spam or whatever processed meat you probably have a tin of somewhere in your cupboard (or use chicken sandwich strips/prawns/bacon bits/whatever meat),mix it into the sauce and pour on top of the pasta. Even with spam it tastes fine
You could also make carbonara the same as above - just get a carbonara sauce from the shops, stick any meat in it you want, maybe some mushrooms or whatever, then pour on top of the pasta.
Corned beef Hash - Tin or 2 of corned beef, mash potato, "sweated" onions. Stick it all in a big frying pan until the corned beef looks brown/cooked.
As the others said, bulk out some spag bol or chilli with more tomato sauce than meat.. try the butchers for big bags of cheaper mince than the supermarkets.
If I think of any more I'll post them. Thanks to you all too, I've been doing budget meals for the past week and you've given me some better ideas
I made 4 dinners out of that! Just freeze whatever is left over.
Also, pasta and anything. Get passata/tinned toms and add basil (or just get a tomato and basil sauce from the shop) and chop up some spam or whatever processed meat you probably have a tin of somewhere in your cupboard (or use chicken sandwich strips/prawns/bacon bits/whatever meat),mix it into the sauce and pour on top of the pasta. Even with spam it tastes fine
You could also make carbonara the same as above - just get a carbonara sauce from the shops, stick any meat in it you want, maybe some mushrooms or whatever, then pour on top of the pasta.
Corned beef Hash - Tin or 2 of corned beef, mash potato, "sweated" onions. Stick it all in a big frying pan until the corned beef looks brown/cooked.
As the others said, bulk out some spag bol or chilli with more tomato sauce than meat.. try the butchers for big bags of cheaper mince than the supermarkets.
If I think of any more I'll post them. Thanks to you all too, I've been doing budget meals for the past week and you've given me some better ideas
