January 2013 Grocery Challenge

Tournament off - win as it makes for a cheaper weekend but still gutted

Off out for dinner tonight with bfs parents - half the price it would have been at the tournament for us both though! And no take away now on Saturday or Sunday so money saved there too

I have pulled out some odd bits of meat that had previously been cooked oh made some home made chips served with some beans all together made another cheap meal from freezer

it's good to see all the stored food in freezer going down still seems to be loads in there.

we are planning to make a fresh curry tomorrow with chicken from the freezer.

Yoghurt Curry with Pakoras
Serves 4

300g natural yoghurt
150g gram flour (also called besan flour)
1 fresh green chilli, finely sliced
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp sugar
Salt, to taste
1 tsp cumin seeds
10 black peppercorns
6 cloves
2 tbsp ghee (optional)
1/2 tsp chilli powder

For the pakoras
150g gram flour
1 medium onion, finely chopped
Big pinch cumin seeds
Four big handfuls frozen peas I added these as the recipe was a bit too "veg light" for me
Vegetable oil for deep frying

Whisk the yoghurt with the gram flour, green chilli, turmeric, sugar, salt and 300ml cold water.

Heat a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds, peppercorns and cloves.

Pour the well-blended yoghurt mix and cook, stirring regularly, until it has a thick consistency and doesn't smell or taste like raw flour. Take off the heat once cooked to avoid burning.

To make the pakoras, make a thick batter with the ingredients and as much water as necessary (don't make this too thin).

Heat the oil and when it starts smoking, reduce the heat and drop in 3 separate tsp of mixture. Cook for a few minutes until golden and scoop out with a slotted spoon, adding the next batch afterwards. Add to the yoghurt curry once cooked.

Heat the ghee in a small pan and add the chilli powder. Alternatively, I poured out a couple of tablespoons of the hot frying oil and added the chilli powder. Pour over the curry and serve without stirring.

I added roast butternut squash as well, as I had some in the fridge. You could add any veg such as cauliflower or mushrooms, or serve stir-fried veg on the side instead. I serve with chapattis, but naan breads or rice would also be nice. I actually halved the recipe to make two portions and it was lovely, and so unusual!

I've added to the index.

NSD Today Yay! Spend of £5.48 yesterday on milk and other stuff, some treats included! Got to go out and buy veg for Sunday's roast tomorrow but other than that trying to get as many NSDs until 24th Jan!

Hi everyone

Right, i have never made soup before, so have been trying to come up with some nice ideas.
So, my new slow cooker came with some recipes, and these 3 soups were included.
I thought i'd post them here as i have heard a few people talking about soups, and i wrote them out earlier for a different thread where someone was asking about freezing soups.
They are slow cooker, vegetarian soups.

I am just about managing to stay within my budget, which is good. I think i'm going to start meal planning breakfasts and snacks, as it helps

Anyway, here are the soups:

All of these serve 4



Leek and potato soup:
25g butter
250g thinly sliced potatoes
900g thinly slices leeks
15g Plain flour
1pint veg stock
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 pt milk.

Heat the butter in a large pan and fry veg in it for 2-3mins
Stir in the flour and add stock
season to taste
bring to boil, stirring continuously.
place mixture in the slow cooker for 3-4hrs (HIGH) or 8-9hrs (LOW)
Add milk for the last 30mins.


Chunky Veg Chilli:

1courgette, cut into 1cm pieces
1pepper (any colour, i prefer red), chopped roughly
75g chopped onion
75g chopped celery
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1-3 tsp chilli powder (depending on your personal preference)
1tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground cumin
2xtins of chopped tomatoes
1 tin sweetcorn
1 tin kidney beans
1 jar of salsa

Add everything to the slow cooker, stir
Cook on HIGH for 4-5 hrs, or LOW for 9-10hrs.

Carrot and Lentil Soup:
2tsp olive oil
2tsp grated ginger
1tsp each of cumin, chilli powder, curry powder and ground coriander
1 and a half red onions, diced finely
2 parsnips, chopped
2 sticks celery
600g carrots, slices
180g red split lentils, washed
50g brown basmati rice
1.3 lires veg stock
2tsp lime juice
4tsp chopped coriander
1 can coconut milk

Heat oil in pan, add ginger, cumin, chilli powder, curry powder and ground coriander, fry on high heat for 3 mins.

Turn down heat and add veggies.

In a seperate pan, boil the lentils for 10mins.

Drain lentils an add to the slow cooker, along with the contents of the other pan, plus the rice.

Stir in the stock.

Cook for 3-4hours (HIGH) or 6-7hours (LOW).

Using a jug/ladle, remove half the soup and set aside.
Add the coconut milk, lime juice and coriander to the slow cooker, and using a hand blender, liquidize the soup.

Then return the un-blended half of the soup, to the slow cooker.

Stir all together, and continue to heat on HIGH for another 20mins.