Frugal Recipe #1

Frugal Recipe #1

Cooking for yourself is an oft discussed path to cost savings. But, shopping and cooking takes time. Lots of it. And as a frugal MBA you are going to have serious demands on every second of your day. That’s the case if you are applying to programs, in school, or changing the world, degree in hand.

Never fear—there’s a way to have satisfying, healthy, economical meals that won’t take a ton of time. The answer is cooking many servings at once and then storing them. So the first step is to purchase some reliable freezer containers that will stand the test of time. I recommend these: http://tinyurl.com/42pewmn.

The guiding principles of these recipes are: 1) delicious; 2) healthy; and 3) inexpensive on a per serving basis. Here’s the first (more to come):

Ingredients

Six potatoes

Four onions

Eight carrots

Eight celery stalks

One bunch swiss chard (or kale)

Four vegetable bullion cubes

One bunch spinach

Eight cloves of garlic (or 3 tbsp of Trader Joe’s chopped garlic)

Three tbsp olive oil

Two tsp cinammon

Three cups lentils (chana dal preferred, not required)

Steps

Dice the carrots, celery, onions, and potatoes.

Heat olive oil in pan.

Add vegetables and cook for 5-7 minutes on high heat.

Add 16 cups of water and four buillion cubes .

Heat until water is simmering.

Add lentils and turn heat to simmer.

Let vegetable/lentils simmer for 30 minutes.

Rinse and chop greens.

Add greens to stew. Cook for another 5 minutes.

You can continue cooking the lentil stew until it reaches your desired consistency.

Add cinnamon.

Stir and serve.

Variations

There are many variations on this recipte. For more of an Indian flavor you can add a few tablespoons of Curry Powder. You can also garnish with yogurt and cilantro. You can also use a hand blender if you like your foods mushy like yours truly. It is definitely a recipe that can be personalized. Make sure to update the posting with your preferred variations.