FAO Sair or Deckard

[lynni]

Hello ive been making my butties for work for a while now, because ive reached the conclusion its cheaper to buy a pack of bread rolls and some meat once a week... making up my lunch every evening before work

But...... tis getting boring, im fed up of butty meat on my sandwhiches

got any ideas for me, that are cheap and easy to make? and none of this sainsburys best steak either, the NHS doesnt allow for us to buy that

I finish this placement in a couple of weeks, but i have realised the advantages of making my own dinner and would like to carry it on - but with some fresh ideas!!

Ta very muchly

[Nick]

One of my faves at the moment is corned beef... I know, but corned beef is NIIICE... with a bit of copped lettuce, a couple of slices of tomato and some sweet pickle... all yummy and very,very cheap.

After that, you could try brie and liver sausage... again, pretty cheap, espesh if you buy just a generic brie... nothing flash.

Orrr, how about getting a bit more adventerous and using something appropriate from dinner the night before? Could just be a bit of chicken, shredded up, mixed with a bit of mayo and some lettuce... you're halfway to a club sandwhich... even if you do something like sweet and sour chix stir fry, either cook a bit extra or save some, mix it with some lettuce, a bit of cucumber and you're away.

Or, try out something traditional, but put a twist in it... egg mayonnaise, but add some sweet chilli and lime juice (or lemon), then some sliced radish.

Tuna and sweetcorn, but usemayo and a squirt of HP bbq sauce, then dice in some peppers.

Or... get some cheap salami add in a bit of Phillidelhia, slice in some tomatoes and youve got a New Yoik style bap.

Try different breads too... the last one goes well in a bagel... but youca get a whole load of different sorts of rolls now... I like the multi grain torpedo type ones... but then I like the ones with cheese baked on-top too....

My absolute fave HAS to be a simple crusty white roll, loads of butter and a couple of good slabs of stong, mature cheddar.... left to go warm so you can REALLY taste the cheese.... simply delicious!

[Galant]

I'm not Sair or Deckard, but, I have had to make my own meals for a while, somethings you can do to mix them up:

Firstly, you can get around varying the main ingredients by varying what you put on them. Usse different sauces etc. Types of mustard or dressing. You can buy them in jars etc at the supermaket. and used as an addition, they can last a while. Personally I love the honey-mustard stuff, and other mustard variations.

Similarly, add things to compliment the main ingredient (meat) and mix them up. Onion, tomato, lettuce, cucumber, pieces of fruit, herbs, shredded carrot etc.

Some meats you may not have thought of - Chorizo (pronounced: cho-ree-tho or cho-ree-so -- type of Spanish, cured sausage). It can be a bit expensive at times, but I love the stuff. Great flavour, you can buy it at the deli or in packets at the supermarket. Always loved it when I got to visit my family in Spain.

Bacon - obviously.

Buy turkey fillets from the supermarket. Chop them up into smaller pieces, and then grill them (or whatever).


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Which reminds me - one thing I used to love was to get toast or baked bread. Scrape a chopped garlic clove over the surface (not too much if Garlic isn't a favourite), and then add this mixture:

The above chopped turkey (substitute as desired) fillets, grilled. Plum tomatoes, chopped, added to a shallow pan, with pure tomato puree, herbs, mixed and heated, add the meat, then simply use as a complete topping on the bread. You can also added baked and peeled bell peppers to the mix...mmmm.

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Sorry, got side-tracked, and that one might not be suitable for a quick, day-to-day sandwich.

Another idea to vary your sandwiches is to vary the bread used, sliced, non-sliced, brown, whole wheat etc. Also, you can bake it for a different feel.

Oh, and you can always add cheese - simply add the cheese, grill it, and that will add a little some thing extra to the overall base of the sandwich, no matter what else you put on it.



Now, secondly, you don't just have to have sandwiches! I know sandwiches are quick and easy at the time. But there are other things I've made which, when made in larger quantities, you can save, and it might see you through a few days if not a week.

One thing I love - and maybe it's just me - I make rice (and to keep it varied, I throw in wild rice along with the regular white or brown), I make the rice with herbs and garlic (I LOVE garlic), and I make a substantial amount of it.
The rice will last a while, and I find all I need to do is get it out of the fridge, heat it up, and then toss it into an old ice-cream tub. Rice retains heat well. Not just rice on it's own though. I like to fry some eggs, but break them up in the pan so I have fried bits of egg and add that to the rice, along with some pepper - and then mix it all up.

With the rice already done at the start of the week, it only takes a few minutes to break and fry an egg or two the night before, or in the morning.

Other variations - I also like tuna - so simply get a can of that and add it to the mix, with or instead of the egg.

Vegetables can also be added, raw or cooked. What I used to do was, after a shopping trip, chop up all the veg there and then, put it into bags, and then stick it in the freezer. Then I simply go to the freezer, grab the pre-chopped veg and add it to whatever. You could of course not freeze it, but keep it in the fridge.

The variations are endless, to keep it interesting, but it's all pretty simple, so you can keep that preparation time down.


Wow! That was a bit long. Got carried away. Sorry!

[lynni]

thanks you two thats really helpful

I wanna hear what sair has to say tho, cos this is her job - butty making

[Auran]

Don't let Sair catch you calling her job "Butty Making" - It requires a great deal of expert knowledge and artistic flair to make a sandwich

Then cheeky buggers like me say "You're havin a laugh - that'll never work in a factory....."

[Zak33]

just so you allknow....Auran is involved in food manufacturing too......he's more.....techy....but he still knows his food in a big way.

I think Sair had had enough food design by last night.....I mentioned the thread....and she went white as a sheet and demanded a glass of wine !

I let her rest and recuperate....

so for a short bit of advice.....from MOI

But a bag of value peppers....(ya know, the cheapo ones, normally all green peppers with one red one in.)

Buy a couple of courgettes....

But a little bottle of cheapo olive oil....

slide peppers and courgettes up....into long thin strips...put them all in a big mixing bowl.....pour a lot of glugs of oilive oil on em......gring salt and pepper on em....

mix by hand and make sure every bit of pepper and courgette is covered....

pout out onto baking tray.....put in over (gas marl 6-8, somewhere about 200degreesC...doesnt really matter) for 15 minutes until oven roasted and soft...

use in sarnies with whatever you want to get livened up....HAm....CHEESE...fresh TOMATO....whatever...

make BIG batch on Sunday night....put in tupperware in fridge (once cool) and use all week....

[Joel]

How about buying some wraps/tortias, I have been for a while, and they are great, you can put allsorts in, i have been having chili in them with a splodge of mayo, its like 40p for 8 of the big ones, and they hold a lot. been trying allsorts, beetroot and ham is nice, and my housemate has had one or 2 fruit salad filled ones. They can hold more filling than plain old butties, and they can cope with more runny fillings, like bolognaise etc, but are good with your normal sandwich fillings. My particulat favorite being ham, cheese, pickle and mayo, its also good with turky instead of chicken. Also, the heinz sandwich fillers are great as a substitute for mayonaisse, in any sandwich, they add a lot of flavour.

[Zak33]

good thinking Joel....wraps are good...

nice one matey