Cheap meats and ways of using meat

Thriftlady

Have you tried chicken livers? They're very mild tasting and dirt cheap. I buy frozen chicken livers from Waitrose where they are 57p for 250g. They make a brilliant pate which I love on toast for lunch. They're also lovely in a pilaff or a pasta sauce with cream and mushrooms.

Chicken liver pate

Melt some butter in a frying pan, toss in the livers (you should cut away any green parts but in my experience there hardly ever are any). Fry until cooked through -this takes about 5 mins depending on how pink you like them. Add a crushed clove of garlic, some salt and pepper and some thyme if you have any.

Transfer everything to a blender or food processor and blend to a smooth paste. They're so soft you could probably use a fork or potato masher instead. If you have any brandy or dry sherry then it's nice to splash a bit into the empty frying pan, turn up the heat and let it bubble scraping all the delicious juices together and adding to the blender. A splash of cream is good too.

Scrape the pate into a bowl allow to cool and then refrigerate where it will firm up. Gorgeous on homemade wholemeal toast with homemade bread and butter pickles. Wish I had some now.

MallyGirl

I would echo not buying chicken portions. I always buy whole chickens - there are quite often 3 for £10 type deals. If we roast the chicken then I remove all the meat I can afterwards then pop the carcass in the slow cooker to make stock. This then often becomes chicken risotto with all the tiny bits picked off the chicken. If we want a stir fry or casserole then I joint up the rest of the chicken and the dogs get the remaining raw carcass (they are raw fed).

Pollycat

missbiggles1 wrote: »

That sounds tasty.

I'm not mad on lambs liver either, although I do (perhaps surprisingly) also enjoy ox - I don't suppose you've ever made it with ox liver?

I've always thought ox liver was even stronger tasting than pigs?

I used to cook pigs liver (for me and the cats, I'd have a plateful of liver and onions) but OH only likes lambs liver.

mardatha

I don't like pig liver but we eat lambs liver once a week. OH has pernicious anaemia and needs it. The only way I know to cook it is to fry it with bacon - then it makes the bacon go so much further. I buy it from Sainsbugs and divide it into 3 portions then freeze two. My hubby says his mum did stewed liver casserole but I'm scared to try it.
I have had chicken livers and they are very tasty and tender, and 50p!
If nothing else then you could fry the liver cube it and add to stews or casseroles?

Need2bthrifty

I found a really nice recipe for "faggots in a rich gravy" on Frugal Queen's blog, it used belly pork, liver and bacon offcuts - cheap as chips to make and made loads, but this could vary depending how big portions you like, mine were about the size of a billiard ball.

missbiggles1

Thriftlady wrote: »

Have you tried chicken livers? They're very mild tasting and dirt cheap. I buy frozen chicken livers from Waitrose where they are 57p for 250g. They make a brilliant pate which I love on toast for lunch. They're also lovely in a pilaff or a pasta sauce with cream and mushrooms.

Chicken liver pate

Melt some butter in a frying pan, toss in the livers (you should cut away any green parts but in my experience there hardly ever are any). Fry until cooked through -this takes about 5 mins depending on how pink you like them. Add a crushed clove of garlic, some salt and pepper and some thyme if you have any.

Transfer everything to a blender or food processor and blend to a smooth paste. They're so soft you could probably use a fork or potato masher instead. If you have any brandy or dry sherry then it's nice to splash a bit into the empty frying pan, turn up the heat and let it bubble scraping all the delicious juices together and adding to the blender. A splash of cream is good too.

Scrape the pate into a bowl allow to cool and then refrigerate where it will firm up. Gorgeous on homemade wholemeal toast with homemade bread and butter pickles. Wish I had some now.

I love chicken livers, whether made into pate or just simply fried.

When I'm in France, I eat a lot of rabbit and you can also buy rabbit liver separately which is both cheap and delicious.

missbiggles1

Pollycat wrote: »

I've always thought ox liver was even stronger tasting than pigs?

I used to cook pigs liver (for me and the cats, I'd have a plateful of liver and onions) but OH only likes lambs liver.

I know it's supposed to be (my mother used to soak it in milk for that reason) but I don't find it so.

missbiggles1

Scrimps wrote: »

No, I take it Im supposed to?:o I shall give that a go, do you use a particular recipe? I tried following one I found on google but really mucked it up. It was a weird sloppy mess with a lambs heart in the middle. I ate it because I didnt want to waste it but it didnt exactly add to the experience

I have to confess that stuffing lamb's hearts is the only thing I use packet s&o stuffing for.:o

I think you soak them to get the blood out as that's what can taste odd.

DigForVictory

We make mince go a chunk further not just with extra veggies but with handfuls of porridge oats. They disappear into the juices but pin the flavour - absolutely worth trying!

Pollycat

DigForVictory wrote: »

We make mince go a chunk further not just with extra veggies but with handfuls of porridge oats. They disappear into the juices but pin the flavour - absolutely worth trying!

I think lentils work well too.