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Make small changes to save on your regular meals and get stuck into easy recipes
COOK up family favourites for a fraction of the price with my smart shopping tips.
Small tweaks to your shopping list can add up to big savings.
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Try these to save on your regular meals and get stuck into the easy recipes from morrisons.com.
Simple fish cakes
(Serves 3-4)
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
YOU NEED:
- 350g fish pie mix, fresh or frozen
- 3-4 spring onions, chopped
- 150ml milk
- 450g potatoes
- 50g sweetcorn, or you can use 50g of peas
- 50g grated cheese, reserving a little for the sauce
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp flour and a little more for dusting before frying
METHOD:
- Pre-heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Cook the potatoes until tender so they break up easily but are not too mushy. Allow them to steam dry in the strainer (the dryer they are, the better).
- Put the fish, spring onions and milk in a pan and heat until the fish is cooked. Strain fish and onions, reserving the milk.
- Mix the fish and onions with the cooked potatoes, cheese and sweetcorn (or peas).
- Add some black pepper and form into 6-8 little fishcakes.
- Beat the egg in a bowl or dish and dip the cakes in the egg, followed by dipping into the flour.
- Heat a frying pan with a little oil and fry the fishcakes on each side for 3-4 minutes until they are golden brown.
- Place the fishcakes on a baking tray and cook in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes.
- Add the reserved milk to a small saucepan and gently heat it. Then add 1 tsp flour to a small bowl and add 1 tsp water, then mix together to make a thin paste.
- Whisk this into the milk to thicken into a sauce. If you have any cheese left, add a little to this to taste.
- Add a little black pepper if needed, or maybe some salt.
- A squeeze of lemon would be great too if you have any about. Serve the fishcakes with the sauce alongside vegetables of your choice.
Simple switches for massive changes
MAKE IT MEAT-FREE
Having a meat-free meal, such as a vegetable chilli or pasta with a veggie sauce, will stretch your money further and you can choose from Morrisons wonky vegetable range for the biggest savings, includings wonky peppers, 750g, £1.20, onions, 50p for a kilo, and potatoes, 2.5kg, 89p.
DIG UP SAVINGS
For bargain meals all the family will love, look no further than the humble potato. Tesco has a 2.5kg bag of Maris Pipers for £1.15. They are great for baking. Add tasty toppings such as the store’s tuna chunks in spring water, £2 for three 80g tins. Check out more tatty recipes at lovepotatoes.co.uk.
USE CHEAP CHEATS
Snap up time-saving ingredients when you see a good deal to save a heap of hassle. Sainsbury’s currently has a Jus-Rol puff pastry sheet down from £1.60 to £1. Just mix up some pesto and cherry tomatoes then spread them over the pastry before baking for a tasty meal.
SLOW-COOKED SAVINGS
Cheaper cuts of meats are often most delicious when cooked over several hours. Look out for cuts such as pork shoulder, pork belly, lamb shoulder and casserole steak. It’s £2.90 for 300g of lean diced casserole steak at Morrisons.
BATCH COOKING
Buy in big quantities to save more. Then you can freeze half to eat another day. You can get a kilo of Asda beef mince for £4.75. It is perfect for pasta bolognese or a tasty chilli con carne. Stretch your money even further by adding tins of green lentils, 390g, 55p from Asda, to the recipe. Meat-eaters will hardly tell the difference.
SWAP YOUR CUTS
Fancy a chicken tray bake? Choose chicken thigh fillets or drumsticks. Buy a kilo of chicken thigh fillets for £4.65 at Morrisons and cook with veg and Morrisons fajita seasoning for a tasty meal. For cheaper chicken breasts, Morrisons has 750g for £4.
BAKE YOUR OWN
Make your own traybakes for pennies. Flapjacks are the ultimate bargain nibble – just oats, syrup and brown sugar transform into something amazing. Get a kilo of porridge oats for 79p at Morrisons.
GET CRACKING WITH EGGS
For a protein-rich meal costing less than £2, look no further than a box of eggs. Tesco has a pack of 12 free-range eggs for £1.69, perfect for whipping up an omelette, frittata or tortilla – or even hard-boiling for a bargain egg curry.
FILL UP YOUR FREEZER
Buying frozen is usually cheaper than fresh. If you are making fish pie, for £4 you can get 400g of frozen fish mix at Tesco, compared to just 340g from the fresh fish aisle.
Cheese and ham bake
Serves six
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
YOU NEED:
- 450g cooked pasta
- 30g unsalted butter
- 30g plain flour
- 600g semi-skimmed milk
- 150g grated cheese
- 150g ham, diced
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METHOD:
- Firstly, make the sauce. To do this, melt the butter in a saucepan and add the flour. Stir together for two minutes.
- Gradually add the milk, bringing the sauce to a smooth consistency with each addition. When all the milk is added, simmer for two minutes.
- Add the ham and cheese to the sauce and stir until the sauce is smooth.
- Put the cooked pasta into a mixing bowl and pour in the sauce. Combine well and transfer to an ovenproof dish. Bake at 175C/gas 3 until bubbling and golden brown.
