MAINS

Pumpkin Locro

I would like to enter the competition with a recipe from my home country (Peru), which I had to adapt to some Australian ingredients, so it’s sort of multicultural. All ingredients can be purchased in a normal supermarket.

  • 1 ½ kgs Jarra pumpkin/Japanese pumpkin
  • 1/3 cup oil
  • 1 onion, finely diced
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • ¾ cups frozen green peas
  • 5 potatoes, diced
  • 1 cup frozen corn kernels
  • ½ cup evaporated Carnation milk
  • ¾ cup Edam cheese, finely diced
  • Pinch of salt and pepper
  1. Fry the onions, garlic, salt and pepper and oregano in the oil. Cook for 1 minute and add pumpkin, potatoes, add a cup of water or vegetable broth and bring to the boil, simmer on low heat for 40 minutes or until the potatoes are very soft and the pumpkin has almost melted.
  2. Add the peas and corn kernels together with the milk and cheese. Stir for a couple of minutes until the peas and corn are cooked.
  3. Adjust seasonings
  4. Serve with rice on the side.

Tandoori Chicken Kebabs

  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 130g each)
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 3 tablespoons tandoori paste
  • 3 tablespoons natural yoghurt
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
  • 1 small onion, cut into wedges and separated into layers
  • 1 tablespoon oil, for brushing
  • Salt and black pepper
  • Pilau rice and naan bread, to serve
  1. Cut the chicken breasts into cubes of about 2.5cm. Put in a bowl. Add the lemon juice, tandoori paste, yoghurt, garlic, coriander and seasoning
  2. Cover and leave in fridge to marinate for 2-3 hours
  3. Preheat grill to high. Thread alternative pieces of chicken and onion onto skewers
  4. Brush onion lightly with oil. Lay skewers on grill rack. Cook for 10-12 minutes, turning once.
  5. Garnish the kebabs with coriander and serve with pilau rice and naan bread
  • Can use turkey instead of chicken
  • All ingredients can be found in your local supermarket such as Woolworths or Coles
  • This recipe is low fat

Baked Potatoes

  • 1 potato per person (fruit and veg section of the supermarket)
  • Readymade pasta sauce
  • Chopped pineapple (canned pineapple already chopped in the canned food section)
  • Grated cheese (dairy section)
  • Bacon pieces (deli section)
  • Freshly chopped tomatoes
  • Sour cream (dairy section)
  1. Wash potatoes under cold water
  2. Cut the potatoes through the middle avoiding cutting all the way through and then again across the opposite way avoiding slicing all the way through
  3. Heat the potatoes in the microwave until soft, approximately 3 minutes, depending on microwave heat
  4. When potatoes are heated and soft, add tomato sauce, chopped pineapple, bacon pieces, grated cheese, chopped tomatoes and sour cream
  5. Enjoy!

Chicken Schnitzels

  • Handful of chopped parsley (found in the fruit and veg section)
  • 4 cups of packet bread crumbs (bread crumbs found near the herbs section)
  • 1 cup parmesan cheese (Kraft grated parmesan found near the pasta sauce section, green packaging)
  • Salt and pepper
  • 2 eggs (free range)
  • 1 teaspoon of vegeta
  • 2 breast fillets
  • Vegetable oil for frying
  • Sheets of paper towel for draining
  1. In a long baking tray, add 4 cups of breadcrumbs, chopped parsley, 1 cup parmesan cheese and salt and pepper and mix together
  2. In a bowl, whisk the 2 eggs, adding salt and pepper and vegeta for seasoning
  3. Cut the chicken using butterfly technique (see YouTube how to cut a chicken breast)
  4. When chicken is cut, add it to the bowl of the eggs and make sure a thin layer of egg is covering the whole piece of the chicken breast
  5. Once covered, place flat in the baking tray with the breadcrumbs, cover the chicken with breadcrumbs and firmly press on the chicken to make sure breadcrumbs are stuck to the chicken. Repeat step 4-5 with every piece of chicken
  6. When finished, place on a plate and refrigerate for 30 minutes ready for frying
  7. Place oil in saucepan. When oil is hot, add the chicken and fry till golden brown
  8. When cooked place on paper towel and serve with a fresh garden salad or vegetables

Easy Apricot Chicken

I love this recipe as it only takes 2 minutes of preparation from pantry/freezer ingredients and yummy too!

  • Chicken legs (enough to fit large shallow baking dish, maybe 10)
  • 1 can apricot nectar
  • 1 packet French Onion soup
  • 1 teaspoon curry powder
  1. Fit chicken legs into a baking dish
  2. Mix other ingredients in jug and pour over
  3. Cook in moderate oven for approximately one hour. Chicken is cooked when meat is coming away from the bone
  4. Serve on rice or mashed potato with veggies

Note: you can add diced veggies to the dish if enough room in dish. You may also like to try adding a little cornflour to the nectar mix if you like a thicker sauce to go over your rice

Easy Hamburgers

  • 500g mince
  • 1 packet chicken noodle soup
  • 1 egg
  • Sprinkle of vegeta
  • 1 teaspoon mustard powder
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Grated zucchini/carrot
  1. Mix all ingredients. You may need to add some breadcrumbs if too wet
  2. Shape into hamburgers and cook on BBQ
  3. Serve in rolls with fillings such as: cheese, beetroot, lettuce, tomato, chutney, mayo, tomato sauce, pineapple rings, grated carrot.

Chicken and Avocado Quesadillas

Serves 4

  • 1 whole cooked chicken, remove bones and chop meat
  • 1 can corn kernels
  • 1 can chopped tomatoes
  • 1 spring onion, chopped
  • 8 round flour tortillas
  • ¼ cup grated mozzarella cheese
  • Olive oil for brushing the pan

All of these ingredients can be found easily in a supermarket. A whole cooked chicken can be found in the supermarket deli section

  1. Combine the chopped chicken meat, corn, spring onion and tomato in a bowl
  2. Heat a non-stick pan and brush with oil. Pan fry the tortillas, one at a time, until golden brown on both sides
  3. Divide the chicken and veggie mixture over four of the tortillas and sprinkle with cheese
  4. Place the remaining tortillas on top to form a sandwich
  5. Heat for a short time in the oven at 180C to melt the cheese
  6. Can be served with a dollop of guacamole and salsa

Traditional Chinese Porridge

Ingredients

  • 500ml water
  • 150g rice
  • 250g minced pork, lamb, beef or chicken (based on your preference)
  • 200-300g fresh potato (similar to the weight of one potato)
  • 50g of celery or lettuce (based on your preference)
  • 5g of salt
  • 5g vegetable oil

Cooking Devices

  • Saucepan with lid or cover on
  • Any tool you feel comfortable with to stir the ingredients

Best place to buy

  • Coles
  • Foodland
  • Any other supermarket nearest to you

Budget

  • Rice 150g estimated at 30 cents
  • Minced pork, lamb, beef or chicken 250g estimated at $2
  • Fresh potato 200-300g estimated at 20 cents
  • Celery or lettuce 50 g estimated at 20 cents
  • Salt, water, oil, gas estimated at 30 cents
  • Total $3
  1. Pour the 500ml of water into the saucepan, light the gas and heat it with the cover on till it is boiled
  2. During boiling the water, get one potato, 50g of celery or lettuce and 15g cleaned rice
  3. Place 250g of minced pork, lamb, beef or chicken on a clean plate for later use
  4. Get the cleaned potato and celery or lettuce chopped into smaller pieces and place them on a plate for later use
  5. Put all the cleaned rice, chopped potato, celery or lettuce pieces into the saucepan slowly as the water is boiling
  6. Add 5g of salt and vegetable oil into the mixed ingredients in the saucepan and stir them evenly
  7. Keep heating the mixed ingredients until the water starts boiling once again
  8. Turn the gas to the lowest volume and keep heating it for another 10 or 15 minutes while checking the smell and the appearance of the mixed ingredients. It is time to stop heating if you sense a strong pleasant smell through the ventilation opening of the cover and observe the mixed ingredients have melted with each other to present a sticky soup

Tuna Mornay

Alternatively, different vegetables can be added to this if preferred such as mushrooms or capsicum (these would be added at the same stage as the celery)

This is a great recipe to use when you are running low on ingredients as the only ingredients you really need are tuna, milk, flour and butter, however adding other ingredients does make it VERY yummy!

This should serve 3-4 people. Enjoy!

Ingredients

  • 1 large can of tuna (in springwater – drained)
  • 2 sticks of celery (chopped)
  • 1 small onion (diced)
  • Approximately a handful of plain flour
  • Approximately 1 cup of milk
  • 1 can of corn (drained)
  • ½ - 1 cup of cheese (mozzarella works best)
  • 2 tablespoons of margarine (at room temperature)
  • Bread crumbs (crushed cornflakes can be used as an alternative)

All ingredients can be purchased from your local Coles, Woolworths or IGA

  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees
  2. Melt some butter in a saucepan and add the onions and celery (be sure not to have the heat too high as the butter will burn). Cook the onions until transparent
  3. Remove from heat and add approximately a handful of flour (just enough to soak up the butter)
  4. With the saucepan still off the heat, gradually add the milk, making sure to be continually stirring to ensure air bubbles and lumps in the flour are removed/prevented
  5. Once a smooth consistency has been achieved, place the saucepan over the heat again and continue stirring
  6. Once the mixture begins to bubble, you should notice the mixture is beginning to thicken. As this happens add more of the milk and continue to stir. Repeat this until all the milk is used up
  7. Once all of the milk has been added and you are left with a smooth and thick mixture, begin to add the cheese (the amount of cheese you add is entirely up to you. If you prefer a more cheesy taste, then add the whole amount)
  8. Once the cheese has melted and the mixture has returned to a smooth consistency, add the drained tuna and corn and mix
  9. Pour the mixture into an oven baking dish
  10. Sprinkle bread crumbs over the top and add more cheese (if desired)
  11. Cover with aluminium foil and place in oven for 15 minutes
  12. Remove the aluminium foil and continue to cook for a further 5 minutes. This will brown the top of the mornay

Green Soul Food (affordable scrumptiousness for extra brain power!)

The Asian grocers at the Central Markets are very good value for spices, oils and fresh vegetables

Feeds 6 people

  • 1 onion, chopped finely
  • 4 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
  • Chunk of ginger, chopped finely
  • 2 fresh chillies (as hot as you want them)
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
  • ½ teaspoon of white or black pepper (white pepper is more widely used in Asian cuisine)
  • 1 tablespoon of sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon of fish sauce (if making this recipe vegan, you can easily remove the fish sauce and tuna, just add capsicum)
  • 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
  • Vegetable oil
  • ¼ cabbage, cut into slices
  • ½ cauliflower, cut into pieces
  • 1 carrot, chopped finely
  • Snowpeas (optional)
  • 1 bunch of spinach, roughly chopped
  • Few handfuls of green beans, cut in half
  • ½ bunch fresh coriander, chopped finely
  • 1 can of tuna
  • Brown rice (all supermarkets sell brown rice economically, but you can also buy bulk amounts in health food shops like Goodies and Grains in the city or Gaganis Brothers in Thebarton)
  1. Firstly, put the rice on to cook
  2. Heat some vegetable oil in a deep saucepan and fry the onion for a minute or two
  3. Add the garlic, ginger and chilli – fry until soft – then add the carrot
  4. Next, add the cumin, turmeric and pepper seasoning. Put in the cauliflower pieces and sliced cabbage (and add a small amount of water to help soften the vegetables as they cook – this dish does not require much cooking as the vegies will soften quite quickly)
  5. Next, add the beans and/or capsicum pieces, snowpeas, spinach and the can of tuna
  6. Now add the sesame oil, fish sauce and soy sauce
  7. Stir thoroughly and add a little water just so a little sauce is created
  8. Lastly, stir through the coriander
  9. Serve on a bed of brown rice

5 – Minute Stir Fry

This is a great recipe that uses fresh vegies and is really quick! All of the ingredients can be bought from a supermarket and will cost about $10 (even with the inflation). It makes enough for two people and for those who don’t look tofu, you can replace it with chicken. Happy eating!

Ingredients

  • 1 clove of garlic
  • Ginger (a piece about the size of a 20 cent coin)
  • 1 carrot
  • 1 zucchini
  • 150g tofu
  • 100g snow peas
  • ¼ red capsicum
  • 1 cup soft egg noodles
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  1. Finely chop the garlic and ginger
  2. Chop the vegetables and tofu into bite size pieces
  3. Heat oil, garlic and ginger on high in a wok. Add tofu and cook for one minute
  4. Add vegies and cook for two minutes, then add noodles and toss for one minute

Oven Baked Vegetables

Best results with potatoes, pumpkin and carrots

  1. Wash and peel the vegetables
  2. Cut into pieces (best in quarters)
  3. In a large oven tray, fill with 3cm of water. Place vegetables in the water and sprinkle with vegeta
  4. Place oven on 180 degrees, depending on oven heat
  5. Vegetables taste great and take about an hour to cook

Coleslaw

  • Half a cabbage
  • 2 carrots
  • 1 onion
  • Hand full of parsley
  • Kraft coleslaw dressing (1/2 bottle)
  1. Finely chop cabbage in thin long strips
  2. Peel and grate the 2 carrots, finely chop one onion and parsley and add into a large bowl
  3. Start mixing together adding the coleslaw dressing
  4. Make a big bowl, it keeps for at least 3 days, add it with your dinner or take it for a snack during the day

Kickass Chilli Bean Tacos

This recipe is vegetarian, cheap, easy, healthy and YUMMY!

Serves 4

  • 800g canned red kidney beans
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper (spice from supermarket)
  • 2 teaspoons cumin seeds, freshly ground
  • 8 taco shells
  • 3 tomatoes, finely chopped
  • 1 sweet green capsicum, deseeded and finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves
  • 1 lettuce, finely shredded
  • Optional: pickled jalapeno chillies to serve
  1. Heat oven to 180 degrees/Gas 4 (alternatively microwave could be used)
  2. Drain kidney beans, rinse and drain again
  3. Heat 2 tablespoon olive oil in frying pan/saucepan
  4. Cook onion until soft (about 10 minutes)
  5. Add kidney beans, garlic, cayenne pepper, cumin seeds
  6. Pour in 300ml water and simmer for 10 minutes
  7. Meanwhile, chop tomatoes, capsicum and coriander and combine in a bowl with lime juice and 2 tablespoons olive oil
  8. Once beans have simmered for 10 minutes, mash the beans roughly with a potato masher in saucepan
  9. Heat taco shells in oven for 3 minutes or in microwave as per instructions on packet
  10. Fill taco shells with beans, lettuce and tomato salsa. Top with jalapeno chillies if desired

NOTE: Cucumber and other salad vegetables can be added into taco shells. Leftovers are good heated up on toast as well

Enchiladas

  • 1 jar enchilada sauce
  • 1 can kidney beans
  • 1 can 3 bean mix
  • 1 diced onion
  • Small handful of diced red capsicum
  • Small handful of diced green capsicum
  • ½ small zucchini – diced or finely sliced
  • ½ small carrot – diced or finely sliced
  • ½ cup sliced mushrooms
  • ½ cup grated cheese
  1. Sauté onion
  2. Add the vegies and stir fry for a couple of minutes
  3. Add ¾’s of the enchilada sauce and rest of ingredients. Simmer until vegies are tender

Serving idea 1: Wrap in corn tortillas (they are the small yellow ones – buy the pack of 10) and place in a shallow dish or tin lined with baking paper. Sprinkle with remaining enchilada sauce and grated cheese. Bake in oven until the cheese is melted. Serve by themselves or with salad

Serving idea 2: Place on top of a small amount of rice, then add chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce, grated cheese, drizzle of remaining enchilada sauce and a dollop of sour cream

Vegie Pizzas

This is a quick, simple and tasty way to mix healthy food with comfort food. Although you can add meat, it is cheaper without. The dough can be made in advance and frozen for roughly 6 months (I usually make several batches and store them in the freezer for when I can’t be bothered cooking a large meal, but still have lots of vegetables to be used up quickly)