Top Money-Saving Cooking

superficies

Having just got into cooking in the last year or 16 months I have been amazed at how easy it is to make things that I previously spent quite a lot of money on. I thought it might be fun--and useful--to have a thread where we can share tips about expensive, tasty but deceptively easy-to-make (and mostly v quick) food.

Off the top of my head I can think of four things I now make myself instead of buying, thereby saving myself what can only be described as a small fortune as well as saving myself preservatives, e numbers, unnecessary salt and fat etc... in pre-packed foods! They are all quick, cheap and v easy to make!

* Hummous
* Flat Breads / Pittas
* Tomato-based pasta sauce
* Muffins

Anyone else have any tips?

neuro-praxis

I would love your pitta recipe and method.

Here is my roti recipe, for eating with curries and dhal. They're absolutely delicious, but need to be eaten within the hour. They cost pretty much nothing to make.

Roti (Makes 4 rotis):

Half cup plain flour
Quarter cup lukewarm water
Splash olive oil (plus more in a spray dispenser)
Dash garlic powder, dash dried coriander leaves, plenty of salt and pepper

Method:

Form a soft dough with the roti ingredients and knead on a floured board for a minute or two. Set a frying pan (or cast iron skillet if you have one) to medium. Divide dough in 4. Form 4 small balls. Roll out thinly with a rolling pin. Spray a thin coating of oil on the hot pan (or wipe a little oil on with a kitchen towel). Place one roti on the pan until bubbles rise on it. Flip it over and allow bubbles to rise again. Flip it a second time and this time it will start to puff up. Gently press the air out so that it evenly disperses. Remove and eat!

superficies

Neuro-Praxis the pitta/flat bread is so easy that it's almost embarassing to call it a recipe or method. It doesn't create the traditional 'pouch' we associate with pitta but I make them the size of a regular frying pan and so can be folded over with the yummy stuff inside.

Flour
Water (around 1/2 as much as flour but the consistency or the dough will make it evident when you have enough/too much)
Pinch of salt

Mix together
Tear or cut off a chunk
roll out relatively thin on floured board to about the size of the pan you will cook it in
Pat with flour
Heat pan--non-stick is best as no oil whatsoever is needed. If not non-stick then might get messy....
When pan is hot put rolled out dough onto it
Turn when first side is done
Remove when second side is done

Yum yum yum

This is the simplest, cheapest and most healthy way. You can add some oil as well as water if you want something richer. You can of course also add whatever other ingredients you want--olives, sundried tomatoes, rosemary and garlic etc... depending on what you fancy and what you intend to eat it with.
These flat breads/pittas are perfect for lunches and for falafel with hummous

spaceylou

I love humous but I find it really really really hard to find tahini anywhere. I know it is essentially seasame seed paste so really I have two questions:

1. Any ideas where I can buy tahini or
2. To make my own tahini what do i need besides seasame seeds and how do i do it?

thanks folks.

As for my own tips for inexpensive cooking. Soup - great way to use veg that might be about to turn, can contain anything you have to hand really and bulked up with lentils (which are also cheap) makes it filling and healthy.

superficies

spaceylou -- true re soup; it is a great way to use up veg that's nearing the end of its life. Also when you go to the green grocers or the supermarket can often get some veg that they are about the throw out v v cheap and if you make the soup that day is fantastic!

Re tahini--tesco usually have it beside the boxes of falafel mix. Weirdly when you look for it when shopping with tesco.ie it doesn't ever come up, even though you know it's there. Anytime I see it I buy 5 or 6 bottles. The bottle will make about 4 hummous (1 being the yield from 1 large can of chickpeas) and if you keep it int he fridge you can more or less ignore the 'use within 4 day' guidance. I do anyway (on advice of Allegra McE in her new book!!).

superficies

Does anyone have a recipe for chili oil for pizza?

Eoineo

Sunflower or rapeseed oil are good carriers for flavour.

Pour 200ml into a pan. Heat gently, do not put on high - half heat is good. Add 2 teaspoons of chilli flakes and make sure that they aren't frying - this is why you need a medium heat. Leave in the oil on the heat for about 10 mins then leave to cool. Decant into a bottle or jar. Keeps for about 3 months.

HTH

foodaholic

superquinn have tahini paste. Last time I bought some it wouldnt scan so I got it for free. Class

rcarroll

a lot of health food stores will have it esp anywhere that caters to allergies

The Sweeper

Mayonnaise.

The next two items are not that practical as money savers, because there is a high initial outlay, but they do help you avoid preservatives:

a bread maker
an ice cream maker.

You of course need to love bread and ice cream, but the end product - the loaves out of the breadmaker, and especially the fresh strawberry icecream, are just incredible versus anything you could buy in the shops.

More realistically though, just make as much as you can from scratch, it's almost always cheaper

superficies

I have always thought mayo must be v difficult to make. My other half is French and hates Irish mayo so we end up 'importing' piles of mayo but still never enough for the year (it's got mustard in it...apparently this makes all the difference). Would love to try to make my own.

The Sweeper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_qjlbaUMek

Itsdacraic

superficies wrote: »

I have always thought mayo must be v difficult to make. My other half is French and hates Irish mayo so we end up 'importing' piles of mayo but still never enough for the year (it's got mustard in it...apparently this makes all the difference). Would love to try to make my own.

The big green Darina Allen cookbook has recipes for making different types of Mayonaise from scratch (along with hundreds of other things). I haven't tried it myself but it might be worth your while investigating.

Toto Wolfcastle

The Sweeper wrote: »

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_qjlbaUMek

Wow, that looks simple!

Minder

The Sweeper wrote: »

Mayonnaise.

The next two items are not that practical as money savers, because there is a high initial outlay, but they do help you avoid preservatives:

a bread maker
an ice cream maker.

You of course need to love bread and ice cream, but the end product - the loaves out of the breadmaker, and especially the fresh strawberry icecream, are just incredible versus anything you could buy in the shops.

....and you can combine the two to make brown bread icecream.

Toto Wolfcastle

Minder wrote: »

....and you can combine the two to make brown bread icecream.

Living the dream.

I have to say that if you are a fan of ice cream a good ice cream maker is, as The Sweeper said, a great buy. I'm currently searching for the Cuisinart Pro one. Definitely worth the price.

Minder

Sweet Chilli dipping sauce

INGREDIENTS

150g long fresh red chillies, each deseeded and cut into about 4 pieces.
150g red peppers, cored, deseeded and cut into rough chunks
1kg jam sugar
600ml cider vinegar
6 x 250ml sealable jars, with vinegar-proof lid, such as Kilner jar or re-usable pickle jar
Serving Size : Makes approx. 1.5. Litres

METHOD

1. Sterilize your jars and leave to cool.
2. Put the cut-up chillies into a food processor and pulse until they are finely chopped. Add the chunks of red pepper and pulse again until you have a vibrantly red-flecked processor bowl.
3. Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar in a wide, medium-sized pan over a low heat without stirring.
4. Scrape the chilli-pepper mixture out of the bowl and add to the pan. Bring the pan to the boil, then leave it at a rollicking boil for 10 minutes.
5. Take the pan off the heat and allow it cool. The liquid will become more syrupy, then from syrup to viscous and from viscous to jelly-like as it cools.
6. After about 40 minutes, or once the red flecks are more or less evenly dispersed in the jelly (as the liquid firms up, the hints of chilli and pepper start being suspended in it rather than floating on it), ladle into your jars. If you want to stir gently at this stage, it will do no harm. Then seal tightly.

That's Nigella's recipe

I've found that the hot red chillies I can buy are suitable for using instead of a mix of hot and sweet peppers. Also I found that the syrup does form a froth on top - I skim this off to ensure a clear syrup. This chilli syrup is brilliant with breaded cheesey bites!

Minder

janeybabe wrote: »

Living the dream.

I have to say that if you are a fan of ice cream a good ice cream maker is, as The Sweeper said, a great buy. I'm currently searching for the Cuisinart Pro one. Definitely worth the price.

Ice cream makers come in two types - one has a chiller motor built in (expensive). The other (cheaper) requires that the bucket is frozen before the ingredients are added, then the machine churns the mixture.

I'm gonna find that brown bread icecream recipe....

Toto Wolfcastle

Minder wrote: »

Ice cream makers come in two types - one has a chiller motor built in (expensive). The other (cheaper) requires that the bucket is frozen before the ingredients are added, then the machine churns the mixture.

I'm gonna find that brown bread icecream recipe....

I had the cheaper one. It was great but having to freeze the bucket was a pain. That's why I'm going for the more expensive one this time. To me it's worth the money. I must taste brown bread ice cream. I'm told it's delicious.

Minder

I couldn't find the recipe I was looking for - I thought it was from an old Masterchef cookbook, but I must have copied it from somewhere else.

Here is a Brownbread Icecream recipe from t'interweb.

Makes about 1 litre

250ml milk
250ml double cream
1 vanilla pod, split
Oil, for greasing
75g brown breadcrumbs - try sodabread
75g dark brown muscovado sugar
6 free-range egg yolks
50g caster sugar

Place the milk, cream and vanilla in a medium-sized pan and bring to the boil, then turn off the heat and allow to infuse for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6.

Grease a baking tray with a little oil. Spread out the breadcrumbs, sprinkle over the muscovado sugar and cook for 10-15 minutes or until the sugar caramelises. Allow to cool completely. Break up with the back of a knife or rolling pin.

Remove the vanilla from the milk and cream mixture. Whisk the egg yolks and caster sugar together in a bowl and whisk in the milk mixture. Transfer to a thick-based pan and cook gently over a low heat until the mixture coats the back of the spoon. Pass through a sieve.

Pour into the ice-cream maker and churn, as it starts to set, add the breadcrumbs. Leave to freeze completely.

superficies

Foodie friends, just wondering whether anyone has nice and easy recipe for chutney per chance?

Pembily

spaceylou wrote: »

I love humous but I find it really really really hard to find tahini anywhere. I know it is essentially seasame seed paste so really I have two questions:

1. Any ideas where I can buy tahini or
2. To make my own tahini what do i need besides seasame seeds and how do i do it?

thanks folks.

As for my own tips for inexpensive cooking. Soup - great way to use veg that might be about to turn, can contain anything you have to hand really and bulked up with lentils (which are also cheap) makes it filling and healthy.

Spacey Lou all healthfood shops stock Tahinni :):) I use water in my hummous instead of oil for a lower fat version and I don't notice a difference!!

Minder

superficies wrote: »

Foodie friends, just wondering whether anyone has nice and easy recipe for chutney per chance?

Not a recipe, but I recently bought three jars or Anila's Chutneys - the Date & Carrot; the Lemon Chutney and the Hot Lime Chutney. Had the Lemon and the Date & Carrot. Absolutely lovely. The label claims that the chutneys are handmade - it shows. There is no comparison with the greasy generic muck that Pataks and others produce. Anilas chutneys are fresh and vibrant without the jarring shock that can accompany a bite of some of the other better known products.

According to Anila's website they are available in Fallon & Byrne.

What sort of chutney are you looking to make?

ektsoc

superficies wrote: »

Foodie friends, just wondering whether anyone has nice and easy recipe for chutney per chance?

As an uncultured eater (basically eats traditional irish food- bacon & cabbage, stews etc) and not a very good or inventive cook to my children dismay could you please advise what to eat chutney with?:o

superficies

I quite like mago chutney with curries and flat breads and the OH is a huge fan of fig or date chutneys with cheese so am interested to see whether they're a pain to make or easy enough

@ektsoc you can eat chutney with anything, but I usually eat them to cool very hot food like curries or to accompany nice meats (cold meats especially) and cheeses

Sleepy

The best way I've found to save money when cooking is to ignore the meat counters in supermarkets and go to a local butchers. The value deals most of them are offering are incredible. For instance, in Wicklow town right now €20 will get you 4 Pork Chops, 1lb Mince, 1lb Stewing Beef, 4 Large Chicken Breasts and 1lb of pre-prepared Stir-Fry mix. That's the guts of dinner for four for a week for €20!

Sparks

Even outside the butchers (though they're still the best option really), if you don't go for the obvious cuts you can get very good meals for not much money. For example, for sunday dinner;

Take one pork fillet (about €4-5 for one in Dunnes or Tesco or wherever -- and no, I have absolutely no idea why pork fillet is so cheap while the same weight of beef fillet would set you back nearly ten times that, though I suspect that it has something to do with our parents and their parents being absolutely terrified of trichinosis), trim off any excess fat and all the silverskin if there's any left on it and split it down the middle.
Take some cling film, lay it out on the countertop (has to be at least as wide as the fillet is long and it should be about one-two feet long). Lay out a few slices of some sort of cured ham on it (palma, seranno, proscuitto, that sort of thing, most supermarkets have shrink-wrapped slices in the sandwich section). The cured ham is optional - I think it tastes good, but you don't need it, and some people replace it with things like shredded spinach and the like. Whatever you use, season it now with salt and pepper and some thyme (fresh is better, dried is fine but use less of it as it's more pungent). Lay the pork fillet on top of the ham. Turn one half of the fillet so it's thick end is at the thin end of the other half, so it's more even. Now take some dried apple (snack food section of the supermarket, but you can substitute almost any kind of apple here except maybe raw apple which has too much water) and chop it fine and put a tablespoon or three inbetween the two fillet halves. Now using the cling film, wrap the ham around the fillet like a swiss roll (be careful not to trap cling film in the meat). Put this in the fridge, wipe down countertop, flour it and lay out a square of puff pastry and roll it out until it's an inch wider on each side than the fillet is long, and until it's long enough to wrap the entire fillet comfortably. Take some mustard (this really isn't an optional extra, but any kind will do - just go easy on the stonger kinds if you don't like them) and spread it on the puff pastry where the fillet is going to go and over a large enough area to cover the fillet when you roll it all up. Take the fillet from the fridge, take off the cling film, put it on the puff pastry in the middle of the mustard and roll up the pastry and tuck in the ends (a bit of eggwash on the end of the pastry makes a better seal). Make two or three slashes in the top of the roll and put it seam-side down on a baking tray and then into the oven at 210C for about 25-30 minutes. If you have a probe thermometer (and really, if you don't, it's going to be the best fifteen euro you ever spend in TK max or ebay - the polder ones are really nice as they have timers and two probes which is handy for watching roasting turkeys), stick it in the fillet at a thick end and cook until it hits 60C (140F - the polders tend to be in US units by default).
Take it out, sit it on a rack and let it rest for 5-10 minutes, then carve into one-inch thick slices with a breadknife (or an electric carving knife if you have one).
Total cost is going to be under fifteen euro and it'll feed four adults (with a few spuds or some rice on the side, of course).

Honey-ec

I don't actually like tahini in my hummous, but it's ridiculously easy to make.

4 tbsp sesame seeds
2 tbsp good quality olive oil
Pinch of salt
Tepid water

Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan over a medium heat, allow to cool.

Grind the seeds in a pestle & mortar or coffee grinder (food processors generally won't get them fine enough)

Add the oil and salt and mix well (you can transfer to a food processor for this bit if you want)

While still mixing (or with the motor running) slowly drizzle in the water until you achieve your preferred consistency. That's it.

namurt

ektsoc wrote: »

As an uncultured eater (basically eats traditional irish food- bacon & cabbage, stews etc) and not a very good or inventive cook to my children dismay could you please advise what to eat chutney with?:o

One way I like to use it is to spread it on naan bread, then top the bread with cooked mushrooms and bits of bacon. Then top that with cheese and put it under the grill until the cheese is melted. Basically makes a type of pizza that you feel like you made yourself. Of course you could put loads of other toppings on it, they just seem to be the things I always have in the fridge.

olaola

superficies wrote: »

Neuro-Praxis the pitta/flat bread is so easy that it's almost embarassing to call it a recipe or method. It doesn't create the traditional 'pouch' we associate with pitta but I make them the size of a regular frying pan and so can be folded over with the yummy stuff inside.

Hey - I tried these (I love the idea btw!!) and they were great, but a little bit biscuity. I think I might try self raising flour - what you think, have you tried this yourself?

the beer revolu

superficies wrote: »

Foodie friends, just wondering whether anyone has nice and easy recipe for chutney per chance?

This is mine:
I guess you could use red tomatoes and reduce the sugar.

I only had a small amount so this recipe only makes about a jar and a half - scale it up to suit your amount of fruit.

My tomatoes were sort of half ripe so if yours are very green you might need a little more sugar.

Having read dozens of recipes, this is what I came up with and on first taste it seems to really work.

300 gms Green(ish) tomatoes
100 gms Eating apple (peeled)
100 gms Onion
50 gms Raisins

250 ml Cider vinegar
150 gms Brown Sugar

Small piece fresh ginger (size of a garlic clove),peeled
1 tsp Yellow mustard seeds
1/2 tsp Corriander seeds
6 Pepper corns
1/2 tsp Salt
pinch of Fennel seeds
1/2 tsp chili powder (optional)

Chop everything very finely
Put all ingredients in saucepan
Bring to boil
Simmer for 1 1/2 hours
Pour into sterilised jars.
Wait for a month if you can for everything to mature and meld.

Should keep for at least a year

Seaneh

The Sweeper wrote: »

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_qjlbaUMek

That is actually, by far, the best mayo recipe I have ever seen.

superficies

olaola wrote: »

Hey - I tried these (I love the idea btw!!) and they were great, but a little bit biscuity. I think I might try self raising flour - what you think, have you tried this yourself?

I have these all the time and always make them with regular flour. However I know some people make them with self-raising. I usually make them to eat falafel so I don't mind if they're a touch biscuity, as you say, but if wanted them softer and fluffier then I don't see how some baking powder or the s-r flour would hurt! Let me know how it turns out.

F-Stop

This is a great thread. Going to make the sweet chilli sauce in a bit and have roti's planned for the tikka masala this evening. Thought I may as well thrown in an easy/cheap recipe for shortbread biscuits that I've been using a lot lately.

125g Caster Sugar
225g butter
350g plain flour

Mix the butter and sugar, once well mixed into a paste add the flour and mix by hand. Mix until you have a nice dough and stick it in the fridge for 15 minutes. Heat the oven to 180c.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface and cut out your biccies. I prefer to roll it into a tube and make about 1" thick rounds. Put them in the oven for 10-15 mintues (the rounds take about 18 mins for me as they're a bit thicker).

Place on cooling rack and if you want sprinkle some sugar over them.

You can add whatever you like to add flavour when you are mixing in the flour - vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, lemon zest, I've even heard of people using rosemary to flavour them...

kylith

Sleepy wrote: »

The best way I've found to save money when cooking is to ignore the meat counters in supermarkets and go to a local butchers. The value deals most of them are offering are incredible. For instance, in Wicklow town right now €20 will get you 4 Pork Chops, 1lb Mince, 1lb Stewing Beef, 4 Large Chicken Breasts and 1lb of pre-prepared Stir-Fry mix. That's the guts of dinner for four for a week for €20!

Very true. There's a place on Wexford St. in Dublin (that's the one that becomes George's St, yeah?) that does a great value mix too. I can't remember the name (I think it may be Someone & Daughters), but it's red, and it's on the same side of the road as Eddie Rocket's.

Also, if you're less squeamish about your food then offal is tasty, very good for you, and cheap; 2 lamb hearts (dinner for 2 people) will set you back about €1.50.

crazy.daisy

spaceylou wrote: »

I love humous but I find it really really really hard to find tahini anywhere. I know it is essentially seasame seed paste so really I have two questions:

1. Any ideas where I can buy tahini or
2. To make my own tahini what do i need besides seasame seeds and how do i do it?

thanks folks.

As for my own tips for inexpensive cooking. Soup - great way to use veg that might be about to turn, can contain anything you have to hand really and bulked up with lentils (which are also cheap) makes it filling and healthy.

Hi,

a friend bought me some tahini paste when she was in sainsburys in newry but its probably available in decent superquins. However, I make a gorgeous hummus without it

1 small can chickpeas
handful of pinenuts & handful of flaked almonds
1 clove garlic chopped
sprinkle of chilli powder
some basil (if I have it)
sea salt to taste
olive oil added sparingly while whizzing with a blender til you've got the right consistency

Its yum, and when I added the tahini to it, it didn't taste half as good!

My money saving trick is to make egg white based desserts such as pavlova when your main course calls for egg yolks (like in a sauce). Simple but effective...