Chapter Three: More Eat Rich On A Poor Budget Recipes (~jinghan)

See previous chapter for my rambling about how to make the most of your money when it comes to feeding yourself.

Mmmm food…

You might eventually notice that a lot of my cooking involves the same view ingredients (^^;;) at any rate some good things to have in your kitchen at: salt, pepper, garlic, vegetable oil, soy sauce, rice (rice!), pasta, quinoa, all of these involve some initial investment of up to $5 but then will last you forever. I also always buy a large stock of tomatos whenever the price of tomatos drops – you can never have too many tomatoes!

Oh and peanut butter ($3-5) and jam ($3-5) will last a month of regular use, and I always carry at least one peanut butter and jelly sandwich with me during a uni day for when my lunch starts to wear off and all the food that they sell everywhere is starting to seem mighty tempting. Good for after 4pm math lectures, when you are feeling tired and hungry, when you haven’t decided what to cook for dinner yet, etc. If you are not a sweet tooth or don’t like peanut butter and jam (!!! D= )  find your own comfort food that doesn’t take much time to make to keep on you.

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Garlic and Mushroom Tofu: (about $5 serves 1-2 single meals) 

Ingredients: 

• Tofu cut into cubes(about $2-4 for a box depending on the size of the box, I usually go with something between medium and firm, but this recipe works with anything.)
• Soy Sauce (negligible cost once you’ve bought a bottle for $3 that last 6 months)
• Mushrooms chopped (As many as you can bare to buy, I have used anything between 0 and 10 mushrooms depending on feelings of stinginess and times when I have had to empty my fridge of perishables. Cost: $0-3)
• Half a bulb worth of garlic, minced (Adjust quantity as you feel necessary, about $0.50 for one garlic, $0 if you already bought a large packet of)
• Vegetable oil (negligible cost once you have bought a bottle for $3 that lasts 6 months)
• Salt
• Serve with: rice

Cut and put tofu in a small bowl and douse in soy sauce (about 3 table spoons ish) toss gently with a spoon to cover as much tofu as possible. Then cut mushrooms and garlic. Heat oil in pan, reduce to medium heat. Add garlic and stir briefly (about 10 seconds). Add mushrooms and tofu along with all the soy sauce in the bowl. Add about 1 teaspoon of salt (taste check the amount of salt =p) and a tablespoon of water (add more if it starts to look dry/charing to the bottom of the pot. Stir thoroughly, then cover with lid and reduce heat. Leave for 5-10 minutes.

Serve with rice and vegetables/salad/stir fry.

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Eggplant Stew: ($3 worth of ingredients; One eggplant serves 4-6 single meals)

Ingredients: 

• Two or three tomatos, cut into “cubes” ($0.20 – $0.50)
• Half an eggplant, cut into cubes ($1.50 for whole egg plant)
• Half a bulb of garlic, chopped into slices ($0.25)
• Soy sauce, salt and pepper
• Optional: mince pork and/or mushroom (not sure about how much minced meat costs, I’ve never bought any for myself =p)
• Serve with: rice or quinoa (is really yummy with quinoa fresh from the pot)

What to do: 

Put rice/quinoa on cook and cut stuff. Heat generous amount of oil in pan. If serving with mince meat, fry this first on medium heat until cooked through. Add garlic and stir briefly (about 10sec). Add all other ingredients and stir until vegetables start to soften. Add a generous dash of soy sauce, about three teaspoons of salt, plenty of pepper and half a cup of water. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15minutes or until tomato has mostly broken down.

Serve over hot rice or quinoa.

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Cauliflower with tomato: (approx. $2 serves 1-2 single meals) 

Ingredients: 

• third of a cauliflower cut into small branches ($2-3 for the whole thing, can also serve with dal – see chapter two for recipe)
• two tomatos roughly chopped($0.15-$0.40 depending on the mood of your supermarket)
• quarter of an onion finely chopped ($0.10)
• salt and pepper, oil
• one or two eggs (optional)
• serve with: rice

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Make Your Own Pizza Dough: ($6 for enough ingredients to make indefinite amount of dough, recipe serves 3 hungry people or 4 not as hungry people, can freeze once dough is made) 

Recipe I acquired from a friend, some wording is her’s

• 2 cups flour (about $3 for a packet of four, can also be used to make damper and cake and scones)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 cup warmish water
• 1 sachet yeast
• + other stuff like tomato paste and toppings