Budget food/living

Ridonculous... Deffo trying that when I get home...

Blanket advice,no. It depends on the bean/pulse in question, but the general amount of faff is usually reduced. I always at least wash the pulses, some get a short soak, others more work.

And slow cooking changes the equation again. Any recipe not expressly designed for a slow cooker needs some adaptation and experimentation.

slow cooking is not vigorous enough to destroy the toxins in kidney and other beans, but it is still hot enough to destroy enzymes involved in germination, so the beans won't be as nice as if you'd soaked...although lentils, split peas etc don't "need" soaking they will be nicer if you do.

the hardness of water affects soaking and cooking time greatly, as does putting salt in the water....in hard water beans take longer to soak and cook, salted water make cooking time longer.

so use filtered water to soak the beans and only add salt in last 5-10 minutes of cooking...avoid using bicarbonate of soda to speed up the process..... take your eye off the pan and you end up with mush.

^^That's worse than a frozen pea sandwich...

Butternut squash soup - cooking it now.

1 small squash
1 potato
1 leek
1 garlic tooth
3 carrots
2 spoons olive oil
1 bay leaf
Boiling water salt and pepper (and Herbs de Porvence (opt))

Mixed it, boil it, blend it. Serve it with chopped Parsley.

one day too late for the full tesco bargain

but still £15 off first shop is not too bad (except i had to also get delivery at an expensive time due to other commitments

anyone want to come over for oxtail or lamb breast - sunday or monday or tuesday?

So you just sweat all that stuff together then blend it up?

one day too late for the full tesco bargain

but still £15 off first shop is not too bad (except i had to also get delivery at an expensive time due to other commitments

anyone want to come over for oxtail or lamb breast - sunday or monday or tuesday?

Did you put in the code for £5 off as well with fruit and veg?

Just in case anyone doesn't have a decent butcher they can get to easily, and works near monument, there is a really good one in Leadenhall market. Round me there are only halal butchers, which is never ideal.

The thing I love about a butcher is you get what you want, as opposed to buying extra, which is an inevitability in a supermarket. Just bought some ox tail to make a slow cooked chilli with, plus some thick cut dry cured smoked bacon.

On the slow cooker thing, most of the ones my housemates have ever bought have been a bit shit - the high and low just don't match what I'm after. Maybe that's just the cheap ones they've bought.

the £5 off for fruit and veg had to be delivered today

but stocked up on pulses and useful stuff

So you just sweat all that stuff together then blend it up?

Sweat 1st, boil after.... a good 15min of heat, blend, another maybe 4, 5 of medium. and serve.

It was something over 1.5kg of oxtail @ less than £9.

What I need is a bottle of red.

I bought this morning, 1kg of steak and 1 chicken (farm grown) for 6quid - all. Dalston Market, PAK butchers.

Probably second hand.

Dalston Market is the cheapest place I've found for fruit and veg, in the whole of london.

Probably second hand.

It's me you're talking to.

Soup for the week for me and the housemate:
2 onions
2 sweet potatoes
2 peppers
3 celery
1 tin chickpeas
1 tin kidney beans
1/2 a pack tescos 'soup broth mix'
Some veg stock
Oregano
Cumin
Turmeric
Cayenne pepper
Coriander

Fucking lush.

It was something over 1.5kg of oxtail @ less than £9.

You'll get a whole cow for that in Brixton market...

I'll share some soups:

• My Chicken Soup (Canja de Galinha)
(very cheap, very easy, very quick)

• 1 chicken quarter
• 1 chicken stock cube
• 1 onion
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tbl spoons Olive Oil
• 1 cup of Risoni Pasta* (usual in any Turkish or Italian shop)
• Salt
• Fresh Mint to serve
• 0.5L boiling water

Method:

Chop the onion finely, put it to the water with oil, Salt,bay and stock cube.
Bring it to a boil then add the chicken, preferably cut into chunks.
Boil the chicken for about 15, 20min... doesn't have to be fully cooked, yet.
Take it out and tear it to bits, no bones but you can leave the skin.
The water in the pot should be very 'stocky', and reduced a bit, so if necessary
add a bit more. Pour in the pasta and the teared chicken, cook in medium heat
until the past is double the size and soft. Serve with fresh mint (and Chorizo if you
eat pork).

If you don't like this recipe, I will pay your shopping... which should be about £4.

Butternut squash soup - cooking it now.

1 small squash
1 potato
1 leek
1 garlic tooth
3 carrots
2 spoons olive oil
1 bay leaf
Boiling water salt and pepper (and Herbs de Porvence (opt))

Mixed it, boil it, blend it. Serve it with chopped Parsley.

Absolutely divine. being devoured now

How many servings do those make nuknow?

Mint in chicken soup?

How many servings do those make nuknow?

Hmmm..... it depends how thick you like your soup. I'd say at least 6 of thos bowls... ±

maybe 8.

Mint in chicken soup?

You know you want to.

I plan on making the butternut squash soup next week there is a note now stuck to the fridge.
But I may roast the squash first

Hmmm..... it depends how thick you like your soup. I'd say at least 6 of thos bowls... ±

maybe 8.

Thanks mate. I love the fact I can make a batch of them up on a weekend and they'll last me the following week.

Also what's the best thing to freeze soup in? Just a normal tupperware tub? If so I'll have to pay a visit to pound land/ QD.