KEY POINTS:
The weekly shop is starting to hit the wallet hard as rising commodity prices push up the price of everything from dairy products to fruit and vegetables.
But that's no reason to give up cooking tasty, nutritious food for the family - as the Herald on Sunday's chef
challenge found.
We asked four top Auckland chefs to create an easy-to-follow recipe to feed two adults and two children for $10 or less.
And Simon Gault of Euro, Michael Meredith of Meredith's, Ben Mills and Nancye Pirini, head chef and sous chef at Dine by Peter Gordon, and Peta Mathias, food writer for the Herald on Sunday's Detours magazine, were happy to help.
What they came up with proves you and your family can eat restaurant-quality meals for less than what it would cost to buy a meal from KFC or McDonald's.
Mills and Pirini chose their beef pasta dish because it's "very nutritious, and covers all the main food groups".
"It's a great meat and three-veg option for families," said Mills, adding that it was also quick and easy to prepare. "Most importantly, it's tasty."
As a mother-of-five, Pirini buys her cooking and household ingredients in bulk from Pak 'n Save, gets her meat from a local butcher, and her fruit and veggies from the markets or a local produce supplier.
Pirini said a kilogram of mince could cost $10 at the supermarket but $6 at the butcher.
"It takes a little more effort to do your shopping in three parts like this," she said. "But the quality of the food items you can buy is excellent, and well worth it in savings on grocery costs if you can spare the extra time."
Gault said he was worried about finding the main ingredient for his dish, beef cheek, in his local New World, but his favourite supplier Neat Meats came to the rescue.
He said beef cheek may not sound too appetising but was delicious, and had a texture and taste very much like oxtail.
"It has the same glutinous property and at only $8 per kilogram you should sample it before it goes the same way, price wise, as lamb shanks have."
RECIPES TO FEED YOUR FAMILY OF FOUR FOR LESS THAN $10
Simon Gault's braised beef cheek in shiraz sauce with potato gnocchi in sage butter and baby peas
Beef cheek:
* 1 large carrot (peeled and diced)
* 1 medium onion (finely diced)
* 2 medium garlic cloves (finely diced)
* 460g beef cheek
* 1 tbsp flour
* 2 tbsp cooking oil
* 187ml shiraz red wine
* 2 bay leaves
* 4 black peppercorns
* bunch of thyme
Gnocchi:
* 420g agria potatoes
* 75g flour
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 1 pinch nutmeg
* 6 sage leaves
* 1 tbsp butter
* frozen peas
* seasoning and oil.
Method:
Beef cheek is best cooked a day ahead and left in sauce overnight. Season beef cheek with salt and pepper and dredge in flour. Heat oil in saute pan until hot. Add beef cheek and sear all sides until brown. Place in casserole dish with carrot, onion, garlic, red wine, bay leaves, peppercorns, thyme and 500ml of hot water, or enough to cover the beef cheek. Place in oven for 2-3 hours maintaining the fluid level throughout. (Test for tenderness and moistness after 2 hours by tasting a small piece.) When done, remove from cooking liquor and set aside, covered. Pour cooking liquor into saucepan, bring to boil and reduce until 250ml remain. Taste and season.
Gnocchi:
Bake potatoes in 180C oven for 90 minutes. Do not overcook. When cool enough to handle, peel potatoes and pass them through a mouli or ricer. Add salt, nutmeg and flour and mix to form a soft dough, adding more flour if necessary, but keep mixture light. Divide dough into four pieces, roll each into a sausage shape about 2cm in diameter, then cut into 3cm-long pieces. Cook in batches in simmering salted water until they rise to the surface, remove with slotted spoon. Drain on kitchen towel. Heat butter in saute pan with sage, add gnocchi and toss to coat with sage butter. Place in a serving bowl and grind pepper over top.
Assembly:
Heat half pack (250g) of frozen peas in boiling water seasoned with sugar and salt for two minutes. Reheat beef cheek in the sauce and place on plate topped with sauce. Serve gnocchi and peas on the side.
Michael Meredith's chicken schnitzel with caper potatoes and beans
* 1 large chicken breast sliced and flattened
* 1/2 cup flour
* 1 cup breadcrumbs
* 1 egg
* 1/2 cup milk
* salt and pepper
* 400g green beans
* 2 tsp olive oil
* 1 tsp lemon juice
* 2 tbsp toasted almond slices
* 3 large agria potatoes
* salt
* 50g butter
* 1 tbsp capers
Method:
Crumb chicken then shallow fry until cooked, keep warm. Steam beans for five minutes, place in a bowl, add olive oil and lemon juice and season with salt. Peel and boil potatoes in salted water until cooked. Drain , add butter and capers and mix well. Place potatoes on plate, add chicken and beans on top. Finish with toasted almonds.
Pasta a la Mama Nancye by Ben Mills and Nancye Pirini.
* 400g beef mince
* 1 onion
* 2 large carrots
* 1 large kumara
* 1 tbsp mustard seeds
* 1 can chopped Italian tomatoes
* 1 packet spaghetti, fettuccini or penne pasta
* 1/2 bunch spring onions
* 1 large head broccoli
Method:
Turn large fry pan up to a high heat. Roughly mould beef mince in a flat patty. Carefully put it into pan with a few drops of oil to coat the pan surface and brown without moving for a few minutes, reducing heat as required. When a good colour has formed, flip patty over and brown other side. Let it cool, breaking up mince with a wooden spoon and setting aside. In a saucepan, sweat onions carrots, kumara and mustard seeds in a little oil until tender. Add chopped tomatoes, mince and one tomato can of water. Season and simmer gently for one hour. Roughly chop spring onions and stir in at last minute. Serve over cooked pasta and top with steamed broccoli.
Peta Mathias' roasted coco beans
* 600g dried white haricot beans
* 150ml olive or peanut oil
* 250ml vegetable or chicken stock from cubes
* 150ml white wine
* 4 sprigs each fresh oregano, thyme
* 6 cloves garlic, smashed
* 12 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
* sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
* extra thyme for garnish
Method:
Soak beans for at least two hours, preferably overnight. Drain then cook in boiling water for half an hour. Drain. The beans will be undercooked. Reheat oven to 180C. In an ovenproof dish put the beans, oil, stock, wine, herbs, garlic and sun-dried tomatoes. Add salt and pepper and mix well. Braise in oven, covered loosely with baking paper, for half an hour. Keep checking - they might need as much as an hour, leaving a moist, flavoured stew.
HOW TO SAVE MONEY
Grocery bills might be rising, but there are always ways to save cash at the checkout.
1. Try not to take your credit card. Paying cash will ensure you stick to your budget.
2. Take a list and stick to it.
3. Never shop when hungry.
4. Compare prices online or from flyers before you shop.
5. Buy fruit and vegetables in season.
6. Sign up to a supermarket loyalty programme.
7. Switch to supermarket in-house brands - often as good as top brands.
8. Don't buy things on special if you're not likely to buy them at full price.
9. Allow plenty of time for shopping so you can hunt down bargains.
10. Don't buy pre-prepared food.
11. Find a "budget buddy" and support each other.
12. Buy ingredients for a packed lunch to take to work.
13. Go vegetarian a few times a week.
14. Check if tins in the pantry can be incorporated into meals. Arrange in expiry date order.
15. Shop at your local veggie shop for cheaper fruit and veg.
16. Visit your butcher - meat is often cheaper and better quality.
17. Take advantage of bulk buying offers, but only if you will use the product before it expires.
18. Shop late at night to get perishable items discounted.
19. Leave the kids at home to avoid adding items that aren't on your list.
20. Plan ahead with evening meals, so you know exactly what you need for the week.
