Cooking on a budget: an impressive two-course meal for under €20 with wine

Hobbies and I have had a strange relationship; over the years I’ve enjoyed on and off stints with various interesting experiments. Before cooking my most recent quest was an attempt at growing tomato and pepper plants in my balcony, whilst also taking a crack at hydroponics; growing plants in nutrient rich pools of water instead of soil.

After about five months of labour I realised that I didn’t quite have the green fingers I thought I did; ending with a produce of 35 cherry sized vegetables…considering that I planted roughly 25 plants and spent about €150 (and countless hours!), the math didn’t quite add up, to the great bemusement of my friends who laughed through my laboured experiment from the start.

Cooking was next, as with all good hobbies, the first months were rife with a few disasters; friends offered to bring take away dinners any time I’d invite them over, not so much due to the taste of the food I’d prepare, though inviting them over at 8pm meant actually eating at 11:30pm, as much as I tried, I could never quite get anything ready on time, not to mention that clean up would take even longer since I’d use every pot, pan, plate and spoon in the kitchen.

There was also my obsession with attempting to master the perfect meringue, after a night out my cousin, who’s my flat mate, would arrive home a little later than me and often find me mixing and folding egg whites at 4am, I’m glad to report that my frantic obsession paid off in the end, at the risk of developing OCD.

The most enjoyable part of cooking to me is the fact that it’s so varied, every session can bring something new and different, and so for the first couple of years I’d try to never cook anything more than once, just to keep the variation and experimentation as wide as possible.

The red pepper soup however was the one dish I would prepare time and again whenever inviting guests over, it’s simple to prepare yet unique in its own way since you don’t often get to roast red peppers to blister.

Soups can get somewhat repetitive though this gives a nice twist with a slightly different taste. From a nutritional point of view, you’re not going to get a bigger burst of Vitamins A and C; and since Vitamin A is so important for both day and night time vision, it’s perfect for those 4am cooking sprees after a night out.

My main pork dish brings back fond memories of home, nothing ever really quite beats mum’s (or nanna’s!) cooking. I pleasantly remember waking up to the smell of a sizzling roast or baked macaroni, or often the drilling noise of the food processor which I always knew meant a lemon paradise or strawberry Pavlova was on its way, yum yum. This all usually meant my parents were entertaining some family and friends that evening; I would always enjoy sneaking in the first taste of the gravy or nibbles from the extra crispy macaroni surface. Until today nothing quite beats a visit back home for a meal.

Passed on from another family member, to my mum and onto me, the pork dish couldn’t be easier to prepare yet the finished product bursts with unique flavor, and it’s always a huge hit with any gravy lovers like me. Some recipes involve lots of steps and processes though this is simply a matter of putting everything together and cooking it in the oven for a couple of hours, you won’t find a simpler recipe with such a great result.

In terms of budget, all above with a side dish of vegetables and/or roasted potatoes will cost under €15, with the soup coming in at just a few Euros and the bulk of the bill going towards a good quality piece of pork fillet at about €6; perfect for an impressive meal on a reasonable budget.

Red Pepper Soup

2 medium red peppers

1 small brown onion (chopped coarsely)

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

1 clove garlic, crushed

200g can tomatoes

500ml chicken stock

Handful of black olives, sliced (optional)

Crostini (optional)

Quarter the peppers and remove the seeds and membranes. Roast under a hot grill, skin side up, until they blacken and blister. Let them cool for 5 minutes and peel off the skin.

Heat oil in large pan, cook the onion and garlic until onion is soft. Add the peppers, tomatoes and stock, simmer, covered for 20 minutes. Finally blend or process the mixture and you’re ready to serve. Sprinkle with the sliced olives, crostini and a dab of cream for colour.

Apricot Pork Fillets

500g pork fillet

6oz butter (3/4 packet of butter)

1 onion sliced

2 teaspoons curry

2 teaspoons grated ginger

2 tablespoons apricot jam

2 tablespoons light soy sauce

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Melt the butter in a saucepan and add all the ingredients except the pork fillet. Stir over a low heat until the jam melts. Place the pork in a tray, add the sauce over it and bake uncovered in a medium to high oven for about 1hr45m. If you like extra gravy, add more of everything except the pork and butter.