Reverse Meal Planning

Frugalista

Defrosted what I thought was Haddock to make kedgeree - and it turns out to be Herring fillets - ggrrrr!!  I've looked in the Complete Cooking Collection and it seems that most people say to fry it in oatmeal (I only have regular porridge oats).

Anyone got any other suggestions?  Something I can pop in the oven would be good.

rtandon27

Primrose said:

Wally thinking twice now about stuffed and roasted veg given the power our electric oven needs and the rest cost of fuel  but microwaving them Doesn,t give the same nice crispy edged finish, does it.

perhaps  we need a new thread for low energy cost meals but I can,t remember how to start a new thread!

We've been giving this a lot of thought too @Primrose - our hob & oven are both gas, so I'm quite worried as to what this will mean to our budget going forward - so far our best solution is to cook 4-6 portions and then microwave the extra for a low effort meal on a different day!  We've been perking these meals up with freshly steamed veg and/or potatoes so they actually appear to our tastebuds to be freshly cooked!

CCW007

@QueenJess I've seen peopleuse coleslaw in soup.  Maybe with the vinegar dressing if you added some chilli sauce it could be hot and sour soup?
 

ruby_eskimo

rtandon27 said:

Primrose said:

Wally thinking twice now about stuffed and roasted veg given the power our electric oven needs and the rest cost of fuel  but microwaving them Doesn,t give the same nice crispy edged finish, does it.

perhaps  we need a new thread for low energy cost meals but I can,t remember how to start a new thread!

We've been giving this a lot of thought too @Primrose - our hob & oven are both gas, so I'm quite worried as to what this will mean to our budget going forward - so far our best solution is to cook 4-6 portions and then microwave the extra for a low effort meal on a different day!  We've been perking these meals up with freshly steamed veg and/or potatoes so they actually appear to our tastebuds to be freshly cooked!

We have both electric oven and hob but for reasons like this I've been considering getting an air fryer - I know it's yet another gadget to have but seems to crisp things up a bit quicker than using the entire oven (and I'm sure using less power).  We don't have a microwave so would come in handy for jacket potatoes at least!

joedenise

I've got electric oven and hob and am trying to use them less.  I've got an air fryer and a Remoska both of which use considerably less electric than the main oven; the Remoska in particular which only uses 800w (I have a smaller one in the motorhome which only uses 600 watts).  The air fryer is particularly good for chips and sausages (my air fryer came with baskets to do both these on a rotisserie).  Wouldn't be without either of them.

The one gadget I probably won't replace is the slow cooker.  I prefer my pressure cooker for stews, chilli, curry, cooking beans etc.

rtandon27

Evening ladies - anyone have ideas of how to use up a large (800g) tin of chickpeas?  Usually buy 400g which seems more than enough in any recipe we make & didn't really want to double any of our standard recipes or make houmous!  Do tinned chickpeas freeze?

ferreroreeses

I've systemised my meals to only spend £85/month, for lunch + dinner.

Around 1500 calories a day which I know isn't a lot but my maintenance is around that level.

Not sure how sustainable it is as it involves eating pretty much the same thing every day but I'm 3-4 days in and enjoying it so far!

MissRikkiC

Love reading this thread for inspiration and meal ideas! 

Tonight I shredded the last of a chicken carcass after making stock and just chucked in half a bag of sweet corn from the freezer and some old looking carrots for a chicken veg soup. 

Dinner was left over veg to make a stir fry with a sauce by toddler chucked in the basket without me realising the other day and some store cupboard egg noodles. 

@rt@rtandon27 Roasted chickpeas with chili powder/paprika is nice as a snack, or my late mum used to roast them, cover them in chocolate spread and freeze them for a sweet snack. I would probably chuck them in a curry myself however tonight I actually added a tin of mixed beans to the stir fry for extra protein (no meat) so maybe the sky’s the limit 🤪

joedenise

@rtandon27 - I've never frozen tinned chickpeas but do freeze cooked from dried in can sized portions and they freeze really well.  I can't see any reason why tinned ones wouldn't freeze just as well.  Certainly worth a try.

Dinner tonight is going to be a beef stew from the freezer.

moginstein

rtandon27 said:

Evening ladies - anyone have ideas of how to use up a large (800g) tin of chickpeas?  Usually buy 400g which seems more than enough in any recipe we make & didn't really want to double any of our standard recipes or make houmous!  Do tinned chickpeas freeze?

Hope I'm not too late, but yes tinned chickpeas freeze well, spread them out in a single layer so they don't touch each other, and when they have frozen you can transfer them (e.g. into a ziplock bag). I usually use something like an old ice cream tub lid, like carte d'or with the lip on it for the first part. I do this all the time as I tend to use half a tin in a recipe, but like adding a handful to other stuff as I cook. If they have stuck together, a quick smack on the workspace separates them!