Meal Plan 23 - 29 August 2015

Easy meals this week, I have a full diary and lots to do. The leftover roast beef from tomorrow night will make the pancakes for Monday night and a couple of slices to use in French Shepherd's Pie (and yes, I know it's beef not lamb - it's a very forgiving recipe) giving me three meals from the one piece of meat. The piece of meat cost $10.90, making the meat portion of each meal $3.68 and that fits very well within our new grocery budget.

I bought two kransky on sale a while back and froze them. I slice them thinly, fry them with some sliced onion and then make a barbecue sauce with tomato paste, brown sugar. black coffee and Worcestershire sauce. I don't use a recipe for the sauce, more mix and taste, when it tastes good it's done. The sausages cost $1.50 (they were a markdown) and the sauces costs around 50 cents, so a $2 meal. It feeds the five of us because I slice the sausage thinly. Add some potato bake and it is a quick, tasty meal and at 40 cents a serve it's another one that fits in my budget.

The meatless meal this week is a simple vegetable curry. If you follow the recipe it's good, and it's another forgiving recipe. I use whatever veggies I have in the garden, fridge and freezer until I have enough to fill a 2 litre bowl. I also adjust the seasonings to suit our taste, so I cut back on the chilli and curry powder.

Mixed Vegetable Curry

Ingredients:
1/2 medium cabbage, shredded
1 medium egg-plant, cut into 3.5cm strips
20 French beans, cut into 3.5cm strips
2 mediums potatoes, peeled and each cut into 8
1 medium tomato, cut into 8
1 medium carrot, peeled and sliced
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
5 tbsp oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 dried red chillies, seeded and finely pounded
5 tbsp curry powder
2 tbsp sweet paprika
130ml coconut cream
2-3 cups water
1 tsp sugar
salt to taste

Method:
Cut vegetables as above. Heal oil in wok or pan. Fry onion, garlic and chillies till the onion is soft. Add a pinch salt and a little water. Add curry powder and sweet paprika and fry until fragrant. Add potatoes and bean curd puffs. Stir-fry 2-3 minutes. Add eggplant and beans and stir-fry 2-3 minutes. Add cabbage and tomato and stir-fry 2-3 minutes. Lastly, add the coconut milk, water and sugar. Bring to boil and stir constantly. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered until veggies are done. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve hot.

Note: do not overcook cabbage and tomatoes. Always cook this curry on the day you want to serve.

Sunday: Roast beef

Monday: Yorkshire Meat Pancakes

Tuesday: Kransky & potato bake

Wednesday: Vegetable curry

Thursday: MOO pizza

Friday: Porcupines

Saturday: Tacos