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I've got it sorted this weekend - three evening meals all cooked at the same time costing a total of £12 and it only took an hour to do the lot.
What a bargain!
I've never stopped to analyse how little it costs to make meals this way (until now). However, take two packs of extra lean minced beef (Tesco do 2 for £4, M&S do 2 for £5, it depends how posh you are). Divide into 3 portions. Finely dice 3 large onions (one per dish).These go on to make a Bolognaise sauce for spaghetti; a cottage pie and a chilli con carne.
For the cottage pie you also need:
A carrot diced into teeny bits,
a leek quartered lengthways and then finely sliced
a generous dollop of passata
a beef stock cube
4 white potatoes, peeled & diced ready for the mash (& a splash of milk or dollop of butter later)
Herbs
For the bolognaise you can add a packet of passata (or a tin of tomoatoes)
A handful of frozen peas
A spoonful of sugar (optional)
Garlic, pesto, basil etc to taste
A beef stock cube
A packet of spaghetti
For the chilli you need
A tin of kidney beans
Optional mushrooms
Passata or tinned tomatoes (the remainder from the cottage pie is fine)
Paprika, chilli powder, wine vinegar etc to taste.
Rice
The prep for all three can be done at the same time and they canal be cooked at the same time too (provided you have enough pans).
I totted up the total and - including rice, spaghetti and spices - it came to less than £12 for three evening meals for a family of four. Not bad hey?
Once cooked, they can be stored in the fridge and used during the week, interspersed with something less meaty. Now that’s credit crunch motherhood.
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