Recipe ideas for tinned food/store cupboard essentials

[Thepigeonsarecoming]

If we do get put in lockdown, does anyone have any recipes to share to make boring food exciting? I have basics in, but tbh without fresh food like chicken breasts I’d struggle. Any inspiration?

Corned beef hash, tomatoes on toast (yummy), a tomato based pasta dish (if you have pasta), tinned fruit with evap - straight from the 1950s/60s, likewise spam fritters :-). Rice is nice with corned beef, tomatoes and onion.

I've ordered tinned Irish stew from Amazon, will receive it in about a week. That will be novel.

How do you do the rice and corned beef with tomato and onions?

I generally eat vegetarian food. One great idea ISSO called "nourish bowls" or "Buddha bowls". Google them....loads of variations..... canned chickpeas make a good base.

Thank you @billhadersnewwife, I don’t have chickpeas but I’ll take a look

If you have chicken cuppasoup, cook some pasta, add the cuppasoup with milk and butter and top with cheese. Absolutely love this anyway. It also tastes good on toast lol

@GAW19 I always have cuppasoups, I don’t do cheese. But adding butter and milk to anything in my eyes makes it better! So essentially your using it as a pasta sauce, very clever!

I think spices are the answer, plus any fresh herbs from the garden or verges that you can get your hands on.

For example, I find baked beans far too sweet. I’d need some cayenne pepper, and a bit of savoury cumin to make them edible.

Or make a bit of spiced broth to cook your rice or noodles in. Just a couple of bits of hard spices (star anise, cloves, juniper) in a small pot of water. Equally, hard herbs like rosemary, sage or thyme.

If I have to eat packet/tinned carbs for ages, at least they’ll taste different every night!

Idahoan brand packet mash is good paired with tinned this and that (and granule gravy). Tastes like the real thing —unlike Smash—.

Have a look at Jack Monroe’s website. She also has a book called ‘Tin Can Cook’.

Scones are quick and easy to make. Using basic ingredients. (Self raising flour, sugar, milk, butter, baking powder) They are easy enough to do with the kids too. They also freeze well.

I often make fruit ones they make a nice sweet treat. But will make cheese scones as a bread alternative. Bread stocks are very low in the shops just now.

Lots of lentil recipes online too that use just tins, herbs and garlic.

Lentil curry and lentil Bol are both dead easy.

Add quick cooking soup pasta (any very small pasta) to tinned soups to make them into more substantial meals.

Add extras such as chopped peppers, peas, mushrooms, chopped bacon or ham, to instant noodles for some interest.

Think about combining different tins to make a meal, eg frankfurters and a couple of different types of beans to make sausage stew.

Make sardine sauce to go with pasta.

Wow some amazing ideas, thank you

Tuna pasta www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/linguinewithtunafish_70041
Falafel www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/homemade_falafels_with_30527
Microwave chilli www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/microwave-chilli
Tuna burgers www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/tuna-sweetcorn-burgers
Sweetcorn chowder www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/sweetcorn_chowder_20226
Fancy beans on toast www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/tuscan_beans_on_99053

Tuna pasta is one of the only meals I can do!!

Thank you @Ricekrispie22

I get long life packets of feta cheese. Together with onions, kidneys beans, tomato purée, smoked paprika, garlic and cumin it makes a great pasty filling. Pastry made with margarine that can be keep in cupboard if you don't have butter.

Chorizo keeps in cupboard too. Can make lentil and chorizo stew with tinned toms, onions and frozen carrots.

Thepigeonsarecoming Thu 19-Mar-20 05:45:57
Tuna pasta is one of the only meals I can do!!
.
Ooh that's nice, pigeon! I'd forgotten about that one, I have some tins of tuna in the cupboard. Yum! Thanks.

Store cupboard chorizo fried. Add an onion or 2. Add a tin of beans- cannellini, chickpeas, white kidney beans or butter beans etc. Then squirt in some tomato paste. Make a very filling side dish.

Pigeons - just cook the rice as you normally would, boil or steam, could use a stock cube but for me the flavour from the meat dish is enough. In another pan gently fry onion, corned beef cut into chunks,some tomatoes - anything else you fancy that you have handy, maybe peas - put it on the rice and eat. It's lovely and it's easy. I'm presuming people have some onions of course and I suppose they will run out eventually. I know folk do buy jars of prepared onion, I never have but it would be convenient to have one in the cupboard for emergencies.

You can get big bags of chopped frozen onion in Iceland. I took a mini veg delivery round to all my elderly neighbours last night. A couple of carrots, onion, baking potato apples as I'm worried they will run out of fresh veg.

Chopped tomatoes, anchovies, dried Italian seasoning, chilli flakes, teaspoon capers, onion (if available) and garlic (fresh, frozen or powder) add to pasta.

Egg fried rice is quick & easy and uses few ingredients, but still a tasty lunch.

One onion and a garlic glove - sweated.
Add a handful of red lentils, a tin of tomatoes, a squirt of purée, a stock cube and 300mls water.
Cook for half an hour.
Liquidise.
Add seasoning and a dash of Worcester sauce if you have it.