Right....heres some to be getting on with!!!
Beef Stew/Ragout sort of thing ? this is enough for 9-12 portions, make the lot and then freeze in 4 batches. Great with Jacket Potatoes, Tagliatelle, Mash or root veg mash, rice ? lots of different ways.
2kg beef shin (I use shin or cheek as they are great for very slow cooking and just divine at the end ? and very cheap cuts too), cut this up into approx. 2cm cubes.
4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped into 1-2cm chunks
4 sticks celery, chopped into 1cm chunks
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed or roughly chopped
2 tins plum tomatoes
1 decent stock cube mixed to about 1pt
Some dried herbs ? thyme or rosemary or both, about 1heaped teaspoon
S+P
Glug of red wine if you got, no matter if not
1 tbls plain flour.
Olive oil
Oven to about 160. Put flour, salt, pepper and cubes of beef in a freezer bag and shake well to coat the meat. Heat about 1½tbls olive oil in large oven proof casserole and brown the meat a bit in batches (too much in the pan and it won?t brown). Remove meat with slotted spoon and put to one side, chuck in the veg and cook on medium heat for about 10 mins til soft. Lob everything else in and the meat. Cover with lid or double foil and pop in the oven. Forget about it for about 4 hours. DONE!
We almost always have a root veg mash with ours as it?s a favourite ? potatoes/swede/carrot, way too much butter for the fat police but so what!
Chicken/fish Goujons ? these are really easy and kids can help too. Again, make loads, cook and freeze then they just need to be reheated in oven at about 170 for 20 minutes.
This is for 8 portions roughly.
2 BIG chicken breast (or 3 medium ones) or a couple of white fish fillets such as cod/coley/haddock etc
6 slices white bread
100g parmesan or pecorino or grana padano cheese
2 tbls mixed fresh herbs ? parsley/tarragon/chives are what I tend to use
S+P
2 eggs, lightly beaten
3ish Tbls plain flour
Olive oil for frying
Put the bread, cheese, herbs and seasoning in food processor and whizz for a couple of minutes til you have fine breadcrumbs.
Slice the chicken breasts into fat finger size. Then put three plates in front of you flour on the left, egg in the middle, bread crumbs on the right. Coat the chicken fat fingers (or fish for that matter) in flour, shake excess off, into the egg and then bread crumbs making sure well coated. Put to one side. I?ve always got the kids to do this ? it?s messy, but it?s easy and they always eat them ? even the fish which they apparently hated?.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan and cook on a medium heat til crispy and chicken/fish cooked. Chicken takes about 6 minutes total, fish 4 maybe. If you make lots, once you've cooked them, just pop them in a bag in the freezer and they're there. They can be reheated from frozen. Well, that's what I do and they're just as good imo.
I generally serve these with salad and some chopped up, thrown in the oven potatoes. Peel, roughly chop into 1-2cm cubes, toss in a bowl with some crushed garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper and then shove in the oven at 190-200 for about half an hour, give them a shake once in a while.
Easy and tasty pasta sauce ? keeps for about 7 days in fridge but freezes too.
2 tins tomatoes
1 large onion
2 cloves garlic
Generous handful of basil
Splash of red if you got
Salt and pepper
½ tsp sugar
Roughly chop onion and garlic, warm some olive oil in saucepan, gently fry onion and garlic for a couple of minutes, lob in the rest, simmer for 15-20 minutes on low heat. Whizz. This makes a fair amount. Good with pasta/spag or with layers of aubergine/mozzarella and parmesan. Thinly slice (about 1cm) 1 large aubergine, brush each side of slices with olive oil, fry in pan til half cooked. Ladle of tomato sauce on bottom of pie dish, then layer of aubergine, slice of mozzarella on each bit of aubergine, more tomato sauce etc etc, then finish off with tom sauce and good grate of parmesan ? 190 for half an hour.
Let me know how you get on - there's a whole heap more!!!