Category Archives: Budget Recipes Part 2

Budget Recipes Series – Part Two

Posted by Cape Malay Cooking & Other Delights

Welcome to part two of our new 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. Please feel free to add you suggestions.

Here’s my suggested menu for the coming week.

Monday

Traditionally we eat fish on a Monday after Sunday’s feast. All the family would normally gather at their parents house on a Sunday and have a big lunch together. I remember growing up and even after I got married, our married siblings would all come to my parents and mother in laws house with their pots of food and we would all eat together. Sundays were family days, the one day of the week when everyone was off from work and relaxing.

For this week’s menu I’ve chosen a fish curry with rice. You can use any firm flesh fish to make this delicious meal. Here’s my recipe.

Fried Fish Curry (Curry with a difference)

Salwaa Smith – Cape Malay Cooking & Other Delights

500g firm fish of choice

Season the fish with salt. Rub a small amount of turmeric onto the fish. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon over the fish slice. Put aside for at least 30 minutes.

Shallow fry the fish 3 minutes aside. Remove the fish from pan. Keep warm.

Braise 2 medium onions in vegetable oil
Add: ½ teaspoon mustard seeds;
½ teaspoon whole cumin
Cook for at least 5 minutes
Add 2 – 3 chopped ripe tomatoes or ½ tin of chopped tomato
Cook for a further 10 minutes on medium heat, stirring often, until the oil separated from the onion mixture
Add little water as needed.

Now add 1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon roasted / leaf masala
1 teaspoon fish masala
½ teaspoon turmeric
1½ teaspoon ground coriander

Cook for a further 5 minutes or until sauce has thickened.

Now add the fried fish and cook for a further 5 minutes. Do not stir the pot but gently shake contents to mix well.

Garnish with fresh chopped coriander. Serve with rice or hot water roti.

Tuesday

Salwaa’s Chicken Fried Rice

This dish is ideal to make using left over rice, chicken and mix vegetables

Salwaa Smith – Cape Malay Cooking & Other Delights

Cut 1 chicken fillet or 2 deboned thigh pieces into small cubes. Season the chicken with BBQ / Braai spice of your choice. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok or pot. Stir fry the cubes chicken for 10 minutes. Remove the chicken into a plate, set aside and keep the chicken warm.

Then you’ll cook 1½ – 2 cups of Thai / fragrant white rice as per packet instructions. Add 1 cup of frozen mix vegetables to the rice and mix together. Set aside.

Sauté a medium onion, finely chopped in 2 tablespoons oil. I use the same wok or the pot i used for frying the chicken .

Add: 1 teaspoon finely chopped or grated garlic;

1 teaspoon finely chopped or grated ginger;

1 green chilli finely chopped;

2 -3 chopped spring onions;

1 tablespoon soya sauce, optional;

1 teaspoon salt;

¼ teaspoon black pepper

Add fried chicken pieces and mix together

Push to one side of wok / pan

Whisk 2 large eggs and fry on the empty side of the wok / pan. Break the scrambled eggs into pieces.

Add rice and stir fry by mixing everything together in wok for a further 5 minutes.

Wednesday

Shepherd’s Pie also known as Oond Frikkadel or Cottage Pie is a classic dish which pretty much everyone I’ve ever met has their own way of making. This is my way which I’ve kept really simple and it’s a winner every time I make it. Make sure you buy the best quality mince you can afford, as it really makes the dish, there’s nothing worse than an oily and fatty cottage pie. This recipe serves 6.

Shepherd’s pie” is made from lamb (hence “shepherd”), while “cottage pie” is made with beef.

Cottage Pie, Oond Frikkadel

Ingredients:

500g fat free minced meat

1 medium onion

1 small green pepper

1 medium tomato

½ bunch fresh dhanya, chopped

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

5 cloves garlic, grated

1 slice bread soaked in water (preferably day or two old)

1 large egg

salt & pepper to taste

Method:

Wash and drain minced meat well

Soak bread in water and squeeze excess water out

Chop onion, pepper, tomato, dhanya finely

Add all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix thoroughly using your hands

Transfer the mixture into an oven proof dish

Bake in a preheated oven for 30-40 minutes at 180 degrees C

Top with mashed potatoes and sprinkle with grated nutmeg

Grill in the oven until top is slightly browned

Serve with yellow rice, steamed vegetables or fresh salad

Thursday

Salwaa’s Chicken & Green Beans Stew

Salwaa’s Cape Malay Cooking
From My Kitchen To Yours – keeping our heritage alive since 2011!

Ingredients:
1 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small chicken cut into pieces
1 large onion, chopped
1½ teaspoon salt
2 – 3 green chillies, chopped
5 cloves
2 cloves garlic, minced
1kg green beans, sliced diagonally
3 large potatoes, quartered

1 tablespoon sugar, optional

Method:
Clean and cut the chicken. Heat the oil in a large pot and braise the onions until deep golden brown.

Add the chicken pieces, garlic and spices. Brown the chicken for 5 minutes adding water as necessary.

Add the green beans as well as the potatoes and cook until the potatoes are soft and tender adding water for thinner gravy. Serve with boiled rice and atchar. Serves 6

Always braise meat / chicken until very dark in colour, carefully watching it, so that it doesn’t burn to get a nice dark colour stew.

Friday

Sugar Bean Curry

Salwaa’s Cape Malay Cooking

From My Kitchen To Yours – keeping our heritage alive since 2011!

1 packet (500g) sugar beans
500g lamb / mutton pieces, excess fat trimmed, washed and drained
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium tomato, chopped
2 green chillies, deseeded and chopped
5 cloves garlic, grated
1 piece ginger, grated (10cm)
1½ teaspoon jeera / cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander / koljander powder
1½ teaspoons turmeric / borrie
2 teaspoons leaf masala / roasted masala
1 – 2 teaspoon salt (according to your taste)
3 cardamoms
1 stick cinnamon
1 teaspoon chilli powder (optional)

Method:

Soak the sugar beans in water to cover, overnight.

Next day drain and transfer the soaked sugar beans into a large pot with fresh water to cover. Bring to the boil and cook for approximately 15 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse until the water runs clear. Return to the pot and cover with water once again and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat. Meanwhile prepare your meat.

Pour the oil into a heavy based pot, add the chopped onions and braise until the onions are transparent about 10 minutes over medium heat.
Add the trimmed and washed meat. Cook 5 minutes.
Add water as necessary as you go along.
Add the spices, chillies and tomato and cook until the meat are half way done, approximately 30 – 40 minutes depending on the type of meat you are using.
Add the half cooked sugar beans, cook over medium to low heat, until the beans, meat and sauce are combined and the meat and beans are soft. The beans should be soft but not mushy. It is best to complete the cooking process over low heat in order for the flavours to develop and to cook to the right consistency.

Best serve with boiled white rice or roti, atchars and or sambals.

You may also use butter beans, black eyed beans, etc instead of the sugar beans.

Saturday

Salwaa’s Braised Sausages / Gesmoorde Sosys

Salwaa’s Cape Malay Cooking

From My Kitchen To Yours – keeping our heritage alive since 2011!

Braised 2 large finely chopped onions in vegetable oil.
Add 2 cloves of crushed garlic
1-2 chopped chillies
Add few potatoes quartered – this will speed up the cooking process and will give potatoes a nice dark colour.
Add one teaspoon salt and half teaspoon black pepper or to taste
Add little water at a time.
When potatoes halfway done add cut up sausages, about 400 gram and cook for about 5 minutes
Add pieces of butternut / mushrooms
Adding water to whatever consistency you like it.
When butternut / mushrooms are done. Shake pot slightly do not stir.

Serve with rice or fresh bread and atchar or blatjang.

Sunday

Salwaa’s Simple Chicken Breyani

No mess, no fuss, cooked in one pot from raw ingredients, No pre-cooking required.

Salwaa’s Cape Malay Cooking
From My Kitchen To Yours – keeping our heritage alive since 2011!

Ingredients:
1 chicken cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon whole pepper corns
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
2 teaspoons roasted masala or leaf masala
1 teaspoon chilli powder
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds
2 teaspoons garam masala
2 teaspoons freshly grated garlic
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
5 cardamom pods
5 allspice / pimento
5 cloves
3 pieces stick cinnamon
3 bay leaves
3 green chillies halved
½ cup of fresh mint leaves
½ cup fresh coriander leaves
3 medium onions braised very dark almost burnt in a little oil. ( keep about one tablespoon aside)
1 cup of plain yoghurt or buttermilk
A few strands of saffron (optional)

In a heavy based pot mix all the ingredients. Marinate for a few hours the longer the better preferably overnight

1 cup of cooked brown lentils (optional)
3 – 4, potatoes, cut into quarters and deep fried
4 cups of long grain or basmati rice

Cover the 4 cups of rice with boiled water.
Add 1 tsp of salt and tablesppon of oil, stir well and keep in boiling water for 30 minutes.

After chicken is well marinated in pot, put stove on high.
Add potatoes then lentils if you’re using it (optional)
Strain rice and layer over meat.
Add 2 cups of boiling water.
Cover with remaining braised onions and some fresh coriander.
Dot with butter (optional)
Cover pot.
After 5 minutes turn stove down to medium heat for 10 minutes then turn on low heat for a further 20 minutes.

Dish from the bottom upwards.

Sunday Dessert

Here’s a refreshing dessert for Sunday afternoon. Use any fresh seasonal fruit and get the kids to help you chop the fruit!

Fruit salad is a dish consisting of various kinds of fruit. In different forms, fruit salad can be served as an appetiser, a side salad, or a dessert with a dollop of fresh cream, yoghurt or vanilla ice cream. It is also a delicious, cheap dessert which serves many people depending on the amount of fruit used.

Salwaa’s Cape Malay Cooking

From My Kitchen To Yours – keeping our heritage alive since 2011!