recipes that don't require fresh food

[LavenderSugar]

Hoping to do an online for this weekend that I ideally want to make last a fortnight.

Meal planning is difficult as me and DP have quite unpredictable schedules and sometimes the fresh ingredients that I buy go off before I've had a chance to cook them.

Can someone recommend some meals that can be cooked from the food cupboard, or some the freezer easily?

Tuna pasta - tinned tuna, tomatoes and sweetcorn, dried pasta

Corned beef hash

Frozen salmon fillets and frozen veg

Prawn stir fry noodles

Alternatively make a batch of bolognaise and freeze ( add stuff to make it chilli)

What changed life for me was starting to freeze things that were going out of date. So veg (peppers, onions, mushrooms etc) that I knew I wouldnt use up, I now chop them and out them in a freezer bag. The. They're ready to use straight from the freezer. Cheese can be grated then frozen and used for toasties, lasagne etc straight from the freezer. Dregs of a bottle of wine go into the freezer in little bags, ready for risotto etc.

My go-to freezer meal is chorizo and red pepper risotto. Chorizo keeps for ages in the fridge and I chop and freeze any leftovers. I normally have some chopped peppers and onions in the freezer. And risotto rice from the cupboard. Parmesan also keeps for ages in the fridge but again can be grated and frozen.

Freezer is your friend!!

Sorry for typos. Bad phone typing!

Dhal: fry chopped onion with garlic and ginger (frozen or from jar) with ground cumin and turmeric. Add dried red lentils with water or stock and frozen veg e.g. squash or cauliflower and simmer for 20 minutes or so.

Veggie sausage casserole - you could use some of that freezer mix of onions, carrots and celery as a base. Paprika, grainy mustard, honey. Passata. Frozen veggie hotdog sausages. Tin of green lentils or butter beans.

Tacos or burritos - tortillas have a long shelf life, then make a filling from some frozen onions and peppers, a couple of tins of mixed beans, passata, frozen sweetcorn and some spices.

Risotto made with frozen broad beans and peas, plus jarred artichokes. I use fresh cream in mine but I assume you could do it without.

Carbonara - bacon lardons are usually dated well ( the lardons in my fridge are the 17th - I bought them yesterday) eggs last forever (well a long time) and Parmesan ( another long lasted but can be grated and frozen) plus frozen peas of you want to be healthy.

Pasta puttanesca

Risotto with frozen peas, broad beans and baby carrots.

Split pea and ham soup ( gammon is another dated up to three weeks after purchase)

Spinach ( frozen) and red lentil dhal

Egg fried rice

Frittata with frozen veg

Omelette again with frozen veg

Spanish tortilla is surprisingly nice with sliced tinned potatoes

Chickpea curry and rice

Butter bean burgers - fry a handful of onions, some ready garlic, and chilli in some oil. Mash beans and mix with onions, add breadcrumbs and Parmesan to form a firm mix and make onto burgers. Fry and eat.

Homemade baked beans with numerous tinned beans, tomatoes and spices ( bacon too if you've got it)

Wraps last well so quesadilla filled with jarred red peppers, mashed white beans ( butter/cannelini) chilli and cheese. Or cooked black beans from a jar for a black bean wrap.

Chorizo lasts well- bean mash tipped with fried chorizo and onions sounds odd but is lovely. And it can be added to rice/frittata etc as well.

Shakshuka with chorizo. A tomato and pepper based sauce with baked eggs. They all keep for a long time.

Basic meals, baked potato with egg mayonnaise or tuna

Beans are also good as can buy tinned and are v versatile!

Make a pasta sauce, freeze and then have with pasta

Risotto with dried mushrooms and frozen peas

Tescos do some great sauces in jars, for example Redang and Massaman that you can make v quickly with beef strips and a tin of coconut milk

That's all I can think of right now!

Just come back to this,

Thanks all.

I stocked up on tuna and capers and olives for pasta, as well as passata. Curry spice cupboard also well stocked and lots of frozen fish that can be had with frozen veg.