Living on the cheap 3

 Cooking mince.

When I cooked minced beef  I used to add onion, carrots, leeks, lentils and oats, go steady with the oats though as otherwise you will end up with mince flavoured porridge! All the veg went through a food processor, a couple of oxo cubes added during the cooking time and the veg couldn't be seen.

Rubber chicken

Roast chicken on Sunday, just use the breast.

Strip the rest of the meat from the carcass and use some of it for a chicken pie.

Chicken pie, either add any leftovers from the roast dinner including roast potatoes, stuffing, Yorkshire and gravy, cover with pastry.

Or add mushrooms and some scraps of ham or bacon, add a white sauce, cover with pastry.

Pasta bake.

Add leftover chicken to a white sauce or a tomato sauce, pour over cooked pasta, sprinkle grated cheese and breadcrumbs mix over the top, brown under the grill.

Special fried rice, soften sliced onion in a little oil, add any veg suitable for stirfry, add cooked rice and the last few scraps of chicken.

Boil up the chicken carcass and make soup from the stock.

Hunt the fish pie.

Add a small amount of white fish to mashed potatoes, add some thick cheese sauce. Throw the whole lot into an oven proof dish, top with grated cheese and cook until cheese is bubbling.

Crisps and leftover bread

If you have some crisps that no-one likes pound them to crumbs in the bag, add some grated cheese and use to top fish pie or pasta bake. Grate leftover bread, add to grated cheese for an alternative topping.