Suggest a meal

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I have to cook for 5 people (inc myself) and want to do it as cheaply as possible but still have something relatively nice.

Was thinking of getting some basics mince. Its £1.25 for 400g.

Things that I don't want to cook are: Spaghetti, Lasagne, Burgers, Chilli but any other suggestions are welcome.
 
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Stirfry would be a good shout.

Noodles are very cheap, get a big bag of the frozen seafood mix, and make your own sauce (check out the preserves thread, started by Acidhell/Glaucus a few threads below), or you can buy some - the blue dragon stuff is nice, and get a bag of stirfry veg, some onion, garlic, and chilli.

Heat up some oil in a pan until it's quite hot, throw in diced onion, chilli, and garlic. Fry for a few minutes. Then add the fish, and fry for a couple of minutes. Add the sauce, and noodles, fry for 30 seconds, add the veg and fry for a minute or two. Keep stirring throughout, and then chuck it all out on plates. Shouldn't be more than a quid or two per person.
 
Using the mince: Cottage pie or chilli con carne come to mind.

As it's your principle ingredient it might be worth getting a better quality mince though. Or at least cooking it for a good while in a casserole to tenderise it.

Make the cottage pie mince up with onion, diced carrot, finely sliced celery, stock, a bit of flour to thicken it and some worcester sauce for a bit of a kick. Fluffy mash on top, grill, done. You'll just need an onion, chilli & tin of kidney beans for your chilli. Heston even has a sensible recipe for making one.
 
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Scumbag cook. Wants to buy mince. Doesn't want to make anything that involves mince. :D

Meatballs?

Depends how much time and effort you want to put in. Are you a student?

If you can get the veg cheap ratatouille is pretty good. Can be served with crusty bread or pasta.
 
Largish chicken (£7 - 8 freerange).

Roast with herb butter smothered all over and a lemon up it's jacksie (microwave lemon for 20 secs then pierce with fork all over).

Serve in its tin, with some really good bread to mop up the juices, and some salad on the side.
 
I was going to get 2 packs of mince. Chicken is too expensive.

The banned list is just things that the people I am cooking for dont want. They don't want anything with pasta (or its derivatives) either.

I was thinking burritoes and chips.

Basics potatoes: £1
Tortilla wraps: £2 for 16
Mince 800g: £2.50
2 tins of chopped tomatoes: 80p
Cheese: £2 (grated)

Things I have already:
- pasatta
- salsa
- garlic
- cayenne chill power
- dried herbs.

I have never cooked with cheap mince before, when I am cooking or myself I only ever use lean or extra lean stuff.....is there anything I need to do/take into account?
 
Have you got a budget for the meal? Or is it a case of Basics mince is all you can afford? At £2.50 for five people you're in offal territory. Is liver a no-go? As said above, ever considered doing veggie instead? If offal is a no then you'll probably get a better meal for the money by skipping the meat entirely.
 
Do you want recipe suggestions for 800g of value mince or recipe suggestions for anything? Why not get frozen mince? It'll be even cheaper.

Stuffing some veg would work. Peppers or marrow or something like that. Add some rice/couscous to it and make it highly flavoured with your herbs and spices.

Is your total budget £8? When are you cooking this?
 
One of the guys doesnt like pulses so anything with beans is off the table. I don't like liver so I don't want to cook that. Can't thing of anything vege to do. I'm cooking tonight so will be shopping at around 4
 
Give us your total budget, what you already have in your house, any dietary requirements and we'll be able to give you a meal. There's no point in us just listing stuff willy nilly. I still reckon stir fry is your best bet as well.
 
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