Sesame Chicken Stir Fry (Sainsbury's Experiment Night 10)

Sesame Chicken Stir Fry
(from Sainsbury's)
Serves: 2
Per Serving:410cals; 15g fat

Ingredients
1 tbsp cornflour
1 egg white
2 skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced
2 tbsp sesame seeds
for frying sunflower oil
1 x 270g pack oriental vegetable stir fry
a splash each of soy sauce and toasted sesame oil

Method
1. Whisk the cornflour and egg white until smooth, then toss with the chicken to coat.
2. Remove and toss with the sesame seeds. Heat a shallow layer of oil in a nonstick pan and fry the chicken for about 5 minutes until cooked and golden all over. Set aside.
3. Tip off most of the oil and cook the vegetables according to pack instructions.
4. Return the chicken to the pan.
5. Season with the soy sauce and sesame oil. (Good with rice or noodles.)

Note: Our chicken was substituted by Sainsbury's, so instead of the chicken breasts, we were given chicken tenders. These worked out really well, because I didn't need to slice up chicken or anything. I just had to dredge, coat, and cook.

We also added an extra yellow onion and a courgette (zuchinni), because I like to have my vegetables be the main attraction on dishes like this. I also made some basmati with egg rice for my husband to eat with this and he LOVED it.

This dish was easy, delicious, and we will definitely be cooking it again.

Punchy Pork Chilli (Sainsbury's Experiment Night 9)

Because Ray was working late tonight, I decided to switch to the Punchy Pork Chili over the Meatball Casserole. I know Chilli reheats alright, so that I could eat at a normal time and not 10:30-11PM at night!!!

Punchy Pork Chilli
Serves: 4
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients
1 x 475g British Freedom Food endorsed pork mince.
1 Lime
1 Onion
1 x 500g pack Easy cook rice
1 x 390g Carton chopped tomatoes
1 x 420g tin basics red kidney beans
1 tsp Hot chilli powder

1 TBSP ground cumin

1 chopped garlic clove or 1/2 tsp minced garlic (if you like garlic, I suggest adding 1 TBSP)

250ml Vegetable or Beef Stock (8 fl oz, a little over a cup.. I think a cup would work out just fine)

Method
1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a frying pan.
2. Add 1 peeled and chopped onion and 1 peeled and chopped clove garlic and cook until softened. 3. Add 1 x 475g pack pork mince and 1 teaspoon hot chilli powder and cook for 5 minutes, until light brown.
4. Add 1 x 420g tin basics red kidney beans, drained, and 1 x 390g carton chopped tomatoes
5. Reduce the heat and add 250ml vegetable or beef stock, made with 1 stock cube. Simmer for 30-40 minutes.
6. Turn off the heat, then squeeze in the juice of 1 lime and stir.
7. Meanwhile, cook 200g rice following pack instructions.
8. Serve with the chilli, sprinkled with grated Cheddar or sour cream.

First, I would just like to point out the gimmick of these cheap recipes. TONS OF NOODLES/RICE!!! What my friend hates to call "CARBS"!!! That drives me INSANE!!! It really makes you feel horrible, because you don't feel like you're getting enough vegetables and other healthy things. Its just lots of grains and starches.

With that realization made, I'd like to say this was okay for a quick chili. I was shocked to see that there was no Cumin in the recipe!!! I added it, because you can't make chilli without Cumin! And, in the end, it was pretty good. Doesn't make much, unless you want some chilli with your rice (instead of some rice with your chilli). I'd double the recipe for more than 3 people. There also isn't alot of sauce with the recipe, so if you like a more saucy, thick chilli, this is not the chilli for you. You can eat it without rice, too. You can use noodles if you prefer. But it was delicious on its own and you won't feel all stodgy from the starches.

And as a final note, I don't know why it's "punchy". There is hardly any heat, so add more spice if you want some REALLY punchy chilli or add some chillis.

Oriental Pork Noodles (Sainsbury's Experiment Night 8)

For those of you who don't know, I have been getting these recipes off of Sainsburys.co.uk. If I use another site, I will link it. So I haven't made any of these up, they are recommended as cheap, quick meals by the grocery store website. That also means that the ingredients are sometimes certain brands, so work with what you have at home.


Oriental Pork Noodles
Serves 4
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5-7 minutes

You will need:
500g British diced pork,
4x65g packs basics instant chicken noodles,
500g basics vegetable stir fry,
500g black bean stir fry sauce
(items from your store cupboard: olive oil, salt and pepper)

Method
1. Cook 4 x 65g packs of basics instant chicken noodles, following pack instructions.
2. Meanwhile, in a hot wok, stir-fry 500g diced pork with 1 tablespoon olive oil for 4–5 minutes. Ensure the pork is thoroughly cooked, season with salt and pepper and remove.
3. Add a 500g bag of basics stir-fry vegetables to the wok with a little water and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
4. Add a 500g jar of black bean stir-fry sauce and combine with the noodles. Add the pork and heat through until piping hot. Serve immediately.

This dish was really disappointing. There was no flavor. The sauce was immediately soaked up by everything in the dish. And it doesn't have a good reheat quality about it, because of the noodles. I just couldn't believe how flavorless it was. We added Chinese 5 Spice at the end, just so it wasn't bland vegetables with bland meat with bland noodles. Don't think we're going to cook this again.

Savoury Sausage Bake (Sainsbury's Experiment Night 7)

Week 2 is looking promising with some really quick and easy meals that helped to cut the corners. Our first night I am a bit nervous about, because I think I am confusing pork sausages with breakfast sausages. I'm not sure if that makes sense or not, but I'm just worried about the meat in the dish. The rest sounds delish.

Savoury Sausage Bake
Serves 4
Cook time: 15 minutes
Prep time: 30 minutes

You will need:
400g Taste the difference ultimate pork sausages (or flavored pork sausage of your choice)
300g basics broccoli (chopped up broccoli)
250g Be good to yourself mozzarella (2 fresh mozz ball)
500g penne
390g chopped tomatoes with basil & oregano
(Items from your store cupboard: cooking oil).

Method
1. Grill a pack of Taste the difference ultimate pork sausages (refer to pack for cooking instructions) and cut each one into four pieces.
2. In an ovenproof dish, mix the sausage pieces with cooked penne, a carton of chopped tomatoes and cooked broccoli.
3. Top with sliced mozzarella and bake for 20 minutes at 200c, fan 180c, gas 6, or until the cheese is melted, for an easy dinner.

What a homerun with this meal! Granted, the pasta was a bit overwhelming compared to the amount of the other ingredients, but the dish was absolutely delicious! This is definitely one we will cook again. Quick, easy, delicious AND there were leftovers, so the happiness will continue at lunch tomorrow!