Feed a Family For £5, with Caring Cooks of Jersey
Chicken casserole and dumplings
Ingredients:
Caring Cooks of Jersey provides free meals or the skills and tools to make meals that are healthy, balanced and on a budget, to help improve nutrition within Jersey families.
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 4 large or 6 small
- chicken thighs
- 1 or 2 carrots
- 2 large potatoes
- 1 chicken stock cube
- made up with 500 ml hot
- water
- 1 large cup of peas
- (frozen, fresh or tinned)
- 1 tsp mixed herbs
- Salt and pepper
Dumplings:
- 200g plain flour
- 100g suet
- water to mix
Method:
Peel and roughly chop your onions, potatoes and carrots. Place your chicken in the saucepan, add the vegetables you have prepared and pour over your stock.
Allow to simmer before seasoning the simmering mixture, then cover and allow to cook for 15 minutes.
Put your flour and suet into a bowl and season with a little salt and pepper.
Add a dribble of water at a time to make a stiff mixture. Divide the mixture into small balls and roll in your hand to shape.
Add the herbs and peas and cook covered for a further ten minutes.
Check the potato is soft enough to eat and the chicken is cooked right through (no pink remaining).
Pour into your casserole dish and add the dumplings to the top of the dish and cool.Refrigerate until ready to use.
To reheat put the casserole dish (with the lid on) in the oven at 200C for half an hour until it is piping hot throughout. The dumplings will rise with the steam of the dish and become crisp on the outside.
Chefs Budget Meals
Local chefs have been asked how to turn a key ingredient into three family meals. This week is the turn of Salty Dog head chef Paul Fletcher, who had a 2-kg chicken costing £7 as his main ingredient.
‘I’ve been a chef for 24 years. I’ve worked at the Salty Dog for 14 years in various chef positions.
‘I’ve lived in Jersey for 16 years and love dealing with producers and suppliers on a small and personal scale. I have been fascinated by food and everything about it for as long as I recall. When I’m not cooking, curing, growing or reading about food, I like to play golf when I can and love travelling.’
DAY 1
Spanish rice and chicken
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 2 chicken legs (jointed into 4, skin removed)
- 2 chicken wings
- 1 chicken carcass (cut into 2 and most of fat removed)
- 1l water
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes[figure title=”trhytrw” align=”right” url=”/wpmvc/wp/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/trhytrw.jpg” id=”1268345″]
- 3 cloves garlic (sliced)
- 1 onion (chopped)
- 1 yellow pepper (chopped)
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 2 tbsp sweet paprika
- 350g long grain rice
- Seasoning
In a pan cover the chicken carcass with the water, bring to the boil and simmer, covered, for 40 minutes. In another pan, fry the chicken pieces until brown 12-15 minutes.
Remove the chicken and fry the onions and garlic. Add the stock. Add the rice, tomatoes, chilli and paprika to the pan, then place the chicken in so it sits on top. Cover and simmer until the rice is cooked through (add a little more water if needed). Add the chopped peppers. Season to taste and serve.
DAY 2
Chicken cacciatore
Ingredients:
- 1 chicken breast (thinly sliced)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 onions (peeled, halved and thinly sliced)
- 3 cloves of garlic (sliced)
- 1 green pepper (sliced)
- 250g button mushrooms (sliced)
- 2 tins of chopped tomatoes
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp sugar
- Seasoning
- Your choice of pasta
In a saucepan, fry the onions and garlic in the oil until translucent. Add the sliced chicken, mushrooms and pepper and cook for three minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, check the seasoning and simmer for six minutes. Serve over your choice of pasta.
DAY 3
Lemon pepper chicken schnitzel and skordalia
Ingredients:
- 1 chicken breast and the 2 breast fillets
- 70g plain flour
- 1 egg (beaten)
- 100g dried breadcrumbs
- 1 handful parsley (chopped)
- 1 lemon (juice and zest separated)
- 700g potatoes peeled
- 8 cloves of garlic
- 100ml olive oil
- Seasoning
Butterfly cut the chicken breast in half, keeping the knife parallel to the chopping board. Place each piece of chicken, one at a time, between two sheets of cling film. Gently flatten them to around half a centimetre, with a steak mallet or rolling pin. Add the lemon zest, chopped parsley, one tsp salt and two tsp black pepper to the breadcrumbs. Dip each piece of chicken into the flour, then egg, then the breadcrumb mix.
Preheat the oven to 180C. Boil the potatoes in a pan until cooked, then drain. Puree the garlic and olive oil in a food processor or with a stick blender. Add this and the lemon juice to the potatoes and mash. Keep warm. Shallow fry both sides of the chicken pieces, one at a time until golden and place on a baking tray. Finish cooking them in the oven for seven to eight minutes. Serve with salad or vegetables of your choice.
Affordable Health Food
Sweet potato bean burgers
Ingredients:
- 4 sweet potatoes?1 x 400g can borlotti beans?1 red onion?3 dessert spoons (gluten free) plain flour
- Fresh coriander ?Cayenne pepper,
- Chilli flakes
- Zest of 1 lime?Seasoning
- Olive oil or coconut oil for cooking
Makes approx. 12 patties Total cost £2.40?No gluten, dairy, egg or nuts.
Method:
Peel and cube the sweet potato. Place in a baking tray with one teaspoon oil. Season lightly with ground sea salt. Shake well to ensure even oil coverage. Peel the onion and cut into quarters. Add to the sweet potato. Roast for 25-30 minutes at 200 degrees (fan oven).
Place the roasted sweet potato and onion into a food processor and blitz for 30-60 seconds until smooth. Pop in a bowl in the fridge to chill for 10-30 minutes. (Alternatively, use leftover mashed or roasted sweet potato from the day before). Drain the beans and rinse well. Pop the beans into a food processor with a large bunch of chopped coriander (stalks and leaves), a pinch of sea salt, zest of 1 lime and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or chilli flakes (or fresh chilli if preferred) and blitz for 30-60 seconds until well combined, but still coarse. Combine the blitzed beans with the sweet potato in the food processor and add three dessert spoons of plain flour while on a low speed. The mixture should form easily into round patties. If the mixture is too warm, chill for another 30 minutes.
Form into 12-15 patties on a floured surface and place on a lightly floured plate. These will keep uncooked in the fridge for 24-36 hours. To cook the burgers, heat up two teaspoons of oil in a non-stick frying pan or cast iron skillet. Place a few of the burgers in the pan, leaving space around each one. Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes each side on a medium heat until lightly golden. Serve stacked up in (gluten free) wholemeal seeded buns with lots of salad, smashed avocado and roasted cherry tomatoes or on top of a big mixed salad.
