Survival of the Cheapest

Since I'm finally able to [financially] recover from the holidays, it's no surprise that some other terrors had to occur: a gas bill more than seven times higher than the usual- a minor car accident- a beautiful woman- the list goes on.  Problem is food costs cash as well.  

It's time to cut back, but that doesn't mean I'm going to rob myself nutritionally, or of any flavor.  And let's not forget, I need roughly 3500 calories a day to function properly, and maintain my lifestyle.  I made a bet with my friend that I could survive 5 days, or 10 meals, on $30.  This should be fun.

I'm not travelling, so the plan is to have a hot turkey sandwich with a fried egg and escabeche de cebolla for lunch with fruit (large supply of apples and grapefruits, which are in season).  In case that isn't enough, I'll make a huge batch of hummus, which is nutritional, easy, and economical to do on one's own.  Any extra eggs can be used for omelettes as desired.

For dinner I'm planning chicken noodle soup, scratch meatballs and marinara over linguine, a 'milk and tuna' dish (for Tom), chorizo 'fried' rice, and let's be honest- there will be leftovers to cover the final day.  In a pinch, I still have pesto frozen in my ice cube trays in the freezer, which shouldn't be considered cheating.  The bill to do all these things comes out at $27, and my pantry has a few helping ingredients. 

Soup has to start somewhereNight one- chicken noodle soup.  It's really easy to execute and tastes infinitely better from scratch.  The classic start to the dish is a mire poix- diced carrot, celery, and onion.  I'm not a big celery fan and have no onion, so I'm dicing a carrot and shallots.  A good dice is important so that everything can fit on a spoon.  Don't worry about going all the way to a brunoise, because at the end of the day it's just soup.

While the veggies are sauteeing away, I season the dish with fresh garlic, fennel, pepper, lemongrass, cumin, many chiles (it's cold out!), and little salt.  After a few minutes, it's time to pour in a box of chicken stock and two cups of water.  While the soup simmers away, I cook chicken tenders with basic seasonings.

After 20 minutes I decide to taste the soup- it burns my palette.  Burns in a way, that further consumption is impossible.  I haven't made inedible food in awhile, but we all get overzealous with seasoning from time to time.

I turn the burner down low and run across the street to the market.  I'm a can of coconut milk away from tom kha.  This is the only solution I can think of to cool things off.

Arriving at the store I slow down and try to look cool, but it doesn't matter.  The same shift of people from when I came earlier in the day are still working.  The cashier mouths, "Weren't you just here?"  I loudly whisper "coconut milk" in response as I scurry.  In the farthest aisle lies my goal, but is being blocked by an old lady. 

No time for pleasantries.  I step around her to the side, perpendicular.  She reaches for the top shelf and I take the opportunity to go underneath to the bottom.  Five feet tall, she looks down at me.  I grab my prize and run.  Dollar five and out the door.

Home is still standing when I get back.  I shake the can (product separates when idle) as I walk to save time, then get the can opener for release.  I pour, stir, and taste.  Dish saved.  Would be nice to have some lime or cilantro, but I'm not going back to the store for the third time today.  I bring the soup back to a simmer, add the chicken, and cook the egg noodles.

10 minutes later, I have chicken noodle [coconut] soup.  I hope the next day is easier.

Chicken Noodle Coconut Soup (finally)

In short-

• 1 32 oz box of chicken stock, preferrably low sodium
• 1/2 lb wide egg noodles
• 1/2 lb chicken
• 1 13.5 fl oz can of coconut milk
• 1 large carrot, diced
• 1 large shallot, diced
• 2 serrano chiles, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, diced
• 3 small dried stalks of lemon grass, split
• 2 tbl cumin
• 1 tbl sambal oelek
• 2 tbl fennel seeds, crushed
• 2 cups of water
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Saute carrot, garlic, shallot in oil over medium heat.  Add all seasonings.  Roughly 5 minutes.
2. Add box of broth, water, and coconut milk.  Simmer for 30 minutes.
3. While soup is simmering, cook chicken as desired, or shred precooked chicken from the grocery.
4. Add cooked chicken to the soup.
5. Add noodles to the soup, and cook till al dente, roughly 10 minutes.
6. Garnish with cilantro or lime (optional).
7. Devour.

Comments

[Danny]

Looks like a really good soup. You'd save more money, and have more flavor if you made your own stock :).

Looks like a perfect entry into Cheap Eats if you'd like.

[BOXXX]

Yeah, he may have saved $1 on it, but you also have to count in the time factor of making the stock....also keep in mind the goal of the bet was not to spend as little as possible, but just to keep the expenses under $30....

[Aashay Desai]

Heck yes, more "on a budget" posts plz.

[Joie de vivre]

Mike, I love your writing style. To equate a beautiful woman to a terror is hilarious. I'm glad your soup turned out well. I'll just take your word on it.

[The Terror]

Very hilarious....
:)

[Desmone007]

I like your blog a lot...we all gotta create our own economic stimulus plan. Ha!
I would like to introduce you to www.foodista.com - the cooking encyclopedia everyone can edit - and invite you to link your blog to foodista-related pages using our small embeddable widgets. Learn more here: www.foodista.com/static/blogger%20tools. This is a great way to build traffic and connect with other food lovers! Also feel free to share your recipes and tips with us! Thanks.

[Chef E]

Yikes...after reading my test results from something that has plagued me for a while now, I should do that...but I would be living on quinoa...and some salsa... I wanted to tell you that I made the red in my cafe...cook that, and add ingredients afterward like cilantro, onion, and stuff it makes a sufficient meal without meats, but make sure you eat veggies :) (the mom comes out in me!) Oh you meet a girl, hmmmmm, inspiration

[Chef E]

after reading other comments (something I should do before commenting) I now wonder if my words were appropriate...I do love the writing styl, food recipes and why I come back!

[T. Marnell]

These posts are keeping me enraptured. Keep up the good work.