by compound complex 49 Replies latest jw friends
Dear Budgetarian Grocery-Buyers,
I am an artist though hardly a starving artist. Some of my patrons kindly feed me and I do have my well-stocked freezer. However, the frozen offerings consist largely of delicious but meatless soup stock. Do you have any suggestions on rendering a thin broth into a hearty, man-size repast?
Any and all tips on eating well for less would certainly benefit us all!
Merci beaucoup!
CoCo de la Cuisine
Just my wife and I. We buy chicken and pork in family packs of six or eight peices. Split into two peices per meal and freeze.
Pasta can go a long way. Bottle sauces, as bad as they are, can be improved by adding green pepper and meat like sausage and even shrimp. Portion that and freeze for individual meals. Good for quickie meals.
Broth. Add frozen or canned peas, corn, carrots and a little onoin if you like. Heat while cooking broad noodles. Add cooked noodles to mixture. Freeze leftovers for a quick lunch.
My supermarket has a section in the meat department of items for quick sale, usually cuts of meat close to the last date of sale. If they have something I like I buy it and cook it that night (strirfry or cassarole) or freeze it for later. The price difference is between 30 to 40 percent but sometimes I find really good deals. Also, because we've been going through some lean times, I go to a food pantry that gives out frozen meat. Can't select what I get but it helps. Got some ground venison I have not idea what to do with.
Thanx DJK!
Your suggestions are excellent; I'm heading to market now with a fistful of coins! I will see what shreds of fowl or beef I might add to my broths.
Bread - the staff of life - averages 3 to 4 dollars a loaf, apples [non-bagged] 75 cents to 1 dollar each. For me, a really good apple is now a luxury.
Thank you, again. Loved those ideas for a quick lunch.
CoCo
Oh and you might want to contact the Red Cross, they might have information of where you can pick up free loaves of bread or a pantry you can go to. Can't hurt.
CoCo
I make a really good bean soup - using a can of navy beans (they really are white beans, but for some reason they are called navy beans here). I saute a few strips of bacon and onions, carrots and celery. I add about half of the whole beans, and mash the other half and add to the broth, it helps to thicken it. At the very end I add some fresh chopped spinach. You could finish it with a shaving of parmesan cheese, but it's good just like that.
Barley and rice will thicken the broth as well (barley would be my first choice over the rice).
BB
Dear mrsj and Mrs. B,
Thank you both for recipes and where-to-go ideas. We do have a food pantry locally but I never thought to go there. I'm sure not fussy, as long as it's edible!
I do look for reduced pricing on meat, but I personally have chosen not to buy packaged fowl as it has more than once been foul [got exchanges readily]. I now buy chicken from the butcher directly.
I love navy beans, too, and like the tip on mashing some of them to thicken the broth. Beans and lentils are certainly cheap as well as a good source of protein.
Thank you once again, Experts of La Cucina Moderna!
CoCo du Bon Appetit
Dear Coco, making your own stock and freezing it is a good way to get the protein you seem to be craving. If you would like recipes PM me. Its an all day production, but worth it for everything you cook for yourself. (You'll need a good sized stock pot)
I also make a mean vegetarian chilie, enchiladas, and a fantastic variation on baked beans that is so good no one wants the old Boston baked anymore.
I have a recipe for German goulash that is to die for using the above mentioned home made stock and you can use cheaper stew meat but again it has to cook a long time and any and all fat has to be trimmed off!
I make Greek stuffed grape leaves, and also spanakopita....both vegetarian.....you will never miss the meat!
The problem is, sometimes you wind up spending just as much on the other ingredients when trying to avoid the cost of meat.
Usually the trick is, by in bulk, spend a day preparing dishes for all week, freeze and pull out as needed.
Let me know if you want some recipes and are willing to spend some time in the kitchen!
r.
The bean idea is good. What I might suggest is to purchase the dried beans which might be a lot cheaper in the long run especially.
Soak according to directions, Add to broth, simmer down and add frozen vegetables.
Also, cutting up tatos and adding to those the broth to cook.
I LOVE a good hearty stew, esp in winter. I like soup, but it's too thin for me, prefer stew.
And usually I get a thicker heartier stew with beans and tatos. For added body without the cost, cabbage helps.
That starchy stuff is what will thicken it up. A bag of tatos might not cost ya too much.
Got some ground venison I have not idea what to do with.
I know. Mix a pound of bulk pork sausage (hot kind is best) with a pound of venison, a small can of Italian style stewed tomatoes, minced garlic to taste, shape into patties and pan fry. It should be delicious.
Snowbird
