Do you frugalize your recipes? How?

**Judi Dial** · 09-02-2010, 10:32 AM

DH and I have decided that for a variety of reasons (it will give us an extra $200 to pay down the debt, for one) that we're going to deliberately use up part of our stockpile in the next 2 months. Part of my reasoning is that the best time of year to buy many staples is around the holidays...and I simply don't have any storage available right now!

Along that line, I went looking to decide what to make for lunch/dinner. We had 2 eggplant and a zucchini that needed to be used, the usual summer tomatoes, etc. So I decided to make a large batch of ratatoulli. I found a "summer's end ratatoulli recipe that used ingredients I had (mostly) and so I printed it out.

When I was starting the recipe I realized that the person who'd written it had you cooking each of the veggies separately in 2T olive oil, then putting them in a 2nd pot and cooking the next veggie. NO WAY am I going to do that. For one thing, the estimate of how much olive oil you'd use from the author was 1/2C and DH and I are both in our 50s, there's no way I'll use that much fat in a recipe. I'm also not that patient; I don't want to wash 2 pots, AND I added more veggies that they didn't have listed because I need to use them up: celery and corn mostly. Also I added a can of tomatoes/basil from the pantry.

When I thought about it, this is what I did:

1-used what I had to, no matter what the recipe said (1 more eggplant, the celery, the corn, and the can of tomatoes)

2-modified the method of cooking somewhat to minimize the amount of time I was standing in front of the stove and the pots/pans I'd have to wash (I sauted the onions/garlic with the largest chunks of eggplant. Then everything but the corn and the pepper (already cooked) was thrown in the pot with some added water. The pot is simmering while I type this.

3-I automatically filled the tomato can from our drinking water spigot in such a way that it washed down the remaining tomato pulp in the can. That tomato juice is what I added to compensate for the extra olive oil (liquid) I didn't use.

So that's the kind of thing I do. What do you do?

Judi

**Ceashels** · 09-02-2010, 10:52 AM

-I do the can thing when adding water to a dish.
-There are lots of substitutions in my dishes and most of them are veggie related.
-Depending on the recipe and how I want things to "finish" I will strain (leaves the oil and juices behind) cooked ingredients from pot to bowl then add again later. I only add more oil if it is needed.
-I also substitute less expensive cuts of meat or poultry for the protein.

**nuisance26** · 09-02-2010, 11:04 AM

-I do a lot of what you do!

~Use a "lower" grade meat or cheaper ingredient. I usually use $1.69lb London Broil instead of $4lb stew meat for beef stew. Sweet potatoes or carrots can stand in for pumpkin.
~Omit ingredients. I'm always leaving out "a can of" mushrooms, water chestnuts, olives, etc.
~Make the mix. I don't buy "cream of" soup. Or gravy mix. Or Bisquick. These are much cheaper to make from pantry ingredients.
~Reduce ingredients. I always cut the sugar and salt in half when trying a new recipe. I also reduce chocolate chips, nuts, butter, oil, cheese, etc. Just experiment until it's too little and bump the amount up a bit.
~Use one pan/dish/tool/cooking implement. I'll boil pasta in one pan and drain in a colander. Then use the same pan for tomato or cheese sauce. Why dirty two pans? I also try to fill the oven if I need to bake something in it. So if I make a roast I'll also make baked apples and a dessert at the same time. Spend a second thinking of the best order for cutting/prepping ingredients to save on washing your tools. I may start prep by cutting bread cubes, then apples, then carrots, then celery, then potatoes, then onions. I'd have to get out another set of tools if I went from onions to apples. I also prep a lot of ingredients at one time and freeze them. Less work and tools to wash later!

**Judi Dial** · 09-02-2010, 11:16 AM

Hmm. Didn't mention this: I don't cook with salt & pepper. I like a lot more salt that DH does; he likes a lot more pepper than I do. Rather than fiddling with trying to figure it out, we just salt/pepper our food at the table.

Along the lines of the cutting things order above (thanks!) I have been known to look at a recipe and figure the smallest measuring spoon needed and using that for everything: dry to wet ingredients, largest to smallest (not too hard if you know that 3t = 1T).

I use 2 chicken thighs frequently when 1 chicken breast is called for.

I buy soup on sale or make it from scratch!

Judi

**shoiji** · 09-02-2010, 12:11 PM

I do this frequently, especially when there is food I am allergic to. I just leave it out of the recipe.

Thanks to FV I have learned I can use yogurt instead of sour cream or milk in recipes. No reason to go out and buy something extra.

**Josephhgoins** · 09-02-2010, 12:20 PM

I sub white sauce for cream soup. I will frequently cut the amount of meat in half or down by a third and will add beans to compensate when I can. I always use my canned tomatoes. I will frequently use old buttermilk or sour milk for sweet milk in cakes and breads. If only a small amount of cream or canned milk is needed I will use whole milk. I use garlic oil that I make or granulated garlic in lieu of whole garlic depending on how I can incorporate it in the recipe. I will sometimes use Blackstrap molasses in lieu of regular molasses if a recipe calls for a small amount (Blackstrap has a remarkably more sharp taste but if you can find it, it's half the price) I will sub Bread Flour for A/P flour as I buy bread flour in 25 lb bags at Sams for a little of nothing. I use self rendered lard in lieu of butter or shortening when I have it. (I just keep the fat off of pork in the freezer and when I get enough I render it)

I always sub the herbs I like for whatever a recipe calls for.

**Darlene** · 09-02-2010, 03:16 PM

You've worked hard to frugalize your recipe, now don't waste food. Have a plan for leftovers. Know what's in your freezer and especially your refrigerator & plan around that. No real reason to throw food out ever with careful planning.
Don't be afraid to substitute or omit some ingredients while cooking. Baking on the other hand is a more precise. Go online to see what substitutes you can make, others have done a lot of figuring already and the info is out there for you to glean.

Store brands are often not only cheaper but taste just as good as the more expensive ingredients.