What Did You Cook From Scratch Today - Feb

[amandajane]

I thought it might be easier if we started a new thread for each month, so I'll start.

Firstly, curry paste



Then, Balti Beef



And to accompany, Onion Bhaji



For anyone that would like the recipes you can find them on my frugal life blog.

Who's next?

[Xin Lu]

I made some calzones yesterday with spinach, tomatoes, chicken sausage,mozarella and feta. It looked really pretty when it was just out of the oven, but my hubby and I ate them all.

[Kathryn]

Yesterday I made pulled pork in the crock pot. It's super cheap, super easy, but a little high on the fat side. (cheap, easy, and healthy is like the Holy Trinity of Frugal Food, but 2 outta 3 ain't bad). Just take a pork shoulder and crock the heck out of it for 8 hours with some chili sauce or bbq sauce, plus some cider vinegar and brown sugar, then shred it about an hour before you're ready to eat. We had it over rice last night, and will be eating pulled pork sandwiches for days!

[amandajane]

Hi Xin Lu I had to check out what calzones are on wikipedia as I've not heard of them before. They look like Cornish pasties only they are made from pastry, not pizza dough. They sound like a great way to get some greens into your kids, lol.

Kathryn - that sounds great, do you need to put water in the crock pot too?

[Kathryn]

Originally Posted by amandajane

Kathryn - that sounds great, do you need to put water in the crock pot too?

No, you don't need to add any water--there's a lot of moisture in the pork that gets drawn out during the cooking process. Pulled pork is a classic southern barbeque dish--in its most authentic form it gets "pulled" off the whole pig that's been smoked for a whole day! Wars have just about been started over whether it should be served with a tangy-sweet tomato-based barbeque sauce or with a spicy/peppery vinegar one.

[Megan]

I am a little ashamed to admit that I currently have the same stew in the crockpot that I made last week. I had planned to keep it in the freezer to have every few days, spread out the leftovers. Well, I love it so much that I have already eaten all 5 servings. So it's time for another batch.

In my own defense, I still had half a cabbage left from the last time I made it, and would have thrown it out if I hadn't used it in this stew... Even though the head of cabbage was cheap, I hate throwing things out if I can help it.

[amandajane]

Kathryn

Thanks for the info - it sounds great, I'll be off to the butchers today I think, to give it a go

Megan - Your stew sounds yummy, I love crockpot food, it's so tender. I hate throwing things out too, cabbage is such a valuable vegetable isn't it. I sneak the cooking juice into the gravy when my 9 year old is around, lol, he doesn't have a clue!

[peregrinak]

Sushi with tuna and avocado... yum!and I made enough for a picnic tomorrow too!

[hermione]

Roast pork shoulder butt roast with potatoes and onions. It's very easy and inexpensive to make. I just rub some salt on the pork, place it in the middle of the roasting pan, surround it with cut potatoes sprinkled with garlic salt, and chopped onion over everything. We eat the pork with minced raw garlic for the many health benefits. Yum...

[purplefdu]

Pulled pork in the crock pot is the best way to fend off my husband for a week. They sell a seasoning packet we use for the spices, you just add sugar, ketchup, and vinegar. With some nice crusty sandwich rolls its perfect.

Tonight is chicken pot pie. Ready made pie crust, bag or frozen mixed veggies, can of cream soup, cooked/diced chicken breast and some seasoning.