Four Meals in Five Minutes...

Okay, that is a bit of an exaggeration. It’s more like four meals in twenty to thirty minutes. As a student on a strict budget, I can’t splash out on expensive ingredients for fancy meals but make the best with what I can find in Lidl.

Each of the recipes I have included in this blog cost approximately £10 of my weekly budget for shopping and make 3-4 servings, however this obviously depends where you prefer to do your shopping and if you substitute any of the ingredients!

I chose these particular meals as they each have a special connection to me - whether that be reminders of home, or fun memories of cooking with friends. A couple are vegetarian safe, and they are all relatively easy to whip up after a long day of uni, and store for a few days for when you don’t feel like cooking. I hope you will give them a go and enjoy making them as much as I do!

Corned Beef Hash

Coming from the north of England, this dish was a staple in my household, and although I used to grumble at it after school, I’ve come to appreciate it since being away at university. A true Lancashire delicacy that’s warming and hearty, perfect for these cold, winter nights. This will store in the fridge for up to three days, or can be frozen to eat at a later date.

Ingredients.

• 1 tin of corned beef, cut into cubes
• Potatoes, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1 onion, diced
• Tomato puree
• Beef gravy granules
• Oil
• Worcestershire sauce

Recipe

1. Once you’ve cut up your potatoes and carrots, set them to boil in a pan of water for about 10 minutes or until soft.
2. Whilst they are boiling, add a tablespoon of oil to a pot or large frying pan and fry the diced onion until translucent.
3. Dissolve the gravy granules in about 200 ml of boiling water before pouring into the pot, along with a tablespoon of tomato puree and a splash of worcestershire sauce. Mix thoroughly. You may need to turn down the heat at this step.
4. Once softened, drain the potatoes and carrots and add directly to the pot. Mix.
5. Add your chopped beef and mix for about five minutes or until the beef has warmed through.
6. Serve with your choice of vegetable, or a crusty bread roll.

Pizza (vegetarian-safe)

Nothing feels more productive than making your own pizza dough. You can make a classic pizza, get creative with a stuffed crust, melt butter and garlic to make a garlic bread, or roll your dough to create dough balls! Your dough (minus toppings) can be frozen to use at a later date.

This recipe makes two classic pizzas.

Ingredients

• 200g of strong bread flour
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 2 teaspoons of salt
• 2 teaspoons of dried active yeast (it’s really important you don’t get yeast for a mixer here but hand baking)
• 200 ml of warm water and milk mixture
• Your choice of toppings

Recipe

1. Add all dry ingredients to a bowl and gradually add the water and use a knife to bring it all together into a ball. You may need to add a bit more flour if the dough is too sticky.
2. Knead the dough on a floured surface for about 10 minutes.
3. Leave to rise for at least 30 minutes. Add a little oil to the bowl to stop the dough from sticking.
4. Divide the dough into the desired quantities, and roll out into desired shape and thickness.

Decorate with your choice of toppings and bake for approximately 10 minutes at 180 degrees, or until cooked to your preference.

Spaghetti Carbonara

I won’t lie to you, carbonara took me a while to get the hang of, however now I can’t stop making it. Original recipes use pancetta and hard cheeses such as parmesan, however, for students these can be pricey! I find that chopped up bacon rashers and cheddar cheese works just as well.

Ingredients

• A handful of dried spaghetti
• 4 bacon rashers, chopped up
• Grated cheese
• 2 medium eggs
• Salt and pepper
• Oil

Recipe

1. Set the spaghetti boiling in a pan of salted water.
2. Fry the bacon pieces in a tablespoon of oil until brown.
3. Whilst the bacon is frying, beat the eggs in a bowl with a handful of grated cheese.
4. When the spaghetti is cooked add it to the pan of bacon. It doesn’t matter if a bit of the water is transferred too, this is what we want!
5. Take the pan off the heat and add the egg and cheese mixture, stirring continuously so the eggs don’t stick to the pan and scramble. Add a little more pasta water to loosen the mixture.
6. It’s really important you don’t stop mixing the food as the eggs will scramble instead of forming a sauce.
7. Transfer to a bowl and serve with extra grated cheese on top, salt and pepper.

Chicken/halloumi tray bake (vegetarian)

This meal is healthy, good for meal prep, and easy to substitute ingredients to fit certain diets/lifestyle choices.

Ingredients

• Chicken breast or halloumi
• A selection of vegetables ideal for roasting- I go for courgette, tomatoes, peppers, onion, mushrooms.
• If you’re using chicken, a jar of sun-dried tomato pesto
• Any kind of paprika seasoning
• Oil
• Rice or baby potatoes (optional)

Recipe.

1. Chop all your vegetables into bite sized chunks and add to an oven-proof dish.
2. Drizzle with oil, salt and pepper and roast at 180 degrees for 10 minutes.
3. Cut the chicken breast down the middle so it opens like a book, spread the pesto in the middle and close.
4. Remove the dish from the oven and turn all the vegetables, add the chicken breast, drizzle over a little more oil and season with lots of paprika.
5. If you’re using halloumi, disregard step 3, and instead cut the cheese into cubes and add to the vegetables in place of the chicken.
6. Continue roasting until the chicken is cooked all the way through or the halloumi is slightly browned and soft, and the vegetables are tender.
7. Serve with rice or boiled potatoes (this is optional).

So there we have it, four meals in twenty-ish minutes. If you buy your ingredients from Lidl like me, or similar priced shops such as Aldi, you’ll be doing your student loan a massive favor whilst at the same time making great food fit for storage and perfect for the incoming winter months.

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