Food - what sides are you making to go with main meals?

[ThistleyLions]

I'm looking for any suggestions of cheap, low cost but filling things to go with tea.

I don't want to fall in a rut of having the same few things over and over (rice, baked potato, cous cous, chips) so would be interested to read what swaps people have made to make evening meals more cost effective but still enjoyable and filling.
Thanks 😊

Fat fingers, sent too soon!

Adding also polenta to the list of carbs, very inexpensive and can be served creamy, cooled sliced and grilled or made into chips.

For vegetables I normally pick whatever is in season or on offer, and then either roast or sauté with appropriate seasoning to make sure it is nice and flavoursome (no sad boiled or microwaved stuff in my kitchen).

Sometimes a mixed traybake (root vegetables, or Mediterranean vegetables and butterbeans, or butternut squash and chickpeas) covers both carbs and vegs, making it an easier fix.

Good bread, sliced and toasted, or a quick no-knead homemade focaccia are also good carb options if there's any sauce to be mopped up coming with the rest of the meal!

I opened this quite intrigued as I didn’t think our side dishes had changed at all- usually a carb and some steamed veg. However I then realised that something I have done since dc1 became vegetarian is to make the main vegetarian and the meat the side. So for example this week we had mushroom chow mein with a little bit of shredded leftover roast meat on the side for those who wanted it, or vegan groundnut stew with chicken drumsticks on the side, aubergine pasta with chopped sausages on the side. Always with extra steamed veg. If we do have a meat and veg type meal I always do at least three different veg-my children wouldn’t eat a pile of broccoli for example but would eat an equivalent amount of a bit of each of carrots, peas, green beans and broccoli.

Lettuce looking a bit wilted I cook it with peas (and sometimes bacon) in stock and serve as a side dish.

Chop and cook broccoli stalks along with the rest (I actually prefer the stalks) or use them raw and grated in salad.

More trying to reduce waste than cooking anything interesting!

@ChubbyCapybara the way you do bulger wheat sounds nice I've not really added to it to have as a side rather than add it to other thing to bulk out if that makes sense.
Ive had polenta chips before so would give it a go in other forms, and I think it can be bought from most supermarkets now or do you get it online?
@Orcubed that is a really interesting way of doing things! It would definitely make meat go further but still be able to enjoy it with meals opposed to cut it out.

Side dishes we have regularly and which go down well are:

• Baby spinach with cherry tomatoes, cucumber, finely sliced red onion and oil and lemon juice.
• peri salted skin on chips *cauliflower cheese (DH and I usually have it as a main meal as teen is into high protein/gym and wouldn't skip meat).
• Bombay potatoes
• lettuce wedges with lemon juice squeezed over
• oven roasted vegetables - courgette, garlic, red peppers, mushrooms, red onion, tomatoes (bonus if there's extra for DH and I to have with pasta next day).

Sainsbury's does an own-brand version for £1.35 (400gr) which is the cheapest and easiest easiest to find.
If you go for other brands, make sure it's the "quick cook" version, which is ready in a few minutes, otherwise if you buy plain cornmeal you'll be there cooking and stirring for ages!

@AlwaysLatte the baby spinach sounds lovely. Roasted veg and bombay potatoes seem to be a popular choice as well. Do you do your bombay potatoes in a particular way?
@ChubbyCapybara thanks for the tip!

Broccoli cheese
Cauliflower cheese
Carrot and sweet mash

Swede*

@ThistleyLions It was a bcc good good one, v similar to this:

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/bombay-potatoes

@AlwaysLatte brilliant, thanks for the link 😊