Store cupboard challenge

AgentSpike

Hi, I've just joined this forum and I think it's an excellent idea! My store cupboard is turned over pretty quickly with staples such as tuna, tin toms, tom puree, beans, gravy, tinned fruit etc... I also have lots of dried herbs and stock cubes. Where I fail epically is with the fridge and freezer items. I get annoyed when I have to throw away food from the fridge that hasn't been used or gone mouldy. Our best excuse for getting a takeaway is because we haven't "got anything out of the freezer" the night before! Anyhow, I am determined to create a week by week menu to save on takeouts, and running to the shop for a leek because the recipe says so (and inevitably spending more than the price of a leek). I'll post a couple of thrifty recipe ideas that we do use regularly: )

AgentSpike

Calde Verde - A posh sounding sausage casserole I think. Absolutely delicious and cheap and you can throw almost anything in. I use my slow cooker

Ingredients
Sausages (any variety) or Quorn ones if vegetarian
Onions sliced ( any lurking in the fridge, White, brown, red or spring ones)
Garlic chopped (optional)
Chilli peppers chopped (optional)
Veg Stock or water
Paprika or Chilli Powder (a must)
Tin of tomatoes
Cabbage sliced (white, red or savoy)
Potatoes (new or any others peeled and diced)
Any other veg you have in the fridge chopped ( this recipe loves all veg)
Some times I will add left over bacon or left over spicy sausages, but this is not nessacey

Method
Chuck all the above into a slow cooker and set on low.

This has been known to feed us for two days and my hubby will take any left overs in his flask for lunch.

AgentSpike

My Take on Minestrone Soup

Ingredients
Dried Spaghetti or other small pasta shapes
Veg stock or water
Tomato Puree
Dried herbs (mixed or basil or oregano, or whatever you have to hand)
Any Veg chopped in small dice (seriously any veg that needs using)

Method
Starting with the hardest veg (carrot, swede onions etc...) fry in a little oil for a few mins, then add softer veg and continue to fry for a couple of mins, add tomato puree and cook out for at least two mins, and dried herbs.
Add water or veg stock, bring to the boil and add pasta, simmer for 20 mins then serve.

Will freeze and very filling!

chog24

One of our standby meals is pastina. Basically just small pasta (or broken up spaghetti if you don't have small pasta) cooked in stock instead of water. You can eat it with bread, of course, but you've already got carbs in the pasta so you don't need to.

You can throw any number of things to chunk it up a bit. It's particularly good with parmesan grated into it (my partner's Italian, so we always have fresh parmesan in the fridge), but another alternative is to put a cheese spread triangle at the bottom of the bowl before you pour in the soup and mash it into the soup with the back of your spoon to create 'creaminess' in the soup.

We probably eat this a couple of times a month in the winter and it costs literally pennies.

One of my favourites is:
1 tin of chick peas
2 chicken stock cubes (we prefer knorr)
100g pastina or broken up spaghetti
a few slices of dried chorizo if we have it in (we love it and it lasts ages, so we often do)

Boil it all up in a pan until the pasta is tender. Serves 2.

Jelly_Biactol

for anyone with a stock of polenta in their cupboard and is stuck for recipe ideas....


CREAMY GARLIC AND ROSEMARY POLENTA
recipe by Peter Gorton from ‘Devon Food Heroes’ book

Roast Garlic

Ingredients:
3 x heads garlic
1 x tablespoon olive oil
salt & pepper
1 x sprig thyme
1 x sprig rosemary

Method:
Cut the garlic in two across the head to expose the cloves. Drizzle the oil, season and set cut-down on the herbs on an oiled oven tray. Bake for 1 hour at 120F / fan oven 100C / gas 1/2 (ie, half).


Polenta
(this is a generous amount!)

Ingredients:
700mI x full cream milk
150mI x double cream
2 x sprigs rosemary
110g x polenta (yellow corn meal)
50g x Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 x tablespoon unsalted butter
salt & pepper
6 x cloves of roasted garlic, as above

Method:
Place milk, cream, rosemary and garlic in a saucepan and bring almost to a boil. Pour the polenta into the milk and whisk well until blended. Stir constantly over moderate heat until mixture returns to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring often for about 20 minutes or until the polenta is cooked and thickened. Fold in the Parmesan cheese and butter, season to taste.

chog24

Tuna pasta salad is another of our quick-and-easy staples. This recipe is also a massive winner as a take-along dish for parties and barbecues because it's popular with kids and adults alike.

Ingredients for 2 people:

1 tin tuna
200g pasta (bows or twists work best)
juice of 1 lemon
handful of fresh parsely, chopped
olive oil to taste
one clove of garlic (optional)
fresh parmesan (Too expensive? Get yourself to Lidl; they're great for continental meats and cheeses!)

Method:

Boil a pan of salted water and when it's bubbling nicely, add the pasta and give it a stir. Keep coming back to stir it every minute or so - don't worry, the rest of the recipe is so easy you'll have plenty of time for this!

While the pasta's boiling, drain the tuna and empty it into a large mixing bowl.

Add the parsley (roughly chopped), optional garlic clove, lemon juice, olive oil and a grated parmesan. Flake the tuna and mix the ingredients together.

When the pasta is ready, drain it and rinse it under the cold tap for about 20-30 seconds. Remember, pasta should be "al dente", so if the packet says 10 minutes, try it at 8 minutes. It's ready when there's a small dot of white in the middle if you bite through to reveal the cross-section.

Mix the pasta into the tuna-mixture thoroughly, garnish with a bit more grated parmesan and freshly milled black pepper if you like.

This is possibly the easiest dish I know. It's a staple for us and is so, so good. We generally make four portions for the two of us and then we both have some to take to work for our lunch the next day.

Jelly_Biactol

Kitchenbunny wrote: »

The next thing to use up from my cupboard is the quinoa

recipe ideas courtesy Mrs Simkins, http://www.mrssimkins.co.uk/

Cooking with Quinoa
Quinoa is a useful staple for the smallholder: unusually for plant material, it is rich in protein which means it can be served as a meal in itself, accompanied by plenty of home-grown vegetables, rather than as a side dish.
When prepared properly, quinoa makes very good eating, the tiny succulent grains are nutty and slightly chewy in texture, and it is the perfect foil for just about any vegetable. If you grow your own, although it is an easy and rewarding crop, the harvested grains are coated in bitter, soapy tasting saponins which must be removed before eating.
You might like to soak the grains for a few hours, changing the water several times until it runs clear. Alternatively, you can rinse them under running water in a fine sieve or through a muslin or jelly bag.
If you buy packaged quinoa, it tends to come pre-washed, so unless specifically instructed otherwise, you should be able to use it without any further rinsing.
Although you can make a plain porridge with quinoa, it responds well to robust flavours and spices such as onions and garlic, curry, chilli, ginger and cumin: as well as containing plenty of protein, fibre, minerals and amino acids, it is gluten-free.


Curried Quinoa and Vegetables

Quinoa is very filling so around 100g per person is plenty for even the hungriest person. Those with smaller appetites may prefer around 60g.

Serves 1-2, adjust quantities proportionally

1 onion, sliced, plus garlic if available
Approximately 2 tablespoons mild oil
1 level dessert spoon of Madras curry paste, or to taste (or use curry powder to taste, if you prefer)
120g quinoa, rinsed if home-grown (see above)
Around 400ml cold water
Plus a selection of vegetables such as:
Sliced salad onions, sliced courgette, peas, mange tout, matchsticks of carrot, small florets of broccoli or cauliflower, shredded cabbage, strips of bell peppers, sliced chilli peppers to taste

Fry the onion in the oil until golden. Add the garlic, if using. Stir in the curry paste or powder and cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the quinoa (as dry as possible if rinsed) and stir to coat in the oil. Cook for around 3-5 minutes, stirring often.

Add the water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for up to 20 minutes until the quinoa has absorbed virtually all the liquid and is soft, yet still with some bite.

Meanwhile, prepare and stir fry your vegetable selection. Once the quinoa is cooked, serve immediately, topped by the vegetables.

You may like to serve the quinoa on a bed of baby spinach leaves and accompany it with sliced tomatoes. If you keep your own hens and are really hungry, you could add some quartered hard boiled eggs.

You can also serve this cold as a salad.

Try making similar dished using a base of fried chillies, garlic and ginger, or chilli and cumin in addition to the onions.

welshmag

Could someone please explain what &amp is in some of the recipes.
Many thanks

Frogletina

welshmag wrote: »

Could someone please explain what &amp is in some of the recipes.
Many thanks

I've just googled it and is something to do with upgrades made to the forum after these posts were written.


Just replace '&amp' with the word 'and'.

beth305

I haven't been on this thread before and have been reading old posts. It was a long way back in the thread but I noticed that people asked how to use up cucumber.

I use it in stir frys - and lettuce too - they work fine. I also stir lettuce and similar leaves into risottos about 5 mins before they are done and the leaves wilt in nicely and give a bit of colour and texture.

Lettuce (and similar) is OK in meat/bean curries too - just add at the end. It has a similar consistency to spinach.