Ideas for random cupboard/freezer ingredients 31 July 2022 at 5:45PM in Old style MoneySaving 23 replies 1.8K views

newlywed

Hello, I seem to have some items bought for forgotten recipes…

anyone got recommendations for:

two tins of pumpkin purée (pref lower carb options)
pork mince lurking in the freezer
taragon dried herb 
marjoram dried herb

JGB1955

I've never heard of (or considered) pumpkin puree...but how about making some pork meatballs with those herbs and (maybe) making some sort of sauce with the puree?  Mix the puree with a tin of tomatoes and more herbs.

joedenise

Tarragon goes really well with chicken dishes.  Marjoram is similar to oregano but a bit milder so would probably be good in mince dishes.

I've never used pumpkin puree and about the only thing I know about it is that it can be used in sweet and savoury dishes.  I think it's probably worth a Google for ideas!

RAS

Pumpkin soup? Perhaps with coconut milk and thyme? And a little chill, if you like?

YoungBlueEyes

A tin of pumpkin pie filling is a good thing for dog owners to keep in reserve. It clears up diarrhoea, saves a trip to the vet. 

Brambling

I have made pumpkin scones with left over fresh pumpkin and the recipe was for tinned purée 

-taff

Pork mince - defrost, add onion powder, fennel, salt, pepper, maybe some paprika, maybe some coriander, maybe some parsely, maybe some sage [pick one, all of those together would be a bit yewk] , smash it up with your hands really well, you won't need an egg, make quail egg size meatballs, fry and add to a sauce of your choosing. Make patties and fry for breakfast with a n egg or two, make meatballs in a casserole, peppers would be nice...dunno, there's loads of stuff you can do with it.

What do you normally do with mince?

newlywed

-taff said:

Pork mince - defrost, add onion powder, fennel, salt, pepper, maybe some paprika, maybe some coriander, maybe some parsely, maybe some sage [pick one, all of those together would be a bit yewk] , smash it up with your hands really well, you won't need an egg, make quail egg size meatballs, fry and add to a sauce of your choosing. Make patties and fry for breakfast with a n egg or two, make meatballs in a casserole, peppers would be nice...dunno, there's loads of stuff you can do with it.

What do you normally do with mince?

I used to do a good meatloaf wrapped in cheese and bacon, but it takes an hour in the oven and we got a bit tired of it to be honest…

I mainly use beef or lamb mince for bolognaise, shep pie (or cottage pie never remember which is beef), kebab type things. Last time I tried to make meatza with pork mince (use mince as a pizza base and top with tomato sauce and cheese) it came out really dry so not sure what I did wrong!

-taff

You could do a meatloaf in the slow cooker then grill the top a little bit for colour. {or air fryer or remoska if you have either]. You can use pork mince for a pasta sauce, with a bit fo fennel it's lovely and light but meaty. [not so much tomato if any,have a google] You could do a keema curry, or keema type naans, stuffed pork rolls, nom, or something like...

YorksLass

Authentic moussaka uses lamb but pork mince is a good substitute.  Likewise, potato slices in place of aubergine if you don't care for that.

newlywed - Cottage pie is beef mince, shepherds pie is lamb (the shepherd looks after the sheep  )

JIL

Newlywed- last time I used pork mince instead of sausage meat in my stuffing, that also came out very dry.
I dont think you did anything wrong, probably the fat content in the pork. I very rarely buy pork mince, it's a difficult mince to use up. 

I would suggest pork, squished with apple, leeks and cheese and made into burgers.

I wouldn't know where to start with pumpkin puree, the herbs would go in my herb drawer and would be added to sauces. Tarragon is good with fish, marjoram could go in bolognese, I think it's a bit like oregano.