Cooking for one

caronc

PasturesNew wrote: »

I didn't know you could buy Ikea meatballs... I've been to an Ikea and eaten them once, about 25 years ago.

I have picked up a few packs of 40 meatballs in the chilled section in the two budget supermarkets. £1.59 for 40 usually. They freeze and nuke up a treat

Yes the one's from the supermarket are pretty good too. The IKEA bag is 1kg (not sure how many meatballs that is but seems like hundreds) for just over £4 so not so how that compares price wise but maybe not ideal if you don't have a lot of freezer space. If you like the IKEA meatball cream sauce you get in the restaurants and don't want to buy their packet mix or don't have any it's easy to make at home make up 250ml beef gravy granules with 125ml boiling water and 125ml boiling cream or milk, 1/2 tsp of soy sauce and black pepper to taste. Similiarly a some redcurrant jelly, cranberry sauce or raspberry jam works as a side in place of the ligonberry jam they have with it.

Nelski

karcher wrote: »

I can honestly say I don't think I've ever eaten Meatballs of any variety...hardly surprising seeing I was a non meat eater for 30 odd years. But I don't recall ever having them as a child either!!

Are you eating meat now then Karcher? that sounds like a long time to be off meat

PasturesNew

The budget supermarket balls are in a 400 gram pack, so about the same price. They are good though....

They are in the chilled section with an initial life span of about two weeks. I'll typically cook four as a portion, or six if I'm pigging out .... but then they can be tossed into the freezer, often when I am half way through a whole pack. I did buy a pack in for Xmas, which I didn't open, so froze the whole pack - and I've already been in and eaten all of them.

So they are something I cook/use very often, in a variety of ways. It's easy to throw together "something and meatballs".... nuke 4 frozen ones, instant mash, 1/4 of a mug of frozen peas nuked ... a teaspoon of instant gravy ... that's dinner

caronc

karcher wrote: »

I can honestly say I don't think I've ever eaten Meatballs of any variety...hardly surprising seeing I was a non meat eater for 30 odd years. But I don't recall ever having them as a child either!!

They were a staple (Campbells tinned in tomato sauce or gravy) of caravan holidays when I was growing up served with spaghetti or SMASH don't every remember having them apart from that until I was well into my teens and parents started making homemade ones to have with tomato sauce and pasta with a sprinkle of the dried "parmesan" from a tub (boy did I hate the smell of that cheese when you opened the tub:eek:)

caronc

PasturesNew wrote: »

The budget supermarket balls are in a 400 gram pack, so about the same price. They are good though....

They are in the chilled section with an initial life span of about two weeks. I'll typically cook four as a portion, or six if I'm pigging out .... but then they can be tossed into the freezer, often when I am half way through a whole pack. I did buy a pack in for Xmas, which I didn't open, so froze the whole pack - and I've already been in and eaten all of them.

So they are something I cook/use very often, in a variety of ways. It's easy to throw together "something and meatballs".... nuke 4 frozen ones, instant mash, 1/4 of a mug of frozen peas nuked ... a teaspoon of instant gravy ... that's dinner

Sounds like my dinner tonight (sort of...) a handy thing to have on standby

PasturesNew

If I had unlimited freezer space I'd have a lot of "small items" in there to pluck out and plonk on a plate. I mean things like packs of fishcakes, veggie sausages, rissoles in assorted flavours .... things you can grab and add chips/mash to and some veg/beans.

Right now I have the final 3 fish fingers in a pack.... I do love a fish finger toastie

karcher

Nelski wrote: »

Are you eating meat now then Karcher? that sounds like a long time to be off meat

Yes but not very often. I started eating meat again about a year ago, but very, very rarely. I hardly ever buy fresh meat to cook though, I just buy the odd burger, pack of mince or pepperoni pizza etc.

I do eat fish and always have and on the rare occasion I eat out, I always choose fish.

mrssnowy_2

caronc wrote: »

They were a staple (Campbells tinned in tomato sauce or gravy) of caravan holidays when I was growing up served with spaghetti or SMASH don't every remember having them apart from that until I was well into my teens and parents started making homemade ones to have with tomato sauce and pasta with a sprinkle of the dried "parmesan" from a tub (boy did I hate the smell of that cheese when you opened the tub:eek:)

OMG,I had forgotten about the Campbells ,but certainly remembered the smell of the parmesan

mrss

PasturesNew

Until a few years ago you could get some half-sized tins of meatballs in tomato sauce at Mr T.... I used to like those, they were super cheap/tin and gave just one portion.

Now I've usually got a tin of meatballs in tomato sauce in the cupboard - but, once opened, that's two meals, which is why I switched to the chilled ones.....

With a tomato sauce I'll typically serve them with rice or noodles - but have the option of lobbing other stuff in and making them a bit "sweet/sour" if I wish (usually don't as that's extra effort, but I COULD)

PasturesNew

If you like grapefruit (I'm not a fan), Lidl's offers that start today for one week, includes single grapefruits for 29p each.