Healthy meals that are kind to your pocket
We know it's not an easy time to feed yourself and your family, so we have put together our top low cost recipes. These are split across three categories: affordable and healthy, making the most of leftovers, and delicious meals that need just five ingredients. You can find all of these recipes below.
We also offer ideas and tips for saving money on your bills and food shop. Check out our Cost of Living Advice here.
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Healthy and Affordable meals
Fish Finger Pie
Ingredients
700g potatoes, peeled
50g butter
50ml semi-skimmed milk
10 fish fingers
360g pre-made creamy sauce
450g frozen whole green beans
1 leek, thinly sliced
200g frozen peas
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes
579kcal / serving
Method
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Preheat the oven to gas 7/220°C/fan 200°C.
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Bring a pan of water to the boil and cook the potatoes for 15 mins or until tender. Drain and mash with 20g of the butter, the milk and a little salt and pepper.
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Put the fish fingers into a baking dish and cook for 10 mins or until heated through.
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Put 20g of the butter into a small saucepan to melt, then add the frozen peas and cook until defrosted. Add the creamy sauce and warm through.
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Pour the warm sauce over the fish fingers in the baking dish and top with the mash. Bake for 15 mins until the top is golden brown (you can add cheese if you want!).
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Cook the green beans according to pack instructions and toss with the remaining 10g butter before serving.
Pasta Pomodoro
Method
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Heat the oil in a saucepan and cook the onion and garlic for 4-5 mins over a medium heat until softened and golden.
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Add the plum tomatoes and cook for 4-5 mins, stirring gently, until the tomatoes have softened.
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Add the passata and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 8-10 mins until reduced and thickened.
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Meanwhile bring a pan of water to the boil and cook the spaghetti for 8-10 mins or to taste. Drain and set aside.
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Once the tomato sauce has reduced, season and stir well.
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Add the drained pasta and stir to coat in the sauce.
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Can be served with freshly grated Parmesan and basil leaves!
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and sliced
325g baby plum tomatoes
500g passata
250g spaghetti
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
323 kcal / serving
Sausage and Bean Stew
Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, finely sliced
420g baked beans
8 frozen sausages
400g tin chopped tomatoes
2 tsp mustard
175ml stock of your choice
100g any green veg
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes
402 kcal / serving
Method
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Heat half the oil in a lidded saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onions and fry for 6 mins then set aside.
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Increase the heat to medium-high, add the remaining oil and the frozen sausages and cook for 7 mins until browned all over.
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Add the onions to the pan with the tomatoes and mustard.
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Add the stock, season with pepper and cook over a medium heat for 10 mins, adding the beans after 5 mins.
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Stir through the green veg, cover and cook for 4-5 mins more until the sausages are cooked through and the vegetables are tender.
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Serve with mash on the side.
Making the Most of Leftovers
Porridge Pancakes
Ingredients
150g cold leftover porridge
150g self-raising flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 ripe banana, mashed
2 large eggs
100ml milk
2 tsp vegetable or sunflower oil
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
265 kcal / serving
Method
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Mix the porridge, flour, baking powder, banana, eggs and milk in a bowl.
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Heat the oil in a frying pan.
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Drop 2-3 tbsp of the porridge mixture into the pan and cook over a medium heat until the underside is golden and bubbles are popping on the surface.
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Flip over and cook for another few mins until cooked through, then keep warm in a low oven and repeat until you’ve used up all the batter.
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Serving suggestions: fruit, yogurt, syrup or honey, lemon and sugar.
Fridge Raid Soup
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp tomato puree
1 litre of any stock
4 garlic cloves, crushed
Any veg (eg. carrots, celery, peas)
1 potato, peeled and cubed
400g can chopped tomatoes
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 40 minutes
434 kcal / serving
Method
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Heat the oil in a large pan on a medium heat and cook the onion and your vegetables for about 10 mins.
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Add the garlic, tomato purée and chopped tomatoes and stir.
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Pour in the stock, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 mins.
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Add the potato cubes, along with a generous pinch of seasoning.
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Cover and simmer for another 15-20 mins, stirring occasionally or until the veg is tender and the soup has thickened.
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Serve with bread on the side for dunking.
Sunday Roast Pie
Ingredients
200g-300g of leftover meat
100g leftover gravy, or any stock
About 250g of leftover potatoes
50g cheese, grated
2 tbsp breadcrumb
At a Glance
Serves 2
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes
680 kcal / serving
Method
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Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
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Carve all leftover meat off the bone, roughly chop and place in an ovenproof dish, or two individual pie dishes.
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Pour over some gravy, or if there’s none left add a bit of stock to moisten.
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Crumble the leftover potatoes over, then scatter with cheese and breadcrumbs.
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Bake in the oven for 30 mins until golden on top and bubbling around the edge. If you’ve got any veg leftover, then quickly reheat and serve alongside.
Sausage Pasta Bake
Ingredients
450g leftover sausage meat
50g breadcrumbs
1 tbsp olive oil
500g tomato passata
300g any pasta
½ small cabbage, cut into slices
250g mozzarella, cubed
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 50 minutes
295 kcal / serving
Method
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Pre-heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
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Put the sausagemeat and breadcrumbs in a bowl and mix to combine. Shape into 20 small balls.
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Heat your oil in a wide pan and cook the sausageballs for 10 mins until nicely browned. Add passata, cover and simmer gently for 20 mins.
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Meanwhile, cook the pasta, adding the cabbage for the final 5 mins of cooking time.
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Drain the cabbage and pasta, toss with the sausageball sauce and spoon into a heatproof dish.
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Push the mozzarella cubes into the top of the pasta. (and you can sprinkle with any extra cheese you have!) and bake for 15-20 mins until bubbling and crusty.
5 Ingredient Recipes
Onion Tart (but any veg works)
Ingredients
4 medium onions, peeled and halved
50g unsalted butter
2 tbsp soft brown sugar
4 tbsp cider vinegar
320g sheet of all-butter puff pastry
At a Glance
Serves 6
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 50 minutes
352 kcal / serving
Method
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Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/ gas 7.
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Place the butter in an oven proof pan on a medium heat.
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If you want to include herbs, add in and then mix in the sugar, vinegar and 100ml of water.
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Place the onion halves in the pan, cut side down, then season generously (you can add garlic cloves if you want).
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Cover, turn the heat down and leave to steam for 10 mins, then remove the lid and cook until the liquid starts to caramelize, shaking the pan to stop it from sticking.
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Place the pastry over the onions and push it into the edges of the pan, then bake for 35 mins or until golden brown and puffy.
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Place a large plate over the pan and turn out your tart.
Smoked Salmon Pasta
Ingredients
350g asparagus
300g dried pasta
250g smoked salmon
1 lemon
100ml low fat crème fraîche
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 2 minutes
Cook: 12 minutes
435 kcal / serving
Method
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Use a peeler to strip the top half of the asparagus stalks into ribbons.
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Finely slice the remaining stalks, discarding the ends.
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Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions, then drain, saving a mugful of cooking water.
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Meanwhile, roughly break the salmon into a large non-stick frying pan on a medium-high heat.
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Add the sliced asparagus stalks, and toss occasionally.
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Finely grate half the lemon zest into the salmon pan, squeeze in half the juice, then toss in the drained pasta, a good splash of reserved cooking water and the crème fraîche.
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Add the asparagus ribbons, then season to perfection and serve with lemon wedges, for squeezing over.
Spicy Beef with Cauliflower Rice
Ingredients
500g lean minced beef
1 head of cauliflower
1 heaped tsp rendang powder
1 bunch of fresh mint
400g coconut milk
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
375 kcal / serving
Method
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Place the minced beef in a large pan with 1 tbsp of olive oil, then fry on a high heat, stirring regularly.
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Halve the cauliflower, placing one half into a food processor, with half of the mint leaves. Cut bite-sized florets off the other half and add to the mince, whilst adding the stalks to the food processor.
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Stir the rendang powder into the mince and cook for 10 mins, or until crispy.
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Meanwhile, blitz the cauliflower until fine, then place in a bowl, cover, and microwave on high for 4 to 5 mins.
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Place most of the remaining mint leaves into the mince, add the coconut milk and 200ml of water and bring to the boil, then simmer for 5 mins and season.
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Give the cauli 'rice' a good mix up, and serve on the side of the rendang, scattering over the reserved mint leaves.
Cacio E Pepe
Ingredients
200g spaghetti or bucatini
25g butter
2 tsp ground black pepper
50g pecorino / parmesan, finely grated
50g mushrooms, sliced (optional)
At a Glance
Serves 4
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
540 kcal / serving
Method
Cook the pasta in salted boiling water. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a frying pan over a low heat, then add the ground black pepper and toast for a few mins.
Add in the sliced mushrooms and cook for 2 mins.
Drain the pasta, keeping 200ml of the pasta water. Tip the pasta and 100ml of the pasta water into the pan with the butter and mushrooms.
Scatter over the parmesan, but don’t stir – wait for the cheese to melt for 30 seconds, and then well toss everything and stir together (this prevents the cheese from clumping and makes a smooth sauce).
Add a splash more pasta water if you need to, to loosen the sauce and coat the pasta.
Serve immediately with a good grating of black pepper.
Remember:
If you need help The Food Bus offers low cost, fruit, veg and essentials in five different spots each week. It's open to anyone , and by shopping with us you are supporting the community.
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We also serve up a free, hot meal each week at our Elephant and Castle (Monday), and Tooting (Friday) Community Canteens. You can meet others, while enjoying a healthy, nutritious lunch. Find out more on our Canteens page.