By mid-December we know for a fact we’ll be poorer and more pitiful than Tiny Tim. Ok, fine maybe we shouldn’t have spent all our money on prosecco, novelty Christmas jumpers and all the rides at Winter Wonderland, but ‘tis the season to be jolly and all that. Tricky thing is we’d promised our housemates a Christmas Dinner with all (well, most) of the trimmings and there’s only a tenner left…
But wait! The nice people at MySupermarket.co.uk check every supermarket for prices, like constantly, and the good news is, a roast turkey dinner can totally be yours.
Here’s how:
First, decide on your meat. Personally I feel like turkey comes but once a year, so you should have it. Your budget isn’t going to stretch to a big old bird though, so shop around for a boned-out joint – I was impressed with Iceland’s Frozen Easy Carve Boneless Basted Turkey Breast Joint and almost fell off my chair when I learnt it was £2.89. If you’re not such a traditionalist, or if you’re really set on having a whole bird then you’re going to have to compromise and go with a chicken, and a cheap one at that ☹.
It’s Christmas, so tart your bird up with some streaky bacon. Criss-crossing a few rashers across the top will prevent any nasty dryness (which turkey is very prone to) and will add lots of flavour. After seeing a programme on how poorly non-British piggies are sometimes treated, I’m very careful to buy British bacon only now – so the Aldi bacon I’ve mentioned below is a good option. You’ll have some left over too, either for a hangover brekkie the next day, or just pimp your sprouts with some lovely little porky niblets.
Cook your meat according to the pack instructions (probably about 1 ½ hours for this Iceland number), and you’ll then want to get your potatoes in. I’ve picked out these Aldi Potatoes in Goose Fat, as whilst it is more economical to buy whole loose potatoes, the goose or duck fat which makes a Christmas roast so yum is usually about £2.50 a go and look, we’ve got bills to pay dontcha know?!
Halfway through cooking, it will be time to put your pigs in blankets in the oven. Now’s a good time to baste your meat (aka spoon some of the cooking juices over the top of the turkey) and shuffle the potatoes around a bit so they all crisp up nicely.
Your budget doesn’t stretch to DIY cranberry sauce, but if you like you can sex up the readymade stuff by heating it gently in a pan along with the dregs of any port / sloe gin / mulled wine / even red wine at a push. Put it in a nice bowl and pretend you made it.
Bread sauce is a must at any Christmas table and no measly £10 budget is going to stop me. Make your own for not much at all by stirring the crumbs of a stale slice of bread into melted butter and lots of double cream on a low heat and seasoning with cloves, bay leaf and nutmeg (then fish them all out) if you’ve got a well-stocked free pantry. If not, mix a Schwartz packet with a bit of milk and you’re good to go for 50p.
You’re almost there now. Take a look at your meat and if the juices are running clear, take it out to rest in a warm place for 10 mins or so covered in foil. This will improve the cheap meat significantly. Also, you can then drain the juices from it and mix with some cheat’s gravy granules, or a stockpot/cube made up and a tablespoon of flour (do this, it’s so much better).
Finally, prep your sprouts by peeling away a few of the outer leaves and making a little cross on the stalky bit. They’ll take around 5-10 minutes on a rolling boil to cook. DON’T OVERCOOK THEM, they’ll be rank. Drain and dress them with a bit of butter and crisped up bacon.
Take everything else out of its warm place or oven and serve immediately.
Shopping list:
Iceland Frozen Easy Carve Boneless Basted Turkey Breast Joint £2.89
Schwartz Luxury Bread Sauce 50p
Tesco 12 Pigs in Blankets £2
Aldi Bramwells Cranberry Sauce 65p
Aldi Specially Selected Roast Potatoes in Goose Fat £1.29
Brussels Sprouts £1
Aldi Ashfield Farm Dry Cured 12 British Streaky Bacon Rashers £1.59
= £9.92
Store cupboard:
Stock cube / stockpot
Flour
Butter
Milk
Port (optional)
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Follow Jo on Twitter @JoEatsLondon
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.