Posted on 02/18/2009 2:24:13 PM PST by JRandomFreeper
Its tough out there and may get tougher. Job cuts, pay cuts, and expenses are going up. Whats a conservative to do? Conserve, of course.
That doesnt mean you have to eat less healthy food, or eat foods that arent so good, or eat less. With a few of the right ingredients, some practice, some planning, and some time, you can produce excellent quality nutritious meals for surprisingly little money.
The catch, of course, is the time it takes. But if you are unemployed, or under-employed (like me), you have more time than money.
Fine cooking is about treating good quality ingredients right. Inexpensive cooking is about picking the right ingredients, some planning, and some labor.
My favorite ingredients are good quality, good price, and ingredients with many uses. That means shopping fairly frequently, watching for specials in the flyers that fill up my mailbox, and talking to family and friends about the REALLY GOOD DEALS that we all run across sometimes.
Ingredients
I rarely buy canned or frozen, with a few exceptions, (canned tomatoes and frozen corn, namely) I use what is fresh and in season, and cheap. I also have a garden, and eat what is seasonal from the garden.
Basil is expensive in the grocery store, but is easy to grow. And it shows up about the same time as the tomatoes. Can you say Italian?
Meats are more problematic. Ive pretty much given up on beef, except once a month. Im fortunate that I can get game locally, like venison and boar, and we raise a few goats for the freezer.
Pork can be found on sale in large roasts that can be cut up and prepared in many ways.
Chicken also can be found on sale in bulk and frozen in appropriate sized portions.
Bulk products, like flour, cornmeal, rice, beans, masa, and sugar can be purchased in bulk and transferred to appropriate sealed containers to keep the bugs out.
Planning
Since Im single, I know how much of what Im going to use in a month and plan accordingly. Breakfast is whatever you eat for breakfast times 30. For me that means 60 eggs, 30 sausage patties, 30 frozen biscuits, and 60 oz of homemade salsa for the month. Sausage patties weigh 2 oz each, so thats 60 oz of that pork shoulder for breakfast for the month.
A word about individually frozen biscuits. I use them, they are good. I can, and have mixed up a batch of biscuit dough to cook just one biscuit. I won my bet, and would never do it again.
Lunch and dinner I plan for 8 oz of meat, 6 oz of cooked starches, and 4 to 6 ounces of vegetables. So for planning thats 2 meals times 30 days = 60 meals. So I need about 30 lbs of meat, 22 lbs of starches, and 20 lbs of vegetables for the month.
A word about starches. 2oz of dried beans, rice, or pasta roughly equals 6 oz of cooked starches. For things like potatoes, rutabagas, and turnips, use the full 6 oz measure when buying.
Fruit is as in season, and inexpensive. Sometimes, that means that I just get preserves.
Salads for me come from the garden if they are in season. Down here in Texas, Ive usually got something most of the year.
I make my own breads, desserts, and lots of my own sauces.
This article is meant to stimulate discussion on cost savings and maybe provide some advice during these difficult times. There are quite a few freeper Chefs, food service professionals, and darn good non-professional cooks on this site.
Is that a “Henry Hill” recipe????? I must make it!!!!!!!!
Is your email down?????
NO
Why? Is it not working?
My email is OK....I thought you were having a problem because we’re “chatting” on Freeper.
I just emailed you
Oh OK.....This AMC is killing me with the “Godfather” and next is Part II.....Help!!!!
LOL! And how tenderised it is...
No, I peel the stems of broccoli and cauliflower stems and use them for nibbles while we enjoy our evening respite of beer and martini. Jerusalem artichokes are small oblong orbes colored beige with tiny brown pinckles. I’ve never grown any. They are usually in the produce section of your supermarket.
Thanks till, I’ve never seen one. I’ll look for them next time I go to the supermarket.
I know, newhouse. Roomey and I snack on a lot of raw green goodies. Asparagus, I must buy 2# at a time, because I will go through a pound before I get home, it’s a 35 mile drive. I especially enjoy the white asparagus when HEB has them.
And Meusli is great in muffins, bread, hotcakes, waffles...
Good idea! Mr HOB has just diescivered Cherry preserves, so homemade bread would be a delight!
diescivered= discovered Whoa!
What kind of bread will you make? I think I’ll begin making dough again. In Germany, I thoroughly enjoyed going to the bakery in the early a.m. and buying their wonderful fresh baked rolls. I’d try and buy one of each flavor.
LOL! "monigut" is Sicilian dialect, with which we entertain ourselves around our table as well:
A single is a manicotto, like a single raviolo or gnoccho, but no Americans use these forms or recognize that the "i" ending in Italian is already a plural -- the Italian-American dialect of pluralizing plurals is a work of art! "Yo, doll, we're having crabs and spaghettis on Sunday!"
But really, for the benefit of others reading who may not understand the joke, "monicotti" is not the proper spelling -- it's "manicotti." Mani = hand, cotti = cooked (plural - singular is "cotto").
A similar word is biscotti -- bis = twice, and cotti = cooked. Biscotti dough is baked like cookie dough and then toasted to make them dry.
Bookmark
bookmark
I tend to like orange & red things in my soups; squash, carrots, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, red peppers. I had a great soup today at a local coffeehouse. The broth had just a touch of "sweet" to it, probably from the sweet potatoes or maybe they added something. $2.99/cup and heavenly.
Someday you'll have to teach me proper omelet technique. Mine always end up a mess. I like fresh spinach and would love to know how to make a decent omelet or frittata with spinach, maybe some onions and peppers and tomatoes. I inevitably end up scraping it out of the pan onto my plate in a mound of scrambled...............mess.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.