Help with easy, budget meals

[Kaneohegirlinaz]

Marlingardener, when does your class begin?

 

[Kaneohegirlinaz]

@Marlingardener could you post here your cooking class adventures here for us all to read about?
Details, details, details ... please?

 

[Aunt Bea]

Often times young people are amazed that you can actually make simple things at home instead of buying them ready made. Learning to make a roux and a variety of sauces and gravies can be a big money saver.

I prefer to learn processes and techniques that allow me to see the possibilities. This master casserole is an example that was published in The Tightwad Gazette years ago.

Master Casserole

1 cup main ingredient
1 cup second ingredient
1-2 cups starchy ingredient
1 1/2 cups binder
1/4 cup “goodie”
seasoning
topping

Main ingredient: tuna, cubed chicken, turkey, ham, seafood, etc.
Second ingredient: thinly sliced celery, mushrooms, peas, chopped hard-boiled eggs, etc.
Starchy ingredient: thinly sliced potatoes, cooked noodles, cooked rice, etc.
Binder: cream sauce, sour cream, can of soup, etc.
“Goodie”: pimiento, olives, almonds, water chestnuts, etc.
Topping: cheese, bread crumbs, etc.

Bake at 350f until hot and bubbly.

 

[Aunt Bea]

This old tomato soup recipe is still a good dollar stretcher. The addition of a little macaroni, rice, mixed vegetables can help to bulk it up for a meal.

1(6 ounce) can tomato paste
24 ounces milk or water (refill paste can 4 times)
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Put tomato paste in saucepan; add milk or water using empty tomato paste can and rinsing can thoroughly.
Add salt, pepper, and sugar and optional additions if using; stir.
Cook on medium, stir and serve.

This is a good way to use the shelf stable boxes of milk from the dollar store.

 

[Aunt Bea]

This soup is an easy inexpensive emergency-shelf meal that I use.

1 (15-ounce) can of Hormel vegetarian chili with beans*
1 1/2 cans of water
1 packet of GOYA beef-flavored bouillon
1/2 small onion
1 1/2 cups of frozen mixed vegetables or a 12-ounce package
1/4 cup of small pasta
Plenty of black pepper and a big pinch of salt

Bring everything to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Let sit covered for 10 minutes to complete cooking the pasta.

Serve with grated cheese if desired.

*This soup is even cheaper when made with a pint of homemade chili from the freezer.

 

[Aunt Bea]

I use inexpensive frozen mixed vegetables in my kitchen quite often.

Here is a basic inexpensive macaroni salad using a package of microwaveable mixed vegetables to add some color and nutrition. You can add tuna, hardboiled eggs, bacon, etc... to make it more of a complete meal. I generally make a scaled-down version of this using leftover mixed vegetables from the previous night's dinner.

1 bag mixed vegetables, cooked according to package directions and cooled
1 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing of your choice
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 (16-ounce) box of elbow macaroni, cooked according to package directions and cooled

In a large bowl, blend mayonnaise, vinegar, red onion, salt, and pepper.
Stir in mixed vegetables and macaroni.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

 

[dragnlaw]

Aunt Bea - impressive! Basic how to survive in the kitchen 101. Beautiful!

 

[Kaneohegirlinaz]

Aunt Bea - impressive! Basic how to survive in the kitchen 101. Beautiful!

+1 @Aunt Bea

 

[cookiecrafter]

Often times young people are amazed that you can actually make simple things at home instead of buying them ready made. Learning to make a roux and a variety of sauces and gravies can be a big money saver.

I prefer to learn processes and techniques that allow me to see the possibilities. This master casserole is an example that was published in The Tightwad Gazette years ago.

Master Casserole

1 cup main ingredient
1 cup second ingredient
1-2 cups starchy ingredient
1 1/2 cups binder
1/4 cup “goodie”
seasoningmany people
topping

Main ingredient: tuna, cubed chicken, turkey, ham, seafood, etc.
Second ingredient: thinly sliced celery, mushrooms, peas, chopped hard-boiled eggs, etc.
Starchy ingredient: thinly sliced potatoes, cooked noodles, cooked rice, etc.
Binder: cream sauce, sour cream, can of soup, etc.
“Goodie”: pimiento, olives, almonds, water chestnuts, etc.
Topping: cheese, bread crumbs, etc.

Bake at 350f until hot and bubbly.

I believe many people just starting out need help filling their pantry with some basic things so every shopping trip is not overwhelming. What would you recommend as a starter list to fill the pantry?

 

[Aunt Bea]

I believe many people just starting out need help filling their pantry with some basic things so every shopping trip is not overwhelming. What would you recommend as a starter list to fill the pantry?

I agree with your thought.

When a person is broke there just isn’t money in the budget to buy things like a bottle of sesame oil or a box of cocoa when those same dollars could buy a much needed gallon of milk or a couple boxes of cereal.

The other concern/complication is that when you’re broke you tend to stick with the TNT foods that you know your family enjoys or at least will eat without complaint.

I think for me it’s best to make gradual changes by slowly weaning the family away from fat, sugar and sodium while adding a few inexpensive fresh foods. Sort of an eat this not that approach by swapping chips for carrots & celery sticks or swapping ground beef for ground turkey.

As far as stocking a pantry it’s really a personal choice. I would try to come up with a list of things that I could make with a core group of inexpensive readily available ingredients. Ten things I can do with a can of tuna, potatoes, romaine, etc…

For me, I would explore the possibilities contained in a five pound sack of flour adding salt, baking powder, yeast, etc….
A few simple recipes for pancakes, biscuits, pizza crust, quick bread, muffins, pie crust, cakes, cookies, etc…. The same basic recipes that our parents and grandparents used to round out a meal as opposed to the more affluent ‘to die for’ recipes that we often see today.

My final thought is a discussion on eliminating waste in the kitchen. Using the freezer as a temporary parking lot instead of an icy graveyard, saving bits of food to make fridge soup, or stretching skimpy leftovers with a sauce/gravy and adding a filler like toast, noodles, rice, etc…

 

[taxlady]

When I was young and poor and living in Denmark, I read George Osawa's book on the macrobiotic diet. I followed that diet, more or less, for a few years. It was a learning experience. What it left me with, at the time, was that my kitchen always had brown rice, tamari, and gomasio (toasted sesame seeds, mashed with salt). I also almost always had carrots, celery, onions, and cabbage. I discovered that I could buy a "soup package" for very little. It would usually have a nice sized wedge of cabbage, a carrot or two, some onion, and a piece of celeriac, and maybe a parsley root and/or a stump of leek. Those veggies would make several meals with some brown rice. Sometimes I added some egg or cheese, or even a small amount of fish or meat. It may not have been gourmet cooking, but it taught me that I could easily get by on some fresh veg and rice. To this day, I always try to have those basics at home.