okay, i am beinng DRIVEN to meal-planning and am looking for un-faffy , quick recipes using cheap cuts that are DELICIOUS. because if someone tells me that tuna casserole or sausage stew is nice then i'll barf.

[ExterminAitch]

i'm fairly good on prepped stuff already, good recipes for chicken thigh curry, stews etc, it's more the instant-ish stuff i have difficulty with (apart from the ubiquitous pasta and pesto). although am always happy to hear any good tagine recipes and get better stews, curries etc.

however, what foods can we think of that are virtuous, delicious and quick to throw together, ladies? i'd rather the original recipe said 'takes 15 mins' iykwim, as opposed to 'fry onions in two mins etc' when you CAN'T.

oh, have thought of one.

carbonara. (although can we add veg apart from peas which we are sick of?)

Another good pasta dish.

Chop baby tomatos in half. Cook lightly in olive oil and butter. Chop chorizo sausage into rings or half rings. Add to tomato mixture. Meanwhile, cook pasta (penne good). When pasta cooked, drain, add olive oil, add small bag of rocket (allow to wilt in pan w pasta), mix in a couple of tablespoons of black olive tapenade, and add tomato/chorizo mix.

Delicious.

we heart bean fajitas
Pinto beans
Fry onion peppers add beans one packet fajita seasoning ( discovery one ace) and tin tomatoes reserving juice.
Simmer and kinda mash as stirring let mixture dry off a bit
Warm wraps get some salad and salsa
Sour cream/grated cheese whatever
Wrap and eat

ooh ooh!!! I made belly pork a la Marco on Saturday night!

Twas delishus!

Belly pork.
salt
oil
honey

rub it in. cook at 200C til it goes crisp crisp crisp! when crisp add a little honey

English mustard mash and broccoli. And gravy.

done!!

Spicy fried rice

Cook rice in advance and allow to cool.
Stir-fry sliced beef, pork or chicken (best in sesame oil).
Add spices - I use five spice, "lazy" chillies, garlic & soy sauce
Add whatever veg you are using - eg beansprouts, spring onions, peppers, mushrooms.

v nice topped with slices of thin rolled-up omelette.

CatIsSleepy or anyone who uses 'good curry paste', can you tell me which one you use? I'm wary of them, memories of the seventies and Marguerite Patten... But I know there are good ones out there.

fry an onion in olive oil, chuck in a tin of green lentils, chopped tom and black olives.

serve over couscous with grated parm.

cheap and quick curry.

buy a jar of patak's madras.

following the recipe on the back of the jar, fry up the onion with some frozen veg.

sub in a tin of chickpeas for hte beef.

serve over basmati rice.

oh, for the tinned chickpeas, open the tin and stir in a teaspoon of bicarb before you drain and rinse.

it'll make the skins go all soft.

collision - we had Marco's belly pork on Saturady as well

pork belly.

shove it in the slow cooker. pour over a jar or two of salsa verde.

cook for 8 hours on medium.

slice up and serve over rice one day, with tortillas in a wrap the next day, to fill a sandwich the day after . . .

Ah. That's what the bicarb is for. Thank you expat. I've been adding it to the water when I soak them for years because I read it in a cookery book. I never actually knew what it did .

these are great, this is my favourite thread ever.

no, no huge bills, i just went to sainsbo's yesterday (normally shop locally, bits and pieces, more waste than i'd like) and was confronted by the sharp rise in basics like butter etc. plus, i'd like to not panic at 4.30pm every day when i've got 45 mins before i have to go and pick up dd.

the MN recipe for flapjacks with condensed milk is a breakfast staple around here.

pasta with pancetta and peas.

throw pancetta and handful frozen peas into frying pan, plenty of olive oil.

by time pasta cooks this will be ready too.
throw it all together.
kids love it.
takes less than 5 mins

pancetta can be replaced with any bacon type thing or even leftover gammon roast.

peas can be replaced by any other green veg but you'll have to boil/steam it then throw in pasta once ready.

mayo chicken wraps.

strips of chicken, cover in packet type breadcrumbs. season, grill/fry.

have with wraps, lettuce,tomatoes and mayo.

got for fussy kids who don't like the coating on fajitas mix

this is quite a favourite of ours, it's much nicer than it sounds:

soften two or three sliced leeks in olive oil

slice up a pack of halloumi and cook it in another pan so that the slices are nice and brown

stir the juice of half a lime and some cumin seeds into the leeks, mix it together and eat with rice

tortellini brodo.

spinach & ricotto tortellini, when your cooking them, add a chicken stock cube into the water.
don't drain,

serve as a soup with bread thats going a bit hard.

i packet of tortellini will do about 2 adults/ i child.

my kids like to put those goodies crips in instead of bread.

I did the,ovenbaked thai chicken rice which was posted by robinpud,last night and we all loved it including my mum who's recuperating. She said she hadn't eaten that much for ages

Even the kids enjoyed it as it wasn't too spicy and you can adjust the spiciness anyway.

It's really easy to do and the kids could help with some of it.

Egg curry

Fry onion till golden add half a tin of tomatoes and fry till oil seperates with 1 tsp chilli powder, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp tumeric

If you have potoes in small pieces put in with some water and cook on med heat, not necessary but nice imo if not or when potatoes cooked crack and stir in eggs one at a time as each egg cooks it will go fluffy
3-4 eggs required for one onion

Serve with chappattis, paratha (trad) or on toast

shreddies I love that recipe too !! Good old Rose Elliot (unless she nicked it from you of course )

my staple is a veggie pasta sauce that I think originated from JO. Takes about 30 mins to prep then further 30 mins to cook, BUT quantity is huge so I freeze loads of it.

Can use on its own (may need to slake with a tsp sugar for every 500mls) or as a sort of stock base for bolegnase sauce etc.

1 small onion or a leek
3 carrots, grated
2 red/yellow peppers, diced
2 courgettes, grated

1 butternut squash, roasted in oven until cooked

8 tins chopped toms

saute veg until soft (10 mins on medium heat)
add 2 tsp or oregano
S&P
add tinned toms

simmer on low heat 30 mins

add butternut squash

cool a bit, puree.

divide into approx 500-750ml aliquots and freeze.

Sainsbury's feed your family for a fiver recipes are good, expecially the meatballs and the cheesy bacon pasta

Shin beef - enough to feed your family. Must be in oven by 1 pm to eat at 6.

coat beef in flours, and dump beef and chopped onion in frying pan until brown.

put in big cassarole dish with chopped potatoes and carrots, pour 1 litre of beef stock on top, and (night before) put in fridge or (that morning) put in oven on 150 (gas 4)