Sunday
Meal Plan 3: Budget Week
Day 7 · Sunday · Cheap and filling
Today at a glance. The week ends with a proper Sunday roast made from chicken drumsticks, one of the cheapest cuts. Three recipes, about 1 hour 30 minutes of cooking in total, much of it hands-off. Dinner cooks two portions of chicken: one to eat tonight and one to keep cold for tomorrow's lunch. Every quantity below is for one portion unless the recipe says otherwise, in metric with UK names.
Breakfast
Breakfast
Vegetable and Egg Breakfast Hash
Ingredients (1 portion)
- 150 g potatoes
- 1 carrot
- ½ small onion
- 1 egg
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp olive oil
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Scrub the potatoes (peel them if you prefer) and cut them into cubes of about 1.5 cm. Put them in a microwave-safe bowl with a splash of water, cover with a plate and microwave for 4 to 5 minutes, until almost tender. Drain well. (Without a microwave, simmer them for 6 minutes and drain.)
- Peel the carrot and grate it on the coarse side of a grater. Peel the onion and chop it small.
- Heat half the oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and potato with a pinch of salt and cook for 5 minutes, turning only now and then, until the potatoes are golden and crisp at the edges.
- Stir in the carrot and paprika and cook for 2 minutes. Push the hash to one side of the pan.
- Add the remaining oil to the empty half, crack in the egg and fry for 2 to 3 minutes until the white is set. Cover the pan for the last minute if you want the top of the egg cooked.
- Serve the hash with the egg on top and some black pepper.
Why it is a healthy start
It is a full breakfast of vegetables, potato and egg for a few pence, and it needs only 2 tsp of oil. The carrot adds vitamin A and a little sweetness.
Swaps
A handful of frozen peas or spinach stirred in at the end. A spoonful of baked beans on the side. Use a sweet potato in place of the white potato.
Save money
A hash is a good way to use up the odds and ends of potato, carrot and onion before they go soft. Weekend breakfast made at home costs a fraction of one bought in a cafe.
Lunch
Lunch · Vegetarian
Tomato Soup with Toast
Ingredients (1 large bowl)
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes (400 g)
- 1 small onion
- 1 carrot
- ½ reduced-salt vegetable stock cube
- 1 tsp olive oil
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 200 ml boiling water
- 2 slices wholemeal bread, to serve
- Black pepper
Method
- Peel the onion and chop it small. Peel the carrot and grate it on the coarse side of a grater, which helps it to cook quickly.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat. Cook the onion and carrot for 6 minutes, stirring, until soft.
- Add the tomatoes, oregano, the crumbled stock cube and the boiling water. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes, with the lid half on.
- Blend the soup with a stick blender until smooth. Without one, mash it well with a potato masher for a rougher soup. Season with pepper, and taste before adding any salt.
- Toast the bread and serve it alongside for dipping.
Why it is a healthy lunch
Cooked tomatoes are a good source of lycopene, and the carrot adds sweetness so there is no need for sugar. The soup has almost no fat, and wholemeal toast makes it filling.
Swaps
A handful of red lentils added with the water makes it thicker and higher in protein. A spoonful of plain yoghurt stirred in at the end. A grated cheese toastie on the side for a bigger meal.
Save money
A tin of tomatoes, an onion and a carrot make a soup that costs much less than a carton or tin of ready-made soup, and tastes fresher. Own-brand chopped tomatoes are the best buy, because they are all the same tomatoes.
Dinner
Dinner · Chicken
Roast Chicken Drumsticks with Carrots and Potatoes
Ingredients (4 drumsticks for 2 portions; vegetables for tonight only)
- 4 chicken drumsticks (about 500 g in total)
- 250 g potatoes (tonight's portion only)
- 2 carrots (tonight's portion only)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp olive oil
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Heat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan, gas mark 6). Scrub the potatoes (peel them if you prefer) and cut them into chunks about 3 cm across. Peel the carrots and cut them into batons about 1 cm thick and 6 cm long. Peel and crush the garlic.
- Pull the skin off the drumsticks with a piece of kitchen paper, which gives a better grip. Throw the skin away. This cuts the fat a lot.
- In a large bowl, mix the oil, garlic, paprika, oregano, a good pinch of salt and some pepper. Add the drumsticks and turn them until they are coated. Wash your hands, the board and the knife.
- Put the potatoes and carrots on a large baking tray. Spoon over any spice mixture left in the bowl, and add a splash of water to the tray. Turn the vegetables so they are lightly coated. Nestle the drumsticks among them, leaving a little space between each.
- Roast for 40 to 45 minutes, turning everything once halfway through, until the vegetables are golden and soft and the chicken is cooked.
- Check the thickest drumstick by cutting to the bone. The meat must be white with no pink, and the juices must run clear. If not, give it 5 more minutes.
- Rest the chicken for 3 minutes. Serve two drumsticks with the vegetables.
Saving the second portion
Put the other two drumsticks on a clean plate to cool, then cover them and put them in the fridge within an hour or two. Eat them cold within 2 days, for example sliced into a sandwich or salad for Monday's lunch. If you reheat them, make sure they are steaming hot all the way through, and only do it once.
Why it is a healthy dinner
With the skin taken off, drumsticks are a lean source of protein, and they are rich in iron and zinc. The tray is half vegetables, and there is no gravy or extra fat.
Swaps
Chicken thighs instead of drumsticks. Parsnips, swede or onion wedges on the tray in place of the carrots. A teaspoon of honey or mustard in the spice mix. A handful of frozen peas on the plate.
Save money
Drumsticks are among the cheapest cuts of chicken per kilo, and cooking four at once means you get tomorrow's lunch for the cost of a little oven time. Keep the bones, and simmer them with an onion for a free stock if you want to try it.
That is the week
You have cooked a full week on a tight budget, with three beef dinners, one fish dinner and a vegetarian one, and two batch meals in the freezer. Chapter 8 is the combined shopping list for the whole week, with the freezing and defrosting schedule and a plan for leftovers.