General Chat

Hi everyone,

I'm just going into my second year at university studying history and English Lit. In september i will be moving into a house up at uni and i was wondering if anyone had any great recipes for cheap and healthy dinners?

I love cooking and as much as i love pasta and cous cous i'm dreading the idea of living on them for a whole year, or having to survive on frozen ready meals!

last year i lived at home and travelled into uni for lectures so this is the first time i will be living away from home.

so any recipes that are cheap,easy or healthy would be fabulous. :)
Thanks for any suggestions or ideas. :)

Leanne.

Just thinking about this as we are skint!
Corned beef hash
Omlettes (add onion, bacon,pots and mushrooms)
Will add more if I can think of any more cos if you are sick of pasta spag bol and pasta and ham bake will be no good.
Things like casserole or lasagne or leek and potato soup are yummy and if you do more than you need freeze for easy dinners
Claire x

Leanne ,I have book here for my son who is moving into a shared house (2nd year) uni. It is called 101Cheap Eats.Good Food magazine (BBC Books)There are some really good recipes in there .I have tried 2 and gone down well with the whole family.

thanks to both of you for your replies. :) Jane i'll have a look on amazon and see if i can find it, that sounds pretty well perfect.

Clarejo, i wouldn't mind spag bol, already got that one on my list :) and leek and potato soup sounds yummy! :)

i don't mean to sound dense but what is corned beef hash please?
x

Corned Beef Hash

350g / 12oz Corned Beef, diced
50g / 2oz Butter
1 tbsp Oil
275g / 10oz Boiled Potatoes, sliced
2 Medium Onions, chopped
Salt and Pepper
Fried eggs to serve (optional)

* Heat 25g / 1oz of the butter and oil in a large frying pan and gently fry the sliced potatoes, turning occasionally for 5 minutes or until brown - do not mash. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm.

* Add the remaining butter to the pan and fry the onions for 5 minutes until soft and golden.

* Add the corned beef and reserved potatoes, salt and pepper and heat thoroughly, turning all the time.

* To serve - pile into a pyramid on a hot serving dish and top with fried eggs if using. Serve very hot.

Serves 4

Sausage casserole

Stir fried anything

See if you can find a book of 'One pot wonders' as they are usually quick and easy.

Have fun :-)

Get some spuds and cut into bite sized chunks and boil in salted water for a couple of minutes.
In frying pan dash of oil and fry pots with onion if you like, when crispy add chunks of corned beef add heat through. I serve with baked beans.
Cheap and easy.
Claire x

oh i see thank Janice and clarejo for the corned beef hash. that sounds really tasty. :D definately be doing that one. and the one pot wonders idea soun ds good to me too. i'll have a search.

Thanks SRS i'll check that one out. :)
these are all great, am adding them all to my list. thank you all. :)
x

Oh fer goodness sake!!!..I am reporting this thread for making me hungry......a diet is what I am on, so harassment with mouth watering recipes is what I am reporting

lol susan you actually got me worried there for a sec. i know what you mean those ads that used to be on for m and s "this is not just a chocolate pud, this is an m and s melt in the middle chocolate pud" ooh my got to the point where i wud put my fingers in my ears and close my eyes! lol

thanks everyone btw susan's right, mouth watering is the word! :)

Have a lettuce leaf and a tomato Susan with nos, that should fill you up!!!

SS if you can afford a small chicken you can roast it one day, have cold the second and make chicken curry or stir fry the third.

Ann
Glos

Check out the nearest supermarket too, to find out what time they put their reduced goods out.

Ham joints are good.

They come in various sizes in the supermarkets. Boil them for the required amount of time. You can have hot, with new pots and a veg, cold - sandwiches, salads etc. And, slice what's left reasonably thickly and feeze, in layers. One or two slices make a great carbonara.

Plus, it tastes soooo much nicer than that plastic ham in packs and is heaps and heaps cheaper.

Jill

Thanks ann and Jill, definately like the idea of making something last for three or four meals. :)

PLUS the nearest supermarket is asda so pretty cheap already, but i'll definately find out what time they put out their reduced stuff. :)

Hi, still smiling, I have just nudged "left overs" for you lots of good ideas....



Jean x

homemade pizza - scone mix base , in a pan fry onion , mushroom , tin tomatoes , bacon , tomato puree herbs, pour over uncooked base which you put into greased ovenproof dish or tin and grate cheese over. cook in oven 200 for 20 minutes,you could make double and freeze for another day

I live alone and eat a lot of stir fry! Buy the packet from Sainsbury's at £1 - it lasts me 2 meals (I rinse it first though, as I can taste what they've cleaned it with) add chopped bacon (the bits) or fish - a perfectly healthy meal for anything from 50p!
You can even add rice if you like carbohydrates :o)

thank you all, i'll take a look at the leftovers thread now then Jean- thank you. :)

these are all great suggestions and will print this thread out before going to uni to take with me. :)

If you have some freezer space try to make up a big batch of savoury mince and split it into portions, in freezer bags, then when you come in cold or hungry or both, you can defrost one portion if you haven't remembered to take it out in the morning and do it with potatoes, pasta or anything you like. I get bags of frozen chopped onion, peppers and mushrooms, from Iceland or Sainsburys, and use those in the mince when making it all up, also cheap tins of tomatoes, chop them while still in the can by using a long knife. I also fry up the onions, etc in a pan and add a couple of beaten eggs, left over cooked potato and grated cheese, to make a lovely filling omelette, cook till firm on the bottom on the hob and then pop under the grill in the pan so it goes all crispy on top, scrummy with some toast and salad.

As someone else says, look for sell-by bargains as they can be frozen if you don't want to eat them straight away too. If you look for good sausages like pork and leek, etc you can freeze them in two lots of three rather than having to defrost a pack of 6 when you want some, and there is barely any fat in them so nice, healthy and filling. A quick cheese sauce can be made from cheese sauce granules and hot water, the cheat's way to make pasta and veg tasty.

Have fun.
Lizx

2 versions of pizza !