Cheap and cheerful meals

[SarahJane]

I have finally realised that I am broke, poor, on the breadline....
....however you want to put it, the result is the same!

I am after some really cheap and cheerful ideas for meals. I could live off much less than I spend at the moment I am sure.

Any tips ideas etc would be very much appreciated.

Thanks. x

[red]

cheap cuts of meat, cooked a long time

like hock of pork

[9ball]

yep, cheap cuts of meat. My Absoloute favourite is pork belly, rolled for a fantastic roast, cut into cubes as rillons, makes fantastic chinese meals, cured into home made bacon etc. My number one favourite cut of meat. Other good cuts are breast of lamb and shoulder of lamb, if you roast the shoulder one day you can chop up the leftovers and make a fantastic shephards pie the next. Yorkshire puddings are also a good way of bulking out a meal very cheaply. Shin of beef is excellent value and is very good for slow cooking.
If you make slow cooked casseroles and stews stick some beans or lentils in as they make it go much further.
And if you get fed up of casseroles then knock up some pastry and turn the casserole into a pie! Everyone loves pies!
Homemade soup is cheap and very nice if you serve with homemade bread.

[John Headstrong]

We buy in bulk, tins of beans, tins of tomatos - rice, pasta etc

we help run the (mainly the wife) local food group and we get a orangic veggie bag.

my cheapest meal is I think must be my take on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woolton_pie

I fry a onion with a bit of oil/butter and make white sauce and pour that over the veg, and normally just mash left over from lunch on the top with cheese.

planing meals ahead also helps keep the expenses down
pies from leftovers is a ancient art

[MKG]

Pre-conceived ideas on how much to eat are a big problem if you're pushing pennies. The biggest food cost has to be protein, but you don't need anywhere near as much as you think you do. Current research is averaging daily needs at 10% (11% if you're a veggie) of complete diet (for an average bloke) and slightly less than that for an average woman (and when you meet her, it'll be a world first). Given that protein comes in many forms (grains and pulses certainly, but most foodstuffs contain some), then a 2 ounce portion of meat per day would probably be enough for anyone.

Of course, these are average figures which change if you are particularly active or sedentary, young or old, pregnant or not etc.

EDIT - and I have to admit that if kids were involved, the cheap supermarket chicken would be on the table - children come before chickens - and I'd keep schtumm.

[SarahJane]

I am a veggie so for the most part it would be veggie options, but I still need some good meal ideas for the meat eaters when they are here.

I think that buying in bulk is a good idea but to be honest, would I use it all?

Cooking for one, you become lazy and I dont want to get like that, I enjoy cooking and experimenting but need desperately to save some money.

Thanks. x

[red]

eggs are a cheap good source of protein.

we bulk out food with veg.. so a cottage pie has lots of veg already mixed into it.. an dyou can include beans et.c or you can skip the meat altogether and use pulses.

[Wotta Wally]

I am a veggie so for the most part it would be veggie options, but I still need some good meal ideas for the meat eaters when they are here.

I think that buying in bulk is a good idea but to be honest, would I use it all?

Cooking for one, you become lazy and I dont want to get like that, I enjoy cooking and experimenting but need desperately to save some money.

Thanks. x

Wow - that rings a bell - I'm veggie, I'm single and I'm lazy!

I had to go through a cost cutting exercise a year or so ago and I found a few tips:

1 DO plan your meals for the following week. That way, when you shop, you are only buying for specific meals so cutting down cost
2 Try and bulk buy where possible and if poss, try to avoid weekly shopping - do it monthly (less opportunity of temptation - i even went so far as to doing my shopping once a month online - you will be surprised how much your shopping bill is reduced!)
3 Buy basics eg tins of toms rather than a pasta sauce - more versatile too (soz if I'm teaching you to suck eggs!)
4 One thing I was really bad at was following a recipe which is usually for four but then after the second night, getting bored of it. I invariably ended up throwing some away. Instead, freeze it for a meal another time - when you are feeling particularly lazy!
5 Check out wartime recipes - lots of good veggie recipes there and obviously cheap
6 Pulses are good and cheap. One of my absolute favourites was Boston baked beans. Absolutely stonking meal with some freshly grated cheese on top and some fresh baked bread (soda bread for a quick meal). SO many meat eaters were asking for seconds on that.
7 I also "bulk" cook. For example, if I am making pizza for myself, I will double or triple the recipe and freeze the pizza bases (with the sauce on) for another time - simply take out of the freezer and add your favourite topping of the day.

Hope that helps a little bit. Not any recipe ideas but just a few tips that I hope are useful

[Annpan]

Pasta and tomato sauce

Spaghetti is cheaper than other pasta (or you can make you're own)

Fry an onion in olive oil, put in a few tins of tomatoes, season with basil and black pepper and stir in some peppers, courgettes, a half cup of lentils and some water (a splash of red wine too).

E and JohnM love it (quick and easy too) I have more indulgent tastes... a grating of medium cheddar on the top works a treat

[Milims]

Go to your local chinese supermarket or similar. I just bought 2kg of split peas for £1.25 - so loads of soup! You can pretty much buy all the good basic stuff in large quantities for lots less than your supermarket would charge. As has been said above - go for the cheap cuts of meat and cook slowly (oh - and freecycle for a slow cooker - less electricity and great for cooking slowly). Also ask your butcher for bones for stock - they frequently have quite a bit of meat left on them - which if cooked long and slow just falls off - and they'll probably give you them free. If you are near a supermarket go at the end of the day - they usually have loads of stuff really reduced - frequently to pennies - that you can buy up and freeze - they usually have sell by dates on fruit that expire before they are ripe - go figure! We always buy things like mangoes reduced to clear and they are never ripe - even then! After that - check out wartime recipe books - they certainly have some good suggestions. Having been in the position myself - don't look upon it as being a trial - look upon it as being an adventure - and keep us informend about how you are doing and share the best recipes!

[Cheezy]

Hi SarahJane,

Most peasent food is actually some of the best tasting.

If you don't have an allotment, get down to the market and buy seasonal veg. It'll be cheap. Things like leeks, cabbage ,spuds ,carrots ,swede, cauliflower. Then go to a supermarket or wholefood shop of your choice and buy bags of dried pulses, they are by far the cheapest. You'll have to plan ahead with meals as you'll need to presoak them overnight.
Tins of tomatoes and garlic, some herb like rosemary and thyme at this time of the year should be available, you might know some one who has some for free.
The Italians are great at peasent food, they tend to mix up carbohydrates so you'll get pasta and pulses like chickpeas or lentils mixed up, this tends to stop that hungry feeling 2 hours later if you get if you just eat pasta
THey also mix potatoes and pasta, classic would be fine beans (not in season yet!), potatoes and pesto and a short pasta. Very cheap and filling.
Look for Indian recipes, since they have a lot of vegetarian's, eat a lot of potatoes in different ways, and its nice to spice things up.
I like to make minestrone soup, fresh veg, potatoes,beans,pasta use a vegie stock cube, nice and filling, again mixing carbohydrates up to fill you up cheaply.

But for the ultimate cheap soup you can't beat leek and potato.
I use bayleaf, chicken stock, leeks, potatoes, cook until potatoes soft, then I whizz it up into a silky finish.

[SarahJane]

WOW!

Thankyou all so much for all those words of wisdom! Brilliant! I was starting to get stressed out about things but after reading all this the stress is changing to determination!
I suppose I am a bit of a fussy eater, I dont eat meat, drink milk or eat eggs or yoghurt products. The only dairy product I eat is cheese but I love my veggies and beans etc.
I am going to take alot of what you said on board. I am going to try the monthly shop. I have been trying to go less and less and making up meals with (hopefully) some imagination with what I have in. But a monthly shop would be better I am certain.
I am not a food snob and happy to buy the supermarket own brands, but I am going to have to do that more.
I am going to spend some of my easter break sitting down and planning things more. I tend to act on impulse and go shopping for a couple of items and coming back with stuff I dont really need.
I am also going to clean the freezer out and get organised with meals. I tend to throw far too much out when I could be freezing it!
A big batch of veggie soup will also be on the go this weekend, I will portion it up and freeze a load. I will then be able to take it to work for lunch. No more trips to the sandwich shop with the girls for me!
I am also going to go to the supermarket on my way home from work and see what bargains I can find.
@wotta wally, one of the worst things I do is cook something and plan to have it for the next few nights, and then I dont fancy it and it gets wasted! I will freeze it whilst still fresh, that way it will also save me time when I get in from work after a 12 hour day.
Tommorow I will put step 1 into action. I need to go shopping as the cupboards are pretty sparce but I am going to see how cheaply I can do this!!
Thanks also for the ideas for meat recipes, just because I dont eat meat doesnt mean I wont make "meaty " meals for other people, although I have to say whenever I cook veggie for people they always seem more than happy!
I am going to have to find a cheap (free if poss) slow cooker, that way I can be sure that cheaper cuts of meat will be cooked nice and slow.
As for growing my own, that is the big thing for me this year. I truly intend to grow as much of my own stuff as my small place allows me. Flowers will have to take a back seat, veggies are more important!
My garlic is coming up a treat, even though I planted it a little late so at least I know that whatever I am cooking at the end of the year it will be nice and garlicky!

Thanks again for all the advice and any more is always appreciated. I will let you know how I get on!
Thanks for stopping the stress a little and making me determined!

[farmerdrea]

Heartily agree with the post about peasant food. Wholesome and hearty, and great-tasting. I love pulses and grains, and you can do a lot with all the variations that are out there. Lentil soups and stews are a big fave around here during the winter, and for the meat eates you can simply do a separate pot with some hunks of meat added. Split pea soup is a super-fave, and I add a smoked pork hock to the pot for flavour. All kinds of fresh herbs can be added for flavour, too, for some very filling and nutritious meals. Just experiment with the herbs - so easy to grow, too.

Pumpkin soup (not the season for pumpkins there, I know, but here we can bu them from road-side stands for $1 each) has all kinds of variations and the carotene is very good for you. Our favourite recipe for pumpkin soup is: first, cut the pumpkin in half and roast (cut sides down on the baking sheet) till it's soft and the cut edges have begun to caramelise. Cut up an onion and brown it in some butter and/or olive oil, then scoop the pumpkin meat into the pot. Add vege or chicken broth, and simmer for about 20 minutes. Add a mild curry powder to taste, salt, pepper and half a can of coconut cream or a whole can of coconut milk, and either whisk for a chunky soup or puree for a silky soup.

Roasted vege is nice, though again it's usually winter stores/autumn vege... sorry wrong season for me to be thinking about, as we're heading into winter down here.

All kinds of salads are great and inexpensive, and you can add brown rice or cooked pasta for an interesting taste and texture.

Risottos are also inexpensive and as varied as you want them to be, using all kinds of vege and vege stock.

That's about all I can think of off the top of my head.

Cheers
Andrea
NZ

[dubgirl]

Hi, have you thought about doing menu/meal plan for the week and budgetting accordingly. Also you may want to think about a bread maker and slow cooker, both often available on Freecycle. Cooking from scratch is the cheapest way to go. Dont be afraid of trying the value brands, often the only difference is the packaging. Hope that helps, good luck.

[Wombat]

A bit of supermarket psychology helps too -

Don't go shopping when you are hungry!
Look for "Loss leaders" the stuff that they sell below cost so that they can get you in and then you spend more of your hard earned cash in their shop. So look at what they are selling really cheaply and if you use it a lot or it will store, buy up big!
When I was paid monthly we did the monthly shop too and found that you got one load of "naughty bits" instead of some every time you go in.

Nev