Reverse Meal Planning

MissRikkiC

Oh I love a Jamie O recipe. Thanks SL. I too turn over the oven shelves but more often do it in the grill like EH to toast something/melt cheese faster 😝

EssexHebridean

Oh bother and blast - having just seen the Agile prices for tomorrow I'm going to be reorganising my meal plan! I can sense a cheese and crackers tea coming on tomorrow! 

MissRikkiC

I really couldn’t find that recipe SF, I even looked back at catch up for yesterday with Jamie but the recipe for black beans I couldn’t find. I instead have found a black bean stew which I’ve not got half the ingredients for but I’m making it anyway. Will let you know how it is! 

Suffolk_lass

This is the one I posted about @MissRikkiC - Beef stew with cobbler style dumplings 

Just to add, it is a really good idea to put pasta bakes in the fridge or freezer as the carb properties of the pasta is changed after chilling and reheating. I think that is what I shall do with the bag of minced beef that I have defrosting this morning

redofromstart

All suffering with different stages of a  grotty cold here so we have made do with what we have, although with 2 out of 3 local supermarkets suffering with flooded carparks and the third allegedly empty of most F&V I think this would have been the case regardless. 

Soup made with frozen base mix and a bag of butternut squash, 100g red lentils, and a sprinkle of chipotle chilli flakes,  some smoked paprika and veg stock.  Made in the soup machine.
Bread made in the machine.
This will be late lunch 

Dinner will be chicken korma (meat from the freezer, sauce from the emergency jar) served with instant pot rice.  It does have a rice function.  I just need to work out how to use it.

All of the gadgets out today.  

EssexHebridean

Hurrah for gadgets when we're feeling a bit under the weather Redo. Hoe you're all feeling back up to speed soon. 

We are indeed going with cheese and crackers this evening, and I'll pull out a tub of ragu to have tomorrow evening I think - we can take our pick whether to turn that into a chili and have with rice, or just keep it simple with pasta. 

redofromstart

Rice in the Instant Pot was not a success. No instructions in the manual so I followed the guide on their website.  That said 250g rice plus 250ml water for 6 minutes on rice then 10 minutes natural release. The pot itself wont let you do that, so its 12 minutes auto set for rice, and I still gave it the 10 mins NR.  Some of the rice is ok, some of it breaks your teeth.  A good portion is stuck to the bottom.  I managed to get enough out for their meals but confidently expect it to be left uneaten.  If anything I was slightly over generous with the water, and I had pre rinsed the nice gold basmati.  Soaking the pot itself to get the glued on rice off before it goes in the DW.  A saucepan and lid takes less space.  Waily waily waily.

I am dipping my nice HM bread into the curry sauce in the absence of any edible rice.

EH, the BNS DS said that the soup was 'good but not as good as that coconut and chorizo one'

(slopes off to admire rice cookers)

JingsMyBucket

@redofromstart I always use the Manual button for rice in my IP. Next time try Manual + 6 min cooking + 10 min release for white basmati rice. For brown it’s 18 min cook and 10 min release. Usually I put a lump of coconut oil in there too before locking the lid. That helps prevent sticking. 

This website is gold for IP rice times:

https://www.pressurecookrecipes.com/instant-pot-basmati-rice/

https://www.pressurecookrecipes.com/instant-pot-brown-basmati-rice/

https://www.pressurecookrecipes.com/instant-pot-rice/ (jasmine)

https://www.pressurecookrecipes.com/instant-pot-rice-recipes/

https://www.pressurecookrecipes.com/instant-pot-wild-rice-blend/

https://www.pressurecookrecipes.com/instant-pot-chinese-sticky-rice/

https://plantbasedinstantpot.com/instant-pot-red-rice/ for Camargue red rice 

redofromstart

Thank you @JingsMyBucket, I will try that next time.  

JingsMyBucket

@rtandon27 to answer your question regarding the shortcrust vegetable tart. I started doing this a couple years ago as a “use up the elderly veg” mechanism. The basic premise is to use a sheet of flat shortcrust pastry. Don’t bother blind baking it. 

• Make a sauce or vegetable sauté of some kind that can handle lots of leftovers. That would usually be a tomato sauce of some kind or at least freshly chopped tomatoes and everything is cooked down a bit 
• Brown some meat or use leftover meat
• Use lots of herbs 
• Spread your sauce on the shortcrust pastry. Again, could be tomato based, pesto (green or red), olive tapenade, etc. 
• Lay down your vegetables and meats 
• Sprinkle some cheese. Straggler cheeses are good for this as well. I like mozzarella, whether wet or drier. Also shaved Parmesan. Cheddar, bleu, aged gouda, anything works really well as long as you know it’ll melt a bit. 
• Drizzle some more olive oil and maybe red pepper flakes over the top for extra flavour. 
• Bake for about 10 — 13 min on roughly 170C in a fan oven. Ours is so wonky that I’m used to its strange ways. Bake until the crust browns. 
• When it’s done, sprinkle fresh parsley over it. I tend to get 8 slices out of one sheet. 

See the picture below for our last concoction where I used the Italian flavoured sausage from M & S and some homemade veg packed tomato/pasta sauce. I added fresh red onion before baking it. 

We tend to do this dish every 2 or 3 weeks, especially if there are bits to use up. It’s an easy kitchen sink dish.