48 hours, 1000 posts consisting of FAST, CHEAP and GOOD, over here please.

[HoneyDragon]

No smugginess, no social commentary or judginess.

I want EVERYONE'S go to, cheapest stand by meals that they use, on one cosmic, love in thread of sharing and nicety.

Lets help each other out with a bit of inspiration.

Tin of Corned beef.
half a mug of lentils.
Onion.
2 medium potatoes.
Vegetable Stock cube.
Gravy granules.
Fry corned beef and onion, mushing up corned beef as you go, add 1 and a half pints of vegetable stock. Cube potatoes, chuck in, chuck lentils in. Skim of scum from lentils as you go. Allow to reduce a little and add some gravy granules to thicken.
Serves four, we serve with extra mash or rice. Again, very filling and only takes about half an hour.

Parsnip soup.

Which is in fact parsnip and any other old veg hanging around soup. Boil veg. Drain. Add milk and veg stock until it's soupy whilst blending with stick blender. Serve with bread.

Cheat's minestrone.

Add veg stock to pasta sauce. Throw in a tin of kidney beans and some small pasta or broken up spaghetti. Cook until beans/pasta are cooked. Top with spinach and/or pesto if you happen to have any. Serve with bread, garlic bread is especially nice.

Will try that pork

And the cheese scone cobbler sound heaven

Tomato Risotto

Chop an onion (can also do celery if you have any)
Soften in a pan with oil or butter.
Add risotto rice and stir for a minute or 2.
Slowly add some passata alternating with stock until its all soaked up and the rice is cooked.

You an chuck in mixed herbs/cheese at this point.

Stir and serve.

You can add bacon bits, chorizo, prawns whatever you have laying about in the fridge/freezer.

It's nice and filling and fairly cheap. There is a lot of stirring but I can stir whilst mning on my phone. :D

Thankyou for your contribution Pidge

Bulked out potato salad.

Cook new pots, cool.
Fry bacon chunks or chopped.

Chop up spring onions, cold cuts, red onion, peppers etc

Bung it all in a bowl and chuck in half a jar of Hellmanns
Mix it all together and stick it in fridge for 20mins.

We like it with salad as a meal or it makes a good side for barbecues etc.

Yum, Wallace, I am trying that tomorrow. I love potato salad!

Risotto is my nemesis. I love it but it seems so hard to get right so I never bother. Might try a couple of these risotto recipes, though!

We've just had spicy sausage pasta thing.

Fry onion and peppers, lob in tinned toms. Stick lid on to reduce a bit. Add chopped sausages chilli powder, any other Indian spices that you have lurking. Stir in cooked pasta.

I use the spicy tomato mixture for casseroles as well. Just add stock to it, other veg and sausages and slow cook in oven.

I am known as the bread queen though which is slightly worrying . Whenever in a rush I'm most likely to produce "bread and something". Bacon sarnies, hot dogs (with proper sausages), pork mince burgers etc

Ooh pork mince burgers are quick actually.
Open pack of mince.
Pick up ice cream scoop or melon baller.
Scoop out ball of mince
Roll in bowl of herbs/salt and pepper/chilli
Place on oiled baking tray and flatten slightly
Bung in oven until cooked through.

Not great for a burger making competition but v handy when you need to knock something up fast and cba to faff mixing in the spices. Also handy for cooks with rings, eczema, cuts on hands which are always a nightmare when trying to mix spices into a bowl of raw mince as it gets everywhere.

Not sure whether to post this one.

Put pork or turkey mince in a bowl.
Make up a pack of paxo sage and onion stuffing mix as per packet instructions
Add to the mince.
Pick up the trusty melon baller/ice cream scoop
Dollop onto baking tray, flatten slightly.

Or before balling, scoop into pastry cases and you have tarts.

I use these when DD (2.5) is helping make dinner. Surprisingly nice with wedges and salad or roasted veg and gravy.

pesto tuna pasta (with mushrooms)

Cook pasta
stir in pesto and a tin of tuna
add some fried mushrooms if you like them
Serve with grated cheese.

Have lived on this dinner for a long time

Haven't read the thread, so this is probably a repeat -
Lentil.stew - red lentils, stew pack (hopefully reduced), a couple of stock cubes, a bit of marmite and ,well, anything else you fancy chucking in. It is a stew! Serve with your choice of carbs, depending on how many hungry people thre are to feed.

Eggs rancho
Chop a green chilli an onion and a pepper and fry in olive oil. Then add a tin of tomatoes, a big squeeze of Tom purée and a teaspoon or two of ground cumin and coriander. Leave to simmer for 15 mins - then add a little sugar spoon onto a tortilla wrap and top with a fried egg. Also lovely with a little grated cheese!

Meatballs with pasta or rice.

Whole pack of turkey thigh mince
Heaped spoon of english mustard
Squirt of ketchup
One egg
Three slices of brown or white bread made into crumbs
Plus either curry powder and chicken stock cubes
Or tinned tomatoes and thyme, dried or fresh

Mix the ingredients together.
Shape into balls and start to gently fry as you go. If you're cooking it for rice you can add curry powder to the oil at this point.
Once they're brown all over turn the heat right down and put the pasta or rice on to boil.
Once the pasta is up to the boil, add the tinned tomatoes and a sprinkle of thyme to the balls and simmer gently.
If cooking rice, add a pint of water with a couple of chicken stock cubes dissolved into it. Simmer this down gently until it reduces to about half.
Serve the tomato meatballs over pasta, the curried one over rice

Yum so many good ideas!

Lemon, garlic & thyme chicken, rice & peas
Pack of chicken thighs/drumsticks. Put a knob of butter, some olive oil, half a lemon, some dried thyme and some crushed garlic in a dish in the microwave for 30 sec. Pour over drumsticks and season. Shove in hot oven for approx 40 mins.
Cook rice, add peas near the end.
Serve with carribean v. hot sauce (from bottle) on the side for grown ups.

Pasta with mashed courgettes (much much nicer than it sounds)
Fry some garlic and Italian/mixed herbs (optional) in olive oil, add thinly sliced courgettes - fry until browned then add water to cover. Cook until water absorbed. Mash courgettes with masher or similar and season. Stir into pasta.

chicken provencale - pre-heat oven to 180, throw chicken legs (1-2 per person) in roasting tray, drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper, and 1/2 cup of cold water - you can add 1-2 tsp dried mixed herbs if you have them.

Bake for 30 mins. In meantime, fry an onion, 2-3 garlic cloves, and a red or yellow pepper if you have one, add dried mixed herbs OR oregano OR basil or whatever similar stuff you have. Cook for 10 mins, then add 2 cans of tomatoes/jar passata and simmer for 20 mins until thick and jammy. I add black olives at this stage, from a jar

When chicken is done, pour over sauce and serve with salad or green beans, it works with potatoes or crusty bread and butter too.

Not necessarily authentic Huevos Rancheros

For one person:
1 egg
1/2 tinned toms
Flavouring - bit of onion (if liked), chili flakes, tabasco, pickled jalapenos to taste
Salt and pepper

Cook flavouring and tomatoes together until warm (if you have oil you can do the onion etc first). Add salt and pepper.
Crack the egg into the middle
Cook until the egg is cooked - I speed it up by putting hot tomato on it as I'm impatient!
Eat - lovely with bread or toast

This thread makes me happy

It's marvellous. Please remember to get it moved - would hate to lose it

I shall be posting my recipes for leftover whole-salmon shortly.

Is that grin legally binding?

Otherwise I will need to print.

Exit

I made a very silly promise to Olivia to keep the thread. I think she may have me by the short and curlies now

Tin of tuna (drained and mashed with a fork)
Tin of tomatoes (chopped) - cheaper and runnier the better
Pasta quills/twirls (cooked in water)
Chopped chicken/ham
Stir together in pan over warm hob, serve with grated cheese and black pepper (and salad/garlic bread)

Works a treat in our house

DH's 'Cassoulet'. Fry Sausages. Add 1 can baked beans, 2 cans tomatoes, pinch oregano, maybe a pinch of sugar. Put lid on pan, Cook for 20 - 30 mins.