Techniques for making cheap and tasty meals

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that enjoys cooking.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

Chief Longwind Of The North

Certified/Certifiable
Joined
Aug 26, 2004
Messages
12,454
Location
USA,Michigan
I'm going to start this thread by listing some things you should have in your pantry at all times. The items may seem costly, but are used in such small amounts that the purchased items will often last you months, even years.

Dried herbs & spices: If kept in a cool and dark place, dried herbs and spices will allow you to add flavor, and often times, valuable nutrition to cheap foods. Make sure to purchase these items in the amounts you can use in a reasonable amount of time as they can lose their potency if kept too long. But, if at all possible, purchase your herbs and spices at places like Costco, restaurant suplly warehouses, Price Club, and similar discount warehouse establishments.

Fresh live herb and spice plants: These include such things as globe oregano, indoor potted peppers, certain types of tomatoes, basil, thyme, green onions, chives, garlic, etc. If used properly, and taken care of, these plants will cut your food bills by giving you fresh and wholesome ingredients in your home.

Generic canned and boxed products: These are usually as good as their name-brand cousins, but as they are not name brand, are siginificantly cheaper. But be careful here. Try out a particular item, a can or box at a time. Sometines, the generic just doesn't measure up. So a little trial and error is required. Also, store brand items are usually less expensive. But again, test a product before purchasing en masse.

Aged and Sharp Cheeses: There are many who just don't like sharp cheeses. But when cooking with them, aged, full-bodied cheese give you the same flavor as the milder cheeses of the same variety, but with less product. For example, you may have to use a full cup of grated mild cheddar cheese to make your mac 'n cheese the way you like it. But if you use a three-year aged cheddar, you can probably get away with using only a quarter cup.

Remember the golden rule of seasoning; add only a little of any seasoning, or flavoring at a time and let it cook in the sauce, or soup, or mashed potatoes for at least 15 minutes, then stir. This will allow the seasoning/flavoring to give up the volatile oils or compounds that flavor the food. If you taste too early, then you will invariably add more seasoning/flavoring to the dish, and end up with overpowering herbs or spices. You can always add more of something if there isn't enough, but once it's in the food, it can't be removed. This rule will save you many costly mistakes and ruined meals.

Water has no flavor. If a broth is too weak, let some of the moisture evaporate away, to intesify the flavor, rather than adding more flavoings.

Use the skins, bones, and giblets of poultry to make your broths and stocks. They will add flavor and nutrition without leeching the flavors from the meat. Cook the meat seperately, just until done, and add to the completed sauce, soup, stew, or stir-fry at the plate to insure that all of the ingredients are as flavorful as possible. Also, roasting bones from poultry, pork, beef, lamb, etc. will add extra flavor to the broth after the carcass is added. So when you are roasting, broiling, or even barbecuing a boneless anything, place the bones in a seperate cooking cooking container and cook them at the same time to prepare them for later use.

Bland foods such as beets can be enhanced by adding a small amount of good vinager, a bit of sweetener, and a shake of cloves to the pot. Then, thicken the resultant juices with a little cornstarch slurry to create a flavorful sauce that will stick to the beets.

You can dress up canned veggies such as spinach, or green beans by shaking on a bit of dill weed, tarragon, garlic, or whatever herbs and spices strikes you fancy without having to add extra salt or butter.

Three bean salad doesn't have to have oil in it. Just open three cans of different beans, maybe some dark-red kidney beans, garbanzo beans, and green beans. Pour the can contents, including the can liquor into a large bowl. Add chopped onion, sliced celery, dill weed, vinager, and sweetener to tate. Place all in a covered container and refridgerat for the next day's meal.

I know that the microwave oven isn't so great at cooking, say, a hamburger. But it will save you time and stove space when preparing corn on the cob, or most vegetables. Just make sure the corn is clean, in the husk, and throw a few pieces in the oven at a time. Cook on the highest setting for about three minutes. The corn will be steaming hot, crisp, sweet, with full flavor. You won't even need to butter it, but you can if you want. Fresh, raw green beans are amazing when steamed in the micorwave. It also saves energy.

I used to think that products like Hamburger Helper were the answer to a quick and tasty meal, until I learned to cook that is. Now, by cmparison, I really don't know how I could stomach the taste of those products. And I've found that except for special meals, I can put supper on the table, from start to finish, in about an hour. Except for heating something like a can of prok and beans, you can't really make a good meal in much less time, unless you're Rachel Ray of course:ROFLMAO:.

Meals prepared fresh, and properly, taste way better, are generally healthier, and give you great creativity, and variety. Plus, you get to hone your cooking skills. Just make sure the kids and husband/wife/SO hone their dishwashing skills. The cook shouldn't have to wash dishes!

You can turn something like a can of pork and beans into something special bu simply adding a tbs. of brown sugar, a half tsp. of granulated onion powder (or freshly chopped onion), and a tbs. of mollases to the pot. Thow in a couple slices of cooked bacon, or a bit of cooked pork, and you have transformed that inexpensive can of pork and beans into something worth shouting about, and much cheaper than the name brand canned "baked beans".

Brown some ground beef, about a pound, add an eight ounce can of tomato sauce, 2 tbs. brown sugar, 2 tsp. sweet pickle relish, a dash of cloves, a dash of garlic, and a bit of yellow mustard. You now have some pretty good sloppy joes.

Anybody can make great food, with a bit of help from their freinds. And with a bit of imagination, and the info you can gather from your freinds here at D.C., an inexpensive meal doesn't have to be a bad meal, or lacking in nutritional value.

Seeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North
 
what IS vegemite? I read through all the, uh, 'witty' quips and random facts, but didn't see anything that actually said what it was made of? Or did I miss that somewhere?
And, uh, the Internet was invented long before 2001....
But mostly, what IS vegemite??? And how do I get that stupid song back out of my head???
 
what IS vegemite? I read through all the, uh, 'witty' quips and random facts, but didn't see anything that actually said what it was made of? Or did I miss that somewhere?
And, uh, the Internet was invented long before 2001....
But mostly, what IS vegemite??? And how do I get that stupid song back out of my head???
Here you go
Vegemite, History of Vegemite
That song is now going to haunt you for the rest of the day Bwaahhhaha :LOL:
 
If you need to cook on the cheap but want to make incredible food, I'd say the best tip would be to get used to the idea of cooking for a long time. For example, you can buy lots of great dried good in bulk for very cheap. You can get rice in 25lb. bags for $8, 25lb. bags of flour for $6 if you like to make your own bread, dried beans are usually in the neighborhood of 55-70 cents for a 12oz. bag, and a great way to get extra protein and fiber into your diet without spending a ton of money.

I also believe the best way to spend $3.50 is on a pound of kosher salt. Season your food; nothing else will help the flavor as much as proper seasoning.

Learn to build your flavors; need some gravy to go with your roasted chicken? Bone your cooked chicken, roast the bones, and then make a quick stock with leftover vegetable ends or peels. Make a roux and add your quick stock for a little bit of very easy chicken gravy.
 
Here you go
Vegemite, History of Vegemite
That song is now going to haunt you for the rest of the day Bwaahhhaha :LOL:

Ewww.... LOL I would never have guessed. They say it is an aquired taste, I will not argue with them.

As for the actual topic of the thread:
Making as much from scratch as possible is a good start. Another one is investing in cookbooks from Fanny Farmer and The Young Homemaker. Both not only offer tons of recipes for easy cheap meals, but also tons of advice on substitutions, tips, and tricks. using the carcass for flavoring in soups and stews is a great idea, same for bones like ham bones, etc.
For that matter, just plain making a lot of stews and soups saves money, I find they are pretty cheap to make, can vary wildly, contains most of your daily requirements if made right, and a good use for left overs.
For me, I save my money for things that enhance the flavor and use as much bulk as I can get for dry ingredients. Cheap eggs for baking with, only the expensive ones if eating them on their own with sides. Powdered milk in recipes, but never would drink it straight. Oh, and buy Whole Milk. Keep your last empty milk jug, nicely washed out. Pour half the whole milk into the empty jug and leave the other half in its jug. Then add cold water. Two for the price of one and the kids have as of yet to catch on... yea sure us adults can tell, but since we use it mostly in cereal even I don't mind.
Same with juice, we water it down and the kids never know.

"ohhh I come from the land down under, where women glow and men plunder... can you hear, can you hear the thunder..."

There, if I have to have it stuck in my head, so does everyone else!:-p
 
I haven't noticed any price difference between whole and my 1% milk. maybe 30 cents a gallon........ but i guess i haven't really looked since I dont have to but whole milk for any babies anymore.:clap::clap::angel:
 
Ewww.... LOL I would never have guessed. They say it is an aquired taste, I will not argue with them.

"ohhh I come from the land down under, where women glow and men plunder... can you hear, can you hear the thunder..."

There, if I have to have it stuck in my head, so does everyone else!:-p
Oh! I thought you were referring to the Vegemite song not that shocker!! LOL (not sure about the Anime graphics - guess not for the Oz market.)

It may be an acquired taste but as most Australians are raised on it from the time they can eat a piece of bread and topping, it is easily got and never lost!

Very good energy food packed full of Vitamin Bs. Hot buttered toast with Vegemite is very hard to beat.
 
Well, here's some of the things I do:

Make my own chicken, beef, and seafood stock, which I concentrate (reduce), then freeze in ice cube trays.
I usually will NOT purchase any chicken but those 10 lb bags of leg-and-thigh quarters, since it works out to about 49 cents a lb. I can do LOTS of things with that.

Don't be afraid to splurge on roast beef, roast pork, etc. Especially if you're living alone or just with your spouse/SO. Learn how to use the leftovers, and for more than just roast beef/pork sandwiches. Simmer the meat in BROTH, with a sliced jalapeno, until it starts to fall apart. Use for Enchiladas or Tamales. Or, just simmer the beef in broth, then mix in some BBQ sauce.

Lately, I've been buying Wrights Bacon Ends 'n Pieces. It's a 3 lb box, for about $5US. Granted, there are very few "strips" in the package, but, it makes great bacon bits. Since that's what I really use bacon for, to use with baked spuds, or added into clam chowder, or a good pot of Frijoles Barrachos.
 
Broken record: Buy larger pieces of meat and cut them up yourself. A whole chicken can be broken down in a couple minutes.

Braises turn out some serious flavor with very little cost or effort.
 
Cooking affordably and heallthfully is important for families as well as for single people. One big savings I have found is in bagging lunch for work rather than buying from a deli or fast food joint. This also helps to stay away from unhealthy McStroke lunches. I generally try to use leftovers for this purpose when I can.

As stated having your kitchen stocked with basic grains spices and oils goes a long way. Having the basic ingridents on hand makes cooking up a meal much easier.

There is one basic dish in a number of variations that I make for myself quite often. I think of it as a sort of bachelor sauce It is not something I serve to guests or make when I am feeling adventurous but rather my cheap easy defualt setting meal that helps to stretch a dime and avoid eating take out.

Basically its a tomato based vegetable sauce to be served over either pasta (whole wheat) or brown rice.

The basic components are as follows:

1 15 oz can of tomato sauce

1 15 oz can tomato (dieced or whole or crushed)

A green vegetable (this can be canned or fresh I ususally use fresh broccoli - even the stalks I just peel them and cut them into bite size pieces which absorb tons of flavor) or canned flat cut green beans)

1 can of white beans drained

Garlic to taste (I usually use about 4 or 5 cloves) diced

a long pour of EVOO

a splash or two pour of red wine or balsamic vinegar

basil-oregano-pepper (usually red) salt to taste... I usually go heavy on the red pepper

The above are always in the sauce.

Depending on ingredients on hand I generally will throw in whatever fresh veggies may be peaking in the fridge Usually a carrot and an onion come in to play. Mushrooms work well as do chopped peppers but really anything can be incorporated

I also sometimes throw in a package of pre cooked chicken sausage that I will brown in the bottom of the pan first. This adds a nice savory flavor to the sauce

I usually throw it all in a large DO and leave it in the oven on about 300 for a couple hours until all the flavors are mixed and the sauce thickens and darkens. Of course stovetop is fine too. The longer and slower it cooks the better.

This makes enough to cover a pound of pasta with some sauce left over to freeze (proabbly 2 cups rice)

Season differently increase the peppers and use red beans and you have a simple chilli

The reason I make this is beasue :

its easy and has minimal clean up (1 pot)

It keeps and freezes well (never freeze pasta in the sauce it will mush)

Covers nutritional bases vitamins and minerals from the veggies protien etc from the beans and whole grains from the pasta or rice.

It can be made with pretty much whatever is on hand and if necessary entirely from canned / frozen ingredients so I can have the basics on hand at all times.

while it does not measure up to my mom's sunday sauce it is healthier than jar sauce and tastes better IMHO. Nothing is fried and there is minimal added fats sugars or salts. The basic ingridents cost about the same as a jar of sauce and provide twice the volume of sauce.

Anyway its not really a recipe or anything fancy just a basic standby when time and $ are tight.


My summer verison is similar but skips the canned tomato sauce in favor of fresh dieced tomatos (or diced canned if necessary) and instead of the long cook I just give the beans and veggies and tomatoes a quick saute (I dont use wine because it needs to cook down) just oil and vinegar... substutue tuna for sausage and have a simple pasta tuna bean salad.
 
I do my weekly shopping on Sunday; I've found that making a menu for the week before shopping, and making a shopping list from the menu, has helped me cut my shopping bill. Before, I thought I could put together menus in my head at the store, but I would often forget an ingredient, or think I was out of something only to get home with a new one and find two more already in the cabinet. This also helps me when I want to try a new recipe, because I make sure I don't forget an ingredient for that.

I've also been making my menus around the weekly grocery store sales that are distributed in Sunday's newspaper; that helps save money, too.
 
I do my weekly shopping on Sunday; I've found that making a menu for the week before shopping, and making a shopping list from the menu, has helped me cut my shopping bill. Before, I thought I could put together menus in my head at the store, but I would often forget an ingredient, or think I was out of something only to get home with a new one and find two more already in the cabinet. This also helps me when I want to try a new recipe, because I make sure I don't forget an ingredient for that.

I've also been making my menus around the weekly grocery store sales that are distributed in Sunday's newspaper; that helps save money, too.


good for u garlic.i shop on line once a month. the store is a vons not far from here.

yes, it is very time consuming to plan all those meals but it pays off in lower bills as well. i am less inclined to impluse shop.

i can change my order as many times as i like. i know ahead how much it will be. so much of what i buy are staples. if i want to do a new dish or bake, i just get my recipes and order indg. right off the recipe.same deal if planning on company.

i rarely have to go to store. if i do it is only for milk and maybe bread. once in awhile for fresh fruit and vegs. it works for me. and gives me a hugh range of things for inexpensive meals.

lots of chicken of course and some beef. sauces , flavorings etc are easy to keep up with . as i make order if i am not sure i have it. i just go to pantry and check.

they have specials on line all the time and club card discounts. i would tell anyone to give it a try. they charge 10.oo for the service and guys puts it in my kitchen.

now if i can just train him to put it away. lol


babe:ROFLMAO::LOL::ROFLMAO::LOL:
 
Oh! I thought you were referring to the Vegemite song not that shocker!! LOL (not sure about the Anime graphics - guess not for the Oz market.)

It may be an acquired taste but as most Australians are raised on it from the time they can eat a piece of bread and topping, it is easily got and never lost!

Very good energy food packed full of Vitamin Bs. Hot buttered toast with Vegemite is very hard to beat.

OMG what was that??!!??!!:LOL::ROFLMAO:

Now I feel better about having the other song stuck in my head!
 
I haven't noticed any price difference between whole and my 1% milk. maybe 30 cents a gallon........ but i guess i haven't really looked since I dont have to but whole milk for any babies anymore.:clap::clap::angel:

Its not the price difference, the idea is to buy one gallon of whole milk then add a gallon of water to it, thus giving you two gallons of milk that is thinner than whole milk and thicker than skim. Probably close to your 1% or 2% milk.
We pay $2.70 for whole milk right now at ALDI, so that works out to $1.35 per gallon when watered down.
 
Back
Top Bottom