Monday
Meal Plan 3: Budget Week
Day 1 · Monday · Cheap and filling
Today at a glance. The week starts with three very cheap staples: oats, red lentils and potatoes. Three recipes, about 1 hour 20 minutes of cooking in total. Breakfast takes 5 minutes, lunch is a one-pot soup, and dinner makes two portions of cottage pie: one to eat tonight and one for the freezer. Every quantity below is for one portion unless the recipe says otherwise, in metric with UK names.
Breakfast
Breakfast
Banana Porridge with Cinnamon
Ingredients (1 portion)
- 40 g porridge oats
- 200 ml semi-skimmed milk
- 1 banana
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
Method
- Peel the banana. Slice half of it into rounds and set them aside. Mash the other half in the pan with a fork.
- Add the oats, milk, cinnamon and a pinch of salt to the pan. Put it over a medium heat and stir.
- Bring it to a gentle bubble and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring often, until it is thick and creamy. If it sticks or gets too thick, add a splash of water.
- Spoon it into a bowl and top with the banana slices. In a microwave, put everything in a large bowl and heat for 2 minutes, stir, and heat for 1 more minute.
Why it is a healthy start
Oats contain beta-glucan, a fibre that keeps you full until lunch. The mashed banana sweetens the porridge, so you do not need any sugar or honey.
Swaps
Use half milk and half water if you want it lighter and cheaper. A spoonful of plain yoghurt on top. A teaspoon of peanut butter stirred in for protein.
Save money
Buy plain porridge oats in a big bag, ideally the supermarket's own brand. A portion costs only a few pence, which is much less than a sachet or a packet cereal, and the bag lasts all week with some left over.
Lunch
Lunch · Vegetarian
Red Lentil and Carrot Soup
Ingredients (1 large bowl)
- 60 g dried red split lentils
- 2 carrots (about 200 g)
- 1 small onion
- ½ reduced-salt vegetable stock cube
- 1 tsp olive oil
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 500 ml water
- Black pepper
Method
- Rinse the lentils in a sieve under cold water until the water runs clearer.
- Peel the onion and chop it small. Peel the carrots and cut them into rounds about 1 cm thick.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat. Cook the onion for 4 minutes until soft. Stir in the cumin for 20 seconds.
- Add the carrots, lentils, water and the crumbled stock cube. Bring to the boil, then turn down and simmer for 20 minutes with the lid half on, until the carrots and lentils are very soft.
- Blend the soup with a stick blender until smooth, or mash it well with a potato masher for a rougher soup. Add a splash of water if it is too thick.
- Season with pepper and taste before adding salt, because the stock cube already contains some.
Why it is a healthy lunch
Red lentils are cheap, cook in 20 minutes without soaking, and give plenty of protein and fibre. The carrots add vitamin A, and the soup has almost no fat.
Swaps
A pinch of chilli flakes for heat. A squeeze of lemon at the end. Swap a carrot for a handful of frozen peas or sweetcorn. Toast makes it a bigger meal.
Save money
Buy carrots and onions loose rather than in a pre-packed bag if you can, so that you only pay for what you need. Red lentils also go into tonight's cottage pie and on Saturday, so a single bag does three meals.
Dinner
Dinner · Beef
Beef and Lentil Cottage Pie
Ingredients (makes 2 portions)
- 250 g lean beef mince (5% fat)
- 80 g dried red split lentils
- 1 onion
- 2 carrots
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes (400 g)
- 300 ml water
- ½ reduced-salt vegetable stock cube
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 100 g frozen peas
- 500 g potatoes (for the topping)
- 40 ml semi-skimmed milk
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into chunks about 4 cm across. Put them in a pan of cold water with a pinch of salt, bring to the boil and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until a knife slips in easily.
- Meanwhile, peel and chop the onion small. Peel the carrots and cut them into small cubes, about 1 cm. Rinse the lentils in a sieve.
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wide saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the mince and cook for 5 minutes, breaking it up with a spoon, until it is brown all over with no pink left. Tip off any extra fat.
- Add the onion and carrots and cook for 4 minutes. Stir in the lentils, tomatoes, water, oregano and the crumbled stock cube.
- Bring to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes with the lid half on, stirring now and then, until the lentils are soft and the mixture is thick. Add a splash of water if it gets dry. Stir in the peas and cook for 2 more minutes. Season with pepper and a little salt.
- Heat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan, gas mark 6). Drain the potatoes, add the milk and mash until smooth, with a pinch of salt and some pepper.
- Divide the filling into two halves. Put one half in a small ovenproof dish and the other in a freezer-safe container. Spread half the mash over each, and rough up the top with a fork.
- Bake the dish for 20 minutes, until the topping is golden and the filling is bubbling at the edges. Eat it tonight.
- Let the container cool for up to an hour, put on the lid, label it with the date and freeze it within a few hours.
Freezing and reheating the second portion
Use it within 3 months. Defrost it overnight in the fridge, then bake it at 200°C (180°C fan) for about 30 minutes, until it is steaming hot all the way through. Do not freeze it a second time once it has defrosted.
Why it is a healthy dinner
The lentils replace nearly half the meat, so the pie has far less saturated fat and more fibre. The potato topping uses milk rather than butter, and the filling holds two vegetables and peas.
Swaps
Add a diced celery stick or some mushrooms with the onion. A spoonful of tomato purée makes the filling richer. Top with sliced sweet potato in place of the mash. Turkey mince works for a lighter version.
Save money
Mince costs the most per kilo of anything in this week's shop. Here 125 g per portion tastes like more because the lentils soak up the flavour. Cooking two portions at once also uses the oven once, and saves a whole night's cooking later.
Coming up tomorrow
Tuesday has peanut butter and banana on toast, a jacket potato with baked beans for lunch, and a one-pot chicken, tomato and rice dinner. If your chicken thighs are frozen, take them out tonight and defrost them in the fridge.