What meal would you make yourself with a budget of £15

[Baileysoncereal]

Just a lighthearted post, my family are getting a takeaway on Saturday night. I don’t want takeaway, So I’m going to go to the shops and buying dinner just for me.
it feels like a real treat, I think because I feel like I can get something luxurious for that price for a meal for one, but probably still cheaper than DHs takeaway - so it feels like a bargain as well!

What would you buy with £15 for yourself?

Steak and chips; but a decent bottle of red would break the budget.
Or mussels, good bread and a bottle of something crisp and white.
Calves liver and bacon, maybe a bit of spinach on the side.
Charcuterie and crusty bread and cornichons.
Veal escalope - squeeze of lemon - fries - token salad. Maybe a bit of radicchio tossed in lemon juice.
Don't share! You made the right choice!
Or choose something you've always fancied making from your favourite cookbook.

Spaghetti vongole

Monk fish coconut curry

Enjoy!

Some sort of vegetarian ready meal from m & s, with a lemon cheesecake for dessert. Probably wouldn't come to £15 though, I can't imagine spending that much on one meal.

I'd probably splash out on a fillet steak and some naice wedges (the Waitrose lightly spiced are nice), with a salad. And some garlic butter to top the (medium rare) steak.

Scallops with chorizo, green veggies and dauphinois potatoes then some divinely indulgent dessert

Fillet steak, scallops, nice salad, & some lovely fruit for after. Strawberries or something. Maybe a papaya or extra sweet pineapple.

Sirloin steak and baked potato with sour cream and chives.
Guava/passionfruit smoothie
Large chocolate eclair or dark chocolate cheesecake. (Or both if I could afford it!)

Tuna steak with stir fried green beans, tenderstem broccoli, roasted beetroot and carrots. With Waitrose balsamic pearls! £4.99 for a tiny jar but so worth it.

King prawns, I’d cook in butter, wine and chilli with some lemon on the side for squeezing...nice fresh sourdough or tiger bread for dipping....rocket salad with some goats cheese on the side and a bottle of Chablis.

Scallops to sear in butter with crumbled black pudding, green salad. Preceded by a really good cocktail, a bag of kettle crisps, pot of sour cream and chive dip, and some caviar.

A good steak. Black garlic to make garlic butter. A mixed baby leaf salad, good cherry tomatoes (piccolo or similar). If you can stretch to it, a potato to make chunky chips or wedges, but this isn’t necessary as the meal will be perfectly good without it.

I’m assuming you’ve already got a nice bottle of wine!

Or, spaghetti/linguine with seafood of your choice, in a lemon, garlic, chilli and parsley sauce with olive oil. Or a white wine sauce.

Or, if you haven’t had your fill of cheeses and things like that over the Christmas season, get yourself a good selection of charcuterie, a lovely crusty bread, and a Camembert for baking. Plus olives, walnuts and grapes or apples.

M&S dine in deal

Definitely steak & chips for me.

I know the seasons are off here, but my treat meal would be....

Oysters grilled with a little bit of grated parmesan and some Tabasco

A small rare fillet steak with French beans from the garden, buttered new potatoes and mint

Raspberries and cream

In all this tier 4 wintery gloom, I daydream about summer food and strolling to the pub for a glass of wine in a sunny garden with other people. .

Dammit I really want a steak now!

@lemonsquirtintheeyeoflife. Cross post but yes, exactly

I’d be factoring in my time and electricity, as that’s the main reason people get a takeaway.
So even at £10 an hour you’d have to get either a luxury pre-prepared dinner to “ping and eat” (not much different to a takeaway) or lovingly cook up cheap ingredients. If you have the skills. And the patience.
As a compromise I would spend £7.50 on a good chicken, some bio lemons and crunchy veg to make Jamie’s Lemon Roast Chicken. A sensory experience. And pay myself to do it.

This one with milk.

Thanks everyone! I actually had steak a couple of days ago so it feels a bit much to get one again!

Moule frite could be a good option though!
I already have some nice fries in, so would be even cheaper!

@Sgtmajormummy yes I’d definitely like something fairly quick!
A whole chicken feels excessive but perhaps! Why not?! I could have sandwiches the next day I suppose

Bottle of wine for £10 and a cheap ready meal and chocolate pudding with the rest of the money. No need to spend £15 on shop food.

Just buy a load of seafood then! Especially if you already have a good bottle of white wine in.

You could have a poussin! That’s not too much for one person.

Or a half crispy duck with pancakes...

My go to treat is either a really good cut of steak ( we have an excellent Longhorn beef supplier who do a delicious porterhouse steak) or a seafood - scallops or monkfish wrapped in Parma ham.

Scallops, sourdough bread, fresh parsley and a lemon. Thick cut 2 slices of sourdough and lightly toast meanwhile pan fry scallops in olive oil seasoned with black pepper, lemon zest, and some finely chopped parsley stalks, add lemon juice and finely chopped parsley, spread across the toast, eat with a glass (or more) of white wine of your preference. Honestly it's better than a posh meal in a top restaurant and takes 5 mins