Cooking Real Food for Less

Recipe: Quick Spicy Thai Beef

2008-09-10T20:23:00.002+01:00

Looking out the window today it is miserable! On a day like today I feel like something to give me a little kick and nothing does it better than a quick tasty stir fry with a dash of spice or in my case lots of spice!!! Stir fries are often thought of as fiddly but this one is really easy to prepare, quick to cook and tasty!

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 tbsp vegetable oil
200g/ 70z beef strips or steak cut into thin strips
1 red chilli (or more if desired)
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 clove garlic (optional) sliced thinly
Handful basil leaves

To Cook:

Heat a wok or large frying pan until smoking hot
Pour in the oil and swirl around
Tip in the beef, chilli and garlic (if using)
Cook, stirring all the time until meat is lightly browned
Then pour over oyster sauce
Cook until heated through and sauce coats meat
Stir in basil leaves

Serve with rice and enjoy!!

Just a quick note regarding rice; I often cook double the amount I need then freeze into portions for another meal! Rice, be it brown or white freezes very well and only takes a couple of minutes in the microwave to defrost! On a night when you feel like something tasty but just don’t have the energy this whole meal can be ready in 10 minutes if you have rice already cooked!

Tip: Freeze Some Rice

2008-09-10T20:19:00.002+01:00

Just a quick note regarding rice; I often cook double the amount I need then freeze into portions for another meal!

Rice, be it brown or white freezes very well and only takes a couple of minutes in the microwave to defrost!

On a night when you feel like something tasty but just don’t have the energy, a whole meal can be ready in 10 minutes if you have rice already cooked!

Pork Dijon

2008-09-09T20:16:00.002+01:00

Just thinking what I’d like to make for dinner tonight and decided to cook my Pork with Mustard dish. Now I love this because as meat gets more expensive pork seems to still be staying at a reasonable price. You can usually get a pack of pork loins for £4-5 and have enough to freeze some for another meal!

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2-4 pork loins depending on size
1 tbsp olive oil
15g/5oz shallots finely chopped (you can use onion but not as sweet0
30ml/1oz dry white wine
95ml/3oz chicken stock
1 tsp sugar or substitute
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

To cook:
Season pork with salt and pepper
Heat oil in a frying pan on medium heat
Fry pork until cooked and brown, then take out place on a plate and keep warm
Lower heat and cook shallots (or onions) for about 3 minutes
Pour in wine; simmer until reduced for about 2 minutes)
Add chicken stock and sugar and whisk until boils
Add pork and simmer for about 2 minutes
Put pork on serving dish
Whisk mustard into sauce, taste season and spoon over pork.

This is delicious with mashed potatoes and peas or broccoli!!

Enjoy!

Another tip is for mashed potatoes. Sometimes we really are under pressure with time so this may help! Now the recipe above only takes about 20 minutes but making mashed potato makes it a longer process. I know I said healthy eating, but I do believe some frozen vegetables are just as good as fresh and in this case frozen mash is the same!! Iceland do a fab frozen mash for only £1, it has no artificial colourings, flavouring and is GMC free. It is prepared with butter and milk and you can microwave this as your meal cooks. It really does save time and if you don’t tell anyone I doubt they would know the difference! To me it is a great option, healthy, inexpensive, tasty and quick!! Try it….

Tip: Fab Frozen Mashed Potato

2008-09-09T20:11:00.005+01:00

Sometimes we really are under pressure with time so this may help! Now some of my recipes can be made in about 20 minutes but making mashed potato makes it a longer process. I know I said healthy eating, but I do believe some frozen vegetables are just as good as fresh and in this case frozen mash is the same!!

Iceland do a fab frozen mash for only £1, it has no artificial colourings, flavouring and is GMC free. It is prepared with butter and milk and you can microwave this as your meal cooks.

It really does save time and if you don’t tell anyone I doubt they would know the difference! To me it is a great option, healthy, inexpensive, tasty and quick!! Try it….

Tip: Whole Parmesan is Best

2008-09-07T17:12:00.003+01:00

Another little thing I’ve learnt is buying grated parmesan is often expensive and tasteless.

I prefer to buy a piece of Parmigiano Reggiano and grate it as I need it. Not only does it last for ages. It works out cheaper and the smell and taste is fab.

People often say it is expensive, but I bought a 165 gram piece of Parmigiano Reggiano for £2.85 (this was Tesco Finest) and it has lasted us ages and still tastes absolutely delicious, and we don’t skimp on taste.

Tip: For Garlic Heads

2008-09-07T16:52:00.004+01:00

If your family are "Garlic Heads" like mine, I’ve come across a fabulous product in Morrisons Supermarket - I am sure that they sell it elsewhere. It is in the frozen section and it is frozen garlic cloves. You get a re-sealable bag and it is Fab.

I know it has been a lifesaver when I have run out of fresh garlic or am under pressure with time.

The bag has 190 grams and is only about 49 pence. It is made by a company called Fullers Food, and I think it is an invaluable standby to have in my freezer – as my family are garlic heads we tend to use a lot.

Recipe: Chicken Pasta Med

2008-09-07T16:48:00.007+01:00

My first recipe is what I call “Chicken Pasta Med”

What I love about this is that you really can adapt it to whatever vegetables are in your fridge, and it will still taste great. I love tweaking recipes once I have a basic one, and as some people love lots of spice, or garlic or chilli, being able to tweak it then makes it your own “signature dish”.

I have a couple of tips before you start which are in these "Tip" postings– “For Garlic Heads” and “Whole Parmesan is Best”. I should also point out that I use a Fan Assisted electric oven, so you may want to look up conversions from my recipes’ temperatures in degrees Centigrade to Gas Mark numbers or to degrees Fahrenheit – here’s a link that should be useful – Oven Temperatures

Anyway here goes, my family are garlic heads so remember that you can tweak to whatever your tastes are.

Preheat oven to medium, remember this means something different depending on the type of oven that you have.

Ingredients for 2 servings

Olive oil or olive oil spray
150 grams ridged pasta – preferably whole wheat – I like Penne Rigate
(the term rigate, means that that the pasta has a ridged surface rather than smooth.)
Red onion
Cherry tomatoes or tomatoes quartered
1 courgette, sliced
Red, green or any capsicum (or bell pepper)
Tomato puree – in a tube
Garlic (see my posting – “For Garlic Heads”)
Black pepper, ground or freshly grinded
Salt to taste.
220 grams of mini-chicken breast or 1 chicken breast or thigh meat
Basil, optional
Parmesan (or other cheese) optional

Recipe instructions

Put all vegetables in a bowl, add chopped garlic and black pepper, salt and a drizzle of olive oil or spray.
Mix until all coated and then place on an oven tray, and put in oven on a middle shelf for about 20-25 minutes. Turn half-way through cooking.

Meanwhile, put a tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan on a low heat add crushed garlic (fresh or frozen) and let it infuse.

Cut chicken into small slices or bite-sized pieces.

After vegetables have been in oven 10 minutes put pasta on if whole wheat, because it takes longer to cook, or if using ordinary pasta wait 15 minutes.

Start cooking chicken in olive oil and garlic on a low heat, add one table spoon of tomato puree, cook slowly, and add salt and black pepper - seasoning to taste.

When pasta is cooked, drain, add to frying pan with chicken, stir until all coated then take vegetables out of oven, gently stir in, and if using Basil, add now.

Once all mixed, serve, and of course if like us you like Parmigiano Reggiano (or other firm cheeses), grate plenty on top and enjoy!

M

Cooking Real Food for Less Money

2008-09-07T15:19:00.003+01:00

Welcome to my Blog.

The reason I've decided to write this is that in the past few months, every time I go shopping I seem to be spending more and getting less. What with gloom and doom all around us in regards to inflation and the credit crunch it has made me aware of how much I spend on food and to take stock of my ingredients and cost. It never ceases to amaze me, when friends resort to pre-packed, ready frozen meals due to economising.

Now I am not against using the freezer, or the microwave, but my freezer contains basic ingredients or whole food, or food I have cooked fresh and frozen myself. Freshly frozen vegetables are as healthy, if not healthier than fresh ones; it’s just that many of the pre-cooked, packaged, oven-ready or microwave-ready meals which I see are full of processed ingredients and additives that I don’t want to be eating. As they say “always read the labels”.

I love fresh, home cooked food and have started creating healthy cheap, but tasty meals for my family for the same cost or even less, by adapting and modifying recipes, as well as creating some of my own. I’ve realised that if you have basic ingredients in the cupboard, then eating cheaply but healthily is very easy.

I am going to share my meals and news as time goes on and would love comments and feedback, or better still recipes from anyone out there who like me is watching the pennies but wants to eat healthily and cheaply.

I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

Best Wishes

M