Cooking on a low budget?

[#1]

OK throwing this open for some recipes (hopefully anyway)  
I am already using my slow cooker to make bulk curry’s, stews etc. But am looking for some "different" or at least new to me ones.
I tend to buy meat in bulk (when it is cheaper anyway) and freeze into manageable packs to make stew or curry with.
Starting off with:-
I have found the Morrisions value/cheap/why curry sauce (about 9p a jar!) makes a very nice curry, with (value pack) chicken thighs and some fruit added.
Use two jars and 1Kg of thighs, with raisins and/or some apple into the slow cooker for about 6hours on low. Makes 3 meals for the 2 of us   (One eaten when it is ready the others frozen when cooled) (I leave the skin on and remove once cooked)
That and my home made soups for lunch - tastier and cheaper than packet mixes, one pot lasts for 3 days, kept in the fridge. (With home made bread a couple of times a week as well)

[#2]

I like to make pasta sauce using cheap bacon offcuts/mis-shapes (I tend to pick these up for about £1 per kg) chop and fry about 150/200g, add some mixed herbs and a couple of cans of chopped tomatoes (cheap as you like, I really don't think cheap/value ones are any worse than expensive ones) a little garlic and some mushrooms or what ever veg you might want to throw in tends to make it even nicer.
I imagine you could do this in a slow-cooker but I can knock this up in a large frying pan and have it served up with some spaghetti in less than 30 mins.

[#3]

Sounds interesting Adam, I do make some pasta dishes, not in the slow cooker though  , add usually just use an off the shelve sauce, but will give yours a try. Only mentioned the SC as I use it for bulk cooking and with my main oven being bust   it is the only way I can do larger dishes.
(I also have a halogen oven, and a "toaster" over that will hold a small caserole dish, along with a George Foreman "oven" for doing roast chicken etc in)

[#4]

Anyone else noticed that with the number of food programmes on TV how we've become a nation addicted to the stuff?
TV is used for promoting aswell as entertaining. Food programmes seem to do both and then we keep hearing about the nation is getting fat.
Coincidence?

[#5]

@Sprite
Well I have tried not eating but it didn't workout, what with me being a diabetic 
I think cooking programs are CHEAP to make, like make over programs. And better value than ANY <throw up>big brother</throw up> type 

[#6]

A tasty, cheap and simple meal to make is....
2 cloves of garlic - crushed as fine as you can
Good quality olive oil - about 5/6 tablespoons
Basil leaves
Any pasta you want
Heat the oil gently, when it's hot add the garlic until it's nearly all dissolved in the oil. Pour flavoured oil over cooked pasta and toss together adding some sliced basil leaves into it.
Serve with crusty bread.

[#7]

Quote from: Hairy

@Sprite Well I have tried not eating but it didn't workout, what with me being a diabetic

LOL (and at the BB remark)
There's no doubt we need food.. but we're having so many food programs shoved in our face every day that people will surely become convinced that they can eat just as much as they want and then proceed to do so.
When I was young we didn't have all this and the country wasn't suffering with an obesity problem. Now we have celebrity chefs and food programs on almost every channel the country is fattening up and all we hear about is britain getting fat.
Has no-one else actually noticed this?

[#8]

No I think the problem is with junk food vs real food. The same problem exists (more so even) in the sates, where you can buy a burger & fries for 89c (about 55p) and feed a family of 4 for a few dollars, or buy real food like veg etc and it costs $$$.
While supermarkets (etc) are promoting "ready meals" or quick meals, which have high sugar/salt/fat content, and we are a nation of TV addicts who take little (if any) exercise then it will continue.
I grew up in the country, we didn't have fast food restaurants (or any restaurants  ) and we grew our own veg/ got some from the farm, I used to walk the 2 miles to the school every day and play outside all the time. Compared to now where kids hang round the chip shop/ MacD's etc.
We didn't have all these TV channels (3 if you were lucky) and they only broadcast for short periods (remember the test card).
Now kids have computers, games consoles etc and hardly ever walk anywhere. And if they don't have sat tv then they think they are deprived 

[#9]

With hard times here and likely to remain or worsen I am surprised that the BBC has not reshown and /or continued with the 'Economy Gastronomy' programme as one of its many cookery programmes.
That programme showed families how to cook for less. Mind you the families they found to convert had mostly spent a fortune on take-aways and ready meals and filled their fridges with food that they threw away a week or two later.  There were also the "bleeding obvious" tips which it seems were it seems not obvious to the families featured. While the programme was flawed it seemed to me more worthwhile to show people basic cheap dishes that are easy to make than the "special occasion" recipes featuring dozens of ingredients that take all day to make.

[#10]

We use sprouting beans  (Mung beans cost about £3.50 a kilo) using the ‘jar method' and 2 tablespoons of beans leave in a dark warm place for 5 days (twice washing daily) gives a hefty portion of bean-sprouts. A kilo last us 6 months averaging 1 serving every 4-5 days
Pretty simple video here

I use muslin cloth and a rubber band as a filter cap

[#11]

And the "best before" cr*p there is nothing wrong with fruit etc that has passed that date. In the case of banana's they aren't even ripe by then 
Just used some BBE (about a month+ ago) blackberrys in some muffins just now (in the toaster oven now, have to do them in batches of 6  as that is the max I can fit in) (had them in the freezer when I got them home) cost 10p!

[#12]

Let them eat cake.  

[#13]

Ahh more SUGAR please there Fox.
You ever look at the banner at the bottom of a cake/bun? The sugar content may surprise you (usually about 30-50g of sugar/portion) (for me enough to send me to sleep  )
Being a diabetic I avoid (mostly) shop bought cakes etc. Thats why I am making muffins (using a sugar substitute) at the moment (while SHMBO is making the tea, baked tatties tonight yum yum)

[#14]

It is difficult to economise on food such as basics like bread when you do not eat wheat - the loaf I buy costs £2.89!  If I was coeliac it would be on prescription but as I choose to not eat wheat to save me being irritating/irritated by exzema I have to buy it.
The wheat free pasta fall apart so I do not use it but wish that someone would make some that cooks nicely as you can have economical meals with pasta.

[#15]

One of my other problems is with rice, I am allergic to it  So out goes so many cheap dishes.
That and shell fish can't eat them, or at least I can but not expect to feel well for next couple of days. 
The rice one, I am not 100% with, about 30 years ago I had a spoonful of fried rice, then after about 5 hours it decided to leave in a hurry, but it may have had shell fish (prawn or shrimp) in with it, I don't know and I have avoided it since. It was something we didn't have as kids so I wasn't used to it. I keep meaning to try it one day but don't really want to be ill for a couple of days, so have always chickened out of it.
Mind you I LOVE rice pudding  SHMBO makes it using "my sugar" and it still tastes nice and sweet with no sugar in it.