Homemade fast food...

[koshergrl]

What do you feed your family when time, or money, or time and money... are scarce?

Much to the disgust of some, I have used Bisquick to make cake and to make pizza dough.
Bisquick coffee cake has it's own thread.

So I'm looking for people to share their go-to, end of the month or limited budget recipes.

My eternal go to is beans and Indian fry bread. I can, and do, make bread. But I was raised on fry bread, and my kids and their friends love it too.

Beans are pretty basic...I do add chili powder, and garlic, and some (not a lot) onion, in addition to salt and pepper. If I have pork I will put in whatever I've got..bacon, sausage, pork roast..I've even put chops in there. But if I don't, it's just the seasonings.

Frybread is just a yeast batter (or sometimes a batter made with baking powder...and sometimes a little of both) that is fried. I poke a hole in the middle to keep them from puffing up and cooking unevenly.

Frybread is served with butter, beans, jam, sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey...anything, really. Also really good used as a taco base but honestly, if I'm in a hurry or tired, I seldom make tacos.

 

[Fueri]

We make our own pizza too.

Make the dough and the sauce.

Use this dough recipe Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks

and here's the sauce. The sauce especially is easy as hell and is relatively inexpensive relative to store bought. And it's very good.

1 28oz Can high quality tomato puree. Cento or Escalon 6 in 1 domestic brands are good, and if your budget allows, any of the San Marzano D.O.P certified varieties imported from Italy are a great choice.
3 T Tomato Paste (Hunts, Contadina, Cento — all work well)
1 t Dried Oregano
1 t Dried Basil
1 T Olive Oil
½ t Salt (or more to taste)
Pinch of Sugar
mix all together, and let it sit at room temp for at least 1 hour before bake time

to the above I also add:
1/2 tsp of onion powder
1/2 tsp of garlic powder
a pinch of fennel seed.


ETA: I almost forgot the most important part. We have a pizza stone, so if we have time we preheat for an hour and go with that, but we also do this in just a non-stick pan with a decent lid. Roll out your crust, stick in the bottom, add the rest of your ingredients, put the lid on, set the heat on pretty low and cook for ~15-20 mins. When the cheese is melted and the bottom is slightly browned, you're ready to go. Comes out good and crisp and really pretty good....

 

[night_son]

What do you feed your family when time, or money, or time and money... are scarce?

Much to the disgust of some, I have used Bisquick to make cake and to make pizza dough.
Bisquick coffee cake has it's own thread.

So I'm looking for people to share their go-to, end of the month or limited budget recipes.

My eternal go to is beans and Indian fry bread. I can, and do, make bread. But I was raised on fry bread, and my kids and their friends love it too.

Beans are pretty basic...I do add chili powder, and garlic, and some (not a lot) onion, in addition to salt and pepper. If I have pork I will put in whatever I've got..bacon, sausage, pork roast..I've even put chops in there. But if I don't, it's just the seasonings.

Frybread is just a yeast batter (or sometimes a batter made with baking powder...and sometimes a little of both) that is fried. I poke a hole in the middle to keep them from puffing up and cooking unevenly.

Frybread is served with butter, beans, jam, sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey...anything, really. Also really good used as a taco base but honestly, if I'm in a hurry or tired, I seldom make tacos.

- Garlic Pork with rice.

- Sliced Bread Pizza with whatever toppings.

- Biscuits (from scratch) w/sausage gravy.

- Veggie Curry.

 

[Fueri]

A cheapo meal I used to make in college, when all I had to cook in was an electric wok and a hotplate was a potroast or other cheap cut of meat.

I'd throw that in the wok, add cream of mushroom soup, some onions, mushrooms or whatever, let it cook to medium rare on low setting, slice it up and serve it over noodles. kind of a poor man's stroganoff...

I'd make spaghetti sauce in that wok too, lol. used to cook like a mofo in the dorms...

 

[Ringel05]

Two - three cups cooked rice
1 lb cooked (crumbled) breakfast sausage
1 small bag frozen green beans
1 small onion diced and cooked (or onion powder)
Salt & pepper to taste
Ground ginger to taste

Cook onions till clear, set aside, cook sausage in skillet then add green beans, cook until done.
Cook rice according to directions, mix all the above in skillet with a little oil and cook for a couple of minutes more.
Add soy sauce if you want it to be more "Asian".

 

[Darkwind]

Hmm...

I can't remember. I haven't actually had that problem for about 25 years or so.

 

[Fueri]

for easy, nothing beats the slow cooker.

I do chicken or pork tacos in that all the time. 5-10 minute prep in the morning, cheap as hell, enough to feed you for days and also extremely convenient, as it's done when you get home.

Crock Pot Pulled Pork Tacos

That recipe calls for pork shoulder, which is crazy cheap at ~1.00 a lb on sale, but I've done it with a pork roast also and it's still really good.....

 

[Ringel05]

Make a white sauce (Bechamel), nothing more than a roux with milk,
cook a pound of hamburger with onions,
add cooked hamburger onion to white sauce,
serve over toast or biscuits,

 

[Ringel05]

Ya want to save money? Instead of buying cut pork chops and pork roasts buy a whole pork loin then cut your own chops and roasts out of it. If you have enough left or if you want cut the whole into cubes for green chili stew or Pork Adovada.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

What do you feed your family when time, or money, or time and money... are scarce?

Much to the disgust of some, I have used Bisquick to make cake and to make pizza dough.
Bisquick coffee cake has it's own thread.

So I'm looking for people to share their go-to, end of the month or limited budget recipes.

My eternal go to is beans and Indian fry bread. I can, and do, make bread. But I was raised on fry bread, and my kids and their friends love it too.

Beans are pretty basic...I do add chili powder, and garlic, and some (not a lot) onion, in addition to salt and pepper. If I have pork I will put in whatever I've got..bacon, sausage, pork roast..I've even put chops in there. But if I don't, it's just the seasonings.

Frybread is just a yeast batter (or sometimes a batter made with baking powder...and sometimes a little of both) that is fried. I poke a hole in the middle to keep them from puffing up and cooking unevenly.

Frybread is served with butter, beans, jam, sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey...anything, really. Also really good used as a taco base but honestly, if I'm in a hurry or tired, I seldom make tacos.

Few things are cheaper and more economical than a whole chicken.
TONS of possibilities, and free awesome broth if you boil it.

 

[Darkwind]

for easy, nothing beats the slow cooker.

I do chicken or pork tacos in that all the time. 5-10 minute prep in the morning, cheap as hell, enough to feed you for days and also extremely convenient, as it's done when you get home.

Crock Pot Pulled Pork Tacos

That recipe calls for pork shoulder, which is crazy cheap at ~1.00 a lb on sale, but I've done it with a pork roast also and it's still really good.....

Interesting. Have you used an insta-pot? I found a keto chili that is fantastic and pretty damn cheap to make.

 

[Pilot1]

What do you feed your family when time, or money, or time and money... are scarce?

Much to the disgust of some, I have used Bisquick to make cake and to make pizza dough.
Bisquick coffee cake has it's own thread.

So I'm looking for people to share their go-to, end of the month or limited budget recipes.

My eternal go to is beans and Indian fry bread. I can, and do, make bread. But I was raised on fry bread, and my kids and their friends love it too.

Beans are pretty basic...I do add chili powder, and garlic, and some (not a lot) onion, in addition to salt and pepper. If I have pork I will put in whatever I've got..bacon, sausage, pork roast..I've even put chops in there. But if I don't, it's just the seasonings.

Frybread is just a yeast batter (or sometimes a batter made with baking powder...and sometimes a little of both) that is fried. I poke a hole in the middle to keep them from puffing up and cooking unevenly.

Frybread is served with butter, beans, jam, sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey...anything, really. Also really good used as a taco base but honestly, if I'm in a hurry or tired, I seldom make tacos.

Few things are cheaper and more economical than a whole chicken.
TONS of possibilities, and free awesome broth if you boil it.

^^^^^^This, plus it is good for you and lean protein. I bake the chicken then remove the meat to make a variety of things. I usually eat the legs and thighs, then use the rest for chicken salad, or just eat the breast meat with a homemade barbecue sauce. I use the carcass for soup with some vegetables and noodles.

Others are Spaghetti with homemade sauce, homemade mac an cheese, Broccoli is inexpensive and can be made in many different ways like a casserole.

Eggs are a good, inexpensive protein, and can be made anyway you want. I sometimes limit my yolk intake and use more whites than yolk in scramble eggs.

Ground Turkey. Much less expensive and leaner than ground beef. I use it as a substitute for anything I'd use ground beef for like burgers, meatloaf, Chili, etc.

 

[Fueri]

for easy, nothing beats the slow cooker.

I do chicken or pork tacos in that all the time. 5-10 minute prep in the morning, cheap as hell, enough to feed you for days and also extremely convenient, as it's done when you get home.

Crock Pot Pulled Pork Tacos

That recipe calls for pork shoulder, which is crazy cheap at ~1.00 a lb on sale, but I've done it with a pork roast also and it's still really good.....

Interesting. Have you used an insta-pot? I found a keto chili that is fantastic and pretty damn cheap to make.

no, I haven't tried the insta-pot yet. been thinking about getting one, just haven't done so as yet...

 

[Ringel05]

What do you feed your family when time, or money, or time and money... are scarce?

Much to the disgust of some, I have used Bisquick to make cake and to make pizza dough.
Bisquick coffee cake has it's own thread.

So I'm looking for people to share their go-to, end of the month or limited budget recipes.

My eternal go to is beans and Indian fry bread. I can, and do, make bread. But I was raised on fry bread, and my kids and their friends love it too.

Beans are pretty basic...I do add chili powder, and garlic, and some (not a lot) onion, in addition to salt and pepper. If I have pork I will put in whatever I've got..bacon, sausage, pork roast..I've even put chops in there. But if I don't, it's just the seasonings.

Frybread is just a yeast batter (or sometimes a batter made with baking powder...and sometimes a little of both) that is fried. I poke a hole in the middle to keep them from puffing up and cooking unevenly.

Frybread is served with butter, beans, jam, sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey...anything, really. Also really good used as a taco base but honestly, if I'm in a hurry or tired, I seldom make tacos.

Few things are cheaper and more economical than a whole chicken.
TONS of possibilities, and free awesome broth if you boil it.

I save the bones, skin and gristle, toss in a large stock pot with cut vegetable ends, salt, bay leaves and peppercorns that you normally toss out then simmer (never boil) it adding water as needed over three to four days. (Turn off the burner and cover overnight).
Why never let it boil? Because then you don't have to strain the suspended particles out for a clear broth.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

What do you feed your family when time, or money, or time and money... are scarce?

Much to the disgust of some, I have used Bisquick to make cake and to make pizza dough.
Bisquick coffee cake has it's own thread.

So I'm looking for people to share their go-to, end of the month or limited budget recipes.

My eternal go to is beans and Indian fry bread. I can, and do, make bread. But I was raised on fry bread, and my kids and their friends love it too.

Beans are pretty basic...I do add chili powder, and garlic, and some (not a lot) onion, in addition to salt and pepper. If I have pork I will put in whatever I've got..bacon, sausage, pork roast..I've even put chops in there. But if I don't, it's just the seasonings.

Frybread is just a yeast batter (or sometimes a batter made with baking powder...and sometimes a little of both) that is fried. I poke a hole in the middle to keep them from puffing up and cooking unevenly.

Frybread is served with butter, beans, jam, sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey...anything, really. Also really good used as a taco base but honestly, if I'm in a hurry or tired, I seldom make tacos.

Few things are cheaper and more economical than a whole chicken.
TONS of possibilities, and free awesome broth if you boil it.

I save the bones, skin and gristle, toss in a large stock pot with cut vegetable ends, salt, bay leaves and peppercorns that you normally toss out then simmer (never boil) it adding water as needed over three to four days. (Turn off the burner and cover overnight).
Why never let it boil? Because then you don't have to strain the suspended particles out for a clear broth.

I do the same...except...I don't go the extra mile for days.
I use a half onion/carrots/celery in with the bones on low heat for most of a day.... sea salt/peppercorns/bay leaves as well.
Liquid gold is what I call it.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

Speaking of homemade fast food... why does anyone buy frozen fries in a bag?
Torture.
Cut your own potatoes, add salt/pepper/paprika/garlic powder....DAMN good. 1000 times better than lousy bag fries. You won't even want to use ketchup.
I also mix up some cajun spice occasionally and make seasoned fries.

 

[Ringel05]

Make in a large 12" skillet if you don't have a Wok;

Diced (leftover) chicken
1 bag frozen Chinese vegetables or broccoli, carrot cauliflower mix
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Ground ginger
tsp Sesame oil
Tbsp Peanut oil
2 cups chicken broth
Corn starch or arrowroot for thickening
Soy sauce

Mix oils, heat to fragrance, add chicken, vegetables and seasonings, cook till vegetables are almost done then add broth. Mix up thickening agent with soy sauce then add to mix, cook until sauce has thickened and serve over rice.

 

[Mike Dwight]

I am just really curious. This thread made me curious. Is there a more efficient thing in the world than sliced bread? You can buy a loaf at one dollar and that's 2000 calories, so that's your day's calorie count. You'd need vitamin pills. You can spice it up with iron or sauces.

 

[Pilot1]

I am just really curious. This thread made me curious. Is there a more efficient thing in the world than sliced bread? You can buy a loaf at one dollar and that's 2000 calories, so that's your day's calorie count. You'd need vitamin pills. You can spice it up with iron or sauces.

That's a good point. I can eat "breakfast" any time of day. A couple eggs, some leftover ham, and a piece of toast or two.

 

[Darkwind]

I am just really curious. This thread made me curious. Is there a more efficient thing in the world than sliced bread? You can buy a loaf at one dollar and that's 2000 calories, so that's your day's calorie count. You'd need vitamin pills. You can spice it up with iron or sauces.

Iron? An Iron sandwich? Is that what the Ironborn eat?