Category Archives: Budget Recipes Part 1

Budget Recipes Series – Part One

Posted by Cape Malay Cooking & Other Delights

Welcome to our new series, Budget Recipes Series

Here’s some recipes to feed a family of 4 on a budget for a week. I’ve created 7 family friendly dinner recipes suitable for everyone. My recipes are a collection of cheap yet delicious recipes to prove that you don’t need to sacrifice quality to save your rands.

Here’s my suggested menu for the week.

Monday

Fish frikkadel with gesmoorde tomato and rice.

Ingredients:

500g hake fillets or 3 tins of tuna / tin mackerel / pilchards

2 slices of bread (preferably a couple of days old)
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 medium onion, chopped
¼ teaspoon garlic
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 teaspoon jeera/cumin powder
1¼ teaspoons leaf masala / chilli powder
¼ teaspoon borrie/tumeric
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Salt to taste
Handful chopped parsley
1 medium egg
Cooking oil for shallow frying

Method:
Boil hake in enough water to cover for 5-10 minutes. Drain well and flake.

Soak the bread in water for 10 minutes then squeeze out all the water. Meanwhile, to the oil in a saucepan add the chopped onion.

Braise until golden brown. Add tomato, garlic and spices, cook for 5minutes until all the spices are combined.

Combine the fish, bread, spices with the rest of the ingredients. Shape into flat fish cakes.

Shallow fry in hot oil until brown for about 5 minutes on each side. Serve with white rice and gesmoorde tomato.

Gesmoorde Tomato

Sauté a large peeled and chopped onion in a tbsp of oil.
Add 2 finely chopped cloves of garlic
Green chillies to taste
A small chopped green pepper optional
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp dried mix herbs
3 large red tomatoes.
You may use tin of chopped tomatoes instead of the fresh tomatoes.
Add 1 – 2 tablespoons of sugar, optional. The sugar will neutralise the acidity of the tomatoes.
Add 1 tbsp tomato paste. Season and cook until well blended and the vegetables are soft about
10-15 minutes. Serve warm with the fish frikkadel and rice.

Tuesday

For Tuesday I chose dhal with eggs and rice.

Tarka Dhal
1 cup red lentils (dhal)
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
½ teaspoon turmeric
2 green chilies, chopped
1½ teastpoon salt

For the tarka
2 tablespoon cooking oil
1 medium onion, chopped
¼ teaspoon mustard seeds
¼ teaspoon onion seeds / powder
½ teaspoon chilli powder
1 medium tomato, choppedFor the garnish
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dhanya
1 green chilli, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

Soak the dhal in cold water to cover for half an hour. Rinse until the water runs clear. Transfer the soaked dhal to a deep saucepan. Add 2 ½ cups water, grated ginger, garlic, turmeric, salt and chopped chillies. Boil for 20 minutes or until soft and the has the consistency of creamy soup. Add more water if needed. Keep warm. Whilst the dhal is cooking boil 4 – 6 eggs. Cool down and peel.

Heat the oil in a heavy pan. Add the chopped onion with the mustard and onion seeds, red chilli and tomato and fry for 4 – 5 minutes over medium heat.

Spoon the cooked into a serving dish and pour the tarka over. Gently add the peeled hard boiled eggs. You can slice it in half at this stage or leave it whole if preferred. Stir lightly. Garnish with fresh dhanya, green chillies and mint. Serve with boiled rice, roti, vetkoek and atchar or sambals.

Wednesday

Mince Pasta Bake

250 gram of pasta of choice cooked as per packet instructions. Drain and put in oven proof dish.

Sauté 1 medium chopped onion in a a little olive oil. Add 1 tsp of fresh minced garlic, 1 tin of chopped tomatoes with salt an pepper to taste and a tsp of dried mix herbs. Cook for about 10 minutes. Mix with pasta.

Brown 400g steak mince in another pan until dry and mix with pasta and tomato mix.

For the sauce

2 tablespoon butter

3 tablespoon cake flour

2 cups of milk

3/4 cup of grated cheddar cheese (optional)

Method:

To make the sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan on a low heat. Stir in the flour and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly, until you have a smooth paste. Slowly pour the milk in, stirring all the time. Bring to the boil, stirring with a whisk, until thickened. Season with pepper & salt to taste and stir well. Add cheese and stir. Pour into baking tray with all other ingredients.

I topped it with more grated cheese and sliced mozzarella for a more cheesy taste.

Bake in preheated oven at 180’C for about 15 minutes.

Thursday

Cauliflower with rice

Stew or bredie as it is known in South Africa usually consists of mutton / lamb pieces / beef pieces cooked with various fresh vegetables. Bredies are traditional Cape Malay food which is simple and inexpensive to cook, especially when feeding large families.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
600g mutton / lamb pieces / beef pieces
1 large cauliflower (or 2 small ones)
2 stick cinnamons
1-2 green chillies
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar (optional)
Water as needed

Method:
Heat oil in a large saucepan and braise onion until golden brown, 5-10. Add meat. Braise until dark brown, 10-15 minutes. Add salt, chillies, stick cinnamon and enough water; simmer until meat is nearly tender about 30 – 40 minutes depending the cut of meat you use. Add cauliflower florets and simmer until almost soft. Add potatoes and cook for about 15 minutes. Add sugar, stirring gently to dissolve. Serve with boiled rice and atchars.

Friday

Mince Breyani

Ingredients:

Serves 4 – 6
2 cups basmati rice
500g lean steak mince
1 tablespoon oil
2 large onions, finely chopped 1 large tomato, finely chopped 5ml crushed ginger
2 teaspoons crushed garlic
2 pieces stick cinnamon
5 cardamom seeds
3 cloves
2 tablespoons leaf or roasted masala
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon ground jeera/cumin
1 teaspoon ground koljander/coriander

2 teaspoons salt
2 cups frozen mix vegetables
2 large potatoes, quartered (optional)
50g butter
1/4 cup water

Method:

Cook the basmati rise in enough water to cover until nearly tender. Rinse and drain in a colander. Wash and drain minced meat. Heat oil, add onions, cardamom and stick cinnamon and cook until onions are transparent. Add all the spices and simmer for 15 minutes, adding water to prevent it from sticking and burning. Add mince to sauce, stirring to prevent lumps forming. Cook covered for 10 minutes, then add tomato and potatoes if using and cook until almost tender, about 15 minutes. Add the frozen veg and cook a further 10 minutes. Layer a third of the rice in a casserole dish top with a third of the mince. Add a second and third layer of rice and mince ending with a layer of rice. (So in effect you will have 3 layers). Dot with butter and water. Cover and microwave for 10 – 15 minutes to finish cooking the breyani. Garnish with chopped dhanya leaves. Serve with atchars or sambals.

Saturday

Homemade Pizza

Makes 1 large Pizza
2 cups self raising flour
1 cup low fat plain yoghurt

In a bowl mix the 2 ingredients until a dough forms. Cover and allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes.

Flour a work surface and using a rolling pin, roll the dough until it is roughly the size of the pizza tray you are using. Place the rolled out dough onto the tray and top with fillings of your choice. Bake for about 20 minutes at 190 degrees.

Suggested Toppings:

To start off all pizzas:
• Tomato puree or tomato ketchup
• Dried mixed herbs, oregano or fresh chopped basil
Spread tomato puree or tomato ketchup over the pizza bases, sprinkle with the herbs.
Top with grated cheese and get your children to decorate with whatever toppings you have in the fridge.
Bake in a preheated 200 C for 15 to 20 minutes if using a scone or dough base, until golden brown.
Topping ideas:
• grated cheese (cheddar, mozzarella)
• olives
• chopped onion
• chopped peppers
• chopped tomatoes
• broccoli florets
• sliced courgettes
• sliced mushrooms
• tinned sweetcorn
• roasted vegetables
• chopped pineapple
• tuna
• cooked chicken
• pepperoni, salami

Sunday

Pot Roast

Very easy and simple to make but absolutely delicious

1kg chicken pieces seasoned with 1 – 2 teaspoons salt and lots of black pepper

In a hot deep pot add half cup tablespoons oil, your pot needs to be very hot before adding the oil. Use a heavy based pot for best results.

Fry chicken one layer at a time for 5 minutes each side, don’t worry if it is little dark, when done it will be a nice deep golden colour. Remove, set aside and fry the rest of the chicken. After all the chicken has fried you may add potatoes. Brown the potatoes on all sides, remove.

Add the chicken and potatoes back to the pot with little water as needed.
Cover pot with lid turn the heat to medium – low heat and let it simmer for another 20 minutes. Try not to stir the pot, shake the pot gently from time to time, add little bit of water to prevent the chicken and potatoes from sticking.

Serve with gesmoorde rys / braised rice and deep fried potatoes, if you not adding potatoes in the pot, and / or lots seasonal vegetables of choice.

Sunday Dessert

Here’s a delicious treat for the weekend.

Chocolate meets coffee – the perfect combination for this delectable chocolate cake variation.

Salwaa’s Cappuccino Bars

Ingredients:

225g softened butter

1 cup sugar

4 large eggs

1 ¾ cup self-raising flour

1 tsp cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 tablespoon instant coffee dissolved in 3 tbsp hot water

Topping:

1/2 cup double cream

200g white chocolate

1 teaspoon butter

Method:

Preheat your oven at 180°C

Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl till light and fluffy using electric beater. Then add the eggs and mix till all combined, sift the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder and mix till the cake mixture is smooth.

Lastly mix the coffee mixture well into the cake mixture. Grease and line baking paper in a 28 x 18cm baking tin and pour your cake mixture evenly in your prepared baking tin.

Bake for the cake for 30 minutes or till the cake has risen and firm to touch.

Allow the cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes once baked and then turn onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

Prepare the topping on the stove in a small sauce pan by adding all the topping ingredients on a low heat, ensuring the mixture does not boil or burn. When the chocolate starts to melt turn the heat off and mix till it’s all combined and silky smooth. Allow the topping to cool and then spread over your cooled cake.

Slice into 18-20 bars depending on your desirable serving size.

Enjoy!