try ( cook ) something new challenge.

lynzpower

oops_a_daisy wrote: »

I tried changing our weekly meal plans a few weeks ago but could not get agreement on any of the new dishes that I tried so gave up in the end funnily enough though the only thing to come out of us trying new stuff was that I made potato wedges just with olive oil and sea salt and they are now a favourite so possibly not such a complete disaster after all. The only other 'new' things that I tried was muffins which were a success, but what I was looking for was a change to main meals like spag bog & chilli con carni because I was getting bored with them. After a couple of weeks of trying new stuff my DD was actually asking for spag bog so thats what we have on the menu tonight

Ooops,

try jazzing up Chilli by having

chilli with rice
chili nachos, salsa, chilli sour cream melted cheese
chilli on jackets
chilli with wedges
chilli in a toasted sandwich or in a savoury pancake
chilli with tortilla wraps or in crispy taco shells

Almost one for every day of the week there!

Nova5

fizzel81 wrote: »

the last new thing i cooked was a few weeks back and i must admit it went down well with 2 of my 3 boys lentil bake it was lovely i got some more lentils from the market yesterday so its something i will cook again.

Fizzel, could I have your recipe for lentil bake please.

aliportico

COOLTRIKERCHICK wrote: »

so basically what i do is put the chicken breast in the slow cooker.. them pour over half a bottle of bbq sauce ..and then just switch it on and leave it for how may hours ?

i have no idea how to use this slow cooker so i need an idiots's manual...lol....will i need any water to keep the chicken moist ?

also i have a bottle of sticky rib sauce ....so i expect i could use that insead of the bbq sauce....

Sticky rib sauce would be fine (sounds really nice actually!). With legs, you don't need to add any extra water; with breasts, I'd just keep an eye on it, add a couple of tablespoonfuls if it's looking dry. I'd do it on low to help prevent it drying out, for about 6-8 hours I guess. Generally I just put stuff when I have a moment in the morning and we eat it when we're hungry!

We're having chicken fajitas tonight - another good way to make a chicken breast go a bit further Some soft tortilla wraps, sliced and fried (or raw) onions and peppers, bit of salad, grated cheese, refried beans if you like them (you can even make your own - really nice), bit of salsa, etc. A nice one that you can all eat together but each person can choose what goes in their own wraps, so the fussier ones can have a fairly plain meal, but the more adventurous ones are happy too.

ViksB

I think everyone goes through phases of cooking and not. The last two weeks we have tried to cook 2 meals a week from recipes, the rest are old favourites or heating up leftovers or homemade frozen food.
Tonight in the slow cooker is an "interesting" dish.
It is Peruvian lamb stew. It contains lamb cubes, fired onions and pureed (garlic (lots), coriander (lots) and fresh chillies) with orange juice and a bit of water. It looks like meat chunks in a green sauce!!
Personally I think it sounds disgusting, but it smells gorgeous at the moment and it fitted the bill. Lamb to use up, corainder in excess in greenhouse, half carton of orange juice in fridge and the last few bulbs of garlic from last year before this years get ready.
The taste is in the eating - will let you know later.

Viks

The stew tasted lovely - different but really nice.

Buffy_the_Vampire_Bat

ViksB - your lamb dish sounds yummy

For the OP - I made myself a list of all the various meals I cook which I find helps when meal planning. All new dishes that are tried and enjoyed are added to this list, so the list is ever changing. I find it's so easy to forget about certain dishes you like, so by having a long list to chose from I try and ensure a good variety. Additionally, I tend to do my meal plans for the whole month at the beginning of each month (nothing is absolutely set in stone, circumstances sometime dictate a change or reordering of the meal plan but I do try and stick to it). When I do the plan, I usually dig out all the cookbooks and go through them for inspiration, looking for ideas and making a note as I go along. Sometimes I stick the books in front of my OH (it's just the two of us at the moment) and ask him to look through and list the recipes he likes the look of. I then try and incorporate at least one of the new recipes/ideas from our lists into each week. As a rule I try to ensure my weekly menu has:

At least 1 soup dinner, 1 "luxury" dinner (e.g. steak, swordfish etc), 1 fish dinner, 1 new recipe and at least 3 veggie dinners. Of course some weeks the luxury dinner could be the new recipe, other weeks it could be one of the veggie dinners, but you get the picture

Oh and leek and butter bean crumble sounds yummy

Raspberry_Swirl

newbiemum05 wrote: »

so will be doing the haddock risotto from the F word this week mmmmm

i like the look of that too! i have the book that goes with the series and i can't find that recipe in there

Flearoy

Hi

I can recommend some really quick and easy recipes that are also cheap and healthy too.

For a quick evening meal, why not try slicing up a couple of handfuls of bog standard mushrooms and shallow frying in olive oil with garlic for a couple of minutes. Boil up some pasta twists, drain them and stir some pesto sauce through to taste. Then add the mushrooms and garlic, stir together and serve. I like Sainsbury's own brand pesto, but Aldi do reasonable ones too. Very inexpensive.

My old favourite is roasted vegetables in a tortilla wrap with homous. Get some veggies (carrots, onions, peppers, courgettes, garlic are all good), slice, add salt and pepper if you like, olive oil and whack in a baking tray in a hot oven until they taste like they are ready to you. No precise timings. You can do other stuff while its in the oven. Get some tortillas, spread with a bit of homous, and fill with roasted veg and scoff. 5 minutes preparation time!

Best tip of all is go to your local supermarket at about 8pm and scout out the reduced stuff. My favourite bargains are fresh bread which can be bought for as little as 10p for a baguette sometimes, which can be cut up and frozen, defrosted and will taste just as good as it did when baked.

Processed stuff is very expensive for what you get; if you are really lazy, do a baked potato in the microwave and have beans and cheese on it!