5 easy family dinners for £25 – Cauliflower bake, lentil ragu, dosa pancakes...

Monday: Lentil ragu with spaghetti

2 tbsp olive oil
2 red onions, finely chopped
300g carrots, peeled and diced
3 garlic cloves, crushed or grated
225g red lentils
400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 vegetable stock pot, made up to 1ltr
350g spaghetti
20g fresh basil, leaves picked
50g baby spinach leaves, roughly chopped

1. Put the oil, onions and carrots in a large, deep frying pan and fry for 15 mins over a medium-low heat until softened but not coloured. Add the garlic and cook for 1 min more.

2. Stir in the lentils, tomatoes and stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15-18 mins, stirring frequently to stop it sticking, until the lentils are just tender.

3. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti to pack instructions.

4. Reserve the smaller basil leaves for serving; roughly chop the rest, then stir through the sauce with the spinach. Season to taste, then serve with the spaghetti, topped with the reserved basil leaves.

Tuesday: Red lentil dosa pancakes with potato and spinach

175g red lentils, soaked overnight in 500ml water
600g baby potatoes, cut into 1-2cm chunks
250g Plant Chef coconut korma sauce
200g baby spinach
1-2 tsp vegetable oil
For the yogurt
125g Greek-style natural yogurt
½ small garlic clove, crushed
For the kachumber
¼ red onion, diced
100g red cabbage, grated
2 carrots, peeled and grated
½ lemon, juiced

1. Put the red lentils in a bowl with 500ml water. Cover and set aside to soak for at least 6 hrs, or overnight.

2. When ready to cook, boil the potatoes for 8-10 mins until tender; drain. Whisk the yogurt with the garlic, some seasoning and 2-3 tsp water to make a sauce thin enough to drizzle. Mix together the kachumber ingredients with a little seasoning.

3. To make the pancakes, drain the lentils and rinse briefly. Transfer to a blender with 300ml water and 1 tsp fine salt. Blend until smooth.

4. Heat a nonstick frying pan over a medium-high heat and brush with a little oil. Pour in ⅛ of the batter and spread to a pancake 16cm wide. Cook for 2 mins or until the top looks dry and the underside is pale golden. Flip, cook for 1 min, then transfer to a plate. Repeat to make 7 more.

5. Add the potatoes and curry sauce to the frying pan with 100ml water. Cook for 4 mins until beginning to thicken. Fold through the spinach and cook for 2 mins. Pile the potato curry and salad into the pancakes, drizzling with garlic yogurt to serve.

Wednesday: Brazilian-style beef with rice

1 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
250g lean beef mince
2 onions, diced
6 spicy chorizo slices, diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed or finely grated
400g tin tomatoes
250g long-grain rice
220g green beans, trimmed and roughly chopped into shorter lengths
400g tin kidney beans in chilli sauce
50g extra-mature Cheddar, finely grated
150g Greek-style natural yogurt, optional
10g fresh coriander, leaves picked

1. Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan over a medium heat. Fry the beef, onions and chorizo for 5 mins, breaking up the mince with a wooden spoon, until the mince has browned and the onion is translucent.

2. Stir in the garlic, tomatoes and green beans. Use the tomato tin to add 2 tins of water. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10-12 mins, stirring occasionally, until the rice is just tender. Stir in the chilli beans and heat through for 2-3 mins.

3. Season to taste, then spoon onto plates. Serve with bowls of grated cheese, coriander leaves and yogurt to serve.

Thursday: Fish finger 'hot dogs' with crunchy slaw

500g frozen straight-cut chips
10 frozen fish fingers
1 red onion, finely sliced into rings
½ tsp caster sugar
2 limes, 1 zested, both juiced
150g Greek-style natural yogurt
1 tbsp vegetable oil
400g carrots, peeled
½ red cabbage, core removed, finely shredded
20g fresh coriander, half finely shredded
4 hot dog rolls

1. Preheat the oven to gas 7, 220°C, fan 200°C. Cook the chips and fish fingers to pack instructions.

2. Meanwhile, mix half the onion rings with the sugar and the juice from ½ lime. Set aside, stirring occasionally, until ready to serve.

3. In a large mixing bowl, mix the lime zest, juice of 1 lime, yogurt and oil. Season, then whisk together with a fork.

4 Use a julienne peeler or food processor attachment to cut the carrots into matchsticks, or coarsely grate. Tip into the dressing bowl with the cabbage and shredded coriander and toss together until everything is well coated. Season to taste with the remaining lime juice.

5. Split open the hot dog rolls. Halve the fish fingers and divide them between the rolls, sandwiching with a little slaw, the pickled onions and coriander leaves. Serve with the chips and more slaw on the side.

Friday: Cauliflower, potato and chorizo cheese

400g baby potatoes, sliced into 1cm-thick slices
1 cauliflower, broken into large florets
400ml semi-skimmed milk
1 vegetable stock cube, made up to 400ml
50g plain flour
140g extra-mature Cheddar, grated
½ hot dog roll, blitzed into crumbs
1 tsp olive oil
8 spicy chorizo slices
For the beans
220g green beans
2 tsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, sliced
1 lemon, zested, ½ juiced
10g fresh basil, leaves picked

1. Boil the potato slices in a large pan for 8 mins, then add the cauliflower and cook for another 4-5 mins. Drain, then tip into an ovenproof dish.

2. Meanwhile, put the milk and stock in a pan and whisk in the fl our. Bring to a simmer, whisking continuously, until thickened. Reduce the heat and simmer for 2 mins. Remove from the heat and stir through most of the Cheddar. Preheat the oven to gas 7, 220°C, fan 200°C.

3. Pour the cheesy sauce over the potatoes and cauliflower. Toss the breadcrumbs with the oil, then scatter over the bake with the remaining cheese and chorizo slices. Bake for 15-20 mins until golden and the chorizo is crisp.

4. Meanwhile, cook the beans for 1-2 mins; drain well. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and fry the garlic for 1-2 mins. Remove from the heat and add the beans, lemon zest and juice, and the basil leaves. Serve with the cauliflower, potato and chorizo cheese.

Shopping list

Head to Tesco.com for a shopping list where you can buy everything you need for this week here.

1 lemon
2 limes
30g pack fresh coriander
30g pack fresh basil
1 garlic bulb
1 red cabbage
1 cauliflower
250g pack baby spinach
2 x 220g packs Redmere Farms green beans
1kg pack Redmere Farms red onions
1.5kg pack Perfectly Imperfect carrots
1kg pack Redmere Farms baby potatoes
500g pot Creamfields Greekstyle natural yogurt
220g pack extra-mature Cheddar
1pt semi-skimmed milk
16-pack spicy chorizo slices
250g pack lean beef steak mince 5% fat
6-pack white hot dog rolls
500g pack Hearty Food Co. spaghetti
1kg pack Grower’s Harvest long grain rice
1kg pack red split lentils
390g tin red kidney beans in chilli sauce
2 x 400g tins Grower’s Harvest chopped tomatoes
500g jar Plant Chef coconut korma sauce
1.5kg pack Hearty Food Co.frozen straight-cut chips

From the storecupboard

Vegetable stock pots, plain flour, olive oil, vegetable oil

 

*Based on a family of four. Total cost is based on online prices at the time of publishing and is subject to change. Dependent on product availability, total basket price online may change due to substitutions.