Recipes for non fresh ingredients

1

15edward

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I can usually manage up to week for the two of us without shopping if I plan carefully using precooked and frozen meals and longer life packaged meat etc although the veg are a bit droopy by then....
I’m trying to think of meals for 7 of us at the end of 5 days when the family come for 3 days. Shopping will be very limited for me and they can bring some stuff but will be coming straight from work
Any ideas? We don’t have bbq and I cook on three rings
 
One or two pot wonders, curry, stew, spag bol, these can be prepared in advance and actually get better if they are left to 'sit' for a day or two - when I make spag bol I put in mince and roughly about half the amount of grated carrot, it gives it a lovely texture and taste.
 
So you’d reckon if I took the fresh in the fridge on the Monday, made it say Wednesday and kept it fridged it would be ok on the Saturday evening?
 
We carry a lot of packs of microwave rice that can be stir fried , you could use some tins of mixed veg to mix through it and add cooked chicken or prawns. There are lots of stir fry sauces in jars that could be used.

Pasta pesto is always a good option for us.

Baked whole Camembert cheese is a favourite and we do it on the hob top in a pan on a trivet if you haven’t an oven. Take it out of its wrapper and put some slits in the Camembert with a knife and add garlic (we use paste for ease) and a bit of honey. Wrap it in foil and cook for about 15/20 minutes it will be soft you could serve it with bread, salad and a load of salami/ham .
 
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Par boil potatoes, Put filling, (could be chicken in white sauce, stewed beef etc) into pie tin.
Slice potatoes and layer over pie tin. put in oven.

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I can work on that -no oven!
But I can look for decent tinned stuff I don’t usually get
Thanks
 
Freshly cooked food, chilled quickly, (difficult I appreciate but the quicker the better) can be safely put in a fridge for up to four days after cooking, before eating.
 
I ve been thinking on the lines of eggs and cheese for recipes so far as things to carry in the van not going off
After a week
 
If there's no oven in the van and you have an inverter, you could invest in a halogen oven in the range 1000w- 1400w

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15edward said:
So you’d reckon if I took the fresh in the fridge on the Monday, made it say Wednesday and kept it fridged it would be ok on the Saturday evening?
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That's pushing it a bit, the meat isn't an issue as it would last in it's wrapper (check use by date), for the veg etc it depends on what other stuff you put in it but if you don't buy old veg etc in the first place it should last longer than a couple of days, potatoes, onions, carrots etc have a good lift if stored properly (use your eyes/nose NOT the use by date for these), use tinned/jar sauces rather than make your own for the curry and spag bol to keep it simple, and don't forget the cheese for the spag bol - nice mature cheddar grated on top ... yummie (Aldi do one and it's cheap and lovely). The visitors could just bring some salad/bread etc to go with the meals.
 
Minxy Girl said:
That's pushing it a bit, the meat isn't an issue as it would last in it's wrapper (check use by date), for the veg etc it depends on what other stuff you put in it but if you don't buy old veg etc in the first place it should last longer than a couple of days, potatoes, onions, carrots etc have a good lift if stored properly (use your eyes/nose NOT the use by date for these), use tinned/jar sauces rather than make your own for the curry and spag bol to keep it simple, and don't forget the cheese for the spag bol - nice mature cheddar grated on top ... yummie (Aldi do one and it's cheap and lovely). The visitors could just bring some salad/bread etc to go with the meals.
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Last night there was a rerun of a Greg Wallace food production show. It was sausages and on it, it was stated that the sausages have a 10 day shelf life. I appreciate that the bangers are a raw state but if they have a 10 day life in a raw state then four days in a fridge after cooking should be not worse. I cannot emphasis too much however that it relies on quick chilling after cooking.
 
15edward said:
I ve been thinking on the lines of eggs and cheese for recipes so far as things to carry in the van not going off
After a week
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Peppers, ham etc, lobbed in a frying pan, covered with beaten egg with some cheese mixed in ... cooked SLOWLY ... voila ... its what they now call a crustless quiche! If you put some boiled spuds in it too it would be a fritata!
 
Emmit said:
Last night there was a rerun of a Greg Wallace food production show. It was sausages and on it, it was stated that the sausages have a 10 day shelf life. I appreciate that the bangers are a raw state but if they have a 10 day life in a raw state then four days in a fridge after cooking should be not worse. I cannot emphasis however that it relies on quick chilling after cooking.
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The issue with cooked is that once the packet it opened the 'protective' gas that they put in to help prevent food spoiling is gone, so cooking them and using them 4 days later wouldn't be something I'd do myself unless they were well and truly warmed through again to piping hot, at which point you might as well cook them from raw. If it was jsut for the 2 of us I might risk it, but not for a load of visitors.

Sausage stew is nice and tasty and makes a change from a mince/steak one.
 
Emmit said:
Last night there was a rerun of a Greg Wallace food production show. It was sausages and on it, it was stated that the sausages have a 10 day shelf life. I appreciate that the bangers are a raw state but if they have a 10 day life in a raw state then four days in a fridge after cooking should be not worse. I cannot emphasis too much however that it relies on quick chilling after cooking.
Click to expand...

The Veg's go in a lightproof bag and stored in a lightless place. They would last ages without heat. After all, that's how they are stored commercially.

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15edward said:
I do like the sound of the Camembert
Thanks!
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It is delicious , I am always amazed how much they charge for it in a restaurant. The advantage of a load of salami/prosciutto etc is that the packs have a long fridge life.


You could also just do an anti pasti Italian meat selection with a couple of mozzarellas and some bread/salad that your guests could bring along.
 
Just thought of another easy meal to cook when you have visitors, sausages, couscous and peas/sweetcorn - couscous usually just needs hot water putting in, stirring and then leaving to swell, no need to put it on the hob, this then leaves it free for cooking the sausages and warming the (tinned) veg. If you want to have a sauce with it, a cheap jar of pasta sauce warmed through is great and then people can pour on as much or little as they want. Don't worry about serving stuff in 'proper' dishes, use paper plates/bowls so very little washing up.
 
We often do a one pot wonder of tinned stewing steak, tinned spuds, tinned carrots, with some crispy bread - we use the part-baked stuff which hubby then finishes off on the hob in a pan ... gotta have loads of lovely butter on them. :makeup:
 
For those without a grill a blow torch works wonders ... don't get the crappy silly little ones though, a proper one is much better ... just don't set the camper on fire!
 
Check out Jack Monroe for some great store-cupboard recipes.

cookingonabootstrap.com

Recipes & Food – COOKING ON A BOOTSTRAP

Posts about Recipes & Food written by msjackmonroe and Jack Monroe
cookingonabootstrap.com cookingonabootstrap.com

My standby is tinned macaroni cheese - add to cooked chicken, mushrooms, peppers, courgettes etc.

Also tinned stewed steak with tomato soup and cooked/tinned veg for a quick stew.
 
ah yes Jacks recipes are great!!
But i could make a big pan of macaroni !
I seem to have mastered dried milk for sauces in the van!
 
All of this "putting in fridge" sounds fine but in central France with temps at 38 degrees our fridge is reduced to merely a chilled and no more
 
15edward said:
So you’d reckon if I took the fresh in the fridge on the Monday, made it say Wednesday and kept it fridged it would be ok on the Saturday evening?
Click to expand...
Personally I would be fine with that...but I'm not sure I'd be confident enough to serve to other people. But if you have a freezer simply take the meat frozen.....defrost in the fridge on the Thursday, make the spag bol (or whatever) on the Friday, chill, and then warm through on the Saturday.

What about a mixed bean chilli? Basically the same recipe as a meat chilli but using various tins of beans: red kidney, pinto, and black beans are all good - though you can go with whatever you fancy or is available.

Lentils and chickpeas are other good protein sources to have to hand. We're not vegetarian but we often have a chickpea curry - you can substitute chickpeas in most chicken curry recipes, Moroccan recipes are good for this too. Lentils are great for making a quick daal, or you can use them to bulk out (or even replace) meat in things like chilli con carne or spag bol.

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normanandsue said:
All of this "putting in fridge" sounds fine but in central France with temps at 38 degrees our fridge is reduced to merely a chilled and no more
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yes
partly last months Germany temps of 31degrees when we were there which had that effect on the freezer compartment prompted my rethink and my question!
 
15edward said:
yes
partly last months Germany temps of 31degrees when we were there which had that effect on the freezer compartment prompted my rethink and my question!
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Assuming you travel through France to reach Germany.....we've found the large tins of Cassoulet sold in French supermarkets make very good emergency supplies....1 tin makes a good meal for two people. We always carry a couple tucked away somewhere in case we can't get to a shop or run out of fresh food.
 
DangerMousy said:
Personally I would be fine with that...but I'm not sure I'd be confident enough to serve to other people. But if you have a freezer simply take the meat frozen.....defrost in the fridge on the Thursday, make the spag bol (or whatever) on the Friday, chill, and then warm through on the Saturday.

What about a mixed bean chilli? Basically the same recipe as a meat chilli but using various tins of beans: red kidney, pinto, and black beans are all good - though you can go with whatever you fancy or is available.

Lentils and chickpeas are other good protein sources to have to hand. We're not vegetarian but we often have a chickpea curry - you can substitute chickpeas in most chicken curry recipes, Moroccan recipes are good for this too. Lentils are great for making a quick daal, or you can use them to bulk out (or even replace) meat in things like chilli con carne or spag bol.
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Beans ... BEANS ... have you thought of the after effects with all of those people eating it? We'd get another gassing thread!!!!
 
When is rice, not rice???
When it's Orzo which is a pasta that looks remarkably like rice.
Sainsburys sell it for about 70p a packet. Tesco, (snobs) have it in their 'Finest' range at over £1 and it's available on the Continent too but I'll be damned if I can remember which country you CAN'T buy it.
Choice of Spain or Portugal.

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