PLEASE help us eat properly!!!

bobbadog

Hi Pink_butterfly. Myself and my OH never get home before 7, and usually nearer 8, but I can't bring myself to spend money on takeaways. What saved us really is the stirfry. I love my wok. We love prawn terriyaki, prawns, sauce, ginger, veg and served on noodles - can make it in 10 mins scratch as prawns take little heating and noodles take 4 minutes. Cheat and use a food processor for chopping if you have one; no need to wash it between veggies, all going in the same pot. For a treat we sometimes get crispy seaweed - and that only takes 3 mins in the oven.

Curry can be rustled up in 25, as can bologanise, lasagna (meat or a veggie one), sausage and mash (or chips and beans) in teh same time. Myself and OH try and have just one naughty 'batterered frozen fish and waffles' style meal a week. Good luck.

newlywed

Here's something that may make you think twice about ready meals...

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/14122006/140/ready-meals-contain-glass.html

janeloz

Hi

We had this meal tonight which is both healthy and cheap, the following quote is stated at the top of the recipe in the book 'The beans add fibre to this dish, while the lentils in the soup mix are iron-rich.'

Gently fry 1 chopped onion, 1 chopped celery stalk and 1 chopped carrot in 1/2 tbsp olive oil for 5-10 mins. Add 60g pancetta cubes (98p for 120g in tesco) and 1.5 cloves chopped garlic and fry for 5 mins. Pour over a can chopped tomatoes (Tesco value - 15p) and cover with 1 pint chicken stock (2 for £1 = 24 cubes at Tesco at the mo, equivalent to 0.5p per cube!!). Add 75g of pre-soaked (I do mine overnight) Soup & Broth mix (65p at Tesco for 500g) and 150g borlotti beans (27p) and cook for 30 mins. I also add some pasta, usually something small like macaroni or similar, along with the beans (value pasta at Tesco is 19p for 500g). Then I also put some bread and butter on the table for mopping up! This served 4 of us tonight.

If I've worked it out correctly it comes to approx. £1.22 for the 4 portions and its absolutely lovely. The kids love having this.

Jane

lil_me

I usually get my pre cooked out the night before then it also cooks quicker. I've just got into this aswell, first thing I made in the slow cooker was a batch of bolognese sauce, froze enough for 2 portions each, chilled another load and made lasagne enough for 4 portions the next morning (at 6am as I happened to be up and the children were in bed, baked them had enough for tea and 2 portions in freezer. I just put a freezer bag into the tub, freeze it then pop it out of the tub as I have very little room for tubs in freezer and cupboards.

Casserole/stew/hotpots also great, you can cut the veg the night before and store in water to go in the slow cooker the next day if it's easier with the little ones.

Wok is great for quick stirfry, but I have also decided to make chicken curry this week in the slow cooker and freeze portions to reheat.

One thing I would advise for reheating is invest in a probe, so you know it's all reheated properly, especially for the little ones.

Best of luck with this, I may sound like I've been doing it for ages but am also very new to this, this forum has been a god send, we also lived on ready meals and takeouts and not only have I saved a fortune but DP has lost over half a stone aswell in a month because we are eating more healthy. Now I make our own ready meals. As my printer is broken I tend to take the laptop into the kitchen when cooking for recipes, saves running between rooms.

Psykicpup

hello my dear!
yesterday I realised at work that I had forgotten to get anything out the freezer for dinner so on the way home I bought a pack of chicken joints & mushrooms from my butchers. when I got home (about 4.30) I slammed the chick in the oven (cold oven at that) to roast for 1/2hr while I started decorating the tree- hour later chick wasnt burned so ..mushies in bottom of slow cooker (hubby not home till 7.30 ish) with a roughly crushed garlic & some oregano, chick on top -3 chick oxo crumbled over & hot (ish) water to cover - turned slow ccooker to high - hubby came home about 6.30 so gave it extra 1/2hr (7pm) & then thickened with gravy granules.. lovely

you could of course save some & chop/puree for the little ones too (is 4month old weaning yet?) just be ccareful with stock cube/gravy granules because of the high salt (esp if using instant mash)

Most meals can be adapted to be served early for little ones & then spiced up for mum & dad!